Tesla Powerwall 2: A Complete 2024 Buyers Guide

In 2015, Tesla entered the energy storage market with the Tesla Powerwall, a home battery system designed to revolutionize how energy is stored and used. While Tesla is globally known for its electric vehicles, the Tesla Powerwall 2 has firmly established the company’s reputation in renewable energy, offering Australian homeowners a powerful solution for solar energy storage.

With a capacity of 13.5 kWh, the Powerwall 2 remains one of the most efficient and reliable options available, particularly for those retrofitting existing solar systems. As Tesla introduces new models like the Tesla Powerwall 3, the Powerwall 2 continues to be a strong choice due to its compatibility with current setups and proven performance. Explore why the Tesla Powerwall 2 might still be the best option for your home in Australia’s evolving energy landscape.

How Much Does The Tesla Powerwall 2 Cost?

In Australia, across our network of over 150 solar installers, we expect the installed cost of a Tesla Powerwall 2 to cost around $13,000 to $15,000. This price range includes the Gateway, delivery, installation and any other required electrical components.

The Tesla Powerwall 2 was made available nation wide in 2017 launching at it’s cheapest price, just $9,000. The Powerwall’s 13.5 kWh capacity makes it one of the most cost-effective options in the residential battery market. Since then, initially, high demand and higher production costs led to the wholesale cost of the battery reaching $16,500 in 2022. At the start of 2023, Tesla had dropped the price of the Powerwall 2 by 42% to $9,650 including GST after Tesla’s $750 rebate. In 2024 the price of a Powerwall 2 across Australia, including major cities such as Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane, Perth, and Canberra, (excluding install & backup gateway).

Tesla Powerwall 2 Price Change History (excluding Gateway):

Or in a visual form – you can see the trend in the graph below:

Whether the Tesla Powerwall 2 is a cost-effective product for your system will depend on a closer examination of your electricity needs.

To see if home solar battery storage is worth it for you, see our detailed Solar Battery Sizing and Payback calculator to see the financials for your system.

Tesla’s official release of the Powerwall 2 & Solar Roof

The Chemistry of a Tesla Powerwall 2

Batteries have a positive cathode, a negative anode and are separated by an electrolyte in a simple view of a battery.

The Tesla Powerwall 2 uses Lithium-ion technology where the cathodes are made from a compound of Lithium, Cobalt, Nickel and Manganese (LiNiMnCoO₂).

Other lithium battery chemistries in the on-grid home battery storage market include lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO₄) and lithium cobalt oxide (LiCoO₂).

The battery comes with a 10-year warranty and provides 5kW of output power, making it suitable for large residential homes. Multiple batteries can be daisy-chained together for commercial use.

The battery is 1.15m by 0.76m and can be wall-mounted indoors or outdoors.

Tesla Powerwall Backup Gateway

The Tesla Powerwall ‘Gateway’ is an additional piece of hardware that is paired with the Tesla battery to enable solar and battery system to perform as back up power during a power outage. Otherwise during a power outage your solar and battery system will turn off until power is restored.

The Gateway prevents power from being sent back into the electricity network during an outage which keeps the lines safe for electrical workers working on the grid.

Some battery manufacturers have this capability built into the battery. Tesla charge an additional $1,700 for their Gateway which is a material additional to the overall cost of the system.

Tesla Powerwall 2 Pros & Cons

Pros

• Depth Of Discharge (DoD): Excellent specifications including 100% DoD.
• Retrofit Capability: Easily integrates with third-party solar inverters, making it versatile for existing solar setups.
• Stackability: Allows for multiple units to be stacked together, ideal for users needing more than 13.5

Cons

• Expensive: One of the most expensive battery solutions on the market
• Not designed for 3-phase applications: as you can only connect the battery to one phase.
• No black start capability: The unit requires intervention if the battery goes flat and the mains supply isn’t available.

