Should You Buy The Cheapest Battery? Only If You’re This Bloke.

I met him at Everything Electric. Retired electrical engineer. Plenty of time on his hands, and one clear mission.

“I want the cheapest battery I can get,” he said. “I’ve done my homework.”

He had. He’d settled on Fox ESS. He’d rung their Australian tech support more than once and grilled them. He knew his way around AS/NZS 3000. And he had a quote from a national installer I’d rank among the worst in the country that was thousands cheaper than the next quote. A company that has phoenixed at least once, has a trail of appalling reviews, and is very, very cheap.

His question was simple: should I go ahead?

I think he expected me to tell him to run. My answer surprised him.

The Hardware Is Fine

The easy bit first. Fox ESS lives at the really cheap end of the market. I’m talking about buyers who aren’t even prepared to pay GoodWe prices.

In that bargain bin, Fox is probably the best of the bunch. Their Australian support is good. And their local office takes its reputation seriously, which you can’t say about every brand that turned up with a container full of batteries when the Cheaper Home Batteries rebate landed.

So on hardware, I told him he’d chosen well for his budget.

The Installer Is Not

The installer was a different story. I wouldn’t recommend them to my worst enemy. I won’t name them here, but if you’ve read The Art of the Phoenix you’ll recognise the type: rock-bottom prices, a fresh ABN when the complaints pile up, and a warranty that’s worth jack shit.

So Why Did I Say Yes?

Because I’ve met this bloke before. Not him exactly, but his type. Fifteen-odd years running SolarQuotes puts you in front of a lot of engineers who are fixated on getting solar dirt cheap.

I could tell within a few minutes that he’d be happy to QA the install himself. In fact, he’d probably enjoy it. He’d relish the back-and-forth with Fox’s tech support to get the configuration exactly right. He has the technical chops, the time, and he understands the risks.

So I told him straight. I don’t like the idea of anyone handing money to that bunch of grubs. But he is the only type of person I could ever say this to: yes, you should be OK. If you take the following precautions.

The Six Rules For Going Super Cheap

1. Get the design before you sign

A cheap quote usually comes with a vague text description. Ask for the system’s technical design, plus the name and phone number of the designer, before you accept the quote. Then you can check it’s the right design for your home instead of hoping. Once you agree on a design, don’t pay more than a 5% deposit.

2. Forget about backup

Don’t even think about it. Backup adds a layer of complication that the really cheap installers are likely to stuff up, and it massively increases the chance of problems down the track. You’re buying this battery to shift solar into the evening. Keep it that simple.

3. Watch the crew like a hawk

When the subcontracted install crew rocks up, you are going to have to watch everything they do. They will hate it. You’ll feel very uncomfortable. Do it anyway, and use every bit of your engineering nous to check their work as they go.

4. Bring your own commissioning checklist

When they get to commissioning, go through it with them. They probably don’t have a checklist, so write your own beforehand and tick off every item. Start with these five tests. The first two apply to you. The other three are about backup, which you’ve skipped.

5. Read the crew, and get their card

You might get a good crew. There are decent subbies who take these jobs because they want a steady stream of work and will wear the lower rates. If that’s who turns up, most of the above becomes unnecessary. Use your engineering judgement.

Either way, get the subcontracting company’s card. If there’s a workmanship problem later, you can go straight to them. The retailer should take responsibility, but they won’t. Besides, they may have a new ABN by then.

6. Pay for a proper inspection

You’re an engineer, but you don’t hold an electrical licence. So pay $500 to $1,000 for a qualified, independent inspector to go over the job properly. You can’t rely on the company’s internal QC, because I’m not convinced it exists.

You’ve Paid With Time And Knowledge

That’s about it. Do all six and you cut your odds of ending up with a lemon a long way.

But be clear about what you’re paying with. You pay in time and hassle, and in feeling like a right wally as you hover over the shoulder of a crew trying to do their job. I normally tell homeowners never to do that. It’s rude, it slows everyone down, and good installers hate it with a passion.

This is the one case where I make an exception.

Everyone Else: Walk Away

If you’re a regular homeowner, none of this applies to you. Avoid these super cheap installers at all costs.

My engineer friend can get away with it because he brings everything the installer leaves out. He can read a design, spot a dodgy termination, write a commissioning checklist, and deal with a manufacturer’s tech support in their own language. He’s also got the time and the stubbornness to deal directly and confidently with the crew and the manufacturer when something goes wrong.

Take those away, and you’re left with the cheapest installer in the country, a warranty you’ll never collect, and nobody on your side.

That’s a recipe for misery.