Recent winters have unleashed extreme weather events that disrupt our everyday lives, from extended blizzard conditions to powerful winds. This season, the winter whiplash is on track to bring more of the same, leading to dreaded power outages for many.
These storms often sweep in with only a few days’ notice. While a power outage might mean minor inconveniences for some, it can turn into a deadly event for others. That’s why every residential home should seriously consider solar battery backup.
The Tesla Powerwall1 offers the security of uninterrupted power at your most needed times. This is what you need to know about the best in class home battery backup system.
Benefits of a Tesla Powerwall in Winter Outages
As winter descends on us, so too does the possibility of power outages. With a Tesla Powerwall installed in your home, you can enjoy the peace of mind of knowing that you have a reliable backup system during grid outages.
The Powerwall enables you to store energy for use when the power goes out, providing you with uninterrupted access to electricity during an outage. During a power outage, Powerwall discharges its stored energy to power your home.
These are some of the other standout features of your best friend during a power outage.
Continuous Power
Each Powerwall can deliver a continuous power output of up to 5 kW. As long as the combined power usage of your appliances does not exceed the total power rating of your Powerwalls, you can back up any number of them.
With unparalleled functionality, the Powerwall doesn’t just provide backup energy when you need it most; it also allows you to manage your energy reserves according to your household’s needs. The Powerwall has your back to power everything from your television to your lights to your heater and car.
Seamless Energy Transition
With Powerwall, your appliances continue running without interruption. In fact, you may not even notice when an outage occurs. During a power disruption, your Powerwall instantly disconnects from the grid and restores backup power to your home in less than a second – over one hundred times faster than standby generators.
Self Recharging
Unlike a traditional solar system without a Powerwall, you’ll still have power during a grid outage. Your Powerwall can continuously recharge thanks to your paired solar system, even when the grid is down.
Vehicle Charging
The Powerwall can sync with Tesla vehicles to charge during a grid disruption while still ensuring your home’s energy requirements are not exceeded.
How Long Will the Tesla Powerwall Last in an Outage?
If you’re considering purchasing a Tesla Powerwall or any solar battery, you’re probably wondering, “How much of my home can I power and for how long?”
The short answer is that the usable storage capacity of the Powerwall is 13.5 kWh. This yields 13.5 kW for 1 hour or 1 kW for 13.5 hours. It can also be something in between, depending on various factors.
- Size of your Powerwall (if you need more backup power, you can always install multiple Powerwalls to extend its lifespan).
- Energy consumption of your household.
- Products and appliances you’re running during the outage.
Solar Pairing
When your Powerwall is paired with a solar system, you’ll have virtually unlimited recharging capabilities during daylight hours. During standby mode, the Powerwall will make regular attempts to recharge from solar energy every hour between 8 AM and 4 PM local time.
How to Prepare Your Powerwall for a Power Outage
Set Up Backup Power Notifications
During the first five minutes of any outage, the Tesla App can alert you, allowing you to power down energy intensive appliances and manage energy usage in real time. It will also let you know when power has been restored. To ensure you receive these notices, set up notifications in your Tesla app and go to your phone’s settings to enable push notifications.
Pre Manage Energy Needs
Power outages can lead to prolonged downtime that may span several days. To maximize the effectiveness of Powerwall during extended outages, turn off energy-consuming devices such as air conditioners, electric vehicle chargers, space heaters, and dishwashers.
Put Your Powerwall in Storm Watch
Enable Storm Watch2 on the Tesla app. Powerwall automatically enables Storm Watch mode when your local weather service issues a severe weather alert, ensuring preventative maximum capacity charging for enhanced protection against grid outages.
Solar Panel Maintenance
Check the condition of your solar panels for things that may decrease production, like the accumulation of leaves or snow on the panels.
Troubleshooting Your Tesla Powerwall Battery in an Outage
What if my Powerwall is not charging at the expected rate?
If your Powerwall cannot charge at its anticipated rate, it will signal your solar inverter to decrease or shut off to safeguard your home from excess power generation. This usually happens when Powerwall is nearing full charge. Once your Powerwall can accept power again, your solar inverter will receive a signal to resume production.
Why is my Powerwall inactive?
If the Powerwall’s energy level drops below 10%, it will enter a standby mode. If your system is connected to the internet, you will receive a push notification in the Tesla mobile app this happens.
The Powerwall will automatically attempt to recharge every hour between 8 AM and 4 PM local time. This automatic charging process will continue if enough solar energy is available to charge the Powerwall while still powering your home. If the remaining energy decreases by more than 2.5%, the Powerwall will become inactive and wait until the next hour to attempt charging again.
How can I restart my Powerwall if it has gone into overload?
If your Powerwall system stops providing power to your home, it might be in a standby state due to low energy or repeated overloads. If your system is connected to the internet, you’ll receive a push notification when this happens.
To restart your Powerwall, turn off any energy-intensive loads to minimize the power requirement. Then, simply toggle the on/off switch on the Powerwall to initiate a restart. Alternatively, you can also restart it using the Tesla app.
How Much Does a Tesla Powerwall Cost
Freedom is never having to worry about the next storm disrupting life. Contact Freedom Solar Power for competitive pricing, including a rebate of up to 12 months of payments.
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