Water is the one thing a rural property can't go without. And the bore pump is often the one load nobody thought about until the house system trips every time it kicks in, or the power bill for a pump-only connection at the bottom paddock arrives.
A solar bore pump runs your bore from solar power instead of the grid or a diesel. There are two ways to do it: a dedicated solar pump with its own panels and controller, where the water tank is the storage, or a standard AC pump running from your home's off-grid or hybrid solar system and battery. A dedicated solar pump usually suits a bore that's away from the house and only needs to fill a tank in daylight. Running it from the home system suits a bore close to the house that also has to pressurise the house supply or run at night.
To be clear about our role: your pump supplier or bore contractor chooses and installs the pump. We design the power side, which is the solar, battery, inverter and cabling, so it can actually run the pump you've got.
How does a solar bore pump work?
A dedicated solar pump system has three parts: solar panels, a controller and a pump. The panels turn sunlight into electricity, and the controller runs the pump while the sun is shining (Ergon Energy).
Most have no battery. The pump runs when there's enough sun, slows as the light drops and stops at dusk. The water it lifts during the day goes into a tank, and the tank feeds troughs or the house by gravity or a separate pressure pump. The tank is the storage. A full tank is your "battery" for the night and for cloudy days.
The other approach treats the bore pump as just another appliance on your home system. The house solar charges a battery, the inverter supplies 230V AC, and the bore pump runs off that supply whenever it's switched on.
DC solar pump vs AC pump on your home system
| Dedicated solar pump (own panels and controller) | AC pump on the home's solar and battery | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it suits | Bores away from the house, stock water, filling a header tank | Bores near the house, house pressure supply, pumping that must work at night |
| Storage | The water tank | The battery, plus whatever tank you have |
| Runs at night or in cloud | No, or at reduced flow | Yes, while the battery has charge |
| Effect on the house system | None. It's separate | Adds daily energy use and a start-up surge the inverter must handle |
| Cabling | Short runs from the array beside the bore | Potentially long runs from the house to the bore, with voltage drop to manage |
| Best value when | You can pump in daylight and store water | The house system has spare capacity in the middle of the day |
Neither is better in general. The question is where the bore is, what the water is for and when you need it.
When a dedicated solar pump makes more sense
- The bore is a long way from the house. Running cable hundreds of metres to a remote bore costs money and loses voltage. Panels beside the bore avoid both.
- You're filling a tank for stock or garden. Daylight-only pumping is fine when a big tank smooths it out.
- You want the water independent of the house system. If the house battery is low after a wet week, the stock still get water when the sun comes back.
When running it off your home solar makes more sense
- The bore supplies the house directly through a pressure system, so it has to run whenever someone opens a tap.
- The bore is close to the switchboard, so cabling is short.
- The home system has spare midday capacity. On many off-grid and hybrid systems, the battery is full by late morning on a sunny day. Pumping then turns surplus solar into stored water.
How many solar panels do you need to run a bore pump?
It depends on three things: how much water you need per day, how far it has to be lifted and pushed, and how efficient the pump and motor are. The pump supplier works out the pump. The arithmetic below shows why those inputs matter for the power side.
The energy needed to lift water is basic physics: about 9.81 joules per kilogram per metre of lift, and a litre of water weighs about a kilogram. So:
Daily energy (kWh) ≈ litres per day × total head (m) × 9.81 ÷ 3,600,000 ÷ pump efficiency
"Total head" is the full height the pump works against: the depth to the water level in the bore while it's pumping, plus the height up to the tank, plus an allowance for friction in the pipe.
Here's a worked example. Every figure is illustrative, chosen to show the method, not a reading for your bore or a spec for any pump.
| Input (illustrative) | Value |
|---|---|
| Water needed per day | 5,000 litres |
| Total head (pumping water level, lift to the tank, pipe friction) | 60 m |
| Overall pump and motor efficiency ("wire to water") | 40% |
| Sun hours to pump in, in the worst month | 4 hours |
The working:
- Energy in the water: 5,000 × 60 × 9.81 = 2,943,000 joules ≈ 0.82 kWh
- Allow for pump efficiency: 0.82 ÷ 0.4 ≈ 2 kWh of electricity a day
- Power over the pumping window: 2 kWh ÷ 4 hours = about 0.5 kW of pump input power
That's the pump's appetite in this example. A dedicated solar pump array then needs to be larger than that 0.5 kW figure, because panels rarely deliver their full rating in the field, and in winter the useful pumping window shrinks. Your pump supplier sizes the array to the specific pump and controller.
Two things fall out of that sum:
- Head matters as much as volume. Double the head and you double the energy, for the same litres.
- Efficiency matters. A more efficient pump and motor needs fewer panels for the same water.
