I got HEAPS of solar panels installed!

[@stuartirwin3779]

If anyone is interested, about 3.5 years ago I installed a 6.6 kW system with a 5 kW inverter, no battery, for Aus$5,200. My bills are mostly negative, and I now charge 2 EVs. I'm lucky enough to be able to charge them mostly during the day. My return on investment so far has been 28%! Best investment I've ever made, apart from my EV, that is. 😊

[@Goodkiwibloke]

@@stuartirwin3779 Unlike Aussie, solar is not subsidised in NZ. We pay full price for everything, and feed in tariffs have never been generous. And our sun is nowhere near as good as yours - much more cloudy and rainy days, so yield is lower

[@lifeliver9000]

Your are on to it mate. Well done !

[@ImperatorTFD]

@@Goodkiwibloke Feed-in Tariffs are almost non existent in Australia any more. What ones that do remain pay a pittance.

[@Goodkiwibloke]

@@ImperatorTFD Some people in Aussue are still on legacy FIT of $0.50/KWHr, but they are unable to make any modifications to their system without loosing their FIT. Solar installs often came with these generous 10 year FIT, even 5 years ago, to encourage uptake The Aussie solar revolution was almost too successful. But it did get over 50% of home owners to add solar panels and batteries But NZ is quite different. Our Sunshine hours are way less, rooftop solar penetration is way less (1%), our installation costs aren't subsidised. So there won't be the same revolution here as there was in Aussie, so our FIT while low are likely to remain I have 4 years remaining on my current 5Y fixed FIT. When this finishes, it will have paid me $10,000 just in yearly cheques from my electricity company. But as I've had solar for 6 years, my system was fully paid back a couple of years ago. So the annual cheques pay our property rates

[@nigelsaunders7378]

Great video Gavin. We too went for 21 panels! First move (from your videos) was a move to Ecotricity. That was the first drop in the power bill. The panels got installed and switched on, that was the second big power bill drop. Finally of the 3 cars in the family, 2 full petrol swapped to 2 little EV's (not Tesla or Leaf) with the recent EV's sell off (thank you for one of your videos). Result: a couple of days ago, we had 2 EV's charging, the dryer on and still we were sending power back to the grid!! :) Next install we are saving for is an EVNEX charger :)

[@lifeliver9000]

Man you are living the dream. Talk about making good decisions 👍

[@martiruda]

what a dream of a set up mate!!

[@honesty_-no9he]

THE BEST WAY to get SOLAR is to buy your system in full outright even if that means getting a smaller system with plans to expand it later. THE WHOLE POINT is to avoid monthly payments. BUY your system out-right then it is yours and you owe nothing.

[@cognoscenti2011]

Or invest that 50k into a fund and earn 8 or 9 % per year and you'll be ahead before you could ever get the return on solar....

[@HighlandSteam]

I have 10kW on a north Scotland roof. From March to October all my car charging and house load is done from the solar. I work from home and have a 89 year old father. So out heating bill is quite big (all electric) but the solar takes 75% or more off that even in winter. Even in winter we get useful generation if the sun pops out.

[@staticman1263]

Put solar in 2 years ago. 9K for panels and a 5KW inverter. Yes we dont have a battery (yet) but it has still knocked 40% off our power bill and both our cars are electric so charge as often as poss during sun shine hours so travel costs are effectively 0

[@LabRousseauStudios]

Haha makes total sense that you got a South African to do the installation. We have lots of experience with solar systems, our national power utility is useless.

[@thetad1242]

He sounded very much South African, the surname did me confuse though Gloy,

[@AerialWaviator]

Fabulous life choice and video. Having a little extra solar harvesting ability will be appreciated during the winter months.

[@RaymondDun]

Good work Gavin! Great to see you've bought into the renewable energy revolution! 😁I look forward to seeing your power bill come in next video.

[@fastbike9845]

Panels may have fallen in price by 80% - but they are not the cost of the system. There is also the inverter, labour, rails, wiring, and compliance. Having said that I've just finished installing 12kW on my roof with a 10kW inverter - by doing as much of the install as legally possible my cost is around $15k which is a 5 year payback.

[@TerryHickey-xt4mf]

yep! the panel buying price is by far the cheapest part.

