A question our energy advisors get asked regularly is which energy storage solution is better, the Tesla Powerwall or the Solaredge Energy Bank. It makes sense to pit the two industry-leading brands against each other, as they both offer ground-breaking Renewable energy Solutions, and a similar size solar battery.
In this blog, we will take a look at the respective strengths of each of the solar batteries, so that by the end you can make a concrete decision on which one you should install.
Tesla PowerWall 2
- Usable Capacity: 13.5 kWh
- Round Trip Efficiency: 90%
- Inverter Efficiency: 97.5%
- Size & Weight: 1596 x 755 x 160 mm - 140kg
- Supports up to 10 batteries per Inverter
- Supports 4 MPPT
- Discharge Rate: 5kW
- Battery Type: Lithium Ion
- IP Rating: IP55 to IP67
- Warranty: 10 Years
The Solaredge Home Battery
- Usable Capacity: 9.7 kWh
- Round Trip Efficiency: 94.5%
- Inverter Efficiency: Record-Breaking 99%
- Size & Weight: 1179 x 790 x 250 mm - 119kg
- Supports up to 3 batteries per Inverter
- Supports 1-2 MPPT
- Discharge Rate: 5kW
- Battery Type: Lithium Ion
- IP Rating: IP55
- Warranty: 10 Years
Tesla PowerWall Battery
Tesla Powerwall solution provides 13.5kWh of energy storage, that works with or without solar and can be used throughout the evening and in the event of a power cut. Tesla’s AC-coupled storage solution, uses traditional lithium-ion cells, to provide a maximum output of 5kW of power.
A Powerwall system consists of at least one Powerwall battery, a Tesla Gateway and a solar inverter.
The Main Advantages of Installing a Tesla Powerwall+
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Access to the Tesla Energy Plan
Having a Tesla Powerwall 2 gives you access to the Telsa Energy Plan (TEP) from Octopus Energy. As a ‘Symmetrical’ Tariff, TEP gives consumers the same 24/7 import and export rate, which is also referred to as net metering.
Although symmetrical import/export pricing varies according to location, the Tesla Energy Plan offers high flat export rates between £0.24 – £0.26 per kWh, which is almost 6 times the price per kWh of the average Smart Export Guarantee Tariff rate. Combining the Tesla Energy Plan with your solar panels and Powerwall, especially if your net generation matches or exceeds your usage, could provide you with significant savings compared to any other energy provider.
Another bonus of joining the Tesla Energy Plan will be joining the exclusive Telsa’s UK Virtual Power Plant too.
- Update: As of 2023 Tesla has decided to retire the Tesla Energy Plan from the UK. Octopus Energy has since replaced this with Octopus Flux. Their own energy tariff for solar and storage owners which is available to everyone.
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Back Up Power
Through Tesla’s Backup Reserve features, your Powerwall can provide complete Emergency Power Supply during a grid outage. By setting a reserve on your energy storage, you can maximise your home’s energy independence and energy security.
The Tesla Energy solution means that even when the grid goes down, solar energy will still continue to power your home. The main advantage of the Powerwall’s backup system is that it keeps your solar panel system functioning, so you can still use your solar panels instead of drawing from the battery if and when your panels are generating.
Through the Tesla app, you can set how much energy you want to reserve during a blackout. Setting a higher reserve percentage saves more energy for protection during an outage, while setting a lower reserve percentage allows more self-consumption. It is recommended that you keep a backup reserve of above 20%.
What’s more, with Storm Watch enabled, the Powerwall can communicate to the National Weather Service and prioritise when to charge your battery in anticipation of severe weather and likely outages.
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Advanced Settings
Whereas the Solaredge monitoring and software have been considered limited, The Tesla App excels. The Tesla app, allows you to monitor your Powerwall’s features, monitor your energy uses and configure your Powerwall to meet your home’s specific energy needs. There is a list of features and modes you can control through the Tesla app including Backup Reserve, Self-Powered and Time-Based Control.
Although you can force charge your Solaredge home battery from the Grid also, consumers require this setting to be adjusted by their installer, and cannot control it directly.
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Preconditioning
When temperatures drop in the winter, all batteries have a reduced ability to charge. However, the Powerwall’s Preconditioning feature, aims to help improve performance during the colder months. The Tesla Powerwall draws upon a small amount of energy to preheat itself, to allow for high-power charging. This is an automatic feature, for which a small amount of the Powerwall’s capacity is reserved for.
The Solar Edge Battery
The SolarEdge Energy Bank offers a high-voltage, DC-coupled storage solution as part of an optimised Solaredge (SE) system. The Solaredge home battery has a 9.7kWh usable capacity, and allows for flexible installation.
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System Optimisation
SolarEdge is one of the leading brands in the solar industry. When you choose to install a Solaredge Energy Bank, you must have a complete Solaredge system in order to do so. An optimised SolarEdge (SE) system includes both SolarEdge optimisers, a SolarEdge inverter and SolarEdge monitoring.
With a SolarEdge system, you can produce more power, due to its design flexibility. You are no longer limited by shading on solar panels, panel mismatching or panel and orientation mismatching. This design flexibility means you can maximise your PV power and return on investment.
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More visibility
Solaredge offers a complete Solar PV Solution, from Roof-to-Grid it can integrate seamlessly into your home, creating a coherent ecosystem of Solaredge products. Everything from warranty, support, and system management can all be in one place, under one app, when you choose the Solaredge battery.
There are many benefits of choosing a Solaredge system. Unlike the Tesla ecosystem, you can monitor your solar panel system at a module level, which makes detecting faults in your system easier and quicker. SolarEdge’s Monitoring system allows you to manage your solar energy and control your connected Smart devices, such as the Smart Energy Hot Water Controller. This is perfect if you are considering using your solar panel system to heat your water.
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Greater efficiency
Compared to the Tesla Powerwall, the Solaredge DC coupled battery features outstanding overall system efficiency, allowing you to generate and use more energy, through its record-breaking 99% inverter efficiency. It also has a superior round trip efficiency of 94.5% compared to Tesla’s 90%.
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Advanced Safety Feature
The Solaredge energy bank is one of the first residential batteries to meet the strictest standard for fire safety hazard, having recently passed the UL9540A standard, as well as being IEC62619 EU compliant. The battery also features enhanced safety with Rapid Shutdown.
The Final Verdict on the Tesla Powerwall or SolarEdge Home Battery
It is without a doubt that both the Solaredge energy bank and Tesla Powerwall are both excellent solar battery options. Whilst the Tesla Powerwall does offer better versatility and an exclusive energy tariff it does come at a much higher price point.
If you are already a Tesla owner, and live in an area where power outages are regular and budget isn’t an issue, then we would suggest choosing the Tesla Powerwall. As you are already invested in Tesla’s ecosystem. However, if you are looking at installing a high-quality, optimised Solar PV system, then you can’t go wrong with Solaredge and the benefits that a complete Solaredge system has to offer. In particular, if your roof suffers from shading, and you are on a budget, then the Solaredge Energy bank is the obvious choice.
Whilst the new HomeHub inverter from Solaredge is supposedly meant to finally provide the Solaredge energy bank with the EPS function it so rightly requires, it has only just been released this year. So will have to be put to the test prior to commenting on its quality. But it is defiantly something to look out for.
If you are a UK homeowner, looking to install the best 10kWh battery for your solar panels, call our installation team today on 01322 479369, or by clicking the “Enquire Now” button to discuss your options further.
