If something seems too good to be true – well, you know how the rest of the saying goes. And this wisdom certainly applies to home batteries.
Solar batteries have become increasingly attractive due to skyrocketing electricity rates and feed-in tariffs less generous than they once were. Self-consumption is the name of the game these days for owners of solar power systems and a home battery can help with that. But at current prices, there’s a significant payback period involved.
Over the past few years, we’ve had quite a few excited/suspicious/curious Australian solar owners ask us for advice on solar battery offers they’ve received in unsolicited letters via snail mail; which is the paper version of email – apparently it’s still a thing.
Home batteries are expensive, so you can imagine how alluring an offer spruiking supply and installation for just a few thousand dollars might be. These snail mail “special offers” can take various forms. Some letters in the past have mentioned the recipient has been selected to participate in a subsidised trial, but that tactic seems to have been dropped.
An example letter I was sent last week was addressed to “The Energy Account Holder”. It offered an “exclusive LiFePO4 solar battery,” solar system and safety check, 5 years on-site service and support, “platinum” 10 year performance and 5 year manufacturer warranty, and full installation from a local accredited battery installer.
“Don’t pay over $10,000 (for a basic battery),” the letter stated. “Get the complete bundle from $3,590”
The letter’s wording sets up some pretty big expectations in my opinion.
What Is LiFePO4?
So, what’s an “exclusive LiFePO4 solar battery”? LiFePO4 isn’t a brand name – it refers to type of lithium-ion chemistry and stands for lithium iron phosphate. This chemistry is also referred to as LFP (lithium ferrophosphate). LiFePO4/LFP is widely regarded as the safest lithium-ion chemistry commonly used in home battery systems; so that’s a good thing.
But what makes this “exclusive” is a head-scratcher.
The Battery
$3,590 for a good quality home battery could be a great deal. But what brand/model of battery is it and how much capacity does it offer?
The fine print on the letter indicated the battery was an Alpha ESS Storion-Smile-B3. Alpha ESS isn’t currently listed on the SolarQuotes recommended home battery chart, but we have quite a few Alpha ESS battery reviews here on SQ from Australian customers who have had them installed by various companies.
As for the capacity of this battery, that wasn’t mentioned anywhere in the letter. But something that was is the offer applied for standard metro based installations only – and the recipient wasn’t in a metro area. The fine print also indicated eligibility and suitability for the product would be assessed on individual circumstances.
To discover more detail meant a phone call or a visit to the company’s web site, and I chose the latter. (More) fine print on the offer page indicated the battery can be scaled from the 2.9kWh primary battery unit1 with the purchase of additional secondary units, up to 17.4kWh.
While not specifically stating so – and it really should – it’s pretty safe to assume the special offer is for a 2.9kWh battery, which is a tiny amount of capacity and not what I’d consider good bang for buck (so to speak). That aside, had the person taken the bait he may have found himself deemed “ineligible” for the offer and subjected to some hard upsell for a larger, more expensive battery system. There are some very recent reports of that happening with these sorts of snail mail deals..
Between this and some other interesting stuff in the terms and conditions, it was enough to make me wary. Every example of these letters I’ve reviewed over the years has left me feeling like I needed to take a shower afterwards.
The Best Way To Buy Solar Batteries
Home battery storage can get pretty complex – and the average person cannot be expected to understand it all. If you’re considering a battery, before signing on any dotted line check out these useful guides that will provide you with exactly what you need to know.
- Understanding solar batteries
- Buying solar battery storage
- Owning a battery system (because it’s good to know before you buy what you should be doing after installation).
When it comes time to getting quotes and rather than rolling the dice, consider using the SolarQuotes quoting service. This no-obligation service will match you with up to three potential installers SQ founder Finn has thoroughly vetted and backs with the Good Installer Guarantee.
Footnotes
- The website stated it was a “Hive” battery, which to the best of my knowledge is just a re-badged Alpha ESS ↩
About Michael Bloch
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Sounds like the same offer I received a few weeks back. It must cost the company a bit to be flooding multiple states with ‘exclusive bundles’ but I suppose they expect to get enough homeowners blindly signing up and up and up to their upsell so as to make money. 🙁
I got one of those and did the same sleuthing as you did, coming to the conclusion that a 2.9kW hour battery was hardly worth the effort, and the $4k outlay (if I was lucky enough to be eligible) would take the best part of 20 years to recover.
I was sceptical about it in the first place (who does snail mail marketing in 2023?) but quickly threw it in the recycle bin.
I had the same letter,and when I rang to enquire found it was for a 2.9 kWh battery. He did also install tesla powerwall battery, which is 13.5kwh for $18 – 20 k.