{"id":29627,"date":"2019-06-20T16:30:02","date_gmt":"2019-06-20T06:00:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/?p=29627"},"modified":"2025-12-19T14:24:44","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T04:54:44","slug":"community-solar-batteries","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/community-solar-batteries\/","title":{"rendered":"Good People Making Bad Decisions: A ‘Community Solar’ Case Study"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"A

I nearly choked on my kale smoothie reading this article in the latest Renew magazine…<\/p><\/div>\n

The Alternative Technology Association (ATA to its friends) is a wonderful organisation. They started as the Alternative Technology Cooperative in 1980 and ever since they have been urging Australians to think differently and more sustainably about how they use and generate energy.<\/p>\n

In their very first publication, “Soft Technology” (created with the power of a typewriter and textas) you could learn how to make your own hydrogen at home.<\/p>\n

\"Alternative<\/p>\n

\"homemade

Don’t try this at home kids. Actually – do try this at home kids. You might learn something other than how to get to level 1,542 on Jetpack Joyride.<\/p><\/div>\n

Name Games<\/h2>\n

A few months ago the ATA rebranded to \u2018Renew\u2019.<\/p>\n

\"ATA

Wot, no sun?<\/p><\/div>\n

I don\u2019t know why they did this, but I\u2019m guessing that they decided renewable energy isn\u2019t so \u2018alternative\u2019 any more. Personally I think it’s a mistake. I hate the new name. Bland, corporate, unoriginal. So I will be a curmudgeonly old git and keep calling them \u2018the ATA\u2019.<\/p>\n

But I digress.<\/p>\n

The ATA\u2019s quarterly, now eponymous, magazine \u2018Renew\u2019 is put together by some of Australia\u2019s most knowledgeable energy experts and I\u2019m an avid reader.<\/p>\n

\"Renew<\/p>\n

Despite me gently ripping one of their articles to shreds in this post, I highly recommend buying a subscription<\/a> – a bargain at $34 per year1<\/a><\/sup> – and full of ideas on how to live more sustainably in Australia.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But this post is about how, not long after the latest issue landed in my reclaimed-wood-and-salvaged-steel-letterbox, I almost choked on my kombucha. I was reading a four-page article authored by a homeowner from Toronto, NSW and I couldn\u2019t believe what I was reading.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Blasphemy In The Energy Efficiency Bible<\/h2>\n

The article titled \u2018A solar and battery decision\u2019 talks us through a recently retired gentleman\u2019s decision to spend $8500 on a 5kW solar system and $13,000 on a 7.5kWh battery. I\u2019ll call this gentleman Fred2<\/a><\/sup>. Fred is obviously a top bloke because he chooses to pay more for grid electricity guaranteed to come from renewables using GreenPower<\/a>. Not a lot of people choose to pay more for their electricity just because it’s the right thing to do3<\/a><\/sup> so I started the article full of optimism.<\/p>\n

However as I got further through Fred\u2019s four-page feature, I felt both sad and angry. Not with Fred, but with the people and organisations<\/a> misleading the Australian public about solar batteries<\/a>. I couldn\u2019t believe I had just read a case study of how to avoid<\/strong> cost-effectively making your home much more energy efficient, and how not to buy a battery.<\/p>\n

The article embodies most of the mistakes well-meaning people make when they decide they really want a battery (thanks to all the misinformation and hype out there), then decide to twist themselves in knots making the economics \u2018work\u2019, often postponing or even abandoning more effective environmental, economical and comfort upgrades. All because they\u2019ve dropped so much cash on a battery that will only lose money and hurt the environment<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This is a case study of the dangers of Australia\u2019s current solar battery obsession caused by the media and well-meaning organisations breathlessly promoting grid-connected batteries as a silver bullet to the energy crisis.<\/p>\n

Here’s a list of decisions described in the article that I consider misguided:<\/p>\n