Tesla Powerwall 2 Performance Specifications

See the Tesla Powerwall 2 Data Sheet and Tesla Powerwall 2 Installation Manual for more details

Tesla Powerwall 2 Warranty for Australian Customers

The Tesla Powerwall 2 for Australian customers offers two types of warranties: time-based and throughput-based. The time warranty covers defects for 10 years, excluding damages from improper use or installation. It also ensures less than 30% degradation from its 13.2kWh capacity over 10 years. If the battery discharges only 9.2 kWh or less after 10 years, you’re eligible for a warranty claim.

The throughput warranty varies with usage. For typical home use, like storing solar power for evening use or during blackouts, Tesla offers ‘unlimited cycles’. This means about 3,600 cycles over 10 years, assuming one cycle per day.

For other uses, like participating in Virtual Power Plants or off-grid charging, the warranty covers a maximum throughput of 37,000 kWh from the battery’s AC output. This equates to roughly 10 kWh per day, similar to one battery cycle per day over 10 years, considering battery degradation.

See the full Tesla Powerwall 2 full warrant conditions.

Tesla Mobile App Functionality

Tesla has made a user-friendly mobile app for people who own a Tesla Powerwall 2 or Tesla electric vehicle. This app is available on the Android and iOS stores. The app shows real-time performance and operation data for the Powerwall 2 and EV. Users can switch their battery between three modes: Back-Up only, Self-powered, and Time-based control. The app is especially helpful when combined with Solar PV.

1. Back-Up Only: The Back-Up Only feature is designed to store all available energy in the battery, ensuring that it remains fully charged. This feature helps to ensure uninterrupted power supply to the system during blackouts. If used with a Solar PV system of sufficient size, the battery can potentially last for weeks.
2. Self-powered Mode: When using the Self-Powered mode, batteries are utilized to make the most of free energy generated from rooftops. This helps reduce energy bills by using energy from the grid only when necessary. Residential batteries help homeowners manage their evening and early morning power usage.
3. Time-based Control: The Tesla Powerwall 2 has an intelligent feature that enables it to charge when electricity is cheaper, and discharge power when it’s more expensive, but only if the owner has a time-based electricity charge from their retailer. The financial benefit of this feature depends on the tariffs of the electricity retailer and is usually not enough to justify the cost of the battery system alone.

Is the Tesla Powerwall 2 Worth It?

The debate over whether solar batteries are worth it in 2024 is still ongoing. The Tesla Powerwall 2 has established itself as a proven option for solar energy storage since its release in 2017. With continued positive customer reviews and tested performance, it remains highly sought after by homeowners looking to integrate home battery storage into their solar systems today.

With many looking at the new Tesla Powerwall 3 and it boasting higher power outputs and built-in solar inverter capabilities the product still remains untested in Australia and may face initial adoption challenges, particularly for retrofitting existing systems. With some considering it a “missed opportunity”.

How Do I Get a Tesla Powerwall Battery?

To get a Tesla Powerwall you need a local Tesla Australia-accredited solar installer. You can click here to get a free quote comparison from up to 7 local installers near your home or simply enter your postcode below:

Read About Home Battery Government Schemes Across Australia

South Australia, New South Wales, Victoria, and Australian Capital Territory all currently have a home battery scheme in place.

The New South Wales Home Battery Scheme offers an interest-free loan up to $9000 for eligible households looking to install a solar battery in certain postcodes.

The Victorian Government battery rebate has now ended.

The Australian Capital Territory is offering interest free loans for projects including battery storage.

Read more product reviews from Solar Choice

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Jeff Sykes

CEO at Solar Choice

Jeff has consulted on over 20MW of commercial solar projects, ranging from SMEs to ASX top 100 companies. Jeff has also provided independent advice to 100s of residential solar, battery and EV charging customers across every state in Australia. He holds an MBA from the Australian Graduate School of Management and is an expert in business strategy and financial analysis.

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