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Will solar energy stop working if the sun is still shining?

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A common misconception about solar system is that during a power outage or grid failure, the solar system will continue to provide power to loads. After all, if the sun is shining, shouldn’t the system still work?

In fact, due to the nature of grid-tie solar systems and how they are designed, all power output to the grid must cease during an outage. There are, however, two exceptions to this: your system is equipped with energy storage, or you forgo the benefits of grid-tied solar and opt for an off-grid system.

 

Grid-Tied Solar System without Energy Storage
Residential solar without storage is designed to shut down during a power outage as most customers have grid-tied systems in their homes.In most of the world, all inverters that back-feed the grid must conform to “anti-islanding” requirements. Anti-islanding simply means that the inverter stops grid-feed-in when the grid experiences abnormal conditions (frequency/voltage) and/or in the event there is a complete power outage. The purpose of this is to protect line workers or electricians who may be trying to make repairs to the grid. This is mandated for all grid-tie systems. 

 

Grid-Tied Solar System with Energy Storage

If you want to guarantee that your solar system will continue to operate during a blackout, adding a battery storage system is the way to go. These storage units save energy produced from solar panels for later use. When there is a power outage, the combined solar plus storage unit isolates itself from the grid and immediately continues power supply to the home—providing the uninterrupted electricity service you need during times of crisis.

The battery-based system can fool the grid-tied system into thinking the grid is still functional, while also disconnecting from the grid to comply with anti-islanding. This still allows for solar productivity to feed loads and charge batteries during a grid-down situation.

 

Energy storage System
ZRGP PowerBase Mate Battery System plus solar system is unique.(1) Three-layer BMS, based on ZRGP APP to intelligently monitor and manage the battery and home energy usage.(2) Passing the UL 9540A test at the cell, module, and system level means that Mate has reached the highest international standard level in terms of safety and reliability.(3) Modular design (minimum capacity 10.24 kWh, expandable to 40.96 kWh).(4) The PowerBase Mate has the flexibility to be combined with any type of energy generator, including photovoltaic, bioenergy, wind, and diesel generators. This makes it a more viable option for achieving energy independence. 

If you are enjoying the benefits of a residential solar system, but want to take it a step further with off-grid capabilities and uninterrupted power during power outages, then solar plus storage is the way forward.