Battery Storage Solutions for homes, sheds and hybrid solar systems
A battery banks your daytime solar for the evening and keeps the essentials running when the grid drops. We install batteries on new hybrid solar jobs and retrofit them onto existing grid-tied systems across the Ngatea region, installed and certified by a registered electrician and EWRB-registered inspector, with the required independent inspection arranged as part of the install.
Image: home battery storage install, Ngatea region
Three situations where battery storage pays off
Not every solar install needs a battery. These are the three situations where it makes sense.
You are out all day and home at night
Your solar feeds the grid all day at the buy-back rate, then you come home and buy power back at the higher retail rate. A battery keeps the excess so you use it yourself. Compare buy-back rates at Powerswitch.
Your power keeps going out
Storm cuts around the Thames Coast and the Ngatea region can last hours, and standard grid-tied solar shuts down with them. A battery keeps the fridge, freezer, water pump and lights running, and switches over on its own. No generator to start, no fuel to store. Lose power a few times a year and it can pay for itself in spoiled food alone.
The grid does not reach your place
When running lines to the property costs more than it is worth, solar with a battery and a backup generator does the job instead. That is a different setup with different sizing. See Off-Grid Solar for how we build those.
Already have solar? You can add a battery
Whether it is a straightforward add-on or a slightly bigger job comes down to one thing: the inverter already on your wall.
If your inverter is hybrid-ready
A DC-coupled battery
Shares the inverter you already have. The cleanest, most efficient option, and most systems put in over the last few years are already set up for it.
If it is older or a plain string inverter
An AC-coupled battery
Brings its own inverter and sits alongside your system. Slightly less efficient, but it works on almost any existing solar setup. You are rarely stuck.
Sizing the battery to your usage
We size from your priority circuits, not your total household load. What matters is what you need running through a cut and what your evening usage actually looks like.
We do not oversize. A battery bigger than your daily cycle is capacity you pay for and never use. We size from the on-site visit and your power bills, and no bigger.
Farms backing up vat refrigeration and stock-water gear may run higher. Whole-house off-grid sizing lives on the Off-Grid Solar page.
5–13 kWh
Typical residential battery range
Typical priority circuits
Fridge and freezer
Runs 24/7, modest draw
Water pump
If you are on tank water, higher draw when running
Essential lighting and a few power points
Modest draw
Evening cooking, TV and charging
A few hours, variable
Q Cardlogo
Spread the cost of your upgrade
Ask us about Q Card. Get the job done now and pay it off over time.
- Switchboards
- Heat pumps
- Solar
- Ventilation
- Larger projects
Banks also offer low-interest green loans for eligible energy efficiency upgrades, worth asking yours. Q Card is provided by a third party, lending criteria, fees and terms apply.
Why choose Charly for battery storage
A registered electrician and inspector, based in Ngatea, who manages the whole job end-to-end.
Image: Charly commissioning a battery install
One person managing the whole job
Charly is registered with EWRB as both an Electrician (E253525) and an Electrical Inspector (I104520). The work is certified, with the required independent inspection arranged as part of the install. One quote, one schedule.
Honest sizing, not maximum-size sales
We design to your priority circuits and actual usage. An oversized battery is wasted money, and we say so at the quote, not on the invoice.
Both retrofit and new-install paths
We retrofit batteries onto existing grid-tied systems and install hybrid and battery from scratch on new solar jobs. The right path depends on what is already on the wall.
Free on-site visit. No obligation.
Battery storage questions we get most
Straight answers to what people ask before they book a visit.
How long does a solar battery last during a power cut?
What is the warranty on a solar battery?
Can I add a battery to my existing solar system?
Will a battery save me money on power bills?
Is a battery safer than a generator for power-cut backup?
What happens to my battery if I sell the house?
Do you install batteries without solar?
Who certifies the battery install?
Free battery quote, sized to your usage
Retrofit onto existing solar, a new hybrid install, or backup for the bach or the dairy shed. Sized to your priority circuits and actual usage. Free on-site visit, no obligation, one local tradesman end to end.