All solar battery backup systems function between your home and your local power grid. That means, excess power from your solar panels charges and maintains your solar battery backup. And when your solar panels are not producing, any needed charging power will come from your power grid.
If a power blackout occurs, your solar battery backup will automatically disconnect from your local power grid. This prevents electricity from flowing to the power lines when workers are attending to the cause of the blackout.
Now that you see where your solar battery backup system fits into your solar system, let’s see how it functions. Then, check out your options. Finally, learn how do you calculate the size of your solar battery backup system for your household. Read on to uncover more…
Your household becomes a micro-grid
During a blackout, or when using an off-grid solar system, your household becomes a fully-functional micro-grid. What that means is, your solar panels provide your household power when they’re producing, and your solar battery backup provides power to your household when they’re not.
Solar battery backup limitations
Of the various solar battery backup options you’ll find on the market, they all have certain limitations. As such, you can weigh those limitations vs. your household power needs to mitigate them. These limitations involve both charging and power delivery. As you’ll see, these limitations vary among your options.
Solar battery backup systems vary bases on how fast they can charge. In other words, they’re limited to how much energy they can receive based on kWh or killa-Watt hours.
Power delivery is another solar battery backup system limitation. To explain, this relates to how much energy they can put out continuously, also in kWh.
As an elaboration to energy coming in or going out of your solar battery backup system, picture a water hose. The thicker the hose, the higher the water flow it can handle. Electricity works very similarly. And this is the case inside of your solar battery backup system.
How solar systems deal with limitations
Smart-home solar systems deal with power limitations automatically. To elaborate, when your solar panel array is providing more power than your battery charging can handle, it’s temporarily disconnected. And when your household draws more power than your batteries can handle, your solar battery backup system is shut off like a circuit breaker.
In order to prevent system shut down or wasted sunlight no longer generating power, perform specific calculations prior to designing your solar system.
Regarding critical household power, certain circuits are hard-wired to never fail. In other words, when your household power demand causes a power shut down, critical power can stay on. It’s flexibility like this that makes good solar power systems so attractive. Everything in the system can be designed to properly meet your needs.
Examples of critical power systems include your HVAC system, refrigerator, and other “essential loads” you deem as necessary. You can also put your computer on this critical power system if you work at home for example.
Smart home meets solar power
A smart home refers to a convenient home setup where appliances and devices are automatically controlled remotely. To explain, they are controlled from anywhere with an internet connection using a mobile or other networked device. Smart home devices are interconnected through the internet, allowing the user to control functions such as security access to the home, temperature, lighting, and a home theater remotely.
Adding solar power to your smart-home mix will power everything in your household. Also, your solar system is controlled and monitored remotely too.
When designing your smart-home solar system, consider using a smart panel. Using traditional circuit breakers and replacing your existing panel, a smart panel takes your solar system to the next level. And, smart panels are easy to install, since they use the same electrical connections.
Regarding smart panels, the magic happens behind the breakers. To elaborate, power is monitored and system shutdowns are handled within the unit’s computer. This provides great insight into where your electricity is going, when, and how much. Then, it can be monitored via your smart-phone app.
Solar battery backup types
In the marketplace, you’ll find many different solar battery system types. But of course, most residential systems use either lead-acid or lithium-ion solar battery systems. Lead-acid batteries are the type used in automobiles and have been around a long time. Lithium-ion batteries are like those use in smartphones.
As you’ll find, there are two main lithium-ion chemistries used for solar batteries. The first is NMC or Nickel Manganese Cobalt. The second is LFP or Lithium Iron Phosphate. NMC batteries, like the LG Chem Prime, have been around a bit longer, making them slightly less expensive.
Many homeowners choose to use lead-acid batteries instead of lithium-ion batteries. The main reason for this is that they cost less. But, there are downsides to them. First, they usually have a shorter lifespan. Next they contain a lower power capacity. Finally, they require regular maintenance.
Lead-acid solar battery backup performance
Traditionally, lead-acid deep cycle battery systems were the most common and reliable option for off-grid solar systems. Though a proven technology lasting over a decade, keep them at room temperature and don’t discharge them often.
