Backup power when the grid goes down

Never be left in the dark again!

A great benefit in having home battery storage installed at your home or business is the security of knowing that your battery can help you power through a grid outage.

In the event of a utility grid outage (i.e. a ‘blackout’), you can use the power stored in your home batteries to power key appliances in your home. When the grid goes down, the backup circuit will kick in automatically as long as you have solar or battery power available.

It is important to understand that a backup supply cannot power your entire home, but instead is designed to power the key appliances you would require in the event of a power outage. These often include things like your lights, refrigerators, television and wifi.

At the time of installation, you and your installer can work together to choose the best appliances for your home to connect up to your backup circuit.

What are the limitations?

Understanding what your backup circuit can and can’t accommodate is the best way to ensure you get the most out of your backup power.

Your inverter can only provide power to your backup circuit if there is power available from your batteries. Every battery system has a maximum output power for any given time. It is important to understand what that is and ensure you do not exceed it. If you do exceed your batteries maximum output power, you may cause your backup circuit to trip. Each Redback home battery system has a different maximum output for its backup circuit.

It is generally recommended that you connect and use the minimum number of devices at any one time. Only essential or low consumption devices or appliances such as lights, refrigerators and televisions should be connected to your backup circuit. Devices that require high currents such as ovens, pool pumps and air conditioners should not be connected. The high inrush of current required to power these items may trip the inverter or rapidly discharge the batteries. The table below lists the suitability of common devices.

Suitable

Refrigerators and freezers
Fans
TVs and Radios
Computers, tablets, & routers

Telephones

Low-energy LED or CCFL lighting
Electric garage doors & driveway gates
Security systems and CCTV

Not Suitable

Critical Medical Devices
Air Conditioners and Heaters
Ovens & Cooktops
Home Theatres and Projectors
Hot water systems
Spas, saunas and pool pumps
Battery chargers & corded Power Tools
Incandescent or high-power lighting

When configured correctly, your backup circuit is a huge asset to your home or small business, protecting you even when the unexpected occurs and allowing you to become more self-sustainable from the grid.

Make the switch today!