Solar Users - How do I compare?

geekcohen on 21/05/2021 - 15:41
Last edited 21/05/2021 - 15:58

Hi OZB!

I have had solar installed since Feb and took a number of weeks to get the meter configured for feed in.

Anyway, I have been looking at my usage and doing some rough calculations and just want to see how I compare to other.

A bit of background:

  • I am in VIC
  • I pay my bill monthly.
  • 6.6kw System, North Facing System
  • I work from home full time (in IT) - NAS, Firewall, WiFi Units, 2 x Security Systems, 3 x Desktops, 5 x Monitors (3 when working), 1 x TV
  • Not high usage all the time, my usage on a per hour basis is pretty consistent with IT equipment running all the time
  • I have a spa, but in the last 30 days I have had it switched off
  • Two Adults and 1 Toddler
  • 3 Bedroom with an office, 1 lounge and 1 dining area

In my last 30 day billing period, I've estimated on some basic assumptions that without solar, my bill would be about $60 more. My savings with solar is $72 in the last 30 days, with feed-in of $12.

How do I compare to others?

Home & Garden

Comments

  • Ocker on 21/05/2021 - 15:48

    Size of house, what other appliances etc use electricity?

    • geekcohen on 21/05/2021 - 15:58

      Updated the info.

      • 3 Bedroom with an office, 1 lounge and 1 dining area
      • I work from home full time (in IT) - NAS, Firewall, WiFi Units, 2 x Security Systems, 3 x Desktops, 5 x Monitors (3 when working), 1 x TV
      • poboy on 21/05/2021 - 19:35

        Those use bigger all energy. Is your hot water system electric? Do you have air conditioning that you use regularly?

  • Euphemistic on 21/05/2021 - 15:54

    It all depends. Solar system size, orientation, shading, time of year, power usage patterns, tariffs, number of people in the house, pool etc?

    Look at kWh more than $, it’s more meaningful.

    • geekcohen on 21/05/2021 - 16:01

      Solar system size

      6.6

      orientation

      North Facing

      shading

      None

      time of year

      The last 30 days, so from middle of April to middle of May

      power usage patterns

      Rarely changes, it is pretty constant each hour. It is changes a little bit (maybe 50w) but otherwise that is sort of about it

      number of people in the house

      Already answered above

      pool

      No pool, Spa, which has been off in the 30 day period

      • Euphemistic on 21/05/2021 - 16:15
        +1

        All good info, but you’ll also need all that from anyone who is offering a comparison. I’m in NSW so no help from me.

        Air conditioning/heating?

  • MrHyde on 21/05/2021 - 16:08

    Taking last 30 days into account;

    our household

    6.6KW system; North facing in inner Melbourne

    Time period: 15 April to 15 May
    Solar consumed: 88 Kwh
    Solar exported: 448 Kwh
    Energy imported: 149.3 Kwh

    4 bedroom house - no TV, no desktops, 2 x laptops (used for WFH), 1 refrigerator, 1 washer, no dryer, 1 dishwasher central heating used for about an hour a day at 5 AM.

    I can see consumption goes up to about 3KWH when heating is on. It also goes that high when dishwasher is on; but only spikes upto there (for a period of about 15 minutes). Rest of appliances barely register in my consumption graph.

    • geekcohen on 21/05/2021 - 16:15

      Do you have something specific you track some of this data with?

      Energy import for me is 920kwh with 95 exported.

      • MrHyde on 21/05/2021 - 16:44

        I went with a Consumption monitor and subscription with Solar Analytics so i can see real-time data on how much I'm producing and consuming and which circuits the consumption is on.

        • geekcohen on 21/05/2021 - 16:45

          And it is worth the cost? I have enquired with them before.

          • MrHyde on 21/05/2021 - 16:54

            @geekcohen: For me it is. I felt just having a production monitor where you only know how much you have exported or how much energy you have consumed from the grid is not useful.

            I wanted to know when I was generating energy; how much I was using at the exact time so that I could then figure out what devices we could turn on. For eg: I can use the monitors to see how much energy is being produced (even though it may be slightly cloudy) and then schedule when to run the dish washer as I now know how much energy it consumes.

            I was also able to identify which devices use how much.

            Long term, probably not worth it as much - but I got a good deal on a lifetime subscription. Otherwise; I would have been happy with just one month to learn the consumption patterns.

            • elliebear88 on 12/02/2022 - 02:13

              @MrHyde: Hi, how much did you pay for the lifetime sub with solar analytics if you don't mind me asking?

              • MrHyde on 12/02/2022 - 05:51

                @elliebear88: I paid $150 extra for the lifetime subscription.

                Nearly a year on; I can say that I am finding it very useful. I still look at it regularly and it has a bill comparison and electricity provider comparison feature as well to recommend other providers that will be cheaper for me.

