After our last electricity bill, my wife and I decided it was time to install solar panels. Honestly, we should have done it years ago. We live in Wollongong near Sydney, and we get an incredible amount of sunshine. I asked a few friends who they had used but got some horror stories, so I decided to Google ‘Solar Panels Wollongong.’ There were quite a few solar panel installers in the Illawarra region. I checked the reviews, phoned a couple for quotes, and finally settled for a company.

One of the reasons we decided to install solar panels now is the NSW solar rebate program. The original solar bonus scheme ended in 2016, but they still offer the Low-Income Households Trial. My wife has been ill for a while now, and we are on a low income, so we decided to apply.

The program provides low-income households with a free 3kWh solar energy system. This amounts to significant savings, as the typical Australian household spends about $355 monthly on electricity.

NSW outlined a plan for net-zero emissions from 2020 to 2030. One of the funding incentives is the primary rebate scheme or Small-scale Technology Certificates (STCs), which provide a maximum discount of $2000 towards the cost of solar PV systems. There are also other incentives, such as the Feed-in Tariff (FiT) and the Empowering Homes Solar Battery Loan Program.

If you want to claim the STC rebate in NSW, contact your solar Wollongong (or whichever town you live in) installer. If you have already installed solar panels, the government will automatically reimburse your solar installation costs for your installation by up to 33%.

The first reason was purely financial. With the increasing bills, we have been struggling to make ends meet, and we can only see them getting higher and higher. I researched and found a solar system in NSW can save around $400 per year per kW of solar. Therefore, an 8kW solar system could save a whopping $3,400 per year.

Secondly, with the rise in global warming and other problems affecting our planet, we decided it was time to do our bit. We didn’t think our little change would make a big difference but then started thinking nothing would change if everyone had the same attitude as us.

After further research, I found the average house in Australia uses 15,800 kWh per year. Switching to solar can reduce greenhouse gas emissions and help to reduce Australia’s carbon footprint.

Another reason was the drop in the cost of solar Wollongong installations. Solar panels used to be really expensive, and we just couldn’t afford to switch to solar. The average cost of a 5kW solar panel is only $5.250, which can be further reduced with various government incentives and rebates.