Alerts for switching between solar and grid power

[Jane1319]

About 11 years ago I put solar on my house. As you can imagine it was only a small system. I would like to see an alert  or notification for when you switch from using your own solar generated power to grid power. I don't have batteries and as a pensioner, I am finding the increasing rates extremely difficult. I don't use the lights anymore. It's that bad. I don't even have a tv or radio going thru the day, because I can't figure out whether I'm using my own generated power or grid power.

[NeilC]

@Jane1319 

Jane, although there are methods to read your output back to the grid, unless you have a very friendly electrician (ie a member of the family) the cost of installing the electrics would over way the benefit you would gain.

I take it that you do not monitor your solar generation using either a computer or an app on your smart phone. You can always read the screen of the inverter but I would assume that this screen no longer works after 11 years.

Next question I would ask is do you have a SMART METER, if you have a smart meter you can use one of the hidden menus to view your instantaneous consumption would either show EXPORT or IMPORT. If you do not have a smart meter you should have two meters (a third if you have controlled load) one meter will be you IMPORT and the 2nd will be you EXPORT ( during the day any third meter should not be in use during the day). If you have an IMPORT and EXPORT meter only one meter will be turning at any time (well be visibly turning). If you work out what the export meter is you can check and see if that is turning.

Your bill should tell you what sort of meter you have, if you only have one meter then you will have a smart meter.

Previously I could attach a picture showing you an example of a single meter, but AGL in their wisdom has not allowed this any more.

However, I am concerned that you are not even turning on lights, which makes me wonder if you even understand how your solar works.

I would suggest that you go to your local council (or library) and ask if they have people that assist older Australians in helping them understand these matters.

If you have been with AGL for these 11 years I would suspect that you are being charged the HIGHEST RATE possible as they inform you of a rate change and if you do not challenge it, they will charge you that rate. If you are getting a rebate for your solar they only pay the rebate and nothing extra for your generation.

I can't help you any more in this matter as I have done as much as I can short of sending a private message to get more details, which I fear you cannot supply.

Good luck Jane, Neil

[David_AGL]

Hi @Jane1319 . Because there's a delay on the information that AGL receives from your smart meter, we don't have a way of providing live updates on the state of your solar system, such as when your system shifts from using your own generated energy to using electricity from the grid. 

We can still help with this situation though! Just recently we added new solar usage insights features to our mobile app:

To access your solar usage insights, just tap Electricity on the Overview page of your AGL app, and then tap Insights. You'll be able to:
 

• See a comparison of your last 12 months of usage in cost ($) and usage (kWh) as well as daily and monthly averages (cost and usage). 
• Compare your monthly and weekly usage including ‘Bought from grid’ and ‘Sold to grid’ values (in kWh/$) as well as average monthly and weekly figures - to get an idea of how much your solar is saving you.