24-03-2026, 12:26 PM
(This post was last modified: 24-03-2026, 12:29 PM by Mike Watterson.)
Our solar system didn't need any law change, certification or approved contractor. It saves money by reducing Grid demand. It has maybe 14kwH of LiFePO4 batteries and 12 main panels. In winter it can charge the batteries from the Grid, thus even in Dec/Jan there is about 12 hours of power for essential services during a power cut. During the summer the Solar UPS can cope with months without grid, inc. overnight. If we had a smart meter we could use the UPS / grid charging feature in winter to move cheap overnight rate to the daytime.
A plug in panel without sufficient battery is a waste. Also selling to the Grid is a poor return and viable for less than 1/2 the year.
The cheap microinverters for a panel that plugs in to the mains are also poor quality and give no power if the grid mains is off.
The panels are cheap. A decent inverter / charger is expensive. The batteries have come down a lot in price and might last 20 years with a daily deep cycle (LiFePO4). Lead Acid, Tesla Powerwalls and Li Ion make no sense,
A plug in panel without sufficient battery is a waste. Also selling to the Grid is a poor return and viable for less than 1/2 the year.
The cheap microinverters for a panel that plugs in to the mains are also poor quality and give no power if the grid mains is off.
The panels are cheap. A decent inverter / charger is expensive. The batteries have come down a lot in price and might last 20 years with a daily deep cycle (LiFePO4). Lead Acid, Tesla Powerwalls and Li Ion make no sense,
