24/10/2026
Winter solar performance is where a lot of Tasmanian quotes quietly fall over.
October is the easy month. Panels are producing, batteries are filling by lunchtime, and a system sized on annual-average numbers looks brilliant. But the one you sign this spring is the one you live with in June — and in Tasmania, June output runs at roughly a third of January's. That's not a fault. That's being at 42 degrees south.
Two things worth checking before you sign anything. Ask for output month by month, not just the annual total — one yearly figure hides the trough completely, and the trough is exactly when you're buying power. Then ask about winter shade specifically. The sun sits low from May to August, so a hedge, a gable or a neighbour's gum that does nothing in January can lie across a string for hours in June.
It matters most if there's a battery involved. If the pack can't refill through a grey winter week, you're importing at 28-30c while your exports earn 9.276c — and that gap is the entire argument for storage in the first place. Size it on winter and it works all year. Size it on summer and winter will let you know.
Do you know what your own system actually made last June, or only the annual number?
