Most people first hear about iStore through their hot water system. That makes sense. The iStore heat pump is one of the most efficient ways to heat water in a Perth home, and the STC rebate makes it a straightforward upgrade. But iStore is much more than a heat pump manufacturer, and Positive Energy Solutions is an iStore Elite Partner in Perth.
iStore produces inverters, batteries, EV chargers, and hot water heat pumps. All of them are designed to work together as a single integrated home energy system. Positive Energy Solutions was among the first iStore Elite Partners in Perth, and remains one of a small number in the city (as of July 2026). This post explains what that means, what the full iStore ecosystem can do, and why the partner behind the system matters as much as the product.
1. iStore in Perth: More Than a Heat Pump
iStore is a fully Australian owned and operated energy brand, and for West Australian homeowners, that matters more than it might seem. Their tech support and warranty support teams are WA-based. This means when you have a question or an issue, you are talking to someone who knows the WA grid, the Synergy tariff structure, and the conditions Perth homes actually operate in.
The iStore product range covers the full home energy stack: a hybrid solar inverter, a modular battery system, an EV charger, and the heat pump hot water system that most Perth homeowners know them for. Each product works on its own, but the real value shows up when they are combined: a single integrated system managed through one platform, with each component aware of what the others are doing.
iStore does not make this ecosystem available through every installer who wants to quote it. They work through a select partner network, with Elite Partners at the top tier. In Perth, there are two. Positive Energy Solutions was the first, and the reason comes down to a relationship that started early.
2. What the iStore Elite Partner Program Involves
Being an iStore Elite Partner is not a status you buy into or achieve overnight. It reflects a sustained relationship, demonstrated performance, and a commitment to iStore’s standards across sales, installation quality, and customer experience.
iStore backed Positive Energy Solutions early
Positive Energy Solutions was the first company in Perth to achieve Elite Partner status, because iStore backed us before Elite Partner status was a widely recognised credential in the Perth market. When we committed to the full iStore ecosystem, inverters, batteries, heat pumps, and EV chargers, iStore committed back. That early relationship has delivered real advantages: advantageous product pricing, direct manufacturer support, favourable payment terms, and marketing assistance that a standard installer relationship does not include.
For homeowners, this means a Positive Energy Solutions team with deeper product knowledge, better supply chain access, and a closer working relationship with iStore than companies who came to the brand later.
Elite Partner criteria
iStore’s Elite Partner program has five criteria that partners must maintain:
- Annual sales performance – achieve a minimum annual purchase volume and demonstrate consistent growth.
- Training and accreditation – maintain certified sales and installation staff who have completed iStore training across the full product range.
- Installation quality and customer satisfaction – meet iStore’s quality standards and maintain strong customer reviews.
- Brand and business commitment – actively promote iStore products, participate in marketing initiatives, and maintain good account standing.
- Engagement and market development – attend iStore training and events, support new product launches, and actively grow iStore market share in the region.
Meeting these criteria is not a one-time exercise. iStore assesses Elite Partners on an ongoing basis. Positive Energy Solutions has held Elite Partner status since being the first to achieve it in Perth.
WA-based support
Because iStore is a fully Australian owned and operated business, their tech support and warranty support teams are WA-based. When Positive Energy Solutions needs to escalate a technical question or a warranty claim, we deal with a local team that understands Western Power’s network requirements, Synergy’s tariff structure, and the conditions Perth homes operate in. That is a meaningful difference from brands where Australian support is routed through an interstate call centre or an offshore team.
In-house engineering review
Every iStore system Positive Energy Solutions designs goes through our in-house engineering team before it reaches installation. This covers system sizing, component compatibility, electrical design, and compliance with Western Power requirements. On installation day, our accredited installers carry out a final site-specific design review. Where site conditions require it, they make the definitive design decisions on the day, based on what they find.
3. The iStore Ecosystem: What Integrates with What
The reason iStore has moved beyond being a heat pump brand is integration. Each product in the iStore range is designed to be aware of the others: sharing data, coordinating behaviour, and optimising how energy is generated, stored, used, and exported across the whole home.
In a fully integrated iStore system, the inverter knows the battery’s state of charge and what the heat pump is drawing. The battery knows when solar generation is high and when to charge. The EV charger knows when excess solar is available, and prioritises charging from it. The heat pump knows when to run to use your own solar energy rather than grid power. The iStore platform manages all of this automatically, without the homeowner needing to configure individual products.
This is the difference between buying four separate products from four different manufacturers and hoping they work together, versus buying a system designed from the ground up to function as one. With iStore, the integration is built in, not bolted on.
4. iStore and Huawei: The Hardware Behind the Brand
One question homeowners sometimes ask is what is inside an iStore inverter or battery. The answer is Huawei, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of solar inverters and energy storage hardware.
Huawei’s energy division operates at a scale that few manufacturers can match. Their inverter and battery technology is deployed in residential and commercial systems across dozens of countries, and their hardware has a long track record of reliability in demanding conditions. The FusionSolar platform behind Huawei’s energy products is one of the most widely used energy management systems in the world.
iStore is the Australian face of that technology, a fully Australian owned and operated brand that takes Huawei’s proven hardware and wraps it in local support, local warranty coverage, and an integrated ecosystem designed specifically for Australian homes and the Australian grid. The result is hardware with genuine depth behind it, backed by a team that understands WA conditions and Synergy’s tariff structure.
