In the first six months of the 2020-21 financial year the Solar Homes program will have 33,500 rebates available in total for owner-occupiers, community housing and renters. Rebates and new values from 1 July are set out in the new Notice to Market, with rebate values dropping slightly.

Similar to the previous rebate value decrease:

• Any existing quotes with an effective date prior to 1 July 2020 that do not have an active application will expire at the close of business on 30 June 2020. This includes any draft quotes.
• Customers who attempt to retrieve an expired quote from 1 July, will not be able to do so unless you requote to reflect the solar PV rebate reducing to $1,850 or the battery rebate reducing to $4,174 from 1 July 2020.
• Retailers will be able to upload new quotes for 2020-21 or requote to reflect the new rebate value from Saturday 27 June.
• If your customer intends to apply for a rebate after 1 July, make sure you set the effective date to 1 July or later.

Rebate releases

• Twice-monthly releases will be scheduled between July and December, pro-rated to ensure a steady supply of all rebates throughout the next six months.
• Rebates will be released on the first business day of each month and mid-month for all rebate?types.
• The first release for 2020-21 will happen at 12 noon on Wednesday 1 July.

The minimum released numbers are reflected in the table below, noting that additional rebates may be release as necessary to account for cancelled, expired or ineligible applications.

New Notice to Market requirements from 1 July 2020

In summary, the key additional requirements in the Notice to Market that are mandatory as of 1 July are:

• Solar PV modules – only solar PV modules from Solar Victoria’s Approved PV Module List can be used and they must be from a brand participating in the joint industry and Clean Energy Regulator Solar Panel Validation Initiative.
• WorkSafe prosecution restrictions – solar retailers must have no prosecutions registered with WorkSafe Victoria (or equivalent) in the past three years resulting in a plea of guilty or finding of guilt.
• Valid White Card – holding a valid White Card (CPCCWHS1001 – Prepare to work safely in the construction industry) is already a mandatory requirement for working on any solar installation. See our Training web page for details about how to complete this unit free of charge.
• E-waste –the Victorian Government’s ban on e-waste to landfill has been a requirement since 2019 and solar businesses should be ensuring compliance in disposing correctly of any e-waste produced.

Program requirements coming up in the new financial year

• Mandatory training – solar workers will need to complete the unit VU22744 Work safely in the solar industry by 31 December 2020. Complete this free unit of study as early as possible, to secure a fully-funded place – see our Training web page for details.
• Retailers portal update  – a new audit section will be added to the Solar Homes Program retailer portal to allow retailers to track rectifications that are identified in audits.
• Mandatory requirements for payment – as of 1 August 2020, retailers will need to ensure they are supplying correct documentation in order to receive payment.

How a Tesla Powerwall installation in Gisborne reduced costs and gave grid independence. Andrew purchased a house in Gisborne and realised that his heating and was too reliant on the grid.

The issue:

• Country location – Gisborne
• Electricity charges $150 per month
•  LPG charges $180 per month

The Solution:

• 7.5 kW Solar coupled with a Tesla Powerwall2 and Powerdiverter

The result:

• House 85% self-powered for the year
• Total energy bill for 2018 was $464 ($38 average per month)

Let’s hear it in Andrew’s own words.

Around two years ago we moved to a new home approx. 50km from Melbourne in a town called Gisborne. The house has 4 bedrooms, large living space and was built in the early 1980s. It’s approx. 2kms out of town on 1.5 acres and is not connected to the town gas supply. The existing hot water is electric, heating was bottled LPG and cooling was an old ducted refrigerated AC. As it stood, the house was expensive to run and had a massive reliance on fossil fuels.

Having installed a small solar system on our previous house, I quickly planned to install solar on the new home and move to be as self-sufficient as possible.

Solar System Installed

Within a couple of months of moving in, a 7.5kw solar system was installed. We also installed a Powerdiverter unit to divert excess solar production to the electric hot water service. A split system AC was installed in the living space and we stopped using the existing LPG heater. Soon after, an order for a Tesla Powerwall2 was placed.

After a 3 month wait, the Powerwall2 arrived in early November 2017. This has enabled our house to be >99% self-powered from early September to mid May and 85% self-powered for the year.

In May 2018, the old ducted gas/refrigerated AC was replaced with a 14kw Fujitsu ducted unit. This enabled the whole house to be heated/cooled.

Gisborne is located at an elevation of approx. 430m and has temperatures from a low -4°C in Winter to >40°C in Summer. The average overall temperature for June-August is 8°C.

Hot water costs

Hot water is approx. 30-40% of our total energy usage with heating/cooling and pool pumps the other major consumers. The only non-electric appliance is our gas cook top. This runs of bottled LPG with a 45kg bottle lasting approx. 2 years.

It costs approx. $1.10 to be connected to the grid each day. Currently we receive $0.099 per kwh feed-in and during the summer months this is enough to offset the grid connection charges. Our total energy bill for 2018 was $464 (grid connection and usage charges). As a comparison, before the solar Powerwall reverse cycle was installed, our electricity charges were $150 per month plus $180 per month in LPG to heat the living space during the colder months.

