finally got a first cheque from synergy for the solar electricity weve been pumping out. $155.55. . weve been steadily building up over summer , but one really hot fortnight we went backwards by 4kwhrs. then we went to the beach to compensate. we lost 1 half day when western power contractors switched off the power to work on the lines, without switching off the solar(like it said on the BIG sign on the meter box) then they proceeded to work on lines that were really live., tripping the solar off. when they wsitched the power back on they again ignored the signage, and didnt switch the solar back on , so we lost over half a day of output to the grid. thank god for RCD's.
I couldnt believe how ignorant the linesmen were. I even talked to them about the solar as I was going out to work.

Well done mate, Can't believe those linesmen, surely the're getting educated about dual supplies and how dangerous they are?????
Our little 1kw system got us $41.00 ahead over summer, but now we've started to slip backwards, our next reading, due in a few days, will be about $35.00 ahead by my calculations. (We're on fixed tariff of 16c)
Don't think we'll ever get far enough ahead to get a cheque, but also don't think we'll end up paying much either.

Although saying that, if they introduce a reasonable feed in tariff we probably will get a cheque.

How much do you get paid for a KW hour? I think in NSW its 55 cents which is quite generous.

brad1 said...

Is this $155.55 classed as income? ie do you have to pay tax on it?
Personally I don't think it should be classed as income as your trying do do good for the planet they should give a tax break as an incentive for more to do it.

The answer might be yes, but that's based solely on A Current Affair segment (yeah yeah I know) about pensioners complaining it was impacting their means tested pension payments.

Skid said...

GalahOnTheBay said...

brad1 said...

Is this $155.55 classed as income? ie do you have to pay tax on it?
Personally I don't think it should be classed as income as your trying do do good for the planet they should give a tax break as an incentive for more to do it.

The answer might be yes, but that's based solely on A Current Affair segment (yeah yeah I know) about pensioners complaining it was impacting their means tested pension payments.

Not a tax expert, but if you have to declare the $ as income, can you claim depreciation of the installation as a tax deduction?
Perhaps there is a CPA on seabeeze who can advise...

was thinking that one myself. and then thought , where did the poor pensioner find the cash to install solar?

an elderly relative (who now receives a part pension) had a system installed before it became a free for all and after speaking to centrelink believes that the credit/refund will be classed as income for centrelink.

Because Landyacht has a 3 phase connection to his house he can export on 1 phase and import on another phase at the same time, which is the best option for profit.

bolgo said...

any suggestions on best system/manufacturer

have smart meter - does that need to change?

Not sure on best system, but the Sanyo panels we used are apparently pretty good (hybrid amorphous/mono-crystalline). Kanika - amorphous (spelling?) make very economical quality panels, and are supposedly very 'efficient', but use about 3 times the area...which brings up a whole other argument about their efficiency?!?

Smart meter should work, we had to replace our old meter with a smart meter.

try and work out what your average daily Kw usage is, then go for something bigger. you also need to consider what you can fit on your roof, the angle of the roof and the direction its facing. The idea is to have an inverter that can handle a bit more than your panels max output. do you need to heavily prune your trees , Or your neigbours trees( I have 1 tree that shades my panels and my neighbour has stopped pruning it) .
These may seem like silly things but Ive seen installations where the panels face due east, even SE, panels overhanging rooflines, cableing running outside the roof, instalations that are heavily shaded. the usual comment was that the installed said it wouldnt make a difference, . finally , have a really good read of that fineprint before you sign. As with any subsidized scheme there will be some shonky operators, and they will be out there trying to find you with deals that are too good to be true

I forgot to add that if your screen goes blank then they estimate how much power was used, based on bills for same months previous years. I doubt they would do the same for exported power, so it would be a good idea to ask what happens if that occurs!

300W!!! . our german panels are 210w and there were the best we could get , and that was only 1 year ago. do you have a link with some tech info from the manufacturers please

Ours are sunpower 210's. the new sunpowers are 225, and the 300w panels are wider with 2 extra banks of cells, so same power for the area.
i dont feel diddled by accelerating technology now

landyacht said...

>>>>>>
.. theres gotta be a catch

Everybody else's tax is going to have to go up to pay for it.

PS. any idea when it's going to start????
New financial year perhaps?