Battery Storage

Typical domestic customers consume less than 50% of the energy generated by their solar array. As such, the solar industry has been frantically searching for ways to enable homeowners to consume more of their generation.
Battery storage solutions allow unused solar energy generated during the day to be stored for use throughout the evening and night via a battery pack. With storage set to boom in 2017, now's the time to learn the facts and assess how battery storage can benefit you and your home.

The more solar energy a user is able to consume, the lower their demand from the grid will be. As a result, further, significant energy savings will be made by installing battery storage.

Adding a battery solution to a new or existing solar array means homes can realistically expect to consume 85% of the energy generated, often more. This extra consumption replaces grid demand in the absence of solar supply or when solar cannot meet full demand.

Replacing demand from the grid and fossil fuel production also provides other benefits.

Customers opting to use more of their solar generation reduce their grid demand and, as a consequence, their carbon emissions. Opting for renewable energy over a carbon alternative is a big advantage for those concerned with protecting their environment and for self-builders looking to pass SAP assessment and attain planning permissions.

With countless battery storage solutions available on the market, systems are designed to meet the individual demand of the customer and their PV system. Battery capacity impacts the most suitable solution, with outputs, peaks and discharge rates all varying.

Most battery systems offer cost-effective, simple installations in the retrofit market, with DC-coupled and AC-coupled solutions available. Customers installing PV at the same time as a battery are likely to have greater flexibility and lower installation costs.

Customers retrofitting battery storage to an existing solar array won't see any change to their FiT payments. Solar generation remains the same so Generation Tariff payments remain unaltered. Domestic solar installation's Export Tariff is deemed. This means that whether a customer consumed 99% or 1% of their solar generation their payment will remain the same. Because of this, it's in the aim of customers to use as much of their generation as they can, hence the idea of solar storage.

With a wide range of storage solutions available, various alternatives allow users to monitor the performance of their battery and solar system online. Online portals offered by brands such as Tesla and Sonnen show customers real-time updates on their system's performance. With this information, customers can see their solar generation, consumption and export and battery charging status, along with facts such as energy and carbon savings. Online monitoring helps ensure the health and performance of an installation. It also helps justify return on investment.

Certain battery systems can charge from the grid and provide power in outages. Smart technology within the battery dictates to the battery when energy prices are lower. The battery then charges during these times and discharges when rates are higher, providing a net saving. Furthermore, several battery solutions provide grid backup which keeps a house's power online when the grid is down. A primary concern for some customers.