Is Solar Really Worth It?
Absolutely!
With electricity prices continuously on the rise, households are now seeing the benefits of solar, and what it can do to reduce your power bills.
A solar system allows you to essentially ‘farm your own power’.
Solar systems are a great investment that can often pay themselves off over two years depending on your usage habits.
It will keep supplying your home for years with sustainable, reusable, sunny energy!
Solar Systems generate around 25 kWh a day on average across a year. Energy Retailers charge 30.0605 cents per kWh (unit) to most residential homes. If you use all of the solar power your system generates, you can expect to save over $2,000 every year on your power bills. This is a general guide only and will change depending on the customer and their usage habits.
Understanding your bill:
Your house is full of appliances that use power to function – such as fridges, air cons, ovens, TVs, laptops etc. The power is measured in kilowatt hours (kWh). On your electricity bill, kWh are referred to as units (kWh and units are the same thing).
Every unit of electricity your household uses, without a solar system will cost approximately 30.0605 cents per kWh. The benefit of having solar is you avoid taking power from the grid, which charges out at 30.0605c per unit. After a short while, the price of the solar system installation will be less than your electricity bills.
To maximise your solar energy it is important to utilise as much power during the day as possible. Solar systems only function during daylight hours, so at night your energy needs to come from the grid. Households with a solar system are paid to send their excess energy produced back to the grid at a lower rate of about 3c per unit.
It costs 30.0605c to draw a unit from the grid at night, while you receive 2.5-10c to send one unit to the grid (that you don’t use during the day).
To offset 1 unit of power at night time, you need to be placing 9 units of power back into the grid during the day. It’s not the most ideal use of your system but you will still see a reduction in your bills over time.
Running your appliances during the day (even when you are not home) will be more effective, as you can essentially use the free energy from your solar system.
At this point, it seems fairly clear that solar is here to stay in Australia. With more than 2 million Aussie households already having solar, there are now more than one panel installed per human!
Virtually all industry analysts are predicting that solar (and battery storage) are Australia’s future of energy.
Stats on Solar In Australia:
40 Million
Over 40 million solar panels installed Australia wide, saving hundreds of millions of dollars per year in electricity costs.
29%
Over 29% of homes in WA have solar systems based on 2020 data.
21%
Renewable energy makes up 21% of Australia's Electricity. Wind, Hydro and Solar leading the way.
Solar systems are an excellent investment. Not only do they provide you with low-cost and sustainable energy, they add quite a lot of value to your home. Houses with solar tend to sell quicker than ones without. Solar systems can increase the value of a home, as it is essentially a money-saving machine. After the solar system is paid off, it continues to be profitable in supplying sustainable energy, which you are able to sell back to the grid. As families become more educated about the benefits of solar power, there will be a higher demand. Meaning, essentially homes with solar panel systems will have a competitive edge in the market.
Solar Benefits:
- Own your own power to reduce ongoing Electricity price increases.
- Interest free cash flow positive from day one – It literally pays for itself!
- Huge government financial incentives to offset the upfront cost – Up to $3,239.
- Pay off your system using the savings your system generates.
- Protect against rising utility rates as electricity prices in Australia have increased by more than 30% in the last four years.
- Make use of your external roof area for solar.
- Going green will reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
- Price for solar have never been as affordable.
- Boost property value by adding solar.
