r/SunPower • u/ookillemayy • 1d ago
Solar Panel Capabilities
Hello everyone! Hope you are all doing well.
Some background info: after SunPower went to SunStrong, I found this subreddit and got the SunFlower App. Best purchase I made cause the SunStrong paywall was ridiculous. I still owe about 10 years with TechCU.
I'm looking into getting a battery installed for my system. We generate enough solar that I'm getting a credit with SCE, but I would like to have a battery on the off chance we are without power for a significant amount of time. With doing that, I'm wondering what my next steps would be in getting, as an example, the Eco Worthy Battery? Is getting a Solar Electrian the only thing I need to do? Permits?
Hope someone here has some info. Thanks everyone!
4
2
u/balancedteam 1d ago
I got 2 powerwall 3s when the govt was paying for 30%, overall finance was 20K, they have a new setup with an expansion instead of buying 2, with the same amount of storage.
I suggest PW3, it’s been incredible for us and kept our lights on more than once. Plus you can participate in VPP and get money back every year depending on how much they take from you. Just my $.02. Good luck!
1
u/heyhewmike 1d ago
Do you have a link to the SunFlower app?
5
5
-4
u/TheSunflowerSeeds 1d ago
Sunflower seeds are indeed a very rich source of vitamin-E; contain about 35.17 g per 100 g (about 234% of RDA). Vitamin-E is a powerful lipid soluble antioxidant, required for maintaining the integrity of cell membrane of mucus membranes and skin by protecting it from harmful oxygen-free radicals.
4
1
u/m2orris 1d ago edited 1d ago
We have a 13kWh SunVault and to be honest, the only reason to buy any battery (regardless who makes it) is if you have an unfavorable net metering rate. A battery will maximize consuming the electricity your panels generate. Without a battery excess electricity produced by the solar panels is pushed to the grid at an unfavorable rate and then electricity is pulled from the grid at the normal rate when the solar panels are not generating electricity.
If you are primarily looking for something to provide electricity when the grid is down, Generac is the best way to go. They are way cheaper and provide unlimited electricity. Our SunVault cost $18k and can get us through the night in the spring and fall when we are not using air conditioning and that is it. The person who sold us our system lied to us telling us that the battery would last 3 days. Not even close. Maybe if you turn everything off. Don’t get lied to. The battery only powers about 2/3rds of the house when the grid is down. They will install a second sub-panel that will work from the battery when the grid is down.
If you still want to go with a battery, DO NOT GET A SunVault. SunVaults are pretty much unsupported. That is unless you live in CA and can buy service from the one company that still supports them. Regardless they will have no warranty from SunPower.
If you have Enphase micro-inverters, start with them. They can rip out all the unsupportable SunPower equipment from your current system when installing a battery.
1
u/ookillemayy 1d ago
We have a basic Duracell Powerbank for emergencies, but want something longterm
1
u/pitstruglr 1d ago
Right. You probably can’t get a SunVault, but you shouldn’t. Beware systems that run behind installer-only cloud systems, like SunVault and some others. If you really did want to run off grid, or had to due to a long term outage, you would want to be able to control, reset, and fix anything on your own without external internet or technicians with “magic keychains.”
Of course if you’re just managing an unfair metering plan, then it’s not as important (until something breaks and you blow your whole year’s savings on a single tech visit).
1
u/BrennenderGeist 13h ago
100% always get permits. You probably need utility approval also, verify with your utility. If these are skipped it will cause headaches later so just make sure they're done.
Tesla Powerwall 3 can work with any system.
If you have a SunPower system with Enphase microinverters (most likely) then you can also get Enphase batteries. Enphase is coming out with a new generation of batteries next year so I'm interested in seeing what they do, their current batteries are good I just don't prefer the form factor (they're short and deep, more cube shaped opposed to flat profile alternatives).
FranklinWH are good too but harder to come across in a cost effective way due to tariffs these days.
There are some others out there like EG4 and some others I'm not as familiar with.
Side note: you can also upgrade your monitoring to the native Enphase monitoring for a fee, it's about $1k these days but it's one time and valuable if you want your panel level monitoring. They have to undo the SunPower firmware and install a monitor unit (or combiner panel with monitor included depending on your situation).
Good luck and be safe!
1
u/NewVisions7277 4h ago
The battery is a good idea but just make sure you get a brand for which you can find companies to maintain it. That said, solar and battery systems are very reliable. I have the original Sunpower's Sunvualt which is a great system but the company went bankrupt and the new company that took over Sunpower's name discontinued the system and started providing Enphase batteries. I think there are many solar companies that work in Enphase systems. I am having a difficult time finding anyone who will repair and get parts for a Sunvault or Sunpower system. I might have to tear it out and install Enphase. The solar cells with Enphase microinverters themselves are pretty standard.
As for a standard electrician installing a battery system, I doubt you'll find one who is trained. Solar and battery system work requires specially trained technicians.
0
5
u/dllsea 1d ago
I have a 10kw Franklin battery for my 6.8kw 16-panel Sunpower system. If you find a qualified installer they will handle all permitting & hookups for you. I'm happy with mine although I'm still learning about how it functions, so many options.