Hello Partners!

Happy Star Wars Day and May the Fourth be with you!

Today, I want to talk about the real “force” of battery backup technology.

We have talked about innovation in battery backup and the energy efficiency and resiliency benefits to having battery backup to compliment your solar PV system. However, we have not fully discussed the limits of battery backup.

If you are anything like me, you probably thought at one point in time that battery backup would save us from ever having to pay peak energy rates again. Although this is a wonderful thought, I am afraid it does not quite work that way.

There are many applications in which battery backup is a very effective solution to ensure that critical equipment needed for emergency services remains operable during a rolling blackout. Additionally, battery backup can reduce the amount of peak load to support the grid. Finally, battery backup is a great alternative to diesel or natural gas generators. However, we are not at the point at which battery backup can completely save the day.

Allow me to explain why: There is a delicate balance of cost efficiency and functionality where battery backup is concerned. The truth of the matter is individual batteries are limited in the amount of energy they can store and provide. To increase their capacity, you must add more batteries to the equation. The more batteries that are added, the more cost is incurred. In most cases, the number of batteries you would need to fully operate a whole building or even your average sized residential home would be cost prohibitive. In fact, the cost would be downright astronomical.

Batteries have a limited amount of time that they are able to discharge energy. This time is lessened by the amount of energy they must discharge at any given time. Most buildings and homes have very large appliances such as air conditioning units, pool pumps, and EV chargers. Batteries on the market today would not be able to power those types of appliances for very long and in most cases, they do not have enough power to start them initially.

So, what now? Should we give up on batteries until they get better? The answer is a resounding NO!

Although, batteries are not the miracle product many people think they are. They are still a valuable component to our energy efficiency and resiliency equation. We still need battery backup to provide support for the grid, reduce peak demand load, and power critical equipment that could potentially save lives. However, we must have realistic expectations for what they can do. Technology is quickly evolving and innovation in battery technology is advancing rapidly. Keep an eye on the evolution of these batteries.

The savings never stop!

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Sources:
https://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/the-myth-of-whole-home-battery-backup
https://www.cedgreentech.com/article/pros-and-cons-battery-backup-pv-systems