Screenshots of stats from the Tesla app.

A good friend of mine who’s pretty handy knocked up a script to pull data from the Powerwall API and push this up to PV Output. This has the advantage of tracking state of charge over time. In the future I would like to use the API data to automate the running of pool pumps and other appliances.

Here’s a basic overview of how everything is connected.

When it comes to making decisions about a PV system, one of the most common decisions a system owner has to make is whether to choose a micro inverter or a string inverter. SB Solar Battery is best placed to understand the difference between each of these products and technologies, and provide the product best suited to each specific application.

Tricky System Installs

For system installs on tricky roof structures, or where sub-sections of a PV array need to be separated or installed on different orientations, a micro inverter can represent the simplest and lowest cost system. Since micro inverters are AC coupled and individually track their PV module’s maximum power point, they are more flexible in how and where they can be installed compared to DC coupled PV panels and a string inverter.

Performance & Shading

Under normal unshaded conditions, a string inverter will typically offer the lowest cost and greatest energy yield. For varying degrees of partial shading of the PV array, a micro inverter can offer slightly higher performance (~1 – 4%).

Under normal un-shaded conditions, a correctly sized string inverter system will typically outperform a correctly sized micro inverter system by ~0.5%. Micro inverters are able to reduce some very small losses such as DC cabling and any module mismatch, but they have a lower operating efficiency. Put together, this means string inverter systems will typically outperform micro inverter systems in normal un-shaded conditions.

Upgrading to a 5kW Enphase solar system for a Tesla Battery installation. Call me for your solar install and battery backup.

Solar and Batteries

Now you can finally take control of your power! A typical solar system will only let you use your power when the sun is out. Unfortunately for most of us, we are not home during the day and thus it is wasted by going into the grid. Solar Battery Services have teamed up with some of the world’s most exciting energy products to give you the best possible Solar Battery installation.

5 kW Solar in Glenlyon

When it comes to installing a solar system, there are many things that need to be considered. For example, if you are living in some of the country areas around Bendigo you will need the approval from Powercor to have anything installed on their grid. A perfect example of this was with a couple who recently applied to have a 5kW solar system installed on their property in Glenlyon. All seemed ok as they felt they had filled in the paperwork properly and submitted it on time.

Solar system declined by Powercor

However, Powercor decided that the install was not right for the area and declined it totally. That meant they could have no solar at all. The assessment that Powercor had made was of the area in general and not of the actual property. This is normal as they have many assessments and do not always physically get out to every property.

Disappointed they contacted us to see if we could help. We had visited the property and being experienced in assessing the probability of solar systems we thought we better intervene. We approached Powercor on behalf of our customer and insisted that they visit the property to get a better assessment. After our conversation with Powercor they agreed to do so.

Ask for an on-site inspection

When they got out there they not only realised that the property was ok for solar but they fully approved the 5kW system. Which just goes to show sometimes companies are too busy to see the full picture. As we are always visiting our customers we will take the time to make sure that the property is fit for a solar installation. As for dealing with Powercor, well that just takes experience and asking the right questions to the right people to get the desired result.

 Happy builder with happy and safe clients

Tesla installation with Solar Edge

When building a new home on some of the newer estates the electricity grid may not be as stable as it is in the inner suburbs. When Castlemaine builder Warren Hughes had a contract to build a new home in Taradale, a little town on the Calder highway between Melbourne and Bendigo, this became abundantly clear.

Warren Hughes builders called us and said that his new homeowners were concerned that the electricity supply may interrupt their daily activities and asked us for a solution. He said to us that he trusted our knowledge on this type of application as we had done off grid installs before. Although in this case, it was an on-grid installation. We still had the right knowledge to suggest the best solution for his client. And that was a Solar Battery hybrid installation

Hybrid Electrical

A hybrid electricity situation is when the electricity supply is connected to the grid but other elements are added (such as Solar, Batteries, Wind etc.) to give a more stable supply.

Having this trust, he insisted that we talk directly to his customer without him being involved. This was an ideal situation for him as he could then get on with doing what he does best, knowing that we will be doing what we do best. And that is Solar Battery solutions.

As mentioned in an earlier story we met with the soon-to-be house owners and we talked about what they really wanted. It is important for us to have this conversation as we want to know what they are thinking and really trying to achieve. They said that in a situation of fire or disaster they wanted to have stable communication. What this conversation established was that they were afraid of was being isolated and shut off with no communications and more importantly, no water pumps.

Now another thing was that they were on a 2-phase electrical grid. Thus, in this case, some appliances were on phase one and others were on phase two. Both phases had to have back up.

SolarEdge and Powerwall

Our solution was to have 2 SolarEdge 5000 inverter chargers and 2 Tesla batteries that are capable of 6.5kW hours each (one for each phase).  With 10kW of solar on the roof, the solar edge units can control the system and make sure the batteries are charged for when they are needed.  Here’s a video explaining the system in more detail. 

