We’re planning to get solar panels and a battery installed – do we take the Mr Spock or the Homer Simpson approach?

Having catapulted ourselves into EV ownership at the start of 2024, we’re now sizing up options for installing solar panels and a battery. Wow, you really do start to enter super-geek territory once you venture in. Multiple variables spinning in front of your eyes, some more certain than others when you are looking out decades ahead.

Having done some homework and reading/asking around, I’ve had two long conversations with a guy from Octopus Energy who really seemed to know his stuff. I’ve got a quote, I’m planning to pursue others. He said I was unusual in his experience in wanting to do this for environmental reasons first and foremost rather than to save money. I’m not looking to waste money but I’d hoped there would be more people out there with environment in the forefront of their minds.

Those of you already ‘on the other side’ will no doubt be well tuned in to all this but even the quote I was given was all interactive with oodles of data about performance and savings. With 4.8kW of solar power from 11 panels and a 9.5kW battery, his sums estimate we would avoid emitting 920kg per year of CO2 or the equivalent of 27,520 car km avoided over the system lifetime. Based on assumptions of course.

You’re weighing up energy consumption by household at different times of day as well as over the lifetime of the system, battery storage, solar generation, EV use, variable tariffs and so on. Then there is the question of quality of the hardware being bought, reliability and effectiveness over time, and after-sales service.

Mr Spock would wish to be in possession of all the information possibly available to then process it all through countless scenarios to make a utility maximising decision.

Homer Simpson would find it all very demanding on his brain that has other priorities to think about as well such as Duff Beer and TV time. He would want a good enough solution, a satisficing decision that didn’t leave him with regrets but got the job done.

The Homer part of my brain is saying “the guy from Octopus really knew his stuff and I liked him, trusted him – if only I knew I wouldn’t regret saying ‘yes’”.

The Spock part of my brain is saying that’s illogical and with several more hours I could mull over more quotes and more data and agonise over more scenarios to decide which is the right thing to do.

The Homer part of my brain is also saying, “you know, social imitation is not to be sniffed at – if only you could find someone else who went through all this and came to the conclusion Octopus was a good bet”.

So – this is where I’m at. Any Spocks out there with words of wisdom? Any Homers who wish they had spent less time on Duff Beer and TV Time?

P.S. Octopus say I can get a full refund on my deposit if I change my mind before work starts. That would not be until April so I have plenty of time to play Mr Spock!

#solarenergy