                • elliebear88 on 14/02/2022 - 01:58

                  @MrHyde: Great to hear it's working for you! thank you for your response.

  • Bisah1342 on 21/05/2021 - 16:18

    I use a PowerPal to track usage.

    • geekcohen on 21/05/2021 - 16:20

      Yeah, I have one of them too. It has been helpful to see some things but it hasn't really affected how I use appliances. Just provides an insight into how much stuff is using.

  • Zoop on 21/05/2021 - 16:48
    +2

    https://pvoutput.org/ is your friend :)
    Since you're in IT maybe you can consider outputting your solar figures to pvoutput.
    You can also sort by location and see how your neighbours are doing compared to your system.

    • geekcohen on 21/05/2021 - 16:53

      https://pvoutput.org/ is your friend :)
      Since you're in IT maybe you can consider outputting your solar figures to pvoutput.

      It's on my list of things to do.

  • avoidfullprice on 21/05/2021 - 16:55

    How do I compare to others?

    how well is $60 savings through self consumption depends more on your plan usage tarrifs. Like, you could save more on usage with TOU plan, but also overall better off going on a low supply rate plan.

    My 3.5kw west facing system saved me $35 on consumption and earned me $30 on feed in last month. I was on TOU, 27c/kWh on weekday usage, 19c/kWh on weekend usage, and 11c/kWh feed in. But that's incomparable because I'm not in Vic.

    In terms of how well your solar system performs, you have not provided how much energy your system generated or where you to compare with similar system and similar area. You can use pvoutput.org to look up nearby system using your postcode and see how they perform.

  • netjock on 21/05/2021 - 17:39

    Stop comparing to others because nobody is the same as you.

    How much better off would be what your system would have produced in KWH minus what you did export. You should have a monitoring app that will tell you how much your system generated (or you can just check the inverter).

  • Quantumcat on 21/05/2021 - 18:19

    https://ibb.co/Lnygx3q

    I'm on +$83 for the month so far.
    4 bed house with gas ducted turned on occasionally but mostly 1 oil heater. And 1 electric blanket. 2 adults 1 working from home. TV, computer, monitor, printer stay on all day

  • SF3 on 21/05/2021 - 20:22

    NAS, Firewall, WiFi Units, 2 x Security Systems, 3 x Desktops, 5 x Monitors

    Are you Link from The Matrix?

  • Jugganautx on 22/05/2021 - 02:57
    +1

    How has noone mentioned their kw/day usage…. thats the most important thing when comparing energy. Not the amount of rooms you have in a house.

  • pinnacle on 22/05/2021 - 08:43

    House of 4 (2 adults & 2 high school kids). 6 KW Panels, 5 KW Inverter.

    For Dec-Mar Quarter, usage from Grid was 490 kWh and Feed In was 1812 kWh

    For the current quarter till date, they are 432 kWh & 1180 kWh. Another 20 days before the bill is generated.

    Need to explore some of the options that will help me analyse the usage of power both from the panels & the grid.

  • dimitryp on 22/05/2021 - 10:59

    Not too much point comparing bill savings, as everyone's consumption, patterns & especially electricity use/feed-in rates are different.
    Worth-while comparing Solar system performance though.

    Mine, for example, is a 7.5kw system, north/west facing, in syd

    Since feb, my monthly production has been:

    Feb: 793kw
    Mar: 713kw
    Apr: 775kw

    Peak production tends to be in december, at 1100kw

    Im on a decent electricity plan too which balances usage rates and decent feed-in. 21c/kw for usage, 11c/kw feed-in.

  • Waltervp on 22/05/2021 - 12:29

    I have been keeping reasonably detailed records of my 6kw system. I have a modern 3br multilevel home in Tasmania with 3 adults. My system faces all west due to restrictions, but still have excellent results, completely (exceeding) the LG solar calculator at https://www.lgenergy.com.au/solar-calculators/solar-system-o…

    I'm with 1st energy, and have been very happy with them, paying approx 14 and 29c per kwhr off/peak and receive 13c feed in tariff. With my pensioner supplement I expect to be approximately cost neutral after 12 months. I've had it for 10 complete months now.

    Though I try to be good with using off peak times for washing etc and have the inverter electric water heater set on a timer, the 2 tenants don't even try!

    Also, I replaced all my gas with electrics, so no gas heating either! The 3 bedrooms use 500W Watt panel heaters which need to be on most winter nights.

  • Isla Brown on 22/05/2021 - 19:10

    Most important thing to consider is how long are you going to live in your house? The amount of energy needed to power your house, the amount of direct sunlight is also very crucial factor. Also the another main factor that impacts this is the region you live in, but tall buildings and trees can also seriously affect your panel’s sun exposure.

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