Tesla Powerwall : is it a 'feature' when buying a new home?
Discussion
I am thinking about getting a home battery system as it seems we use a lot of electricity.
I currently have two Tesla cars and two Tesla wall-chargers, and we have the Octopus Intelligent Go tariff, for the cheap overnight electric.
However, looking at the Octopus app, we are now paying around £0.35p/kwh for daytime use, and we are using a lot of kwh's during the day.
I am thinking about getting a home battery system with something like 30kwh storage and an 11kw invertor. That would mean almost all of our 'daytime' use would be fed from the batteries, which would be topped up with cheap overnight electricity (we can't get solar due to a roof limitation). However, even filling it with overnight electric, I think the payback will be circa 4 years, which is pretty good. So that's "option 1".
However, I am also not sure how long we will stay in our current house - it might be 1 year, it could be 3-4. It won't be longer than that.
Alternatively, we could get two Tesla Powerwall 3's, or one Powerwall and one Tesla extension pack (which gives the total capacity I want, but only has one invertor, for around £1,000 less). That's our second and third option.
If I was staying in the house for the next 20 years I would buy the two Powerwalls - I think they will be nicer to own and use over the long term, and I think the software will likely be better (i.e. easier) to use.
However, we won't be staying in the house that long - so whilst getting the pair of Powerwalls would be nice, and it would integrate nicely into the existing app, just buying the cheaper solution which is all we actually need is probably much better value for money.
And that is the reason for my post - our home is a decent sized 5-bed property on a nice road - is there any appeal to a potential buyer if the property had a pair of nice Tesla Powerwalls included?
I'm not expecting the new buyer to want to pay extra for them, but I wonder if it might be a good feature? Or maybe that is just me, as I know I would like them, but maybe other people don't attribute much value to them.
Interested to hear thoughts.
I currently have two Tesla cars and two Tesla wall-chargers, and we have the Octopus Intelligent Go tariff, for the cheap overnight electric.
However, looking at the Octopus app, we are now paying around £0.35p/kwh for daytime use, and we are using a lot of kwh's during the day.
I am thinking about getting a home battery system with something like 30kwh storage and an 11kw invertor. That would mean almost all of our 'daytime' use would be fed from the batteries, which would be topped up with cheap overnight electricity (we can't get solar due to a roof limitation). However, even filling it with overnight electric, I think the payback will be circa 4 years, which is pretty good. So that's "option 1".
However, I am also not sure how long we will stay in our current house - it might be 1 year, it could be 3-4. It won't be longer than that.
Alternatively, we could get two Tesla Powerwall 3's, or one Powerwall and one Tesla extension pack (which gives the total capacity I want, but only has one invertor, for around £1,000 less). That's our second and third option.
If I was staying in the house for the next 20 years I would buy the two Powerwalls - I think they will be nicer to own and use over the long term, and I think the software will likely be better (i.e. easier) to use.
However, we won't be staying in the house that long - so whilst getting the pair of Powerwalls would be nice, and it would integrate nicely into the existing app, just buying the cheaper solution which is all we actually need is probably much better value for money.
And that is the reason for my post - our home is a decent sized 5-bed property on a nice road - is there any appeal to a potential buyer if the property had a pair of nice Tesla Powerwalls included?
I'm not expecting the new buyer to want to pay extra for them, but I wonder if it might be a good feature? Or maybe that is just me, as I know I would like them, but maybe other people don't attribute much value to them.
Interested to hear thoughts.
I think it would be a good feature to help sell, over other similar properties in the area, but I don’t think it would add any money to the selling price.
I honestly would not bother paying out for a Powerwall when I could get an Eco-Worthy/Fogstar solution for considerably less. It’s a battery storage solution that will sit in the garage.
It’s a nice to have but not sure house worth more with it.
I expect the “charge at night” use in daytime will be a thing of the past soon as more and more people use it and charge cars at night. We will probably begin to lose peak and off peak as the peak will merge in to charging time.
In my opinion the govt will tax it once we all adopt as per diesel etc. I wonder if they will tax panels if lots of use get mostly off grid a lot of time (if that happens)
I expect the “charge at night” use in daytime will be a thing of the past soon as more and more people use it and charge cars at night. We will probably begin to lose peak and off peak as the peak will merge in to charging time.
In my opinion the govt will tax it once we all adopt as per diesel etc. I wonder if they will tax panels if lots of use get mostly off grid a lot of time (if that happens)
My brother sold a 5-bed family home last year after emigrating. He'd added solar and a Powerwall, done it to a good standard and it was working very well. He also added AC (air to air heat pumps) which ended up becoming secondary heating. Both gas and electricity bills were significantly reduced, to the point where even in February when the house was empty and on the market he just kept it permanently at 20C so it was comfortable for viewings whilst electricity bill was still negative.
