In this episode of SolarQuotes TV, discover how to go off-grid properly. Finn showcases some of the best examples of off-grid living in Australia and the solar hardware making it increasingly possible.
King Island’s Off-Grid Odyssey
00:00 – King Island in Bass Strait – home to around 1,800 residents – went from 100% diesel based electricity generation to mostly renewable energy over a couple of decades. The shift to renewables wasn’t triggered by environmental reasons, but was financially motivated. Hydro Tasmania was paying more to generate the electricity than they were allowed to charge the residents – not exactly a great business model!
The company then began installing solar and wind power – 470kW of utility and around 500kW of residential PV, plus 2,700kW of wind power; backed by a 3MW/1.5MWh battery.
Regardless of the primary motivation, turning to renewables was a win for Hydro Tasmania’s pocket, King Island’s people and the planet.
Off-Grid Guru Glen Morris
02:41 – SolarQuip’s Glen Morris is living a solar energy nerd’s dream as part of an off-grid community of 30 households just outside Melbourne that was established in 1974. While originally starting out as an “alternative” community, these days its residents have a much more diverse background – including solar installers like Glenn.
Glen shows us around his Smart Energy Lab, which has an amazing array of solar power, energy storage and associated hardware. Moora Moora is his base for testing components, consulting on large projects and running installer training; with components supplied by companies wanting Glen’s students to train on their products.
Electric vehicles are also an important part of things, with 4 EVs and 3 plug-in EVs charged by a charging station consisting of three 22kW fast chargers and various other infrastructure.
Living In Off-Grid Luxury In Rural SA
05:50 – See a luxury off-grid home in Strathalbyn, South Australia boasting all the mod cons – including under-floor heating – powered by solar panels and batteries. When the owners looked into getting their new home connected to the mains grid, the cost was going to be between $50,000 – $70,000 given their location. This is where going off-grid can make a lot of sense and save money.
Colin Lord from Apex Energy, who designed and installed the system, and the owners chat about the project – all are very happy with the results.
Is It Possible To Go Off-Grid In The City?
10:16 – Short answer – yes, absolutely. Whether you should or not can an entirely different matter. Even someone who has achieved it advises against doing so.
In a longer answer, Finn explains why staying connected to the grid and “going hybrid” is a better idea – it provides a cheap, silent backup power source compared to a dirty, expensive diesel generator that many off-grid homes still need to run from time to time.
Selectronic Battery Inverters – Made In Australia
12:11 – Take a look inside a factory in Victoria manufacturing what is widely regarded as some of the world’s best off-grid power conversion equipment – Selectronic inverters. Established in 1964, Selectronic started producing renewable energy components in the 1980’s and its reputation for manufacturing quality kit spans the planet. Selectronic’s Lindsay Hart also offers some valuable points to consider when choosing a battery inverter.
RedEarth Energy Storage – Customer Review
14:40 – This month, Ned relays a review from a very happy RedEarth Energy Storage customer, which assembles its RedEarth solar batteries in Queensland. By the way, while the company focuses on off-grid battery systems, it also produces an on-grid solution called RedEarth Sunrise.
Going Off-Grid – What Does It Cost?
16:12Â – Ronald crunched the numbers for ditching the grid in the suburbs. While it is possible to go off-grid with a $10,000 battery, it’s not the sort of life many would appreciate and he doesn’t recommend it. In fact, he strongly advises against it unless you’re a nutter like him (his words) or are looking to trigger a divorce.
What Ronald says it will cost to cut the cord and maintain a comfortable lifestyle for the average Australian household in an average Australian home will probably promote greater appreciation of the grid and understanding of its importance. Staying connected to the grid can also help the environment, and he explains how.
Earthship In The Adelaide Hills
21:19 – Very energy-efficient households living in very energy-efficient homes can get by on small off-grid systems. This “Earthship” home in the Adelaide Hills region has a tiny system and consumes just 3-kilowatt hours of electricity per day (Australian average is around 16 -18kWh). Discover how this has been made possible.
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About Michael Bloch
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I was wonderkng whether going off grid in Melbourne in 2026 is worth it.
With V2H becoming available or home battery, in addition to getting next to nothing FiT, I’m wondering if its worth it.
I love in an all electric home with 20kW solar system on 3phase. High performing home with little grid usage.
Cheers
Hi Nathan,
Melbourne is the cloudiest capital city in the country with 180 overcast days per year.
As an off grid electrician I’ve installed a capable system on my own house but I still wouldn’t go off grid.
Nathan,
If you can make it through winter with zero grid import, then you prove the pudding.
In rural Gippsland, also at 38°S, my 27 kW PV + 46 kWh LFP + 12 kW PV inverters + 12 kW battery inverters has ample storage for one, and enough solar yield for zero generator starts in 2.5 years. In winter overcast, deep enough to need the lights on, the meagre 1.6 kW generation is now running a small aircon + 1 kW battery charging: 95% SoC at midday. Short microwave & percolator runs for lunch have no impact. But only a sunny day is washday. I may light the woodheater for room & water heating, to preserve SoC.
It has powered 20k km of BEV travel + an electric excavator – on sunny days.
Means dictate options, off-grid. Hard.
The grid death spiral will one day evoke a “grid available” daily charge in suburbia, exactly like the bin collection charge I don’t pay, ‘cos there is none out here.
Defer, but prepare? Ensure you can island by throwing a grid isolator, to ignore a grid outage.