Surprising way mum saves thousands on bills
A mother-of-two has found a way to save almost $30,000 on her electricity bills as cost-of-living issues force families to make a change.
One million Australians will see their energy bills go up by up to 25 per cent next month, the Australian Energy Regulator has flagged.
It is the latest in a barrage of bad news for homeowners facing rising interest rates, as well as soaring petrol prices and grocery receipts.
However, Ashleigh Notley recently discovered she could be saving a whopping $2,190 a year on her electricity bill just by installing solar panels on her roof of her home.
It could save her family almost $30,000 over the next decade, according to new data from Solar Analytics, which would set them up to be able to send their children to private school or go on more holidays.
The North-West Sydney family has grown over the last year and so have most of their bills. The last one came in at an eye-watering $800 for the quarter.
“We moved to a bigger house during Covid because we were having another child,” Ms Notley said.
“The bills have just been pretty high since then,” she said.
After daycare fees, groceries and all the other costs which have soared in recent months, Ms Notley said she has been forced to make savings where she can.
“It’s kind of hard to stay on top of it and then have anything left over to you know have fun,” she said.
“The only holiday we have been on was because we had a credit left over from Covid.”
Energy expert and Solar Analytics chief executive Stefan Jarnason said last month his company has seen a huge increase in customers desperate to cut down their energy costs.
“Most of us have recently received a shock electricity bill that was much higher than we expected, but it’s going to get worse,” he said.
More people are starting to flirt with the idea of going solar, and Ms Notley is not the first among her social circle to make the jump.
“I’ve got a few friends and family that have been talking about it,” she said.
“My sister got a pool last summer. So she’s been talking up how it saves them heaps.”
“One of my friends is constantly looking at money saving hacks and every month says ‘you need to do this’.”
Once the solar panels are installed, their bills could halve before their next quarterly bill.
The family have estimated they could save $29,450 over the next 10 years if they install solar panels.
The average person pays their solar system off within six years of installation and the Notley’s are looking at a total cost of up to $13,000.
As to why she has never felt compelled to go solar before, Ms Notley said she wanted to be sure that she was living in her “forever home” before she made the commitment.
Residents will be hit by energy prices increases of between 19.6 and 24.9 per cent, from July 1, while small business customers face increases of between 14.7 per cent and 28.9 per cent.
Energy Minister Chris Bowen said last month that without market intervention, prices would have risen further.
They have promised a $1.5bn power bill relief package, which will reduce bills by up to $500 for 5.5 million households and a million businesses.
Solar Analytics have launched a new calculator that allows Australians work out how to save on their energy bills using rooftop solar, batteries and heat pumps in just 60 seconds.
