{"id":102363,"date":"2026-10-12T06:13:42","date_gmt":"2026-10-11T20:43:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/?p=102363"},"modified":"2026-10-12T06:13:42","modified_gmt":"2026-10-11T20:43:42","slug":"should-you-buy-the-cheapest-battery-only-if-youre-this-bloke","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/should-you-buy-the-cheapest-battery-only-if-youre-this-bloke\/","title":{"rendered":"Should You Buy The Cheapest Battery? Only If You’re This Bloke."},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/p>\n

I met him at Everything Electric. Retired electrical engineer. Plenty of time on his hands, and one clear mission.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want the cheapest battery I can get,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019ve done my homework.\u201d<\/p>\n

He had. He\u2019d settled on Fox ESS. He\u2019d 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\u2019d 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.<\/p>\n

His question was simple: should I go ahead?<\/p>\n

I think he expected me to tell him to run. My answer surprised him.<\/p>\n

The Hardware Is Fine<\/h2>\n

The easy bit first. Fox ESS lives at the really cheap end of the market. I\u2019m talking about buyers who aren\u2019t even prepared to pay GoodWe prices.<\/p>\n

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\u2019t say about every brand that turned up with a container full of batteries when the Cheaper Home Batteries rebate landed.<\/p>\n

So on hardware, I told him he\u2019d chosen well for his budget.<\/p>\n

The Installer Is Not<\/h2>\n

The installer was a different story. I wouldn\u2019t recommend them to my worst enemy. I won\u2019t name them here, but if you\u2019ve read The Art of the Phoenix<\/a> you\u2019ll recognise the type: rock-bottom prices, a fresh ABN when the complaints pile up, and a warranty that’s worth jack shit.<\/p>\n

So Why Did I Say Yes?<\/h2>\n

Because I\u2019ve 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.<\/p>\n

I could tell within a few minutes that he\u2019d be happy to QA the install himself. In fact, he\u2019d probably enjoy it. He\u2019d relish the back-and-forth with Fox\u2019s tech support to get the configuration exactly right. He has the technical chops, the time, and he understands the risks.<\/p>\n

So I told him straight. I don\u2019t 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.<\/p>\n

The Six Rules For Going Super Cheap<\/h2>\n

1. Get the design before you sign<\/h3>\n

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\u2019s the right design for your home instead of hoping. Once you agree on a design, don\u2019t pay more than a 5% deposit.<\/p>\n

2. Forget about backup<\/h3>\n

Don\u2019t even think about it. Backup adds a layer of complication<\/a> that the really cheap installers are likely to stuff up, and it massively increases the chance of problems down the track. You\u2019re buying this battery to shift solar into the evening. Keep it that simple.<\/p>\n

3. Watch the crew like a hawk<\/h3>\n

When the subcontracted install crew rocks up, you are going to have to watch everything they do. They will hate it. You\u2019ll feel very uncomfortable. Do it anyway, and use every bit of your engineering nous to check their work as they go.<\/p>\n

4. Bring your own commissioning checklist<\/h3>\n

When they get to commissioning, go through it with them. They probably don\u2019t have a checklist, so write your own beforehand and tick off every item. Start with these five tests<\/a>. The first two apply to you. The other three are about backup, which you\u2019ve skipped.<\/p>\n

5. Read the crew, and get their card<\/h3>\n

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\u2019s who turns up, most of the above becomes unnecessary. Use your engineering judgement.<\/p>\n

Either way, get the subcontracting company’s card. If there\u2019s a workmanship problem later, you can go straight to them. The retailer should take responsibility, but they won\u2019t. Besides, they may have a new ABN by then.<\/p>\n

6. Pay for a proper inspection<\/h3>\n

You\u2019re an engineer, but you don\u2019t hold an electrical licence. So pay $500 to $1,000 for a qualified, independent inspector to go over the job properly. You can\u2019t rely on the company\u2019s internal QC, because I\u2019m not convinced it exists.<\/p>\n

You’ve Paid With Time And Knowledge<\/h2>\n

That\u2019s about it. Do all six and you cut your odds of ending up with a lemon a long way.<\/p>\n

But be clear about what you\u2019re 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\u2019s rude, it slows everyone down, and good installers hate it with a passion.<\/p>\n

This is the one case where I make an exception.<\/p>\n

Everyone Else: Walk Away<\/h2>\n

If you\u2019re a regular homeowner, none of this applies to you. Avoid these super cheap installers at all costs.<\/p>\n

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\u2019s tech support in their own language. He\u2019s also got the time and the stubbornness to deal directly and confidently with the crew and the manufacturer when something goes wrong.<\/p>\n

Take those away, and you\u2019re left with the cheapest installer in the country, a warranty you\u2019ll never collect, and nobody on your side.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s a recipe for misery.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I met him at Everything Electric. Retired electrical engineer. Plenty of time on his hands, and one clear mission. \u201cI want the cheapest battery I can get,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019ve done my homework.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":102368,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[57],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-102363","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-solar-installation","entry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nShould You Buy The Cheapest Battery? 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