[@fastbike9845]

Just to give you an idea of costs - and this incorporates a whole bunch of my labour as sweat equity to keep the price as affordable as possible. You will need an installer who is confident that you know what you are doing, you will need familiarity with the relevant regulations in your jurisdiction to make this happen. Prices are NZD as at 2024 including GST (sales tax): 27 panels @$152 = $4,104 10 kW 3 phase hybrid inverter $4,600 Mounting kit $3,200 (complicated layout required more kit than normal) Installer supplied gear/labour/inspection $4k So total cost ~$15.8k. If panels were twice the price (they have dropped about 50% in last 2 years) then price drop for total system would be (4/19.8) only 20% overall.

[@Buzzinga248]

I’ve had solar in Victoria Australia for around 15 years, I have just upgraded to a 6.6KW system with a 10KW battery, as we live in quite a cold area I wish that I had chosen a bigger system, however with EV charging an all electric home I still benefit greatly from having solar. I was fortunate enough to have a pay in tariff of 60cents for my previous system that’s no longer the case. The larger system was a great idea and I hope you are as happy as I’ve been with mine and that in NZ you have a decent pay in tariff.

[@KiwiCatherineJemma]

The rebate/pay-in tariff in NZ is not as good, as we hear Aussies getting. The highest I've heard of, is 17c per kw/hr unit, under a several year contract. Also they sting you a daily (grid) connection fee here. It's close to $2 a day for many people. The last I heard, about 30% of Aussie homes had rooftop solar, whereas in NZ the percentage is 2.5%. Mostly due to the difference in government subsidies (ie Here, almost none). Less solar panels in total in NZ, means there is less chance for folks to buy used solar panels for a cheaper price, if more wealthy people upgrade to newer higher spec panels. I just saw a video of some Aussie guy in Qld who bought used panels at $20 to $24 each and built himself a large off grid system for less than $1,000 of panels. Here even small used panels still go for the better part of $100 when occasionally available. Plus almost 40% of Kiwis are renting, so we have no options available to us to reduce our power bills.

[@mondotv4216]

What you need instead of a timer for hot water is a smarter system. One that only charges the cars and heats the water with excess solar. I have a Zappi but because you have a compatible charger that uses OCPP you can use something like home assistant but it is complicated to set up. A Myenergi Zappi and Eddi (hot water) combination is much simpler but also expensive. For PV diversion for hot water there's also the Catch Relay. Overall timed systems have a one big pitfall - they use lots of grid power when the sun isn't shining.

[@pinkelephants1421]

But do MyEnergi operate in NZ?

[@timm5997]

Zappi is better but catch power is a lot more reliable and simple. I’ll be going with catch power.

[@Goodkiwibloke]

@@mondotv4216 100% on the hot water power diverter, but important note is that it only suits resistive heating, not heat pump hot water systems. I have a Solar Immersun power diverter, which has operated faultlessly for 6 years

[@graemefenemor]

Be interested if you do the numbers for a battery, with 9kWh you would benefit from having power in a battery for evening use. We have 6.3, generating 4.85kWh...and summer is no grid power, winter night rated power is used during the day.... just some food for thought for you Gavin....no peak hour power bills for 5 years.

[@simonpaine2347]

The issue will be that while there is potential to generate 9kw of solar, the inverter will max out at 7.5kw, so the inverter will be clipping anything over 7.5kw, which seems like a waste until you consider that the additional panels will ensure that the production will max out earlier and continue later than if the system only had 7.5kw of panels. Personally I would have gone for a few more panels, a bigger inverter and a battery. Would have added about $5k more, but would have meant zero power bills and security in case of power outages.

[@paullecomtenz]

The ONLY stumbling block for us last time (post pandemic) was the battery. We will even get rid of our gas on-demand hotter & go with a heat pump hot water system with solar.

[@yp77738yp77739]

I did the same last week. I went even bigger, 15kW. The panels are such great value at the moment and I can sell what I don’t want back.

[@peterjackson6228]

Excellent video! And congratulations!

[@randomjasmicisrandom]

Getting solar panels has utterly transformed (a ha ha ha) my understanding of energy, how and when I use it and saved me over £1k in the systems first 18 months. I went for a battery option as I’m on a UK time of use tariff with a really good export payment, so it actually pays me to fill up the battery overnight so I’m exporting as soon as the sun comes up. We have had a horrendous Dunkelflaute (dark doldrums, no wind, no sun, high demand) period for 11 days so far so the panels are essentially roof ornaments but the battery is saving me a lot of money. The tariff I’m on has cheap off peak periods but eye wateringly expensive peak periods, so the battery offsets my import export periods. With regards to the question of ROI, if you have a loan you obviously shift your bill payments to the loan so the real benefit will come once the loan is paid off. I was lucky and managed to self fund half of my installation and had a really small loan which I paid off early for the remainder. Now I don’t worry about how much the installation cost, I look at my drastically reduced bills and my only regret is I didn’t squeeze a few more panels onto my roof and get a bigger battery.

