Many buyers assume a home battery means lights-on in every blackout. In Australia, that is only true when the system is designed and configured for backup — and even then, usually on selected circuits.
Grid-tied solar without backup shuts down
Standard inverters isolate during outages to protect line workers. Panels may sit idle in full sun unless a hybrid or backup gateway is part of the design.
- Ask which circuits are on the backup essential board
- Test a controlled outage after commissioning if safe to do so
- Size backup to fridge, lights, modem, and medical needs first
- Understand whether solar can recharge the battery while islanded
Backup is a wiring design, not a battery brochure feature.
Black start and surge loads
Pumps and compressors surge at start. Undersized backup inverters trip even when average loads look fine. List motor loads explicitly.
VPP and backup settings
Some VPP enrolments reserve capacity for network events. Confirm that marketing backup and contracted VPP behaviour can coexist on your terms.
Safety
Generators, batteries, and islanding rules interact. Licensed design only — improvised changeover switches are a hazard.