Posts By Ronald Brakels, Author & Fact-Checker At SolarQuotes

Another Solar Myth Busted: No, Solar Panels Do Not Warm The Planet

Myth busted: Solar panels heat the planet

Recently, I’ve noticed a number of solar myths coming back to haunt the comments section of this blog. Here’s the latest one:

“Those black solar panels actually heat the planet by increasing the amount of energy the earth absorbs from the sun?  Ha! You never thought of that did you!”

[Read more…]

Prepare For Even More Electricity Price Hikes

Electricity price increases - Australia

It’s October and Australia’s wholesale electricity price crisis has entered its sixth month.  Massive retail electricity price hikes in the eastern states are becoming more likely (from July 2023).  These could exceed 10 cents per kilowatt-hour. 

This post is a quick update on the current situation, followed by a short whinge. [Read more…]

Fronius Wattpilot: A Smart EV Charger With A Short Warranty

Fronius Wattpilot review

The Fronius Wattpilot finally launches in Australia

I have good news if you want to charge an electric vehicle with Austrian technology. Fronius Australia launched their Wattpilot EV charger last week.  Last week we were told it would be available here “in a couple of weeks”.  A surprisingly imprecise period of time, given they are Austrian. [Read more…]

Synergy’s Midday Saver Tariff: Home Batteries Can Pay in WA

Synergy midday saver tariff and home batteries

If you live in Perth, or within a four-hour drive, I have some good news.  Synergy has changed its residential time-of-use tariff to 8 cents per kilowatt-hour for grid electricity from 9am to 3pm.  They’ve also changed its name to “Midday Saver”. [Read more…]

Wholesale Electricity Price Crises Continue — More Hefty Hikes Likely

Electricity price rises in Australia

Australia’s wholesale electricity price crisis is in its fifth month.  This ongoing disaster began in April and really took off in May, June, and July.  It continued through August, but the crisis wasn’t as crisisy as the previous three months. [Read more…]

Here’s Why EV Batteries Are Cheaper & More Reliable Than Home Batteries

EV vs home batteries

EV Battery Packs Have It Easy Compared To Home Batteries 

It has been two weeks since I laid down the heavy news that out of the 26 home batteries given a whirl by the Canberra Battery Test Centre, only two worked as they should without suffering a fault or excessive capacity deterioration.  This sad news has caused some people to wonder if electric car battery packs will have similar poor performance. [Read more…]

Origin Loop Virtual Power Plant: $2,000 Bait On A 5-Year Hook

Origin Loop VPP review

Origin Energy’s ‘Origin Loop’ Virtual Power Plant (Loop VPP) pays you to let Origin discharge your battery into the grid, but you must have an Origin retail electricity plan to use it. 

Even though there’s a big dollar incentive up front, I don’t think it’s a good deal overall. In this post, I’ll tell you why I’m not excited about the deal, and hopefully, that will help you decide for yourself whether to sign up. [Read more…]

Canberra Battery Test Centre Final Report: Only 2 Of 26 Batteries Fault-Free

Canberra Battery Test Centre Final Report

For eight years, the Canberra Battery Test Centre lived up to its name and tested batteries. From 2016, they put 26 home batteries through their paces. If I had to sum up the results in a single word, it would be: [Read more…]

Canberra Battery Test Centre Phase 3 Results: Zero Batteries Problem Free

Canberra Battery Test Centre final report

The Canberra Battery Test Centre’s third phase of testing is complete.  In fact, all their testing is now finished.  They have shut up shop and published their final report. [Read more…]

Three Days Of Non-Insane Prices Spark Hope Wholesale Electricity Crisis Is Easing

For four months now, electricity prices in the eastern states have been crazy high. But they’ve cooled down in the last three days to the point where they’re now just high. [Read more…]

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