[@ExtraDryingTime]

Sunsational!

[@vhol93]

That's awesome, congrats !!

[@conorandturbos]

you need a DC isolator adjacent to the inverter in NZ

[@conorandturbos]

Have you got an email I can send you a list of questions you should ask

[@RaymondDun]

Not if it is built into the inverter which is the case in this instance.

[@conorandturbos]

No that's not correct, the current cited standards in NZ need a separate isolator, it's only in the later versions that you can use the inverters one which are not what we work to here ​@@RaymondDun

[@conorandturbos]

​@@RaymondDunoh you're the guy! Why have you wrote 169amps on the PV short circuit sticker?

[@RaymondDun]

@@conorandturbos I must be the guy! 16.9A

[@jimreed6503]

Gavin, enjoyed your video. We installed 4kW of grid tie power 11 years ago. It took just over six years to pay off, because we were one of the first in our area and got some special pricing. Five months of the year we exceed your 5kW per day to the supplier limit, so that would be a concern. I ran our actual numbers (I keep a spreadsheet,) through the Ecotricity calculator and found that we would have to pay more than $20 a month to take service from them, and our payment for power into the grid is only a miserable 8.5 cents a unit, for which they send next door with a premium of 18+ cents are laughing all the way to the bank. So no Ecotricity for me. The other thing is the battery life. Working for a major company that used lots of batteries, 10 to 15 years was all you could get out of them before they required replacement. Maybe you can get more life out of a battery in a domestic situation, but you need to factor the battery replacement cost into the economics. That needs to be more than 10% of the current purchase price per year to cover cost increases. When I move, sometime next year, I will put an 8 to 10 kW solar array on the new house, not to increase the amount I that generate, but to increase the amount of days when I can generate 100% of my use. The only battery I will use is the one in the EV. Cheers Jim

[@jimreed6503]

Sorry, the bit I missed was that we have had solar water heating since 1980, when I built my preheater. The 1995 professional solar heater has worked well since, and that has saved a fortune. However, I would like to divert excess electricity into the hot water system and then switch it off, with a new installation, rather than having a separate solar hot water system.

[@Machine_NZ]

Hi Gavin, you haven't mentioned ROI on your investment total (Solar install, meter repositioning, ANZ loan interest etc). That would be good information for kiwis and your viewers...

[@vk2aafhamradio]

Great stuff, Gav! 😃👍

[@honesty_-no9he]

Sorry the cables through the roof is a major NO-NO I insisted on all 3 installs I have had that nothing goes through a loft and that all cables are fed to my vestibule from the outside in weather proof tubing and I live in Manchester UK with lots of shit weather.

[@thefathippy]

It's so great, isn't it? 😁

[@GlenisRetiredNZ]

I've been humming and haaing over solar for a couple of years. We're retired so most power use is during the day and no EV yet. I'm reluctant to get the battery because of cost, although could add later if needed. I'll be interested to see your powerbill.

[@HarmLessSolutionsNZ]

We've got a similar sized PV setup to Gav (9.5kW panels into 8.2kW, on single phase, no battery but HWC is controlled by inverter) and we charge 2 EVs almost exclusively from solar plus pumped water on a rural property. We also WFH so our daytime energy use can be managed to optimise solar generation consumption. Make no mistake, no FIT will compete with using your own generation as it occurs as this offsets electricity that would otherwise be purchased at retail price including GST. We are on the brink of reverting to credit monthly accounts as summer approaches. Our projected payback is looking like

[@GlenisRetiredNZ]

@HarmLessSolutionsNZ interesting thanks. Also in Taranaki 👊. I was thinking of a smaller system as we've gas cooking, no EV yet as I mentioned. We like the fire in winter. Also use water pump. I wouldn't mind a wind turbine backup TBH.

