I'm looking at battery storage for my house here in Ontario. I've got a pretty good overnight rate of $0.028 per kWh but the daytime rate is $0.15, which is adding up to about $60 a month for my daytime usage of about 400 kWh. At night, I only pay about $8 a month, mostly for charging my electric vehicle. I saw a video about using lithium-ion batteries for storage and was wondering if it's possible to set up a system that pays off within a year or two. I have a 100 amp circuit; my two stoves might be on from time to time but my tenants are usually at work during the day. Can running appliances on battery help me save money with these rates? With savings of around $912 over two years, would a battery system be worth it? I'm aware that battery life diminishes around the 5-year mark, so I'd like to know if there's a setup that makes financial sense with my usage patterns.
4 Answers
Honestly, with those rates, I wouldn't say a battery system is necessary. They can be great if you're worried about power outages, but if that's not a concern for you, the savings just don't add up. How much do you think you'd value backup power for your critical devices?
Given that Ontario has relatively cheap hydro power and it’s quite green, I'd probably stick with the utility. You’d be getting excess power for almost nothing. If you really want to play around with energy storage, DIY options exist, like creating a battery from an old electric vehicle, but it might be more effort than it's worth for you. Plus, always check the legality of DIY electrical work in your area!
A budget-friendly battery large enough to cover your daily usage starts around 3500 CAD, which would save you about $48.80 a month. So, you're looking at a payback period of at least 72 months just for the batteries alone, without factoring in the cost of the inverter and other setup necessities. Realistically, if you’re considering full systems, your payback would likely stretch much longer due to maintenance and potential hardware failures. The true benefit lies in having backup power.
I see your point, especially about needing backup power for servers. That could be worth considering!
I went the DIY route and built a solar battery system using an old Nissan Leaf battery for around 500 USD. A bit complex, but it’s doable. Some people even consider using full EV batteries for household storage. You'd need the right inverter though. Just keep in mind, DIY electrical work can be tricky and might not be legal everywhere.
That's a good point, but outages are pretty rare for my situation. Are there any specific battery packs you recommend for someone like me?