How Solar eBoost Can Help You Prepare Before Speaking With a Provider
Walking into a solar, battery, or EV charger quote conversation without knowing your daily kWh, your current tariff type, and your bill's import and export pattern puts you at an immediate disadvantage — the installer or salesperson will shape the conversation around assumptions you cannot verify. Solar eBoost's free tools and guides are designed to close that gap before you call anyone.
- Know your bill numbers first: daily kWh import, current tariff type (flat, time-of-use, controlled load), solar export volume if applicable. These are on your bill and in your retailer portal.
- Understand what the installation category involves before the first call — solar, battery, and EV charger installations are all licensed electrical jobs with different scope, credential, and compliance requirements.
- Have a list of questions ready — every guide in this Learn section ends with specific questions to ask the professional you speak with.
- Solar eBoost does not sell installations — these guides are independent preparation tools, not sales funnels.
What preparation does for you
A prepared household entering a quote conversation:
- Recognises scope gaps between quotes (what one includes that another does not)
- Asks about switchboard requirements before signing, not after
- Understands whether the system size is matched to their actual usage
- Can assess a warranty claim on paper before signing
An unprepared household is more likely to be upsold on system size, accept verbal warranty commitments, miss switchboard costs from the quote, or choose a plan that does not suit the new setup.
Preparation does not require technical expertise. It requires reading your bill, using one or two monitoring tools, and working through the relevant guides in the Solar eBoost Learn section before contacting providers.
What Solar eBoost provides (and what it does not)
What Solar eBoost provides:
| Resource | What it gives you |
|---|---|
| Bill Analysis Tool | Breaks down your bill into daily kWh, tariff type, supply charge, export credit |
| Learn guides (this section) | Plain-English explanations of how solar, battery, EV charging, and plan comparison work in Australia |
| Product picks | Verified portable energy products that do not require installation — power banks, power stations, smart plugs, EV adapters |
| Starter kits | Curated product bundles for common household energy needs |
What Solar eBoost does not provide:
- Installation referrals (Solar eBoost is not a lead generation service for installers)
- Quotes or pricing for solar, battery, or EV charger installation
- Financial or investment advice on system payback periods
- Specific plan recommendations (Energy Made Easy and Victorian Energy Compare are the appropriate government comparison tools)
A preparation path before speaking with an installer
Step 1 — Read your bill
Identify: billing period, daily kWh, tariff type, supply charge, solar export volume (if applicable). If you cannot find these on the bill, use the bill analysis tool.
Step 2 — Know your usage pattern
Is most of your usage in the daytime or evening? Is anyone home during solar hours? Do you have an EV, pool pump, or electric hot water that could be shifted? This shapes which system size and which plan makes sense.
Step 3 — Read the relevant guide in the Learn section
- Considering solar: read the solar owner plans guide and the licensed solar installer guide
- Considering a battery: read the battery installer checklist and the plan review after battery guide
- Considering an EV charger: read the EV charger electricians guide and the home energy setup before buying an EV guide
Step 4 — Write down your questions before the first call
The most important questions for any installation quote:
- What current SAA accreditation or endorsement do you hold for this type of work, if it is solar or battery work?
- What is your state electrical contractor licence number?
- What does this quote include and exclude, in writing?
- Is a switchboard upgrade required, and if so is it in this price?
- What are the product and workmanship warranty terms, in writing?
Step 5 — Get at least three quotes
One quote is not enough to know whether the price and scope are reasonable. Three quotes give you a comparison that reveals scope differences and a market price reference.
The 30 minutes spent reading your bill, working through the relevant Learn guides, and preparing a question list before the first installer call is the highest-value preparation you can do. It costs nothing and puts you in the conversation as an informed participant rather than a prospect. Solar eBoost's guides and tools are designed specifically for this preparation step.
Start with your bill to understand your usage pattern before contacting any provider.