Home Energy Use: Understand it and save money

I've worked as an electrical engineer for some time and it's worth talking about energy use and what you can do to save money.

How can I reduce my power bill? Here in Australia Solar PV has been a booming industry for many years now, but is it worth the cost of having solar panels put on your roof? How many should I get? And battery storage, what about that?

Well let me hit you with easy to understand answers to those questions, and then I will go on and on about the reasons why and some projects you can take on to squeeze more bang for your buck out of your energy use.

  1. How can I reduce my power bill? Use less power.
  2. Should I get solar panels? Yes, have solar PV installed.
  3. How much solar should I get? Minimum 1.5kW but more than 3kW is diminishing gains.
  4. Should I get battery storage? No, battery storage is not currently worth it.

Okay they were big bold statements and let me reinforce again that is is about saving money - If you want to go off-grid for instance due to remote location or being a prepper - you have to have battery storage. If you are a power head and want to boast, you'll need more than 3kW.