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“It was an environmental decision”
[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]When David and Pamela’s 10-year-old solar system started failing, they had a big decision to make.
The Brighton couple was paying $2500 a year in power bills even though they were getting a generous feed-in tariff.
This is a common issue with older systems that rely on the first generation of panels.
David and Pamela had two choices: Replace the panels or go to the next level and upgrade to a battery system, which would cut their feed-in tariff.
“We made a decision based on our desire to keep reducing our consumption of grid electricity,” says David.
“It was an environmental decision that suited our long-term aims. The government battery subsidy also made us think we should act now.”
After consulting an ERS solar specialist, they chose a 10kW system with a Tesla 2 battery, perfectly matched to their needs.
“We increased the size of our system and got micro-inverters installed as we have some shade issues on our property,” says David.
Micro-inverters are the best way to get optimal usable power from each panel and are another option ERS discusses with its clients.
David and Pamela heat and cool their house with a reverse-cycle air-conditioner and this is where the battery plays a key role.
“The battery gets us through the main part of the evening in winter when we use the reverse-cycle for heating,” David says. “We rarely use it for cooling in summer.”
So how’s their new system performing?
“Already we are back to not paying bills,” says David. “We were away for six weeks and I could see on my phone-monitoring app that we were pouring huge amounts into the grid. That’s OK. We like the fact it was for the betterment of someone else.”[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]
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