Battery Storage Systems: Reliable, Cost-Effective Energy for your Home

A home battery storage system allows you to store excess electricity for later use, improving your energy independence and efficiency. This stored energy can come from your solar panels or be charged from the electricity grid when rates are lower.

How It Works:

• Charge: The battery collects and stores excess electricity generated by your solar panels or from the grid during off-peak hours.
• Store: The battery holds this energy until it’s needed.
• Discharge: The stored energy powers your home when solar generation is low (e.g., evenings, cloudy days) or when electricity rates are higher.

FACT: A home battery ensures you make the most of your renewable energy, or cheap off-peak tariffs, reducing reliance on expensive grid electricity!

A battery storage system offers multiple advantages beyond just storing energy. Here’s how it can transform your home’s energy efficiency:

• Lower Energy Bills – Store cheap or free energy and use it when electricity rates are high.
• Maximise Solar Power Usage – Use more of the solar energy you generate instead of exporting it to the grid.
• Protection Against Power Cuts – Some batteries can provide backup power during outages.
• Lower Carbon Footprint – Reduce your reliance on fossil fuels by using stored solar or off-peak renewable energy (Renewable energy is most abundant in the grid during periods when off-peak tariffs are at their lowest).
• Energy Independence – Reduce your reliance on energy suppliers and fluctuating energy prices.

FACT: A well-sized home battery can help cut your electricity bills by up to 80% when paired with solar PV!

The right battery size depends on your energy consumption, solar generation, and storage goals.

The most effective way to determine the ideal battery size for your home is to match it to your daily energy demand. A good estimate can be found by dividing your annual electricity consumption by 365 to calculate your average daily usage.

However, if your energy demand varies seasonally (e.g., higher consumption in winter due to electric heating), this should also be factored in.

For example, if your household consumes 6,000 kWh per year:

• 6,000 ÷ 365 = approx. 16.4 kWh per day
• A 16.4 kWh battery would be well-suited to cover your daily energy needs efficiently.

Here’s a rough guide:

Things to consider:

• If you use a lot of electricity in the evening, a larger battery may be more beneficial.
• If your solar panels generate more energy than you use, a bigger battery helps store the excess.
• If you want backup power for outages, choose a battery with off-grid capability.

FACT: The best way to determine the right battery size is to review your annual energy consumption and solar generation data.

Yes! Most modern home battery storage systems can be retrofitted to work with an existing solar PV system.

• AC-coupled batteries – Best for retrofitting existing solar PV systems, as they connect separately to the grid and your home.
• DC-coupled batteries – Best for new solar installations, as they connect directly to the solar panels for maximum efficiency.

Fact: Even if you don’t have solar now, you can install a battery and charge it using cheaper off-peak electricity, then add solar later!

A home battery storage system can significantly reduce your electricity costs. Here’s how:

• Maximise free solar energy – Store and use your excess solar power instead of selling it to the grid at a low rate.
• Charge when electricity is cheap – Charge the battery during off-peak hours and use stored energy during expensive peak times.
• Reduce reliance on the grid – Less energy bought from suppliers means lower energy bills.
• Long-term growing savings- electric prices have increased at a rate of 5.5% annually for the past 10 years, savings on battery storage will only grow!

Example Savings:

• Without a battery, a home with solar PV may only self-consume 30-40% of its solar energy.
• With a battery, self-consumption can increase to 80-90%, reducing grid electricity purchases.

Fact: Homes with solar and battery storage can save up to 84% on electricity bills, depending on usage patterns and battery size!

No! While solar PV maximises savings, you can install a battery storage system without solar panels and still benefit by:

• Reducing reliance on the grid by storing cheaper energy for later use.
• Providing backup power during outages.
• Charging during off-peak hours when electricity is cheaper (e.g., using Economy 7 tariffs).

For example, charging a home battery system overnight at 8p/kWh and using the stored energy during the day when rates are 28p/kWh would save you 20p per kWh.

• With a15kWh battery, if fully charged and discharged daily, this could result in annual savings of £1,095!

Fact: Even without solar, a battery can help cut electricity bills by storing energy when tariffs are low!

Yes, but only certain batteries offer backup power. Not all home batteries provide power during an outage, so if backup power is important to you, look for a battery with a UPS (Uninterruptible Power Supply) function.

Sigenergy and Tesla offer the best power-cut backup solutions on the market.

Fact: Our expert team can help direct you to the best battery to meet your exact needs!

The discharge rate determines how quickly the battery can supply power to your home. A larger storage capacity is beneficial, but if the discharge rate is too low, it may not provide enough power for high-demand appliances. This could result in drawing expensive electricity from the grid, even when your battery is sufficiently charged.

• High discharge rate batteries – Can support multiple appliances simultaneously.
• Low discharge rate batteries – May struggle to power energy-intensive appliances like electric showers or ovens.

Fact: When selecting a battery, consider both capacity (kWh) and discharge rate (kW) to ensure it meets your household’s energy demands!

If you receive the Feed-in Tariff (FIT) for your solar PV system, a properly installed battery storage system will not affect your government payments.

To ensure compliance, the battery must be AC-coupled and installed on the grid side of your FIT generation meter. This setup prevents interference with generation monitoring. Any disruption to the FIT system’s tracking could risk the loss of payments, so correct installation is essential.

For FIT recipients, adding a battery is particularly beneficial because your solar energy is completely free, with no opportunity cost from the Smart Export Guarantee (SEG). This means you can store and use your own solar energy rather than exporting it, maximising your savings.

FACT: We have successfully installed hundreds of battery systems for customers with long-standing FIT agreements, ensuring no impact on their payments.