I wouldn't say it increased the value of the home, and the market was certainly tough, but when it did sell, it sold to a buyer who considered the tech a real selling point i.e. he was a tech minded guy, worked in the energy industry and felt it was a rare house with good infrastructure done well, at his price point.
I wouldn't say it increased the value of the home, and the market was certainly tough, but when it did sell, it sold to a buyer who considered the tech a real selling point i.e. he was a tech minded guy, worked in the energy industry and felt it was a rare house with good infrastructure done well, at his price point.
It’s tricky. As per swimming pool thread we have 18 panels and a power wall that heats our pool during the summer so an unusual use case
However on a sunny winter day we 50% charge the battery and on others we charge over night
Works for us it all depends on how much cash you have
The pool use case means it will pay for its self in 3 summers but with the winter too it’s prob 2 years
Ours was 10k and seemed a no brainer
However on a sunny winter day we 50% charge the battery and on others we charge over night
Works for us it all depends on how much cash you have
The pool use case means it will pay for its self in 3 summers but with the winter too it’s prob 2 years
Ours was 10k and seemed a no brainer
skilly1 said:
You can take it with you or tell buyer they can have it for 'X. It does not take much time to install or decommission (1/2 day)
This. Batteries and inverters can very easily be moved from place to place, which is an advantage over solar. It's pretty much as simply as un-wire from mains board, unbolt things from the wall and remove.
Do you charge the cars over night every night? A full charge? I decided to stay on the standard tariff as I only really charge my car once a week, day time rates are just too high on Octopus Go.
I have looked at batteries, but the payback is 4-5 years, and that's if I do most of the work myself.
I have looked at batteries, but the payback is 4-5 years, and that's if I do most of the work myself.
I might be in a minority here, but I suspect I'm not the only one with this opinion.
Anything Tesla I would insist you removed and made good at your own cost before I would consider buying your house.
Any other battery system or solar panels or anything related to electric car charging - as long as it's discrete and doesn't take up space I'd prefer to use for something else, then by all means leave it, but I'm not paying extra for it.
I'm not one of these loons who is anti EVs, but I don't have one and have no plans to buy one.
Anything Tesla I would insist you removed and made good at your own cost before I would consider buying your house.
Any other battery system or solar panels or anything related to electric car charging - as long as it's discrete and doesn't take up space I'd prefer to use for something else, then by all means leave it, but I'm not paying extra for it.
I'm not one of these loons who is anti EVs, but I don't have one and have no plans to buy one.
I invested in solar and a Powerwall 3, my payback is 4-5 years on a £20k outlay, I wouldn’t dream of taking the powerwall with me when we sell. Homes with solar are easier to sell and there is an academic study that suggests they’re worth 6% more, though I tend to think that’s optimistic.
Many people won’t benefit much from a battery, but those with high usage, as with most things, it’s all about your circumstances. I imagine the technology will keep improving to the point where it will make financial sense to upgrade at some stage, long before the battery reaches end of life.
Many people won’t benefit much from a battery, but those with high usage, as with most things, it’s all about your circumstances. I imagine the technology will keep improving to the point where it will make financial sense to upgrade at some stage, long before the battery reaches end of life.
Considering something like this myself, I know 4 people that have battery storage now and using overnight rate, DIY you can do it all for a reasonable amount and get paid back in under 3 years... you can still get your G99 application submitted if you DIY it and want to export to the grid also.
But its all absed on the assumption that the night rate is here for ever, and the more people do this the more that might not be true, apparently in Austalia the number of people using battery storage is now so large that the night rate has effectively been slashed to a point where the gains aren't particularly worth it.
But its all absed on the assumption that the night rate is here for ever, and the more people do this the more that might not be true, apparently in Austalia the number of people using battery storage is now so large that the night rate has effectively been slashed to a point where the gains aren't particularly worth it.
I am sure a scientific study managed to come with that but in the real world there is not a hope that someone will pay for 6% more for a house with solar panels
The roi on batteries for me is under 2 years. 75 kWh for Seplos ( fogstar ) and a 12 kw inverter. We use a lot of power. Until the end of last month I was on 2,5p per unit off peak and we use no peak. I am now on 7.4p.
The maths are extremely compelling as long as you buy batteries on price. Pay too much for the batteries ( Tesla ) and you payback will be long away
The roi on batteries for me is under 2 years. 75 kWh for Seplos ( fogstar ) and a 12 kw inverter. We use a lot of power. Until the end of last month I was on 2,5p per unit off peak and we use no peak. I am now on 7.4p.
The maths are extremely compelling as long as you buy batteries on price. Pay too much for the batteries ( Tesla ) and you payback will be long away
The uncertainty of the price of most houses is significant, when you are talking about 'individual' houses, it could be 500k to one person or 525k to another, the cost of some solar hardware is easily lost in this. A £5k battery system is down in the noise.
Mostly buyers have finite choice, the factors which decide you want house A as opposed to houses B to F will likely outweigh your opinions about solar panels or batteries.
