An Australian-first home battery storage safety guide has been made available as part of the nation’s most comprehensive national study of energy storage safety.
Battery storage is very safe if good quality components are used, installed correctly, properly operated and sufficiently maintained. However, as with all other electrical appliances in a home or business or common items such as barbeque gas bottles and fuel tanks; there are potential risks consumers need to be aware of so they can be managed.
A joint project of the Clean Energy Council and CSIRO, the new guide provides information on the safe installation and use of household and small commercial battery storage systems.
“The safety guide prepared by CSIRO is full of useful information on how to manage safety concerns, information on different system types, maintenance and much more. The CSIRO has also prepared a safety checklist to help consumers make decisions on battery purchases,” said Clean Energy Council Chief Executive Kane Thornton.
Development of the guide was also supported by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA).
“As the energy storage revolution gains momentum, filling existing knowledge gaps will be critical for ensuring a safe and smooth transition,” said ARENA CEO Ivor Frischknecht
“These new resources highlight key challenges for regulators, retailers and installers while seeking to increase consumer understanding of battery storage.”
The guides (both in PDF):
– Battery Storage Safe Installation And Maintenance Checklist
– Australian Energy Storage Safety (Study)
The issue of battery safety will become increasingly important next year when Australia’s energy storage revolution really starts to kick off. This will be sparked by a new generation of battery systems reaching our shores; including products from leading manufacturers Tesla (Powerwall) and Enphase Energy (Enphase AC Battery).
Uptake of battery systems is forecast to jump from 1.9 megawatts in 2015 to 44 megawatts in 2016 according to a recent report from GTM research; with many of these systems to be in residential settings.
A Climate Council report last month stated half of all Australian households are predicted to eventually install storage-enabled solar power systems.
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