If the pump runs from your home system instead, that 2 kWh a day is added to the household's daily use, and it needs to be included when the battery and array are sized. Our off-grid battery sizing guide shows how that daily figure flows through.
Tank storage vs battery storage
For water, storing the water itself is almost always cheaper than storing the electricity to pump it later.
A bigger tank lets the pump work harder on sunny days and carry you through cloudy ones without any battery at all. It also has no cycle life to wear out. That's why most dedicated solar pump setups are designed around tank volume and days of water, rather than a battery.
Running a bore pump at night from a house battery works, but you're paying to store energy in a battery so you can turn it into stored water later. If you can shift the pumping into the middle of the day and keep a full tank, the battery is free for the loads that genuinely have to run after dark: lights, fridges and the house pressure pump.
Can you run a bore pump off a home solar battery?
Yes, if the system is designed for it. The catch isn't the battery. It's the inverter.
Start-up surge
A standard AC motor draws a surge well above its running current for a moment as it starts. On the grid, nobody notices. Off-grid, or on a hybrid system in backup mode, the inverter has to supply that surge on its own, alongside whatever else is running. If it can't, it trips, and the house goes dark along with the pump.
That's the most common pump problem we're asked to sort out on rural properties. Ways around it:
- Size the inverter for the surge, not just the running load. Off-grid inverter-chargers are rated for both continuous output and short-term surge, and the figures on the spec sheet are what matter here. Our off-grid inverter guide explains how to read them.
- Ask your pump supplier about soft-start or variable-speed drives, which ramp the motor up gently and reduce the starting surge.
- Stagger the big loads. Programme the bore and irrigation pumps so they don't start at the same moment as the air conditioner or water heater.
- Pump in the middle of the day, when the array is carrying most of the load and the battery is full.
Generator backup
On an off-grid property, a generator that starts automatically at a battery set point covers the long wet weeks when the house battery can't spare the energy for pumping. A dedicated solar pump can also be given an input for a portable generator for emergencies, which is something Ergon suggests considering if you go solar-only on a pump (Ergon Energy).
Ergon's solar pump program
If you're on Ergon's regional network and have a pump-only connection at the end of a powerline, you may be able to get a cashback for switching it to solar.
As at November 2026, Ergon's website describes a Solar Pump Program for eligible farmers and station owners. Eligible customers who buy a solar pump as an alternative to their grid-connected pump and abolish (remove) that network connection receive a cashback reward. To be considered, you must have a pump-only connection that doesn't need 24/7 supply, at the end of a section of powerline, with pumping needs that can be met in sunlight or a backup plan for consecutive cloudy days, and there must be a benefit to the network. You must have a signed agreement before installing (Ergon Energy). Ergon's page notes its information is current as of December 2023, so check with Ergon directly before you plan around it.
Our service area, including the Sunshine Coast hinterland and Gympie, is on the Energex network rather than Ergon. If you're unsure which network you're on, your bill names it. Our guide to solar for rural properties in Queensland explains the split.
What we need to design the power side
If the bore pump is going to run from your house system, or you're planning a new off-grid home with a bore, tell us:
- the pump's make, model and motor rating (from the plate or your bore contractor)
- whether it's single-phase or three-phase
- how far the bore is from the switchboard
- whether it feeds a tank, the house pressure system, or both
- when it needs to run, and whether it must work during outages
With that, we size the inverter for the surge, add the pump's daily energy into the battery and array design, and size the cabling for the run. You can start with our off-grid solar systems page, or get in touch with the pump details and we'll work through it.
Frequently asked questions
How does a solar bore pump work?
A solar pump system uses solar panels, a controller and a pump. The panels power the pump while the sun shines, and the water is pumped into a tank, which acts as the storage for night and cloudy days. Most dedicated solar pumps don't use a battery.
How many solar panels do I need to run a bore pump?
It depends on how many litres you need per day, the total head (bore depth to the pumping water level plus lift to the tank and pipe friction) and the pump's efficiency. Doubling either the litres or the head roughly doubles the energy needed. Your pump supplier sizes the array to the specific pump and controller.
Is a DC or AC bore pump better for solar?
A dedicated DC solar pump with its own panels usually suits a remote bore filling a tank in daylight. An AC pump on the home solar and battery suits a bore near the house that feeds the house supply or has to run at night. The deciding factors are distance, what the water is for and when you need it.
Can I run my bore pump off my solar battery?
Yes, if the inverter can handle the pump's start-up surge on top of the other loads, and the pump's daily energy is included in the battery and array sizing. Pumping in the middle of the day into a tank is usually better value than pumping at night from the battery.
Do I need a battery for a solar bore pump?
Usually not for a dedicated solar pump. A tank stores water more cheaply than a battery stores electricity. A battery matters when the pump runs from the home system and must work at night or during outages.