What can be frustrating is when vendors have made decisions about how or where things are installed, like fitting a powerwall in the garage, so I can no longer get my boat and motorbikes in there at the same time, or taking up space where I'd put a bench perhaps.
As with anything else, you get the odd buyer who sees your house as the perfect turnkey solution, and some buyers who'd prefer to change everything.
If fitting a powerwall was part of a systematic updating and all that, it might be part of a good package. If it's been slapped in and things need to be re-fitted around it, followed by redecoration etc, it could be a negative.
There is 'value' in presentation, does the powerwall come across as a showing the house is good to go, with money and care being no object, or does it come across as some flipper has attempted to tick boxes so it looks good on paper?
I think certain types of people increasingly want this kind of stuff in certain houses.
But some of it dates quickly....
Mostly buyers have finite choice, the factors which decide you want house A as opposed to houses B to F will likely outweigh your opinions about solar panels or batteries.
What can be frustrating is when vendors have made decisions about how or where things are installed, like fitting a powerwall in the garage, so I can no longer get my boat and motorbikes in there at the same time, or taking up space where I'd put a bench perhaps.
As with anything else, you get the odd buyer who sees your house as the perfect turnkey solution, and some buyers who'd prefer to change everything.
If fitting a powerwall was part of a systematic updating and all that, it might be part of a good package. If it's been slapped in and things need to be re-fitted around it, followed by redecoration etc, it could be a negative.
There is 'value' in presentation, does the powerwall come across as a showing the house is good to go, with money and care being no object, or does it come across as some flipper has attempted to tick boxes so it looks good on paper?
I think certain types of people increasingly want this kind of stuff in certain houses.
But some of it dates quickly....
ColinsCornflakes said:
...
But its all based on the assumption that the night rate is here for ever, and the more people do this the more that might not be true, apparently in Austalia the number of people using battery storage is now so large that the night rate has effectively been slashed to a point where the gains aren't particularly worth it....
It certainly relies on a rate differential being available for a few years - although, even if it gets withdrawn, it is likely that with the move to renewables, there will be times of the day when there is excess electricity, and so I think it is likely new tariffs will emerge which rewards those who have their own storage capacity.But its all based on the assumption that the night rate is here for ever, and the more people do this the more that might not be true, apparently in Austalia the number of people using battery storage is now so large that the night rate has effectively been slashed to a point where the gains aren't particularly worth it....
Also, without wanting to nit-pick, I did ask Chatgpt to check your point about Australian customers losing access to cheap overnight tariffs. It seems a couple of major providers have withdrawn them, but there are several still available, so I think it should still be possible in Australia.
Jeremy-75qq8 said:
I am sure a scientific study managed to come with that but in the real world there is not a hope that someone will pay for 6% more for a house with solar panels
The roi on batteries for me is under 2 years. 75 kWh for Seplos ( fogstar ) and a 12 kw inverter. We use a lot of power. Until the end of last month I was on 2,5p per unit off peak and we use no peak. I am now on 7.4p.
The maths are extremely compelling as long as you buy batteries on price. Pay too much for the batteries ( Tesla ) and you payback will be long away
That's a monster system! As an aside, do you find the 12kw inverter always sufficient to output the power you need?The roi on batteries for me is under 2 years. 75 kWh for Seplos ( fogstar ) and a 12 kw inverter. We use a lot of power. Until the end of last month I was on 2,5p per unit off peak and we use no peak. I am now on 7.4p.
The maths are extremely compelling as long as you buy batteries on price. Pay too much for the batteries ( Tesla ) and you payback will be long away
I do agree, in terms of a strictly financial decision, a non-Tesla battery system makes much more sense. I suppose I am attracted by the potential convenience of a Powerwall, as Tesla gear is usually pretty well optimised, and doesn't take much fettling, which might not be the case with other brands. Hence why I am trying to find some kind of man-maths in terms of perhaps making a future house sale easier to help make up the shortfall.
megaphone said:
Do you charge the cars over night every night? A full charge? I decided to stay on the standard tariff as I only really charge my car once a week, day time rates are just too high on Octopus Go.
I have looked at batteries, but the payback is 4-5 years, and that's if I do most of the work myself.
We charge both cars regularly, although I mostly have just assumed Octopus Go would be cheapest, without realising our daytime consumption is high.I have looked at batteries, but the payback is 4-5 years, and that's if I do most of the work myself.
As to batteries, prices have reduced substantially over the last couple of years, so I think your payback period will have reduced significantly if you are prepared to do a lot of the work yourself.
skilly1 said:
You can take it with you or tell buyer they can have it for 'X. It does not take much time to install or decommission (1/2 day)
Yes, that's a fair point, my inclination was not to start unbolting things, and to just include both powerwalls in any future sale as a "feature" but yes, I suppose I could look to take them away with me.Gassing Station | Homes, Gardens and DIY | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff