Questions about a solar system not exporting to the grid usually surface after an electricity bill shows little or no exported energy, despite solar panels being installed and connected to the electricity grid. For many customers, this is the first indication that something within their solar energy setup is no longer behaving as expected, whether that relates to generation, exporting, or how electricity is being measured and recorded.
In an on-grid solar panel system, exporting solar electricity is the result of how the solar inverter, metre, and distribution network interact with household load and appliances. When feed-in tariff credits or solar feed-in tariffsdrop unexpectedly, it creates uncertainty around whether the issue sits with solar capacity, solar production days, export limit settings, or the way energy is recognised by the electricity retailer. This article addresses that uncertainty by examining why grid export problems arise and why they are not always easily visible.
Why is my solar not exporting to the grid?
When a solar system is not exporting to the grid, the cause is rarely obvious. In an on-grid solar panel system, export depends on how the solar panels, solar inverter, metre, and electricity grid interact. If any part of that chain is constrained or misaligned, exported energy can drop or stop even when solar electricity is still being generated.
Most customers first notice the issue on an electricity bill, where feed-in tariff credits, feed-in rate, or solar feed-in tariffs are lower than expected or missing entirely. At that point, it is not clear whether the issue relates to generation, solar capacity, electricity usage patterns, or how imported energy and exported energy are being recorded by the electricity retailer.
In systems with batteries, solar battery storage, or integrated battery systems, high self-consumption can reduce export without indicating a fault. Household load, daytime appliances, electric vehicle charging, and battery soc all influence whether surplus solar energy reaches the electricity grid.
Export behaviour can also be shaped by export limit or solar export limit settings applied through the solar inverter, often due to rules set by the distribution network, electricity network operator, or SWER networks, particularly in Victoria and regional Queensland. These forms of export limiting or export control may change over time and are not always accompanied by clear notifications.
Technical factors can further complicate the picture. Firmware update changes, unresolved error codes, faulty internal connections, or lost connectivity between a smart meter, internet-connected inverter, and digital platforms used for solar analytics can interfere with how export is measured or reported. Issues with the internet connection or communication method can create grid export problems without affecting power generation itself.
Because export is influenced by hardware, software, network rules, and conditions such as solar radiation, weather patterns, and varying solar production days, a lack of export does not point to a single cause. It indicates that something within the solar PV system, associated solar hardware, or its relationship with the main electricity grid or national grid requires closer examination.
How do I know if my solar panels are sending power to the grid?
Most people start by checking their monitoring app, but this only shows generation, not whether electricity is actually being exported. A solar system can produce normal levels of solar electricity while exporting little or nothing to the grid, because generation, self-consumption, and export are separate behaviours.
The next place people look is their electricity bill. If feed-in tariff credits are missing, very low, or inconsistent with expected output, that is usually the first indication that exported energy is not being recorded. This billing data reflects what the electricity retailer recognises as export, not necessarily what the system appears to be doing in real time.
However, neither monitoring data nor billing alone can confirm export with certainty. In homes with higher daytime electricity usage patterns, surplus solar energy may be consumed by household load, appliances, or charging devices before it ever reaches the electricity grid. Where battery storage or battery systems are installed, excess power may be diverted into a solar battery, further reducing visible export without indicating a fault.
The difficulty is that each of these signals tells only part of the story. Monitoring platforms show production, retailers report billing outcomes, and neither can fully account for inverter behaviour, export limits, or how energy is measured at the metre. As a result, it is common for customers to see conflicting information and still not know whether power is being sent to the grid at all.
Without system-level checks that look at how the solar inverter, meter, and grid connection are interacting, export behaviour cannot be confirmed definitively. This is why many people remain uncertain about export even after reviewing apps and bills, and why the issue often persists until the system itself is properly examined.
Checking and Setting Export Limits (Including Grid Compliance Restrictions)
Export limits describe how much electricity a solar system is allowed to send to the grid at any given time. They can exist for different reasons. In some cases, they reflect conditions imposed by the distribution network as part of grid connection approval. In others, they are set within the solar inverter during installation, commissioning, system upgrades, or later adjustments. The important point is that export behaviour is shaped by more than one layer of decision-making.
Where grid-related restrictions apply, they are designed to manage voltage and capacity on the electricity grid, particularly in areas with high levels of rooftop solar capacity. These restrictions can limit export regardless of how much solar electricity the system is generating, and they are not always visible through monitoring data or electricity bills. A system may appear to be operating normally while export is capped or curtailed under specific conditions.
Export limits can also change over time. Firmware updates, inverter configuration changes, network requirements, or system modifications can all alter how export is handled. Because these settings interact with compliance rules, inverter behaviour, and metering, their effect cannot be reliably inferred without checking how the system is configured against current connection conditions.
When the Cause Is Not Obvious
By the time export issues show up on an electricity bill, the problem is already downstream of where it originates. Whether the cause sits with generation, export limits, metering, or how the system interacts with the grid, it is rarely something that can be resolved by looking at summaries or assumptions alone.
When export matters, the only meaningful question is how the system is behaving at the point it connects to the grid. That is what determines whether energy is being exported, limited, or not recognised at all. If you want clarity rather than speculation, the next step is to have the system checked in context by a technician who understands both solar systems and grid conditions in NSW.
