That 13.5 kW tesla powerwall is $15k on the origin energy website. Not sure where you got the $10k from.

Its around US$6500.

I initially stated $14k earlier but then reading later it was typically installed cost which varies based on your application. Other sites later stated around A$10k purchase.

The downside is there is often a long waiting time as Tesla is prioritizing their battery production for the car sector. Its also why I suspect Powerwall 3 has quietly disappeared from the horizon for now until the new factory is built. Powerwall 3 should (my guess) be around 20kWh for same or cheaper price, take less space and include the solar DC to AC inverter which is currently a separate but required item and will realise lower installation costs. However DC - AC conversion systems run at about 5% lower efficiency than DC to battery in systems. However this loss is on the PV side and easily overcome if required although 5% is still alot.

whatever the prices are batteries are now much more viable to purchase rather then to put electricity into the grid. A battery solution for the byron solar railway should be a no brainer at current electricity prices.

Call me pedantic but I think you mean to say kWh when describing battery capacity? kW is instantaneous power and should be used when describing the generation of the a Photo-Voltaic system as you have done. Otherwise the math does not work.

I must have just been getting lazy.

whatever the prices are batteries are now much more viable to purchase rather then to put electricity into the grid. A battery solution for the byron solar railway should be a no brainer at current electricity prices.

I said previously, this currently doesn't make economic sense when the train on the current timetable is only unplugged from the solar supply for 2h a day. So you are trying to justify the battery on 2h a day.

Meanwhile the off-peak tariff is similar priced to the feed in tariff, so why bother?

They would have been better off having two rail vehicles used one at a time such that one is always charging and on stand by than a stand alone battery for 2h a day that does nothing for you if the train breaks down.

Even the green/RE and some solar PV websites I looked up yesterday stated that on economics alone, battery's are currently too expensive to be justified on cost or have payback periods exceeding 10 years. They all focused on the feel good factor, using your own power, having an uninterruptable power supply or going off-grid. I'm sure it will change very soon and I'm sure by 2025 iif not sooner t will likely be cheaper to have the average suburban house not connected to the grid than the current PV or hybrid options. If you can use your battery to supply the grid during peak and get peaking feed in tariff prices, this will be a game changer.

I still think it is still cheaper to store then to push and pull from the grid. At the amounts they are producing they should already be talking about this option with enova energy. In fact Enova could use the rail site as a battery storage option for the grid much like that big tesla battery in Adelaide.

All that I know is that my battery has already paid itself off in my eyes. It and the extra panels have certainly helped reduce our bills significantly.

I still think it is still cheaper to store then to push and pull from the grid. At the amounts they are producing they should already be talking about this option with enova energy. In fact Enova could use the rail site as a battery storage option for the grid much like that big tesla battery in Adelaide.

All that I know is that my battery has already paid itself off in my eyes. It and the extra panels have certainly helped reduce our bills significantly.

Their land is quiet small and why go there. You want a big battery, you go where there is a HV line, not the local 6.6kV feeder.

Not sure I trust your eyes, you were telling me there is no off-peak rates?

Anyway, for now the various websites and publications say its not currently financially viable for most people in most cases, I'm sure it will change soon enough so no need for a new pair of glasses just yet .

However, I'm sure though looking at the off-peak /peak option supply. At 50c/kW, PV and small battery reserve for evening demand and then fall back onto the grid for off-peak usage must make sense. I know there are supposed to be limits on what connects to off-peak but my dad has had the whole house switch onto the off-peak meter since the 80's when its available.  

In Tas, the off-peak at the location I lived in Queenstown was via a timer in your meter that if there was a power outage the timer would stop and be reset next time you had your meter read. So we used to turn on mains off in the meter box to get the timer during the day and then as the house had extra outlets connected to the off-peak run higher load appliances and TV off that.  

The latest meters in Dubai are much smarter. No more meter reading, all done remotely (no more meter reader jobs) including power supply on/off and if your water or electricity meters detect unusual excess usage, then you get a sms from the supplier.

I still think it is still cheaper to store then to push and pull from the grid. At the amounts they are producing they should already be talking about this option with enova energy. In fact Enova could use the rail site as a battery storage option for the grid much like that big tesla battery in Adelaide.

All that I know is that my battery has already paid itself off in my eyes. It and the extra panels have certainly helped reduce our bills significantly.

Their land is quiet small and why go there. You want a big battery, you go where there is a HV line, not the local 6.6kV feeder.

Not sure I trust your eyes, you were telling me there is no off-peak rates?

Anyway, for now the various websites and publications say its not currently financially viable for most people in most cases, I'm sure it will change soon enough so no need for a new pair of glasses just yet .