[@HarmLessSolutionsNZ]

@@GlenisRetiredNZ We've got logfire winter heating and a gas hob (on bottle). We investigated wind on a previous property with good wind exposure but the numbers didn't stack up, particularly when maintenance is factored in. Be warned though that getting solar is the gateway drug to buying an EV, or vice versa, as they make for perfect synergy. For Taranaki I have no hesitation at all in recommending Solar One (Bell Block). Extremely knowledgable, great customer service and honest advice.

[@TerryHickey-xt4mf]

@@GlenisRetiredNZ My MG ev costs me about $10 a week to 'run' using a normal 15amp socket and with the supplied connector. and I use it everyday (the car that is).

[@GlenisRetiredNZ]

@@HarmLessSolutionsNZ thanks for the recommendation, appreciate that. LOL, yeah, chicken or the egg. The EV hold up is waiting for 600km-ish per charge, better battery tech/safety/battery life and affordability. Current EVs with 600km still seem to be around the $100k - too much.

[@Skoobedobedo]

Fancy making you move their smart meter that you don't even own at your cost when youve paid taxes for smart meters already. Also it's a smart meter read remotely, it could be anywhere in a dry suitable position on your property but I guess since it theirs they want to be able to physically access it even when your not home even though we managed with dumb meters in our homes for years.

[@BurntFaceMan]

Congrats man great to see this happening more and more.. We are thinking of going with Harrisons, anyone else in Chat/ yt replies able to vouch for them?

[@dave24-73]

And SolarZero just went into Liquidation- I did warn people.

[@djotter]

Congratulations on not going with SolarZero, the zero up front cost plan is a scam and cost you way more over the long run and there is no exit from the contract. If you sell your house, you need to convince the buyers to take over the contract.

[@keithadair7189]

Not true! They have several options.

[@TheEnzedone]

I was looking at it. You could go to a reputable installer/supplier in Australia. Ship it over, pay the tax and pay for an installer plus a few day’s holiday as an extra. Moreover you work as an assistant for him and you’d save thousands of dollars.

[@TerryHickey-xt4mf]

sounds good in theory, give us some costing specs.

[@conorandturbos]

Why would you not use NZ based and skip all of that?

[@TheEnzedone]

@@conorandturbos Because you could save 50%

[@bobmonztr]

I live off grid with electric heat down to -30C, 8kw inverter (I never go over 3kw) 11.6kw pv and 48kw battery. Because of the dropping prices if I waited a year I would have paid $5000 less and get 12kw more battery. My 465w were $289, same dealer 18 months later 600w panels for $220.🤦‍♂

[@lyledal]

Great video! I assume you have the option of installing batteries at a later date if you choose?

[@TerryHickey-xt4mf]

he did mention that in the video I think.

[@ausnorman8050]

I got an 8.8Kw system in Tassie* with 6kw Hybrid inverter and 10.4kwh of battery for $21k AUD or 24k NZD. 31k NZD for 9.6KW and same battery but you have a larger inverter* seems a lil steep and I've had my system for exactly 1yr on 11th Nov :) Edit* plus 2k to move power box! yikes

[@seriouschivesreaper]

Do they do solar installation on urban 3-storey townhouse? I imagine they’ll have to use scaffolding which will cost a bit more?

[@wavestyle]

Good move to buy a hybrid inverter. So your inverter is already capable of adding a DC battery. I guess in a year we will see another video of you installing a battery to save power for the night. I also see that you have heaps of roof space left, so you could add some more cheap panels for bad weather. Not sure how much overpaneling you can do with that Solax inverter, I hope you are not already maxing it out on the input side.

[@pinkelephants1421]

I've long thought the fact that solar panels haven't been anywhere near as widely adopted as in Australia a complete mystery. Aotearoa has plenty of great solar generating weather.

[@conorandturbos]

No rebates here

[@pinkelephants1421]

@conorandturbos Yeah, but still. I used to have several Australian acquaintances who installed rooftop solar over 35yrs ago, long before there were any incentives and rooftop solar systems were much more expensive back then. One of them found their payback was only 2 to 3 years; he did do the work himself, though. You'd think that Kiwis with their can-do have a go attitudes would've been far more adventurous.

