Are we dependent on the grid?
No, we are not, the solar industry is booming and despite tariffs, it’s an industry that is still growing exponentially. One of these areas that will expand as technology gets better is energy storage which is key to being energy independent. We are moving closer and closer towards mass-market energy storage options through solar panel batteries. As the technology becomes more available and more affordable, homeowners will be able to completely go off the grid and use energy stored in the batteries. This is a tempting proposition for those who wish to sever their connection with their utility company and run on completely renewable energy.
What does it mean to go off the grid?
Just installing a solar panel system does not mean that you are off the grid, in fact, you are still very much a part of the grid (which isn’t always a bad thing) as your system doesn’t produce energy all the time. Most solar energy systems cannot consistently generate enough electricity to be a home’s only source of power, which is why the majority of solar homeowners maintain a connection with their utility provider. When you generate more power than you use, your utility provider will give you a net metering credit to be used on electricity bills.
For the average solar homeowner, the use of net metering typically means that you are generating more power than needed during daylight hours that is sent to the utility grid and use the credits earned for electricity at night when the panels aren’t producing. If your system generates 100% of your home’s electricity needs, theoretically your net metering allows you to cover all of your electricity needs, but you must still be connected to the grid to take advantage of the policy.
To truly go off the grid the homeowner has to completely sever their connection to the utility company and rely on solar batteries instead when the panel system is no longer producing energy.
Can I use a solar panel battery to store my excess solar energy?
Solar batteries make it possible to go off the grid if you install sufficient battery storage along with your panel system. This would allow you to store any of the excess electricity you generate during the day and then use it in the evening. A solar panel battery allows one to harness a massive amount of energy.
The battery storage technology that makes it possible to go off the grid does exist (and there are many good options) but as it exists today is rather unrealistic. If you install sufficient battery storage along with your solar PV system, you can store any excess electricity at the time of generation and then draw from it as needed later. A “solar panel battery bank” is a way to harness massive amounts of storage capacity in order to be off the grid which is essentially numerous batteries linked together.
In practice, going off the grid is more complicated than you may think, particularly if you live in an area with significant climate variation. Residential-scale solar batteries on the market today can store the energy generated during the day for your home to use at night. This can be beneficial in areas where net metering caps have been reached, or in areas where utility companies don’t have good policies for compensating homeowners who generate excess solar electricity.
The future of energy storage
The harder feat is capturing excess electricity generation in the summer to use in the winter in which the usable sunlight per day is less. Further, to be comfortably off the grid one must be able to prevent total power loss in the event of a winter snowstorm or extended overcast days would require a lot of storage capacity. As technology progresses, batteries will be more affordable and some of these issues will be fixed, truly allowing somebody to go off the grid in a cost-effective manner.
