How to Maximise Solar Self-Consumption: 10 Simple Changes

If you already have solar, one of the easiest ways to improve your system's performance doesn't involve new panels, batteries, or upgrades. It comes down to something much simpler: when your home uses power.

Many Australian solar systems generate plenty of electricity during the day, but a surprising number of households still pull most of their energy from the grid in the evening. The solar does its job, the excess gets exported for a few cents, and then you buy it back at six or seven times the price once the sun goes down.

The fix isn't complicated. It's about shifting more of your energy use into the hours when your panels are producing. This is sometimes called “smart proofing” your home, and the results can be genuinely impressive for something that costs so little.

Most older solar systems were designed during a time when feed-in tariffs were generous. The idea was simple: export as much as possible and let the credits cover your evening usage. That worked well when feed-in rates were 40 to 60 cents per kWh. Today, those rates have collapsed.

Here's the current reality for most Australian households:

Hot water systems are one of the largest energy users in Australian homes, typically consuming 3 to 5 kWh per heating cycle. That makes them ideal for soaking up daytime solar that would otherwise be exported for a few cents.

If your electric hot water system currently heats overnight on off-peak rates, switching it to run during peak solar hours is one of the most impactful changes you can make. In many homes, this single change noticeably lifts self-consumption without adding panels or batteries.

The simplest way to do this is with a smart timer. A solar smart timer tells your hot water system to heat during the middle of the day, typically between 10am and 2pm, when your panels are producing the most power. These timers cost between $10 and $40 for a basic unit, or $100 to $300 for a professionally installed solar diverter that dynamically matches hot water heating to your actual solar output.

Not all hot water systems are compatible with timers. Heat pump hot water systems, for example, have their own built-in scheduling. Traditional electric storage systems are the easiest to retrofit. It's worth checking compatibility with your electrician before making changes.

If you have a pool, the pump is one of your household's hungriest appliances. A typical pool pump draws 1 to 2 kW and runs for 6 to 8 hours a day. That's a substantial load, and it's perfectly suited to daytime solar.

Many pool owners already have timers installed, so this change might be as simple as adjusting the schedule. Set the pump to run during your solar production window (roughly 9am to 3pm) instead of overnight, and you instantly convert a grid expense into free solar usage.

The pool doesn't care when the pump runs. The water gets filtered either way. But your power bill will notice the difference.

Once you understand the principle of timing energy use to match solar production, the same idea applies across the house. You don't need complex automation. In many cases, a delay-start button or a $20 timer plug is enough.

Smart proofing doesn't require a full smart home system with hubs, apps, and complicated routines. For most households, simple and reliable wins. Here's what you actually need:

Beyond timers and scheduling, small habit changes add up over time. None of these reduce comfort. They just shift timing.

Running the vacuum during the day instead of after dinner. Charging laptops and phones while the sun is up. Doing the ironing on a weekend afternoon rather than a weekday evening. Using the oven for batch cooking during peak solar hours. These are small adjustments, but collectively they move the needle.

For families, it can help to think of the solar production window (roughly 9am to 3pm) as “free power hours.” Once that framing clicks, people naturally start finding ways to run things during the day.

If your inverter or monitoring system shows when solar generation peaks, when power is being exported, and when the home draws from the grid, you can make much better decisions about when to run appliances.

Most modern inverters from brands like Fronius, SolarEdge, Enphase, Sungrow, and Goodwe come with free monitoring apps. If your system is older and doesn't have monitoring, adding it is one of the more valuable upgrades you can make. Standalone consumption monitors like the Powerpal (which attaches to your meter box) cost under $100 and give you real-time visibility into your energy flows.

Seeing the data changes behaviour. Once you can actually watch your export drop as you turn on the washing machine, the whole concept of self-consumption becomes tangible.

Smart proofing works whether or not you plan to add a battery or upgrade your system later. In fact, doing it first is genuinely helpful if a battery is on your radar.

By shifting your daytime loads first, you get a clearer picture of how much excess solar you actually have. That makes it much easier to size a battery accurately. Too many households buy a battery based on their pre-optimised usage patterns, then find they've overspent on capacity they don't need.

Smart proofing also improves your results after adding a battery. A battery works best when it only needs to cover evening and overnight loads. If you've already shifted the big daytime consumers to solar, the battery doesn't need to work as hard, and a smaller (cheaper) unit may be all you need.

Some energy-related upgrades, such as improving system control, upgrading inverters, or preparing for battery storage, may be eligible for state or federal incentives depending on your setup and location. Eligibility varies, so it's worth checking what applies to your home before committing to any upgrade.

You can use our local rebate calculator to get a clearer idea of what incentives may apply. It takes a couple of minutes and covers the major state and federal schemes.

Getting more from your solar system doesn't always start with spending money. Often, it starts with understanding when your system produces power, aligning usage with generation, and making small, deliberate changes.

A smart timer on your hot water. The pool pump shifted to midday. The washing machine set to delay start. A few habits adjusted. These things cost almost nothing, but they can meaningfully change how much of your solar power you actually use, and how much you save.

At Why Solar, we help homeowners understand how to get the most from their existing systems, whether that means smart proofing today or upgrading later. Because the best solar savings are the ones you can actually use.