Self-consumption beats export, every time
The energy you use directly from your own panels offsets the full retail rate you'd otherwise pay. The energy you export earns a feed-in tariff that is typically a fraction of that.
So the highest-value change most households can make costs nothing: move controllable loads into the middle of the day. Pool pump, hot water, dishwasher, washing machine, EV charging, and pre-cooling the house before the evening peak.
Check your tariff, not just your retailer
- Flat rate: one price per kWh all day. Simple, but no reward for shifting usage.
- Time-of-use: cheaper off-peak, expensive in the evening peak. Rewards daytime solar use and batteries strongly.
- Controlled load: a separate cheap circuit, often for hot water, that runs at set hours.
- Demand tariffs: charge partly on your single highest usage spike, which can punish everything switching on at once.
- Daily supply charge: a fixed cost you pay regardless of solar — worth comparing between retailers.
Feed-in tariffs change — plan without relying on them
Feed-in rates are set by retailers and have trended down over the years as more solar has come online. Any financial case built entirely on export income is fragile.
A more durable plan is to size the system around your own usage, shift what you can into daylight, and treat exports as a bonus. That's also why batteries have become more attractive as feed-in rates have softened.
It's worth comparing retailer offers annually. The combination of usage rate, supply charge and feed-in rate matters more than any single headline number.
Make sure the system is actually performing
- Check your inverter app monthly — a dead string can go unnoticed for a year.
- Compare production against the estimate you were quoted, season by season.
- Keep panels reasonably clean; on the Coast, salt and dust build up faster than inland.
- Watch for repeated inverter shutdowns, which often indicate grid voltage rise rather than a faulty unit.
- Have the system inspected periodically, especially isolators and rooftop connections in a coastal environment.
Common questions
Why did my bill barely change after installing solar?
Usually because most of your usage happens after dark, so you're exporting cheaply and buying back expensively. Shifting loads into daylight or adding storage is the fix.
Is a time-of-use tariff better with solar?
Often yes, if you can use power in the day and keep the evening peak low. If your evening usage is high and unavoidable, run the numbers before switching.
Do I need to tell my retailer I have solar?
Your network connection and metering are arranged as part of the installation, and we handle that paperwork. You should still confirm your retailer has applied a feed-in tariff to your account.
Want this checked against your own bill?
We'll give you a system size, price and payback estimate for your actual roof and usage.