[@KiwiCatherineJemma]

The rebate/pay-in tariff in NZ is not as good, as we hear Aussies getting. The highest I've heard of, is 17c per kw/hr unit, under a several year contract. Also they sting you a daily (grid) connection fee here. It's close to $2 a day for many people. The last I heard, about 30% of Aussie homes had rooftop solar, whereas in NZ the percentage is 2.5%. Mostly due to the difference in government subsidies (ie Here, almost none). Less solar panels in total in NZ, means there is less chance for folks to buy used solar panels for a cheaper price, if more wealthy people upgrade to newer higher spec panels. I just saw a video of some Aussie guy in Qld who bought used panels at $20 to $24 each and built himself a large off grid system for less than $1,000 of panels. Here even small used panels still go for the better part of $100 when occasionally available. Plus almost 40% of Kiwis are renting, so we have no options available to us to reduce our power bills.

[@pinkelephants1421]

@KiwiCatherineJemma The feed-in tariff in Australia has dropped off a cliff and is well below the 17¢/KW/hr, going as low as 3¢/KW/hr in Victoria. The latest available (national ) take-up figures are from 2023 @ 36•05%. Victoria, Sth Australia, New Sth Wales, & Queensland have take-up rates of 43%, 50%, 51%, & 82% respectively. Western Australia is seeing a rapid growth recently but I don't have the figures to hand. There are times in Eastern and Sth Australia during the summer that electricity prices go negative to the huge amount of rooftop solar on domestic, commercial, & some industry rooves. There's even been times that those grids have run entirely on solar and wind anywhere from several hours up to 3 days, such is the increasing amount of renewables penetration in those regions; this is an increasing phenomenon in Sth Australia. Are there no community owned solar and or wind farms at home that allow non homeowners to buy a share in return for lower electricity bills? They exist in the UK and USA.

[@opt123123]

I thought there was a Electrical safety rule which prevented running wires inside the house for lengths greater than 300mm?

[@MrSfmorley]

Why go with ecotricity? Why not electric kiwi? One hour of free power a day? Why get battery storage? Bi-direction chargers? Buy a bi-direction electric car? Is it ultimately down to individuals circumstances and what they can afford?

[@EliteSim27]

Wait, why can we only export 5kw to the grid in nz?

[@dave24-73]

The inverter plays role in this as well. The Grid doesn’t want you using them as a battery, if you look at Australia you will now see they are charging you for doing this.

[@Goodkiwibloke]

​@@dave24-73note for dave, this is not Australia, and NZ solar is totally different to aussie

[@dave24-73]

@ didn’t say it was, the reason it’s of value is because this was introduced much later on as more people installed Solar.

[@RaymondDun]

This is a general rule throughout NZ on all residential connections of the lines companies networks. Bonus if you have 3 phase power, 5kW per phase.

[@HarmLessSolutionsNZ]

@@dave24-73 The two countries aren't directly comparable. Australia's baseload generation is primarily coal thermal which is much slower to bring onstream or shut off than NZ's hydro is. Australia finds it more effective to control grid supply by throttling solar as it can't control coal generation as effectively which serves to disincentivise solar. NZ has a huge advantage in that it can use hydro storage as a huge national 'battery' as solar generation offsets load during daylight hours.

[@virgin1958]

Why timer a catch relay is much better timer is old school

[@staticman1263]

But seriously is the an EV converted Mk2 Escort?

[@AndyM...]

I think that's the Austin Allegro, which I'm hanging out for the next video in that series ! 😆😀

[@staticman1263]

@@AndyM... i think you are correct. With the bonnet off it has a different look to it.

[@timmydownawell]

re: your last comment. It's never a waste of money if you're no longer using fossil fuel electricity.

[@simonpaine2347]

I find it really sad that the emphasis always serms to be on ROI How long before I get my money back! If only we thought about the planet, rather than our pockets.

[@dave24-73]

You generally won’t when compared to same money in bank with compounding interest, they delete comments that prove this to be the case. But as a guide between 10 and 15 years for most people.

[@MatthewBayard]

Are you all electric at home? No gas, electric heating? I know you charge a lot for work at public chargers 😅

[@EcotricityNZ]

Sure am! Electric car, electric water, electric stove, electric heating etc. The house has a fireplace but it's not needed. I just wish I could go back in time and slap myself for not doing this sooner! What was I thinking?! 😂 -Gav

[@MatthewBayard]

@EcotricityNZ we've moved house twice now. Each time we got solar on the roof before we had even full unpacked! Melbourne winter sucks for us so we wish we have more solar. Our inverter has a a little more capacity so we might get more solar.

[@ad_fletch]

​@MatthewBayard Agreed - still have imposing bill in middle of Winter with our 7.7kW system, but Hey no gas bill any more and 3/4 of the year bills are low. Running a car for free with sun power is awesome.

