The right battery size comes from your evening load, not from your solar system size or your monthly bill. Get this wrong and you either pay for storage you never use, or find yourself back on the grid at 10pm. Here is how SNM Solutions sizes battery banks for Pakistani homes.
Start with what runs after sunset
List what genuinely needs to work when the sun is down, and for how long. Rough draws for a Pakistani home:
- LED lights, whole house: 100 to 200 watts
- Ceiling fans, three or four running: 200 to 300 watts
- Refrigerator: 150 to 250 watts averaged over the night
- TV and routers: 100 to 150 watts
- Inverter air conditioner, 1.5 ton: 1,000 to 1,400 watts while running
- Water pump: 750 to 1,500 watts, but only in short bursts
Turn that into kilowatt-hours
Multiply the watts by the hours you need them. Essentials only, at around 500 watts for six hours, is about 3 kWh. Add one air conditioner for five hours and you are near 9 kWh.
Then allow for usable capacity. A lithium bank safely delivers 80 to 90 percent of its rating, so a 10 kWh lithium battery gives you roughly 8 to 9 kWh in practice. A lead-acid bank of the same rating gives closer to 5 kWh, which is the biggest reason we now fit lithium on most hybrid systems.
Typical sizing we install
- 5 kWh — essentials through load-shedding: lights, fans, fridge, internet. Suits most 5 marla homes.
- 10 kWh — essentials plus one air conditioner for part of the evening. The common choice for 10 marla homes.
- 15 kWh and above — larger homes running two or more air conditioners into the night, typically 1 kanal and up.
Our documented installations reflect this: a 25 kW system in DHA Phase 8 with a 10 kWh lithium bank, and a 15 kW system in Gulberg with 5 kWh of storage.
Why net billing changed the calculation
Since 9 February 2026, exported units earn about Rs 11 while units you use yourself save roughly Rs 55 to 65. A battery moves daytime surplus into the evening, where it displaces expensive grid electricity instead of being sold cheaply. That makes storage roughly five times more valuable per unit than exporting. See our 2026 net billing guide.
Battery and array are sized separately
They answer different questions. The array covers your daytime consumption and is capped by your sanctioned load. The battery covers your evening. A large array with a small battery suits a family out all day; the reverse suits a household running air conditioning late.
Frequently asked questions
What size solar battery do I need in Pakistan?
Size it to your evening and night load, not your whole day. Add up what actually runs after sunset: lights, fans, a fridge, a TV and perhaps one air conditioner. Most Lahore homes land between 5 and 10 kWh of usable storage. SNM sizes the bank from your real usage during the free site survey.
How many hours will a 10 kWh battery run my house?
It depends entirely on load. Lights, fans and a fridge draw roughly 300 to 500 watts, so a 10 kWh lithium bank with about 9 kWh usable runs them for many hours. Add a 1.5-ton inverter air conditioner at roughly 1,200 watts and the same bank gives you around six to seven hours.
Should the battery match my solar system size?
No. The array is sized to your daytime generation and the battery to your evening consumption. A 10 kW system with a 5 kWh battery is sensible if your evening load is small, and a 5 kW system with a 10 kWh battery makes sense if it is large.
Is a bigger battery always better?
No. An oversized battery costs money and rarely fully cycles, so you pay for capacity you never use. Under net billing the right question is how much of your evening load you want covered, not how much storage you can fit.
Can I add more battery later?
Usually yes, if the hybrid inverter has headroom and you can source matching cells. It is cleaner to size correctly at the start, because mixing battery ages and capacities reduces the performance of the whole bank.
See system prices in Lahore or the full price list by size.
Want the right battery size for your home?
Send your last bill and a note of what you run in the evening to 0321 878 3630. SNM Solutions sizes the bank from your actual usage, free.
Once you know the size you need, see current lithium battery prices.
For Hisel models by amp-hour and voltage, see Hisel battery prices.