Home Battery Buyer Guide: Tips to Choose the Right Solar Battery Solution
When it comes to selecting a solar battery, it is never an easy task. There are few factors a homeowner needs to consider before choosing the best home battery. For deciding between all the available battery storage brands, you should know about their storage capacity, lifespan, maintenance, etc. Also, the Price of the battery matters in battery selection.
As, there are various famous brands like Panasonic, LG, Solaria offering their battery storage options. In such a competitive market, It can be tough to select sufficient battery storage for your home.
To guide you in selecting the best solar storage for your PV solar system, we have highlighted the key factors you should consider while making your solar battery buying decision.
Key Factors to Ponder while Selecting a Solar Battery Storage
The solar batteries specifications vary between the different available brands in the market that may confuse a homeowner. To be sold in the U.S., each battery must meet certain quality and safety standards.
To help you out, we have mentioned below some key elements to consider when you compare different battery brands & quotes.
Battery’s Power Rating
A battery’s power rating is the kilowatts (kW) of electricity a battery can deliver at once.
The power rating depicts the number of appliances that the battery can bear at once. Solar batteries often come in two different power ratings: continuous power rating & peak power rating.
Continuous Power Rating depicts the amount of energy the battery can provide to the appliances that need constant power as refrigerators. And the Peak Power Rating is the maximum energy a battery can deliver in a short time to keep running your electronic appliances
Most solar batteries contain a 5kW continuous power rating & a 7kW peak power rating. So, if you want to power up more appliances, you should consider a home storage battery with a high-power rating.
Point to Ponder! You’ll only be able to power several appliances with a high-capacity battery with a low power rating, but you’ll be able to do it for more duration. But on the other hand, a solar battery with a high-power rating & low storage limit can run more appliances for a shorter time.
Solar Battery Capacity Rating
The capacity of a solar battery describes the amount of energy it can store and provide to your home.
However, Kilowatt-hours (kWh) is the measure of the storage capacity of a solar battery system. Like power rating, the capacity rating also has two types. One is the total capacity, and the other is the usable capacity. The storage capacity of a battery indicates how long it can power various supplies of your home.
Battery storage with a capacity rating of at least 10 kWh is sufficient for most home’s power needs. Also, a 10kWh battery comes up with a decent power backup in case of blackouts.
Point to Ponder! If you want to increase the power appliances, then you should install multiple solar batteries.
Round-Trip Efficiency
It shows how much energy you can get out of your solar battery versus how much energy is required to store that energy.
For example, your solar panels supply 10 kWh of power to your solar battery, but the stored energy is 7 kWh. The remaining 3kWh uses by the operating system. And the battery round-trip efficiency will be 70%.
Point to Ponder! You should select the storage device with at least 80% or higher round-trip efficiency. Higher efficiency batteries can save more.
Lifespan
There are three elements to measure the lifetime of a battery.
- Expected Operating Years
- Estimated Throughput
- The number of Expected Cycles
The cycle is the number of times a battery can be fully charged and drained. The throughput is the expected energy the battery will release over time. It varies and depends upon the battery’s starting capacity.
Point to Ponder! Consider the batteries have a guarantee to operate at least 70% of their original capacity after ten years.
Solar Battery Type
It indicates the different chemicals & compositions used to build up the home storage. Although lead-acid batteries were the most popular choice for solar-plus-storage systems, now lithium-ion batteries are the preferred option based on their performance.
Generally, two types of solar batteries are available in the market nowadays:
- Nickel Manganese Cobalt (NMC) Battery
- Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) Battery
However, Nickel Manganese Cobalt is the famous type and can store more power in smaller spaces. They are cheap as well. However, Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) type is long-lasting.
Point to Ponder! Lead-acid batteries are only suitable for off-grid vacation homes. They are not preferable for full-time residential use.
Safety Rate of Home Batteries
For installing in homes, all available batteries have to meet strict safety standards. Some battery chemistries, on the other hand, are slightly safer than others.
Likewise, NMC storage is more temperature-sensitive than LFP batteries.
Point to Ponder! LFP batteries are more resistant to high temperatures and have a lower risk of catching fire, making them the safe lithium-ion option.
Cost of the Solar Battery
The average cost of a solar battery installation is between $9,000 and $14,000. But The happy news is that batteries that work with solar power systems are eligible for the federal solar tax credit of 26%.
Moreover, some states also offer additional storage rebates to help homeowners cut down the battery installation cost.
Learn about the Solar Rebates in your state for a good decision.
Point to Ponder! Don’t only make your choice upon the solar battery cost. Although cost is a remarkable aspect of picking a battery, it should not be the only element to focus on while choosing a battery.
Best Home Battery Recommendations by Solar SME
Solar SME, one of the top solar installers, recommends the best battery storage options for your home.
- Generac PWR Cell
- LG Chem
- Panasonic Ever Volt
- Tesla Powerwall
- Eguana Evolve
To have a quick review of each battery, follow Battery Storage.
You can reach us out at 214 556 8288 to have a detailed discussion with our energy experts. They will assist you throughout with the best home battery selection at an affordable cost.
Choose the Best Battery Solution & Take Control of your Home’s Energy!
Does the battery come with an inverter?