For Perth homeowners, this combination matters. You get the manufacturing reliability and scale of one of the world’s leading energy hardware companies, with local ownership, local support, and local warranty service that is actually WA-based.
5. iStore Heat Pump Hot Water
The iStore heat pump hot water system is where most Perth homeowners start their iStore conversation, and for good reason. It replaces electric resistance hot water, one of the highest-draw appliances in a typical Perth home, with a heat pump that uses ambient air to heat water at a fraction of the energy cost.
- Available in: 180L and 270L configurations to suit different household sizes.
- COP (Coefficient of Performance): approximately 4.82 — meaning for every 1kWh of electricity used, the system delivers around 4.82kWh of heat energy. Compared to a standard electric element that delivers 1kWh of heat per 1kWh used, the efficiency difference is substantial.
- Refrigerant: R290 (propane) — a natural refrigerant with very low global warming potential, increasingly preferred over synthetic refrigerants for environmental reasons.
- Warranty: 5 years parts and labour — one of the stronger warranty positions in the heat pump market, covering both the product and the cost of any repair work.
- STC rebate: iStore heat pumps qualify for the federal Small-scale Technology Certificate (STC) rebate. For a 270L system in Perth, this typically reduces the upfront cost by approximately $1,500 to $1,800. The rebate is applied at point of sale — you do not need to claim it separately.
Running on solar
One of the practical advantages of the iStore heat pump in a solar home is scheduling. Hot water heating is a flexible load. It does not need to happen at a fixed time. In an integrated iStore system, the heat pump can be scheduled to run during peak solar generation hours, typically between 10am and 2pm in Perth, using your own solar energy rather than drawing from the grid or the battery.
This scheduling is automatic in an integrated iStore system. The platform coordinates it without manual intervention. In a standalone heat pump installation, you can also set it up manually through the iStore app.
6. iStore Inverter
The iStore hybrid inverter is the core of an integrated iStore solar and battery system. It comes in 5kW and 10kW configurations, and manages the flow of energy between solar panels, the battery, home loads, and the grid, while communicating directly with the other iStore products in the system.
As a hybrid inverter, it supports both solar generation and battery storage in a DC-coupled configuration. Energy generated by the panels charges the battery directly before converting to AC. This is the more efficient coupling arrangement: fewer conversion steps mean less energy lost in the process.
For homes with inverters 5kW and under, Synergy’s DEBS export tariff applies, giving a credit for excess energy exported to the grid. The 5kW iStore inverter option keeps this eligibility open for homeowners who want to keep the DEBS export benefit alongside battery storage.
7. iStore Battery
The iStore battery system is modular, so capacity can be configured to match the home’s energy storage needs. Rather than a fixed-size unit, the iStore battery can be sized appropriately for the household, from a starter configuration for a smaller home through to a higher-capacity system for larger loads or greater energy independence.
In an integrated iStore system, the battery works in coordination with the inverter, heat pump, and EV charger. The platform prioritises solar charging of the battery during generation hours, then sends stored energy to cover evening loads, cutting grid import during the peak tariff period.
The battery also provides whole-home energy management data through the iStore platform, giving homeowners visibility of what is being generated, stored, consumed, and exported in real time.
8. iStore EV Charger
The iStore EV charger completes the home energy ecosystem. Integrated with the inverter and battery, it draws on available solar generation first, before falling back to battery or grid power. This is the most cost-effective way to charge an electric vehicle in a solar home.
In an integrated iStore system, EV charging coordinates with the rest of the system’s energy priorities. If the battery is still charging from solar, the EV charger waits or draws at a lower rate. If there is excess solar available beyond what the battery needs, the EV charger can absorb it. This coordination happens automatically. There is no need to manually manage which device gets power when.
For Perth homeowners with an EV or planning to get one, adding an iStore EV charger to an existing iStore inverter and battery system is a straightforward addition that slots into the existing platform without needing separate monitoring or management.
9. Why Full Ecosystem Integration Matters — and Why All at Once Makes Sense
The case for an integrated iStore system comes down to one thing: the components are designed to work together, so they actually do.
Most Perth homeowners who build a solar and battery system over time end up mixing brands: a solar inverter from one manufacturer, a battery from another, a heat pump from a third, and an EV charger from a fourth. Each product works individually. Getting them to coordinate, sharing generation data, prioritising loads, avoiding simultaneous high draws, typically needs additional hardware, separate apps, and manual configuration that drifts out of sync over time.
An integrated iStore system removes that complexity. One platform, one app, one set of rules governing how energy moves through the home. The heat pump runs on solar. The battery charges when generation is high. The EV charger uses what is left. Grid import stays minimised automatically.
Why doing it all at once is almost always lower-cost
There is a practical financial reason to install the iStore inverter and battery together, rather than one now and one later: it is almost always lower-cost.