[@TassieEV]

Is there a reason you didn't get a 10kW inverter as you have 9.7kW system but the inverter limits you to 7.5kW only. Seems unusual. Eventually you may want to get a battery and ATS so that you can be powered when the power is out. I have also heard that the best way to compare to previous power bills is to do annual comparisons due to the fluctuations over the year with solar generation.

[@ad_fletch]

Some energy wholesalers limit you to 5kW inverters...I guess to protect their creaky old grid...

[@HarmLessSolutionsNZ]

The logic behind more PV panel capacity than the inverter's max input is to reach the inverter's peak capacity earlier in the day and for longer (i.e. flatten the bell curve but extend the overall period). It also is of benefit in sub-optimal weather to maximise generation. The inverter will just 'ignore' any excess generation coming its way so protect itself from overloading.

[@HarmLessSolutionsNZ]

@@ad_fletch It's about not only protecting their infrastructure but also maintaining balance between phases. Maximum of 5kW is per phase so it's possible to export 10kW from a three phase setup for most lines companies.

[@TheMntnG]

our landlord doesnt care and doesnt allow us to do this. why is this???

[@thetad1242]

That guy sounds South African and the name too Dawald which is as Afrikaans as Dricus Du Plessis.

[@Dqtube]

A new installation without a battery is not ideal. A battery may be useful in case a storm causes network instability or a power outage. Does the new setup support V2H/B or is it only one directional ?

[@Goodkiwibloke]

You have no idea. A battery is generally a benefit for bragging rights, but nothing else. You would know that if you did the maths on 1 cycle per day over a 10 year period. eg $16,000 ÷ 10Y ÷ 365D ÷ 13.5KWh = $0.337/KWh = already higher than retail price But in winter, a 9KW system will not fill the battery. And most batteries are not cycled through their full capacity each day either. So cost per KWh rises to around $0.43/KWh Then there is interest on the $16,000 battery purchase price. Say 4% = $640pa ÷ 365 ÷13.5KWh = $0.13/KWh Finally there is the lost feed in returns. $0.17/KWh (Mercury) Adding it all up $0.43 + $0.13 + $0.17 = $0.73/KWh Compared to approx $0.25/KWh average purchase cost Now show me why you think an install without a battery is not ideal. And what is storm caused network instability? Is it your fancy words for a power outage?

[@Dqtube]

@@Goodkiwibloke Your calculation is maybe right for NZ electricity prices, but in my part of the world is price per kWh from grid oscillating around 0.30€ per kWh which is aproximetly 0,55NZD. On the other hand, during sunny summer days, PV in the area can produce more than the demand on the grid, so some installations may be disconnected from the grid or the price of electricity is negative. So if you don't have a battery, your balance is negative on those days because you are not selling, you are just buying overnight. Many people are not in the same position as Gavin in the home office, but the complete opposite. So at peak sunlight hours, they don't have any high demand at the point of production because their electric car battery is with them at the workplace. So even a V2H/G vehicle wouldn't help them. Instability is not a fancy for a power outage, but it's a situation where some lines are damaged/disconnected and others are overloaded. So the power in your home may go out for just a few dozen seconds, but multiple times a day. Which can damage your electric devices. Maybe you've never experienced this, but I've lost a few devices in the past because they were more sensitive if they didn't shut down as intended by the manufacturer. Also, your battery prices seem to be a bit higher than ours. For a 17,5kWh LifePo with 6000 cycles(+15years of usage) you only need 7-7,5k€, which is about 12,5-13,5NZD. But yes, you can call it bragging, we usually call it saving in the long run.

[@Goodkiwibloke]

@@Dqtube But this is a NZ presentation on a NZ solar install for other NZers to listen and learn from. And in NZ the figures I quoted are current, and clearly show the folly of adding a commercially produced battery to a solar system in NZ. It doesn't matter what the circumstance is in your country. It is irrelevant for the target audience. So your comment is misleading In NZ we have excellent grid stability (frequency control) due to 65% of electricity being generated by hydro, and 5% by gas peakers. Again, the situation in your country isnt relevant

[@Dqtube]

@@Goodkiwibloke You don't understand what I described. If a storm causes a landslide that breaks some of the cables, and the wind sends some branches onto cables a few kilometers elsewhere. So instead of 3 different directions and substations, your city is connected to only one substation that does not have enough capacity to cover the entire demand. How does frequency and type of electricity generation relate to this problem?