To explain why room temperature is so important, both high temperatures and low temperatures degrade them over time. Also, when you fully drain lead-acid batteries damages occur internally. In fact, fully draining a lead-acid battery can cause it to completely die and no longer take a charge.
Lithium-ion solar battery backup options
The best battery option for your solar system is a lithium-ion battery bank. It’s an advanced storage device optimized for long life, fast recharge, and high efficiency. But most notably, lithium-ion battery banks are quite popular for their high efficiency that ranges from 92% to 98%.
Next, lithium-ion batteries are lightweight, compact and scalable. On top of that, they provide flexible sizing for additional capacity down the road. In other words, install additional lithium-ion batteries in the future as you’re power needs increase. Or, add them to increase power storage for peace of mind.
An amazing advantage to lithium-ion batteries is their ability to sustain a low or partial charge level for long periods. To explain, there are no negative effects to sustained low or partial charge levels. Also, lithium-ion batteries provide high charge rates – charge times are up to 70% faster than lead-acid.
Do you need a solar backup generator?
Trying to determine whether you need a solar system backup generator can be frustrating. If you’re not sure you need one, you’ve come to the right place. The first question to answer is what type of solar system your home uses. Then, do you plan to achieve total energy independence?
Regarding the second question, a solar system backup generator certainly provides total energy independence. But, there’s a cost both upfront and during use. Running a solar system backup generator costs money in gasoline and it defeats the purpose of helping the environment.
Although a solar system backup generator has a downside, it is your last defense when two conditions occur. The first condition is lack of sunshine for extended periods of time. Then, the next condition occurs when your battery bank runs low while your solar panels are not producing power.
Perform your household energy calculation
To determine your daily energy consumption, use the following formula:
(Watts × Daily hours used) ÷ 1000 = Daily kWh of consumption.
To calculate your annual energy consumption, use the following formula:
Daily kWh of consumption × Number of days used per year = Annual energy consumption.
This is a statement about annual electricity consumption in the U.S. by the U.S. Energy Information Administration:
“In 2020, the average annual electricity consumption for a U.S. residential utility customer was 10,715 kilowatthours (kWh), an average of about 893 kWh per month. Louisiana had the highest annual electricity consumption at 14,407 kWh per residential customer, and Hawaii had the lowest at 6,446 kWh per residential customer.”
Estimate your home appliance power usage
In the following article from Energy.Gov about estimating appliance and home electronic power usage, estimate the total electricity used by your appliances with the following four methods:
- Review each Energy Guide label to estimate the individual unit’s average energy consumption.
- Use an Electric Consumption Meter to uncover how much electricity each appliance consumes.
- Install a whole-house energy monitoring system to monitor your actual energy usage.
- Calculate your total annual energy consumption using the formulas shown below.
Getting your solar system installed
First, never attempt to install your own solar system unless properly trained, experienced, and correctly certified to do so. In other words, this type of installation is not a DIY project. To explain, solar component installation and wiring requires an electrician and a construction contractor to do it right.
For a comparison, installing a complete solar system is like installing a circuit breaker unit along with other major electrical systems. One primary component of a solar system is the solar power inverter, which powers your entire home. That means, safety and reliability is no different between the two.
Construction skills are also necessary to install a solar system. To elaborate, solar panel arrays are typically secured on top of existing structures. As such, the physical connections must be strong and reliable. Sometimes, a structure is built from the ground up to carry the load of your solar panel arrays sufficiently.
Narrow down certified solar installers near me
Starting with a solid definition, the Bureau of Labor and Statistics states that “Solar installers assemble, set up, and maintain rooftop or other systems that convert sunlight into energy.” Though quite a simple definition, that defines exactly what they will do for you.
To learn how to find the best solar system installer near you, check out: SOLAR INSTALLERS NEAR ME: How to pick a great solar installer
For some great information on how to maintain your solar panels, be sure to read Maintaining solar panels and solar systems REVEALED.
