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.
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):
Date
Wholesale Price
Change
2017
$9,000
2018 – February
$9,600
+$600
2018 – October
$12,250
+$2,650
2019 – July
$11,700
-$550
2020 – October
$12,500
+$800
2021 – February
$13,300
+$800
2021 – May
$12,750
-$550
2022 – March
$13,700
+950
2022 – May
$14,650
+$950
2022 – October
$16,500
+$1,850
2023 – February
$14,599
-$1,901
2023 – April
$12,900
-$1,699
2023 – June
$12,100
-$800
2023 – August
$11,350 (after rebate)
-$750
2023 – November
$9,650 (after rebate)
-$1,700
2024 – January
$10,400
+$750
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.
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.
Compare solar and battery quotes from local installers now.
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 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.
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.
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.
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.
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:
Compare solar and battery quotes from local installers now.
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.
In Australia, The Tesla Powerwall 2 price is around $10,400 as of January 2024. 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 including the gateway, delivery, installation and any other required electrical components.
Is it worth getting 2 Powerwalls?
Yes, if you need to power your whole house, you’ll likely need more than one. It’s smarter to buy all the Powerwalls you need at once. For example, buying three Powerwalls together could save you upwards of $6,000.
What is the best solar battery in Australia?
The best solar battery depends on what you need, like how much you want to spend, how much power you need, how much space you have, and what your energy goals are. It also depends on the weather where you live and if there are any special deals or money-back offers.
Does Tesla Powerwall 2 need an inverter?
Yes.The Tesla Powerwall 2 does not have an integrated inverter. It is only a battery and can be installed with or without solar panels. The Tesla Powerwall Plus is a Tesla Powerwall 2 battery that has been integrated with a Tesla Solar Inverter.
What is the capacity of a Tesla Powerwall 2?
The Tesla Powerwall 2 has a capacity of 13.5kWh, which meets the needs of most households. It can be expanded by linking multiple units.
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.
This is my 2nd Powerwall 2 - the other has performed flawlessly over the past 4+ years and has no observed reduction in capacity or output
17th December 2024
James
-
system
5.00
We're very happy with the battery, easy of use, ecosystem where everything is simple and just works. Didnt have any trips or failures, dropouts or need to reboot anything.
12th December 2024
Brian
-
system
5.00
Both the Tesla Powerwall 2 batteries we have installed are great. You can easily monitor your usage and import/export rates.... Good app.
6th December 2024
Carlos
-
system
5.00
I an very satisfied with the app and the integration with my solar panels. The app added monitoring to the PV array as well.
3rd December 2024
Chris
NSW - 2747
system
5.00
So far so good the Tesla wall 3 only connected to my wife's latest Android phone for the initial setup but once setup it worked on my older one
26th November 2024
Susan
-
system
4.00
The Tesla 2 was the best choice for our situation (in July 2020) - needed to be on the side of the house because there was no under cover location, wanted good blackout backup. It has been very reliable and we have had uninterrupted power during local blackouts. Not happy that Tesla 3 is not backward compatible, but we got another Tesla 2 that will definitely meet our future needs.
21st November 2024
James
-
10-15kW system
5.00
I can only comment on my own experience in saying that every other battery is playing catchup to Tesla. Remote access via app that syncs with Tesla vehicles = you're in complete control. I wish every other brand all the best but Tesla have been exceptional.
20th November 2024
Geoff
-
system
5.00
Easy to use and integrates well with my existing infrastructure
18th November 2024
Giovanni
-
30-50kW system
Review left 3 years after system installed
5.00
The grid has been less than reliable and by installing our Tesla Powerwall 2 this gives us confidence to act like a battery during normal operations and like a generator when the grid goes down. We have also taken advantage of the load-shifting capability which helps us to increase our return on investment.
18th November 2024
Roger
VIC - 3093
system
5.00
We are able to run our house totally on solar and battery power
16th November 2024
Alex
NSW - 2193
9kW system
Review left 3 years after system installed
5.00
Battery has been excellent. Installation was smooth, the app is straightforward and informative, and we've avoided about 30hrs of blackouts in total. Would love more storage (2 adults + 2 kids + EV), but nonetheless we're only at around 9% grid energy usage over nearly two years.
14th November 2024
Paul
-
system
5.00
The battery has only just been installed, so hard to gauge performance. I had to put aside my extreme dislike of Musk and purchased the Powerwall 2 on reviews and recommendations.
11th November 2024
Simon
-
system
5.00
Tesla batteries (2) seem excellent and app is easy to use.
27th August 2024
Scott
-
system
5.00
Happy so far with the performance of thd battery
23rd August 2024
Owen
-
system
5.00
Working well so far, bit early to tell though
16th August 2024
Ken
SA - 5461
10-15kW system
5.00
Excellent in the few weeks we have had it.
During last night's thunder storm, it was most reassuring that even if the grid went down, we would still have plenty of power.
9th August 2024
Ken
-
system
5.00
Very happy with battery and performance, as indicated by the monitoring app.
Quoted price was better than competitor.
29th July 2024
Trixie
-
system
5.00
Very happy with all their work! Explanation and helpful team
26th July 2024
Erica
-
system
5.00
I think Tesla is a no brainer. The app is easy to use as well. Nothing to fault! Really looking forward to my independence from the grid.
12th July 2024
John
-
system
5.00
Very happy with Tesla Powerwall 2, love the app. Second battery as looking to get an EV (already ordered).
Showing 20 of 101 Reviews
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