Maximise Your Solar Power with a Powerwall: The Importance of Charge and Discharge Rates

Your home battery’s charging and discharging speed will make a big difference in how much it contributes to your energy consumption, and your overall experience.

Charge Rate

The charge rate is how fast the battery can charge. The higher this rating, the more solar power the battery can absorb at once.

The more power from your solar system you can utilise, the better it is for you. Most people will now have solar systems of 5kW or above, so a battery that can absorb this production will increase your self consumption, and therefore your energy independence and cost savings.

The Powerwall has a rating of 5kW but can surge to 7.5kW. This means the Powerwall can charge quicker than other battery products available. Some other home battery products have lower charge/discharge rates. This means they won’t make the most of all available solar power.

For example, say you have a 5kW solar system that’s pumping out power in the middle of the day. An Energizer home battery can only charge at 3.5kW, which means you’ll be sending the other 1.5kW back to the grid! But with a Tesla Powerwall’s 5kW rate, you’ll charge using 100% of your solar production.

Discharge Rate

The discharge rate is how much power your battery can supply at a given moment. The higher your discharge rate, the more of your electrical loads your battery can cover at once.

For example, at breakfast time you use your jug (1.6kW), and toaster (1.6kW) and if you’re multitasking the hairdryer (1.8kW) too. That’s a total load of 5kW. The Powerwall with its rating of 5kW will have no problem covering your breakfast peak without using any grid power.

A lower-rated battery like the New Enphase IQ battery can only discharge at 3.8kW. This means you will be pulling the remaining 1.2kW from the grid to make your breakfast.

Tesla Powerwall can give you a high discharge rate due to its energy-dense NMC chemistry along with the powerful inbuilt 5kW inverter.

Backup Power

Discharge rates matter most during an outage! In an outage, your battery becomes your grid.

With the Powerwall’s 5kW continuous discharge rate you’ll be able to keep most of your house up and running. The Powerwall’s ability to surge to 7.5kW, means you should be able to keep essential pumps and other inductive loads going too.

Our concern is people are buying some battery products with the expectation that they will be completely covered during an outage. Often this isn’t the case.

Some battery and solar service providers, claim to cover you in an outage. But with discharge rates as low as 2.5kW, you’d better hope your fridge doesn’t kick in at the same time as you’re making toast, as your system could trip out!

That’s why we recommend choosing a battery product like the Tesla Powerwall. It’s high charge and discharge rate, optimises your solar power usage and ensures that you’re covered during an outage.

Ready to add a Powerwall to your Solar System? Get in touch to secure yours today.