In the last few years, residential solar energy generation has been growing through the roof. Energy storage, too, has been expanding. We’ve seen battery prices drop by 80% in the last 8 years, making them an affordable investment, with half of the Australian households predicted to adopt a solar system with battery storage solution by 2025. But while you might already know about the benefits of solar panels, those of battery storage might still be a bit fuzzy. So to help you decide, we’ve put together an overview of battery storage benefits and which brand we think is the best one on the market.
Why Do I Need a Battery For My PV System?
Solar panels convert the sun’s energy into electrical energy, which then gets converted to AC energy and feeds your household appliances “in real time”. The job of solar batteries is to store this power for later use instead. Battery storage makes sense if you think about the fact that solar energy production peaks around lunchtime, when the typical family is out and about, at work, school or partaking in activities. With nobody using the electricity generated and no batteries to store it, it just goes to the grid, netting you some 10c/kWh through the buyback scheme. A solar battery, on the other hand, will save this energy for when everybody’s back home and consumption is at its max, sparing you from paying peak tariff to your electricity provider. So by installing batteries, you’re really maximising the potential of your solar panels.
You should be aware that by law grid-connected solar generation must shut down during a power outage, for safety reasons. Even though you have solar panels installed, you’d still be left with no power.
The new Enphase AC Batteries provide an alternative for you. The Battery will kick in and cover your load during a power outage, they will also communicate with your panels, giving you Production and Storage whilst the grid may be down.
What’s the best Battery Storage Solution on the market?
The solar panel battery we recommend is the lithium-ion Enphase AC Battery, a modular storage solution. The Enphase AC Battery is an excellent product requiring a low upfront investment against a 10-year manufacturer’s warranty (which covers 2 cycles per day). It is warranted to have 80% capacity at 10 Years. This product is a seamless all-in-one solution that does not require an inverter, and converts solar energy straight into AC. Enphase batteries are a modular format that allows stackable, plug-and-play installation: you can start small and add more at a later date, without additional fitting costs. What really makes a difference for us, though, is its safety. This product is accident-safe and displays a very low fail rate. In the course of our operation, we’ve installed about 1,000 batteries in Australian homes so far and, to date, only a fraction of a percent have gone out of order.
Battery storage allows you to tap into the full benefit of solar panels. If you’re considering investing in battery storage for either a new or existing solar panel system, Enphase carries the lowest financial investment requirement while guaranteeing an unbeatable lifetime value. Our recommendation is always to invest in a product that has been thoroughly market-tested and is backed by a reputable brand.
