Check the marketing spin for solar systems

SOLAR energy customers thinking about jumping on the battery bandwagon are being urged to think twice before spending up.

As the number of rooftop solar systems rises strongly – up 11 per cent last year to 2.26 million – energy specialists say the financial benefits stack up better without batteries.

But some solar installation companies are marketing panels and batteries together, with a large rooftop system costing up to $8000 and home batteries up to $13,000.

SolarQuotes CEO Finn Peacock said he had been frustrated that most quotes he saw for solar and battery systems gave one payback figure for the batteries and solar combined.

This meant the benefits of solar alone were not clearly illustrated, so Mr Peacock incorporated separate payback times in a new seasonal energy bill online calculator he has built.

“People might also not realise that solar panels are so cheap now,” he said.

Mr Peacock said average payback times for solar panels were now three to five years, for batteries without subsidies it was 20-plus years, and for states with battery subsidies payback times could be eight to 16 years.

“The gap will narrow,” he said. “Also, battery prices will fall. Although, interestingly, if anything the cost of home batteries has increased over the past two years.”

Matthew Wright installed a large solar system – without a battery – at his home last year after doing the maths to discover it could be paid back in less than three years.

“Our bills are now a gift rather than a burden,” Mr Wright said.

“For example, our last quarterly bill

●Undertake online research and read customer reviews.

●Understand your household energy use and what feed-in tariff retailers will pay you for exporting energy back to the grid.

Speak to an expert about the size and orientation of your roof.

●Go large. If you can get a feed-in tariff better than 12c/kWh, fill your roof with panels because the last few kW are cheap.

●Shop around for a low electricity tariff and high feed-in tariff every year.

Source: SolarQuotes, Origin

in 2018 was $715. In 2019 in the last quarter it was a $553 credit.”

Origin Energy’s general manager of retail sales and marketing, Duncan Permezel, said the majority of its solar system sales did not include batteries.

“While solar systems have come down considerably in price, and the payback period on a solar system is now very short, batteries are still quite expensive and, for many people, the value does not quite stack up yet,” he said.

“The average solar system sold in Australia today ranges between 6kW and 7kW, which will set you back on average between $4000 and $8000 depending on what brand system and inverter you install.”

Mr Permezel said solar panel prices had dropped 40 per cent in five years.

He said households thinking of switching to solar should speak with an expert to check if their home was suitable, then find a business they were confident would be around in the future.

Research had found that up to 52 per cent of solar systems were now “orphaned – their solar retailer no longer exists”, Mr Permezel said.

Emma and Matt Wright, with son Jack, 3, have installed a solar system to reduce their electricity bills. Picture: Mark Brake/AAP Image