The iStore battery may be eligible for the WA government’s home battery rebate scheme, applied at the point of installation. Installing the inverter and battery together means a single electrical job, a single Western Power network application, and a single commissioning visit. Adding the battery to an existing inverter later means a second round of all of that: separate labour, a second network application, and extra commissioning costs that add up quickly.
Beyond the cost of installation, pairing the inverter and battery from day one means the system gets set up correctly as an integrated unit from the start, rather than retrofitting storage into a system that was not originally configured for it.
For homeowners who want to go all-electric, removing gas, upgrading hot water, adding an EV, iStore provides a coherent path from the first product to the complete system. Our consultants can map out what makes sense to do now versus later, based on your budget and priorities.
10. Ready to Talk About an iStore System?
Positive Energy Solutions was among the first iStore Elite Partners in Perth, and remains one of a small number (as of July 2026). Every iStore system we design goes through our in-house engineering team, and is installed by our accredited installers, signed off to Positive Energy’s completion standards.
Every system we install is monitored through Omnidian, an independent monitoring platform that tracks real-time performance across the whole system and flags any deviation from expected output early.
Whether you are starting with the heat pump, looking at the full solar, battery, and hot water package, or planning to add an EV charger to an existing system, get in touch with one of our consultants to confirm the right sizes and best solution for your home.
Related guides
- Why Positive Energy Solutions Is a SunPower Elite Partner in Perth
- Why Positive Energy Solutions Is a Fronius Solutions Partner Plus in Perth
- Positive Energy Solutions Wins Two 2026 SunWiz Awards — #1 Local Solar Hero Perth Inner and #3 Battery Installer in WA
- Premium Brands, Trusted Partners: Why PES Only Installs the Best Solar and Battery Equipment in Perth
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to buy the full iStore ecosystem, or can I start with just the heat pump?
You can start with any iStore product. Most Perth homeowners begin with the heat pump hot water system. It delivers immediate savings on hot water costs, and qualifies for the STC rebate. You can add the inverter, battery, and EV charger over time, and they will integrate automatically with the heat pump once they are part of the same system.
What does the STC rebate cover for iStore heat pumps?
The Small-scale Technology Certificate (STC) rebate applies to iStore heat pump hot water systems under the federal government’s renewable energy scheme. For a 270L iStore system in Perth, the rebate typically reduces the upfront cost by approximately $1,500 to $1,800. It applies at the point of sale, and Positive Energy Solutions handles the paperwork.
Can I keep my DEBS export tariff with an iStore system?
Yes, if you choose the 5kW iStore inverter, your system stays eligible for Synergy’s DEBS export tariff, which gives a credit for excess solar energy exported to the grid. DEBS applies to inverters 5kW and under. The 10kW inverter option suits larger homes with higher loads better, where battery self-consumption makes the export tariff less critical.
How does the iStore system interact with my existing solar?
If you already have solar installed, you can add the iStore battery and heat pump as standalone products, configured to work with your existing generation. If you are building a new system or upgrading, a fully integrated iStore setup with the iStore inverter gives you the tightest coordination between all components. Positive Energy Solutions can advise on the right approach based on your existing system.
What warranty comes with iStore products?
The iStore heat pump carries a 5-year parts and labour warranty. Warranty terms on the inverter, battery, and EV charger vary by product — Positive Energy Solutions will confirm the specific warranty for each component as part of your system proposal. As an Elite Partner, we handle all warranty claims directly with iStore.
What makes Positive Energy Solutions different from other iStore installers?
Positive Energy Solutions was among the first iStore Elite Partners in Perth, and is one of a small number (as of July 2026). Every system is reviewed by our in-house engineering team before installation. Our accredited installers make the final design decisions on the day, based on site conditions. Ongoing monitoring through Omnidian means we track system performance independently, not just hand over the keys and move on.
About the Author
Jason Wiktorowicz
Sales Manager, Positive Energy Solutions | Perth, WA
Jason has been at the centre of Western Australia’s energy transition for over a decade. As Orchestration Lead on Project Symphony — WA’s largest virtual power plant pilot — and Stream Lead on Project Encore, he worked directly with AEMO, Western Power and Energy Policy WA to shape how distributed energy resources connect and operate on the SWIS. That work included developing and rolling out CSIP-AUS, now mandatory for all new WA grid connections. He also led Emergency Solar Management (ESM), the first program of its kind in WA, VPP for Schools (VPP4S), which provided direct market benefits through Supplementary Reserve Capacity, and REBAR, the WA Residential Battery Rebate scheme.
His earlier career spanned Synergy, Infinite Energy and Curtin University’s Sustainability Policy Institute, where he co-authored peer-reviewed research on net-zero urban precincts, solar integration and peer-to-peer energy trading, published in the journal Urban Planning in 2018.
At Positive Energy Solutions, Jason leads sales with a focus on system design accuracy and long-term performance. Positive Energy Solutions installs solar and battery systems, EV chargers and heat pumps, and holds partner accreditations with Fronius, SigEnergy, iStore and SunPower. Connect with him on LinkedIn.
