Already Have Solar?
Before adding a battery or more panels, find out what your current system is actually doing.
Add a battery
May make sense when you export useful solar during the day and buy significant electricity later.
Add more solar
May make more sense where your current system is too small for your daytime or future energy needs.
Leave it alone
If the existing system is performing well and an upgrade gives poor value, no change can be the right recommendation.
Why can bills still be high with solar?
- High evening or overnight use
- A solar system that is too small
- Higher usage than when the system was installed
- Large daytime exports with a low feed-in tariff
- An EV, pool, air conditioning or other new loads
- An older system that is underperforming
- A tariff that does not suit your usage
What I review
A recent electricity bill, existing solar size, system age, inverter details and photos are a good starting point. From there I can compare whether more solar, battery storage, an inverter upgrade, a system replacement or no change is worth investigating.
You do not need to decide “I want a 20 kWh battery” before the assessment.
EV and backup needs can change the answer
Future EV charging can increase energy needs significantly. Backup requirements also need to be treated separately from everyday savings because keeping a reserve for outages can change how the battery is used.