Battery Storage
Battery storage and whole-home backup.
Battery storage lets your home keep running when the grid goes down and helps you use more of the solar you produce instead of exporting it for little in return. ETW Energy designs and installs home battery systems — including the Tesla Powerwall and Enphase batteries — from essential-circuit backup to whole-home backup, across Texas, Illinois, Utah, and California.
How home backup actually works
When the grid fails, a battery with the right configuration disconnects your home and keeps your circuits running from stored energy. How much it covers depends on the size of the battery and which circuits you choose to back up.
There are two common approaches, and we will help you pick honestly based on your budget and what you actually need to keep on:
- Essential backup: keep the critical circuits running — refrigerator, internet, key outlets, medical equipment, some lighting — for the longest possible time.
- Whole-home backup: keep the entire home running, usually with more battery capacity and, in some homes, smart management of large loads like AC and EV charging.
Why pair a battery with solar
On its own, solar stops producing when the grid goes down — for safety, a standard grid-tied system shuts off in an outage. Adding a battery is what lets your solar keep your home powered when you need it most.
A battery also helps you get more from every kilowatt-hour your panels make. In markets where exporting to the grid pays little, storing your daytime production and using it at night is often where the real value is.
What drives battery value in your market
A battery is sometimes an economic decision and sometimes a resilience decision. Which one depends on where you live:
- California: under NEM 3.0, solar-only exports are low value, so a battery is often essential to make the economics work — not just a backup upgrade.
- Texas: outage resilience on the ERCOT grid is a primary driver, with time-based plans adding potential savings.
- Utah: low export credit makes self-consumption the goal, and utility battery programs may add value.
- Illinois: backup through storm outages is the common reason, and a state storage incentive may apply.
Sized to your home, not a brochure
Batteries are not one-size-fits-all, and oversizing wastes money while undersizing leaves you in the dark sooner than you expected. We model your real loads and the outcomes you care about — how long, which circuits, how much solar to store — and design to that.
Frequently asked questions
Can I back up my whole home?
Often yes, with enough battery capacity and the right design. Whole-home backup typically needs more storage and smart management of large loads. We will show you what whole-home vs essential-circuit backup looks like for your house.
How long will a battery keep my home running in an outage?
It depends on the battery size and how much you are running. Essential circuits can last much longer than whole-home loads. If you have solar, the battery can recharge during the day, extending backup through a multi-day outage.
Do I need solar to add a battery?
No. A battery can provide backup on its own. Pairing it with solar adds the ability to recharge during an outage and to store your own production for later use.
Will a battery save me money?
In some markets it clearly improves your economics — California under NEM 3.0 is the strongest example. In others it is mainly about resilience. We will tell you honestly which case applies to you.
Which batteries do you install?
We install leading home batteries, including the Tesla Powerwall and Enphase batteries, and match the right one to your home, goals, and utility.
Solar built on trust, backed by clean energy.
Tell us about your home and what you want to accomplish — we’ll give you straight answers. No call center, no pressure.
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