“We funded our solar panels and battery via an interest free loan, so the cost was spread over a longer period.”
Judy and Matt bought their home at Killcare Heights in October 2020 with the plan it would eventually become their retirement home. “Whilst we are not ready to retire yet we moved into the home in December 2024 so we can enjoy the Bouddi lifestyle” says Matt. Over the first four years of ownership the house was an investment property for short and long term tenants.
“On purchasing the home, our first decision was to make it as energy efficient as possible, even if we were not yet living there”.
It was already an electrified home with induction cooking, air conditioning and a solar pool heater. Solar hot water heating and solar panels were added in December 2020. In the first bill since moving into the house their net electricity usage cost only $9.50 a month, of which $7.00 was the electric boost on the solar hot water system.
The solar panels were especially important to generate electricity to run the pool pumps and air conditioning. “After two years we decided to add a battery so that the surplus energy produced during the day could be stored and used at night.”
As Matt explains, “we funded the solar panels and battery via an interest free loan facility provided by the installer, so that the cash flow commitment was spread over a longer period. The cash savings have been roughly around the same as the repayments.”
Their battery also provides a backup power source in case of blackout. This has proved very helpful “given the wild weather we occasionally get up here”.
“The app has been really useful to control the battery to keep consumption and bills low” says Matt, “we use it so the battery powers the house at peak tariff time (2 -8 pm), then overnight”.
Judy and Matt’s next sustainability investment will be an EV, ideally with Vehicle to Load capability, so it can store even more of the excess power the panels produce.
Solarhart installed the following for Judy and Matt:
Solarhart panels 10kW (Dec 2020)
Solaredge inverter (Dec 2020)
Solaredge battery 10kWh (March 2023)
Visit our rooftop solar page to find out how easy it is to install solar, along with a list of reliable installers.