Solar for Beginners [ask your questions here]

Can you not decline the smart meter install date and let them know you’ve some reservations about it and would like to be moved to a late install date? So you're not rejecting a smart meter (which means you would lose deemed export), just asking to go at the back of the queue. That’s approach I’ve taken (I asked to be put on the fast track for the install before I realised it was going to cost more on a smart meter). A backwards spinning meter is gold. Basically get paid deemed export plus get a full credit for unused units (unlike FIT which is a %). Ok, at this time of year you won't have excess (or very little).

You’ll get FIT once on a smart meter. Won’t matter that you declined the smart meter in the past.

I expect a smart meter and digital meter as the same thing (weird they are suing the term 'digital meter'). Afaik any new meter now will be a smart meter unless you request something different and it’s confirmed (like a D/N). 

There's no cost benefit to using a battery while on a backwards spinning meter. Only benefit is learning how it works, how much of the house it can run.... Best you learn that now before getting into expensive time of use (TOU) rates on a smart meter (if you get a smart tariff plan).

If you lose deemed export when they replace the backwards spinning one with the exact same newer 24hr one (that won’t spin backwards), then you need to change to another meter. Or will cost you more.

D/N will be best money wise if you qualify for deemed export (you’ve a battery so D/N is perfect).Energia told me it's free to swap from 24hr to D/N, but would be a cost to later move to a smart meter - which is fine with me.

Or move to a smart meter if can’t get deemed export on 2 options above. If you get an EV tariff (like Energia one) you get 2 or 3 hours cheap rate at night. Charge EV, battery, load shift…. Less 'good' V a D/N but next best option. Don't stay on a 24hr meter that won’t spin backwards in the medium term. Not getting any benefit of a cheap night rate.

Tbh, you’re where I’m be once the come looking to change my 24hr meter. But I don’t know the deemed export Qs you’re asking here. You’re the ‘pioneer’ here unless others can chime in with their experience.

Actually, there is a 'do nothing' option which is fine and less stress as you're just live. What rate have you got on the 24hr tariff now? Will be 40c+ per kWh when you next renew. So if that still has a few months left and you’re on a decent-ish rate now and you’re stressed about making all these decisions, you can leave it all for now. Let them change the 24hr meter when they get to it (might still take a while). Solar will start to produce more soon and will have decent output in March. Meaning it will fill your battery so won’t be buying many units at the 24hr tariff.

Then later this year when you know more about how it all works for you, how many units you buy and when (to know how much you can move to a cheap rate)…you can nail down the stuff above and see if the D/N gives you deemed export. Or you move to a smart meter if deemed export is gone. The cheap rate will be a benefit from end Sept when solar output drops way down. 

Others will have to answer if your provider must pay deemed export when moving to a D/N meter from a 24hr meter. I'll be doing that in the not to distant future and don't know for certain myself

Now I get your username 😂

Nah we flip it on the camera, small studio at work.

Just had my givenergy gen 1 inverter replaced with a gen 2, added an additional 5.2 battery to my 9.5.. nice to see the extra power flowing from the battery.. 3.6 versus 2.6 with gen 1. Battery dumping for calibration

eddi can do that! You could connect its first output to your immersion and the second output to that electric radiator (provided it can handle 3kW)

Hey, going off grid isn't 'solar for dummies' though.

Deffo interesting to see the options in terms of reducing grid consumption. That’s important for all of us. But for those in suburbia, it's likely neither possible to go off grid (can't put up turbines with any decent output for winter or have space for large solar setups). Nor needed. Only saving is the standing charge.

Also needs complex setups or a large spend. Needs large batteries. And other ‘batteries’ like hot water tank, EVs (and possibly ones that can also feed the house)… 

I'd wait and see, @micks_address. Chances are you don't need any more vents / fans.

It is, technically, but I'm simply not reporting it unless I receive any money from it. Getting a cheque absolutely, but a bill credit which will be offset by usage in a couple of months? Nope.

If over 12 months I'm not making more than 200 above and beyond what my bill is then I simply won't be declaring it as income. Because I don't think it is. (I know factually it is, I'm not arguing that). I reckon to cover a normal winter bill for us (ie without the magic EV tariff) I'd need to export at least 3000 kwh in the summer. Add in the fact that we now have 2 EVs and do a good bit of driving and I'd like to make that 5000kWh. So that's 100 days of the year exporting 50kWh. Or 5kW for 10 hours. Pretty ambitious.

I know it's not strictly accurate but my defense if questioned will be that I never received the credit - it was offset by usage, similar to how higher cost units are offset by discounts.

Remember, that 5MWh of export is just to break even and cover winter bills. If I was to invest in this as opposed to going fully off grid I want it to make me money. So that 16kWp becomes 24kWp. And then you do have to pay tax on it as the money /profit hits your bank account and you would have to go down the route of expensing and ammortizing a percentage of the outlay on the panels etc.

It's an interesting question, and one I will explore further if there is no good 7-14c night rate anymore. I was willing to accept 13.75c but 20+ seems the going rate now and that's too much.

Then again this is the tax man we're talking about, doubt he'll see it that way. If i worked there, I'd be figuring out how do we contact all the electricity suppliers and have them do most of the work - ie they send us names/addresses of people receiving FIT payments and how much each person got!!

Or just open the meter box and record the numbers over 24 hours.... Do it every day for a week and u kinda know.

Just measure day rate hours and night rate hours. Work out if you can save by load shifting. If not maybe work out annual usage and then size a system of panels based on your roof and the solar calculator in the faq thread.