Self-consumption is the share of your solar generation that is used at the property while the panels are producing. It matters because using solar directly can replace electricity you would otherwise buy from the grid.
What matters most
Solar self-consumption is the solar electricity used at the property while the panels are producing. Understanding when energy is used helps show whether solar, load shifting or a battery may fit the way the property operates.
- Daytime energy use can be supplied directly by solar generation.
- Extra solar may be exported or stored for use later.
- Load timing helps explain which design may suit the property.
Common questions
How can a property use more of its own solar?
Flexible loads can be moved into solar hours where practical, so more solar is used while the panels are producing.
Does every property with exports need a battery?
No. A battery is one option. The later energy use and available surplus solar should be understood first.
A simple way to think about it
If your solar system produces electricity at midday and your home or business is using power at the same time, that solar can supply part of the load. That is self-consumption.
If the solar system is producing more than the property needs, the extra energy is exported. Exported solar can still have value, but it is not the same as avoiding a grid purchase.
Why total solar generation is not the whole story
Two properties can have the same solar system and produce roughly the same amount of energy, but get very different financial results.
A business using machinery through the middle of the day may use a large share of the solar as it is generated. A property that is mostly empty during solar hours may export much more. The panels can perform well in both cases, but the value of the energy can be different.
What can improve self-consumption?
- Running flexible loads during solar hours
- Charging an EV during the day where practical
- Moving electric hot water or pool loads into solar hours where suitable
- Sizing solar around useful energy demand rather than roof area alone
- Using a battery where there is genuine surplus solar and useful later demand
A battery is one way to shift solar
A battery can take some excess solar that would otherwise be exported and make it available later. But that does not mean every property with exports needs a battery.
I also want to know how much electricity is bought later, what the tariff looks like, how much battery capacity can be used regularly, and whether the extra savings are worth the project cost.
Simple example
A business produces 100 kWh of solar during a day and uses 80 kWh of that energy on site. Its self-consumption is high. Another property produces the same 100 kWh but only uses 30 kWh while the solar is being generated. The second property exports much more, so I would look closely at its load timing before recommending the same system strategy.
What I look at in an assessment
- When electricity is used
- How much solar is already being exported
- Daytime and later grid purchases
- Electricity tariff
- Future EVs, machinery or electrification
- Whether storage or load shifting solves a real problem
The goal is not to chase a perfect percentage. It is to understand how the solar will be used and whether the design creates a useful financial result.
Want to look at your own energy use?
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