Happy builder with happy and safe clients

The outcome was that the house was built and the unstable grid was fully backed up by the solar battery system. More importantly, the builder had shown his clients that there was more to a house than the structure. It is the home and protection that the house gives that is so important.

$8 electricity bill

“Sometimes the way to the best results is to start small”. A perfect example of this is Heather Harkis one our customers from Castlemaine. What Heather wanted to achieve was a way to reduce her electricity bills which were starting to bite into her single income existence. Heather started her solar experience a few years ago, with a small 1.5kW system on the roof of her single occupant unit.

After a few years of reaping the rewards she decided that she liked what she had and was starting to look for something more. Heather came along to one of our Solar and Battery information nights in Castlemaine in March 2016. In this session, we gave information and talks about the newer technology in the solar industry such as the Enphase battery storage system.

She liked what she saw, especially the Enphase battery module. With the Enphase battery module, you can start as small as you like. A lot of solar battery systems will work best with a larger solar array (solar panels on the roof) and thus will often make it harder for people with small systems to get any value out of the batteries. The Enphase is different because it has individual module technology that allows you to have bite size solar power. We call this a micro inverter system. Even if you have a larger solar system you do not have to have the batteries to match it fully. You can start small and build when you are ready.

Heather took the information from the night and thought about it for a while. She then gave us a call with only one question in mind. If I only have a small 1.5kW solar system what size Enphase battery module can I have?

We went out to meet her in her small unit to see what she had installed. That’s another great thing about the Enphase modules we weren’t even the original installers of her existing system, but it allowed us to fit it to what she already had. No need to install new solar just retrofit what is there. We installed a 1.2kW Enphase battery module.

First Enphase solar battery installed in Castlemaine

This battery module has lithium iron technology which allows you to cycle them twice a day. This means Heather can charge the batteries from the solar during the day and use the power from the batteries when she wants to. For example, at breakfast and dinner times, when electricity usage is higher. Not only is she saving electricity use she is using it when she wants to. Now that’s taking control.

I recently took a phone call from Heather and she told me she was so excited when she received her electricity bill. “$8 that was all”. So, with Heather the old saying of “start small and build” really worked. It may have taken too much out of her spending if she did it all at once. But by getting the solar first and saving from that she could use that money to get a better result. Well done Heather!

New home and stable grid

Tesla installation with Solar Edge

When building a new home, there are often more things to consider than the actual house itself. For example, with some of the newer estates, the electricity grid may not be as stable as it is in the inner suburbs. We recently came across this situation in Taradale, a little town on the Calder highway between Melbourne and Bendigo. Where local builder Warren Hughes was building a new home for one of his clients.

Warren called us and said that he is building a home on a place where the owners were concerned that the electricity supply may interrupt their daily activities and asked us for a solution. I met with the builder and we talked about what they really wanted. They said that in a situation of fire or disaster they wanted to have stable communication. Simple things that we all may take for granted like; the radio to hear for alerts and warnings, the internet to keep up to date with information sites. They also had electric water pumps that in case of an emergency would keep working. What I believe they were afraid of was being isolated and shut off.

2 phase electrical grid

Now another thing was that they were on a 2-phase electrical grid. Thus, in this case, some appliances were on phase one and others were on phase two. Both phases had to have back up.

Our solution was to have 2 SolarEdge 5000 inverter chargers and 2 Tesla batteries that are capable of 6.5kW hours each (one for each phase). With 10kW of solar on the roof, the solar edge units can control the system and make sure the batteries are charged for when they are needed. Here’s a video explaining the system in more detail.

Happy customer

The outcome was that the house was built and the unstable grid was fully backed up by the solar battery system. More importantly, the owners of the new house were very pleased and extremely happy that it was a Tesla Battery.

Sun still shining on solar power

Tom O’Callaghan

Bendigo Advertiser

30 Nov 2016

Central Victorian solar-system suppliers are hoping new technology will help the sector stay competitive when lucrative feed-in tariffs are scrapped at the end of the year.

Changing the feed in tariff

From New Year’s Day more than 67,000 Victorians will lose a tariff paying them a minimum of 25 cents per kilowatt-hours for excess energy sold back into the grid.

Many Victorians will also lose a ‘one for one’ tariff. This allowed them to trade their solar energy for grid power at night when the sun was not shining.

From 1 January electricity retailers will pay a minimum of 5 cents per kWh for excess energy sold into the grid.

SB Solar Battery Services manager Stephen Breheny said many people were looking at ways to bypass the grid and store their own power.

“It’s gone to the point where people are saying (installing a solar system) is not going to be cost effective unless they also install a battery system,” he said.

Information night in Castlemaine

To inform the public of their options Mr. Breheny organised an information session in Castlemaine. This session had information on new batteries products including a Tesla battery capable of storing half some household’s daily energy output.

He said people would also be able to see Tesla’s new Model S electric car, which could be recharged overnight from energy captured in solar batteries.

The information session was held at the Castlemaine Town Hall on Thursday 1st December.