3 Ways Batteries Can Benefit Your Grid-Tied Solar System

Most solar power systems these days are tied to a city grid because most new systems are being installed on homes in residential areas. With your own solar array and a connection to the city’s power, you don’t technically need a battery bank as a backup power source like off-grid systems do. However, you might want to consider adding one anyway. Keep reading to find out why. 

Achieve Energy Independence

A solar power system can help you become more self-sufficient in your energy consumption by turning the sun’s rays into electricity for your personal use. However, if you have a grid-tied system, you’re still reliant upon it every night and during any periods of low power production from your solar panels. If you want to become independent and achieve self-consumption of power, you’ll need another energy source: a battery bank. 

Even if your city allows for net metering so that you earn credits for excess energy sent into the grid, you’re still relying on the city as a means of “storing” your solar power. Even if you can’t disconnect from the grid completely (or just don’t want to), a battery bank can make it so that you’re almost never tapping into that power source. 

Avoid Power Outages

Did you know that grid-tied solar power systems are subject to the same power outages as homes that rely solely on the city’s power? This is because solar systems frequently send electrical currents into the grid while producing energy. If a worker is servicing a power line or part of the grid to repair it after an outage, those electrical currents can be extremely dangerous to them. So, grid-tied systems are forcibly shut down during an outage, even if it happens during the day. 

However, suppose you have a backup power source. In that case, you can disconnect from the grid and continue using electricity in your home—either with active solar power from your panels or stored energy from your batteries. 

Use Peak Shaving

Most people are aware that the cost of power goes up during “peak” hours. Unfortunately, those hours usually coincide with your solar panels’ hours that aren’t working. With a grid-tied system, you’re relying on the grid when power is the most expensive. Adding SimpliPhi backup batteries allows your system to intelligently shift between solar, battery, and grid power to ensure you only ever pay for the cheapest watts from the grid—if you ever use it at all.