Use a home battery to store your generated energy

You can store solar energy in a home battery, which is useful when your solar panels are generating more electricity than you can currently use. Any excess power first goes to your home battery, and once the battery is full, electricity is fed into the grid. If you need more electricity than your solar panels produce, you first use the energy stored in your battery and then electricity from the grid, but only when your battery power runs out.

A home battery therefore allows you to optimise your energy consumption even more effectively. It’s worth noting that the electricity in a home battery can be stored for up to several days, but not from summer to winter.

The exact cost of your home battery depends on factors such as the type of battery you install and its capacity. You should also make sure to account for the cost of installation and VAT.

Starting from 2025, everyone who has solar panels is required to install a digital meter, even if you already have a reverse counter. Previously, owners with an analogue counter could ask to defer installation, but this is no longer possible.

Important: If your analogue counter only has a night rate, you can keep it until 2028. However, all analogue meters must be replaced by digital meters by 1 July 2029.

If you’re making the switch from a reverse counter to a digital meter, a home battery is certainly a worthwhile option. Instead of letting your counter run backwards, a home battery allows you to store your generated energy. That means you still save on your energy bills and you’re less dependent on the grid.

In the past, you could receive a grant for installing a home battery. However, the Flemish government has ended this scheme for batteries installed on or after 1 January 2024.

When choosing a home battery, you should consider a few different factors, such as the type of solar panels you have installed, the storage capacity of the battery, the efficiency, the inverter, the cost and the life span.

The experts at ‘Impact us today’ will help you choose the best smart home battery for your situation.

The average payback period of a home battery is estimated at 10 to 14 years, so you should consider it an investment for the future. However, there are still benefits in the short term – a home battery allows you to store any excess energy generated by your solar panels. You can then rely on your home battery if you need more electricity than you’re able to generate. As a result, you’re less dependent on the grid and you also shrink your monthly energy bill.

You should make absolutely sure that the capacity of your home battery is matched to your energy consumption. If you’re planning to buy an electric vehicle one day, make sure you take that into account when choosing a battery.

Both options are possible, but you should bear in mind that installing your home battery indoors means that it’s better protected from rain and other weather. If you still want to put the battery outside, make sure it’s located somewhere dry such as a shed or shelter.

• Make sure you have enough space for the home battery and inverter. This makes installation and maintenance easier.
• Your home battery stores electricity, so you need to make sure there’s enough space for it to be connected to the power supply.
• The battery is quite heavy, so it’s also important to attach it to a solid wall or surface.