[@Goodkiwibloke]

@@Dqtube It's not an issue in NZ. Our grid is solid, our local lines are solid with lots of redundancy. Maybe 1 power cut per year, maximum. So a $16,000 battery is very expensive insurance for a tiny risk of an occasional power cut. And as I outlined, there is no financial benefit of installing a battery in NZ It may ge different in your country, but this is a video about NZ solar install, made for NZers. So your circumstances are irrelevant

[@martiruda]

effing retail reselling business model in nz, I hope they get done, they have the most stupid business model

[@robmccaw9956]

Gavin forget about repayment time and look at the return on investment. We have $20k sitting on our roof and with an all electric house and 2 BEVs what we save in electricity cost and petrol equates to a 10% after tax return on that money (which if still in the bank would be worth less than 20k now). Could luck getting that safely in an investment! If you removed our line rental costs (high here in Marlborough Sounds), metering charges and Ecotricity’s costs then most of the year we would have negative power bills.

[@dave24-73]

There is a conflict of interest here, for legal reasons this should be disclosed. SolarZero and Ecotricity work together.

[@RaymondDun]

So does Endless Energy and a lot of other solar power companies.🙂

[@dave24-73]

@@RaymondDunand guess what SolarZero just went into liquidation (people should never lease Solar all the models eventually fail).

[@RaymondDun]

@@dave24-73 to be fair, the home owners' interests is protected by contract and managed by a separate entity post-sale, in this case Verofi has taken over the O&M and the legal contract stands.

[@honesty_-no9he]

BATTERY ALWAYS MAKES SENSE. You take cheap night time rate energy from grid then use it in daytime and top up from sun as you are using it. So you are wrong BATTERIES are essential unless you have a permanent EV with VTH.

[@PetrFaitl]

That really depends if your demand offsets your usage d the cost of that usage. I've done the sums multiple times and I'm still coming with 12year payback on the batteries. Plus my night "battery" is an EV car.

[@ianscorey5293]

Living in windy Wellington you should have gone with a wind turbine!!!! 😂 😂 regards Ian 👨‍🎤🇳🇿👍🍸🍸

[@TerryHickey-xt4mf]

It would be interesting to see what the rules are on domestic wind turbines? I suspect there would be a lot more red tape.

[@HarmLessSolutionsNZ]

@@TerryHickey-xt4mf Noise issues for neighbours can be problematic. Some small horizontal axis ones sound like a Cessna winding up in high winds. Also NZ's gusty wind conditions makes for significant maintenance which tips over the economics of them.

[@Sulu-d4r]

Pretty sure that Gav lives just out of Auckland.

[@ianscorey5293]

@ sorry dude….. in his solar panels video….. he clearly stated that he lives in Wellington!!!! Da windy city!!!!! 👨‍🎤🇳🇿👍🍸🍸

[@pinkelephants1421]

​@@ianscorey5293Nope. Te Kuiti which is nowhere near Wellington.

[@dave24-73]

Compounding interest on 20k will usually yield better return than savings through Solar, taking into account the payback period.

[@HarmLessSolutionsNZ]

Considering a well designed solar installation typically has a payback period of

[@dave24-73]

@ it’s compounding so you don’t need 10% After investing for 20 years at 3% interest, your initial investment of $10,000 will have grown to $18,061. You will have earned $8,061 in interest. 20% on 20k is only 4k. It’s the compounding part that makes the difference. Note many companies are also starting to charge for export, this trend is growing globally, best examples are in Australia.

[@Goodkiwibloke]

You have zero idea. Run away

[@HarmLessSolutionsNZ]

@@dave24-73 And during that time your electricity prices will have increased by what percentage? Good example of chasing your own tail. Also your interest is taxable whereas the gains from solar aren't.

[@dave24-73]

@ I worked for SolarZero, I’ve worked for Commonwealth bank, and I’ve worked for Mightyriver power and I have no idea, please. And leasing Solar is the absolute worst investment anyone can make.

[@pr5991]

Haha 19K, you got ripped off, equivalent system cost 3K in Australia, those panels are $99 each, hybrid inverter $600, second hand rails are almost free in Australia. Maximum it should cost $3000 for 10kw system, and additional $2500 for 16kwh lifeo4 battery. Don’t be overly exited, and Nz Viewers Should know that they are getting ripped off by these solar installation.