I searched for a company to fit solar panels under the Gillard/Rudd and Bracks/Brumby rebates. I quickly found that most companies wanted to fit a standard 1.5kW 6-panel $3,000 system but I wanted as many panels as my roof could take.
I had several quotes, but found Solar Essence's Paul Blackman the most straight-forward and informative.
I have nine solar panels producing 2.1kW and they have financially paid for themselves already. Emotionally, they paid for themselves when I DIDN'T receive my first electricity bill.
The panels produce enough power for both my office and the house including 2 teenagers on computers and Playstation.
They mostly cover the gas bill as well and it was Solaressence's Paul Blackman who advised me to swap to red Energy (from AGL) and having compared prices on several occasions, he has been vindicated.
Paul also gave me choices of quality and price, rather than just offer whichever his company made the greatest margin.
I was very pleased with the installation and connection, despite having to wait a bit to switch the system on, due to the then flood of installations.
Happy.

Approximate cost: $8,000