Like solar panels, batteries need an inverter to convert their stored DC electricity into usable AC electricity. Different types of inverters exist, depending on whether your battery system is AC- or DC-coupled. DC-coupled batteries often come with an integrated hybrid inverter for both solar and storage. AC-coupled batteries sometimes come with an integrated storage inverter, which only works with storage, meaning you'll need a separate solar inverter. Some batteries don't come with an inverter, so you must pair it with a separate, third-party inverter.
You may be able to save on equipment costs with a hybrid inverter, but you could have higher installation costs if retrofitting to an existing solar system, and you could miss out on some incentives, as we previously described.
How much storage capacity and power do you need?
There are two ways to measure the output you'll get from your battery: usable capacity and power rating. Usable capacity is measured in kWh and describes the maximum amount of electricity your battery can store on a full charge. The higher the usable capacity, the longer your battery's runtime. When comparing the usable capacity of different batteries, you'll also want to consider how many batteries you can stack in parallel; even if the usable capacity of one battery is low, if you can connect multiple batteries to one inverter, it may allow you to customize your system to meet your energy needs better.
Your battery will come with two power ratings, both measured in kW. Its peak power rating measures the amount of power your battery can output in a short period. It's important to have a battery with a high peak power rating if you need it to run appliances that require a lot of energy to start, like an air conditioner or a sump pump. Your battery's continuous power rating measures the amount of power your battery can output consistently. The higher its continuous power rating, the more appliances you can run at once.
Ultimately, the amount of capacity and battery backup power you need depends on how much of your house you plan to power with your battery—and for how long.
How well does the battery perform?
Two primary metrics differentiate batteries in terms of performance. Depth of discharge (DoD) indicates the percentage of the battery that can be discharged relative to its overall capacity. In other words, it's the amount of your battery's capacity you can use in one cycle for optimal battery performance: The higher the DoD, the more you'll get out of your battery.
Roundtrip efficiency measures the electrical losses involved with charging and discharging a battery. Batteries with higher roundtrip efficiencies better convert incoming electricity into stored electricity and back to usable electricity; they're considered higher-performance batteries.
How long will the battery last?
Every time you charge and discharge your battery, it slightly reduces its ability to hold a full charge. A battery system is a big investment, so you'll want to ensure it lasts. The best way to feel confident that your battery will continue working efficiently is to choose one with a strong warranty. Battery warranties include many different components and clauses, which all impact the assurance you can feel when choosing a long-lasting battery.
Your battery's warranty period is measured in years and covers the integrity and output of your system–typically, battery companies offer 10-year warranties. Most battery warranties also include an end-of-warranty capacity guarantee, which states that by the end of the warranty period, the battery will still maintain a certain percentage of its original usable capacity. Batteries also often come with a cycles clause (a specified number of times you can drain and charge your battery under warranty) and/or a throughput clause (the total amount of energy the manufacturer expects the battery to deliver throughout its lifetime). Similar to how many car warranties come with a time and/or mileage component (i.e., ten years, 100,000 miles), if you hit your warranted cycle life or throughput before your battery reaches the end of its warranty period, it could end your warranty term.
You'll also want to look at other warranty information, like if labor and shipping costs are covered for repairs and replacements; batteries are considered hazardous waste, which means that these costs can be extremely high in some cases if you need to send the battery back to the manufacturer for diagnostics.
Is the battery compatible with energy management systems?
Energy or load management systems enable you to both monitor and control your energy consumption, typically at the circuit level. In most cases, if you're installing a battery, you'll need to install a critical load panel, which protects your appliances and battery from unintended electrical failures and enables you to power only your most essential devices during power outages.
Energy management systems replace the need for a critical load panel by providing real-time flexibility, allowing you to turn circuits on and off remotely. They can replace your main electrical panel, serve as a sub-electrical panel (similar to a critical loan panel), or be installed along individual circuit lines for a more modular approach. Most importantly, these systems allow you to get more out of your battery during power outages by only powering the most important loads at a given time. One of the most prominent energy management system brands, Span, claims that their smart home panel provides 40% longer backup than battery-only systems.
Some battery companies are now manufacturing their own energy management systems, while others are compatible with third-party systems like Span and Lumin. Not all batteries are compatible with all energy management systems, so make sure to pick a battery compatible with the energy management system you prefer.
How much does the battery cost?
You'll want to get the most bang for your buck when purchasing a home battery. Battery cost comes down to two key factors: the equipment and installation time. Some batteries are more expensive due to factors like their chemistry or supply chain strength, while others may be bulky and large and, therefore, more difficult (and expensive) to install.
Thousands of homeowners request battery quotes through our Marketplace every year, providing us with unparalleled insight into the cost of different battery brands. Based on our latest Solar & Storage Marketplace Report, there's an extensive range in battery prices: HomeGrid offers the lowest cost batteries at $480/kWh, likely in large part due to their flexible configuration, which makes them easy to transport and quickly install, while Sonnen offers the highest cost batteries at $1,570/kWh, likely due to their extremely strong warranty. The most quoted battery company on the EnergySage Marketplace is Enphase, which surprisingly is the second most expensive battery brand at $1,490/kWh.
What are the best home batteries?
While there are many great battery companies, a few stand out above the rest. Depending on what you're looking for in a battery system, HomeGrid, Villara Energy Systems, Sonnen, and SolarEdge offer some of the best solar batteries today: