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Octopus Suggested £97.78. My Bills Say £58.
I logged into Octopus this morning to see my balance sitting at minus £40.74 — which is just this month&
solar
Data and analysis from a home solar and battery system — generation, consumption, costs and automation with Home Assistant.
Why My Battery Busbar Was Always Too Hot — and What Fixed It
I swapped my undersized £12 Amazon battery busbar for a pair of Victron 250A 6P bars after temperature sensors flagged 76°C peaks. The busbar end now runs 24°C cooler under the same load. Better data made a better decision possible — instrument the wire, not just the cells.
What My Battery Compares Every 30 Minutes
Most home batteries charge whenever the rate is cheap. Mine compares this cycle's cheapest slot against the next cycle's, the projected drain, the SOC-aware ceiling, and a forecast of tomorrow's solar — every 30 minutes.
Adding a Seventh Panel: 100W More for £63
A £63 upgrade — one extra 100W mono panel — bumps the garden array from 600W to 700W and should pay for itself by autumn.
Solar & Battery ROI: Agile vs the Price Cap
Live ROI tracker for my solar + battery setup: actual Agile spend vs what the Ofgem price cap would have cost, updated every 2 hours.
1,000 kWh Through the Battery — Plus 420 kWh From the Sun
The Fogstar Drift battery just hit 1,000 kWh of lifetime throughput — and 420 kWh of that came straight from the solar panels.
My 600W Solar Array Just Hit 692W — And the Physics Behind Why That's Normal
My 600W solar panels hit 692W. Here's how irradiance, temperature and panel physics make that not just possible, but expected.
Home Assistant as the Brain: How My Solar System Manages Itself
Discover how Home Assistant automates your solar energy system to maximize savings with Octopus Agile pricing and intelligent self-management.
Nearly Five Years of Home Energy: From Crisis Prices to Solar Panels and Everything In Between
Discover how one homeowner navigated five years of energy challenges, from crisis pricing to solar installation and off-grid solutions with real data.
A Year of Energy Data: How Solar Changed Everything in the Second Half
Discover how solar power transformed energy independence in just 6 months. Explore real data, battery tech, and dramatic electricity bill savings.
Q1 2026 Energy: An Accidental Savings Experiment (Plus Solar Doing Its Thing)
Discover how a Q1 2026 energy experiment revealed unexpected savings with solar power and smart meter monitoring. Real data, real results.