Autumn is here, and winter is approaching. For most of us, that means more heating, more lighting and higher energy consumption. For homes with solar panels, shorter days also mean less generation — often just as we need more energy.
It is a good moment to look at how your home uses energy, and what your equipment can do for you.
Your air conditioning may also be a heat pump
Modern air conditioning systems that both heat and cool are air-to-air air source heat pumps. In heating mode, they move heat from the outside air into your home — even when it is cold outside. Depending on the model, they also offer air filtration and dehumidification. There is more to them than summer cooling.
Because they move heat rather than generate it by burning fuel, they can deliver several units of heat for each unit of electricity used. That can make room heating cheaper than gas, depending on your electricity and gas prices, boiler efficiency and the heat pump’s performance in the conditions. If you already have a heating-capable air conditioning system, it is worth considering its heating mode this autumn.
Your battery can work after the sunshine fades
Battery storage is useful for more than saving surplus solar electricity. With a suitable time-of-use tariff and a system configured for grid charging, you can charge when electricity is cheaper and use that stored energy when rates are higher. That can help through autumn and winter, when there is less solar energy to store. The saving depends on the difference between your tariff rates, storage losses and how much higher-priced electricity you can replace. A battery can therefore have a useful winter role, even without solar panels.
Storage still is not the same as backup
Using a battery to avoid expensive electricity is one job. Keeping the lights on during a power cut is another.
A grid-tied system operates connected to the electricity grid. Your solar panels or battery can supply your appliances directly, with the grid supplying any shortfall. A conventional grid-following inverter uses the grid’s voltage and frequency as its reference. When the grid fails, it stops supplying power. This also prevents electricity being fed back into lines that should be safely de-energised. Your battery may have charge, but your home can still lose power.
With a compatible backup-capable inverter, an automatic backup gateway or changeover device detects the outage and safely separates the backed-up circuits from the grid. The inverter then establishes a local electricity supply, using the battery to power those circuits within the system’s limits. When grid power returns and is confirmed stable, the system reconnects. Some systems include this switching equipment; others require it separately.
Before buying, ask what will keep working, what can run together, and for how long. Also check whether the changeover is automatic and whether there is an interruption. Start with your priorities — perhaps the fridge, some lights and broadband — and make backup an explicit part of the design.
Before the coldest weather arrives, check your heating settings and electricity tariff. Equipment you already own may have a useful role you have not yet explored. At Pretium, heating, solar, storage, EV charging and backup are designed around how your home actually works. One system. One plan. One relationship.