However, I'm sure though looking at the off-peak /peak option supply. At 50c/kW, PV and small battery reserve for evening demand and then fall back onto the grid for off-peak usage must make sense. I know there are supposed to be limits on what connects to off-peak but my dad has had the whole house switch onto the off-peak meter since the 80's when its available.  

In Tas, the off-peak at the location I lived in Queenstown was via a timer in your meter that if there was a power outage the timer would stop and be reset next time you had your meter read. So we used to turn on mains off in the meter box to get the timer during the day and then as the house had extra outlets connected to the off-peak run higher load appliances and TV off that.  

The latest meters in Dubai are much smarter. No more meter reading, all done remotely (no more meter reader jobs) including power supply on/off and if your water or electricity meters detect unusual excess usage, then you get a sms from the supplier.

Still going?

Still going?

I think the legislation gets voted on In the Upper House today.

Rail trail – is it viable?

I applaud Council’s approach that the existing rail corridor between Mullumbimby and Byron be a combined train and cycle track.

However, can someone please provide a detailed and accurate cross-section as to how this will work safely on the existing bridges and embankments? Unless the tracks are to be re-laid to one side of the rail reserve, it cannot be done.

--Anna Molloy, Goonengerry

Rail trail – is it viable?

I applaud Council’s approach that the existing rail corridor between Mullumbimby and Byron be a combined train and cycle track.

However, can someone please provide a detailed and accurate cross-section as to how this will work safely on the existing bridges and embankments? Unless the tracks are to be re-laid to one side of the rail reserve, it cannot be done.

--Anna Molloy, Goonengerry

Lets look at it with our eyes open.

The rail corridor is around 30m wide (using fence distance on google), no need to move the track, nor viable to do so.
- Yes there is one cutting that would need a review, but its short.
- Yes, the few the locations where rail bed is on a more significant embankment would need to be reviewed is there sufficient room on the side where its flat. I believe there is, but would need boots on ground check.

The bridges, one major bridge that will need to be reviewed on how this is managed? Is the bridge structure suited to walk way be bolted to the side? Rest of the bridges are small and would need low cost bridges to cross, perhaps some cost would come in if they are to be made flood resistant (ie submerge in a flood but not prone to damage.)

Do you need fence separation between train and people, at the current train speed and frequency, no! Vegetation separation barrier can applied if required. I believe Don Railway in Tas has similar although there maybe a few locations the two ROW are basically next to each other and a fence is required to mitigate any legal issues.

The latest meters in Dubai are much smarter. No more meter reading, all done remotely (no more meter reader jobs) including power supply on/off and if your water or electricity meters detect unusual excess usage, then you get a sms from the supplier.

These so call remote reading 'smart meters' are all over the country now. I think Victoria mandated an upgrade to 'smart remote reading interval' meters sparking an entire backlash over how these 'smart meter' were frying people's brains and people wanted the right to refuse this installation! (Also didn't help that some retailers tried to force customers onto 'time of use' plans when the customer had the right to stay on fixed tarrif plans.)

I've had a multi-register (peak - off peak - solar feed in) 'interval meter for over 10 years. The meter reader downloaded it using a 'wand' that optically coupled to a data port on the front of the meter.

When the gross feed-in tariff ended, the meter was replaced with another interval meter that has a 3G modem module attached and it's now remote read and can be reprogrammed remotely. It's been in place 3 years now on a wall that faces the master beadroom and my brain hasn't turned to mush. Yet.

The time stamped 5 minute interval data is downloaded and the appropiate tariffs applied by processing the data.

A couple of years back my work moved into two newly refurbish buildings. Both buildings have remote read 3 phase interval meters. There was suffcient mobile phone signal in the switch rooms that the mobile antenna is just on top of the equipment rack in the room, they didn't need to run to an external antenna.
(Also the lift emgerncy phones are also mobile phones, with the antenna just on an equipment box in the top of the lift shaft. Again, enough signal that an external antenna wasn't required)

Remote read 'smart' interval meters are now the norm.

Note many large and industrial customers are on 'peak use' plans were their maxium power demand sets the price they pay not the actual consumption. A lumpy load like charging a train or tram at regular intervals could lead you to pay a max demand premium (as the supplier has to engineer for your maxium demand, not the average!). In these cases having a local fixed battery or capacitor bank to take the peaks off your demand can lead to significant savings, even if the actual kw/hrs consumed doesn't change dramatically. It's all about reducing that peak.

The Byron Solar Train may be on a peak demand tarif because of what the nightly battery charging does to the grid. Although there is time for the train to do a 'gentle' charge cycle on the train traction batteries.

The Newcastle trams will almost certainly be on a maximum demand tarif, with those flash-charge hits every five minutes or so all day.

Any plan now to extend the route of the solar train will now lead to conflict with the 'rail trail' mob, who won't want to give the corridor back once they get their hands on it.