Comparing energy management systems

Comparing energy management systems: how to understand the differences between products

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Reading Time: 8 minutes

Energy management is a rapidly growing industry – and for good reason! Home electrification is a crucial step towards a clean energy future and more and more people are participating by upgrading their home setup with solar panels, battery storage systems, heat pumps, and electric vehicles (EVs)! Many of these people are looking for additional insight into their electricity usage, whether to reduce their carbon footprint, or to see savings on their electricity bills. 

But energy management systems can vary significantly by product, making it difficult to compare the various options available. In this article, we’ll explain some of the top companies in the energy management industry and explain the differences between their systems. 

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Tigo product launch

Introducing the Tigo Energy Intelligence Residential Solution

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Reading Time: 5 minutes

If you’re familiar with the residential solar market, you’re probably aware of the two main players providing inverters to residential solar installations in the US. But those two companies are far from the only companies providing inverter (and inverter-adjacent) products in the residential solar market in the US. 

While their optimizers and rapid shutdown devices have been installed on many roofs throughout the country, one company you may not yet be familiar with is Tigo Energy. However, Tigo Energy is banking on that changing with their latest product launch: the Tigo Energy Intelligence (EI) Residential Solution, which brings Tigo-branded products to the forefront of a solar and solar-plus-storage installation. 

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Generac product launch

What’s included in Generac’s product launch, and what does it mean for you?

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Reading Time: 4 minutes

New product alert! This week, Generac–the national leader in backup generator solutions-turned clean energy company–added three new releases to their ever-expanding product lines. First, Generac is adding a microinverter option to their existing string & hybrid inverter options for solar installations. The second product is a new backup generator that is designed primarily to recharge PWRcell batteries. And, finally, Generac’s third new product is an energy management system designed to improve and increase battery performance. In this article, we’ll explain what you need to know about these new products.

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Panasonic solar warranty review

We read Panasonic’s warranty so you don’t have to

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Reading Time: 6 minutes

Let’s face it – warranties aren’t the easiest (or most gripping) documents to read. There are often a lot of details and fine print included that can be hard to digest, leaving many to wonder: what does the warranty actually cover? Am I vulnerable? Anything I might be missing?

To make it as easy as possible, we’ve read warranty documents for the top solar equipment manufacturers–and talked to them to confirm what is and isn’t included–and plan to point out the most important aspects of each in a series of articles. In this article, we’ll be breaking down the warranty of one of the most popular solar panel companies in the industry: Panasonic. 

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LG Chem warranty review

We read LG Chem’s battery warranty so you don’t have to

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Reading Time: 6 minutes

Let’s face it – warranties aren’t the easiest (or most gripping) documents to read. There are often a lot of details and fine print included that can be hard to digest, leaving many to wonder: what does the warranty actually cover? Am I vulnerable? Anything I might be missing?

To make it as easy as possible, we’ve read warranty documents for the top solar battery manufacturers, talked to them to confirm what is and isn’t included, and plan to point out the most important aspects of each in a series of articles. This article reviews the warranty offering from a world renowned electronics manufacturer: LG Chem. 

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advantages and disadvantages of renewable energy

Advantages and disadvantages of renewable energy

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Reading Time: 6 minutes

Wind, geothermal, solar, hydro, and other renewable technologies are a widely popular source of energy throughout the world today. Countries, corporations, and individuals are adopting renewables for a number of great benefits. In this article, we’ll dive into some of the advantages and disadvantages of renewable energy.

Types of renewable energy sources

  • Wind power: leverages the power of wind motion to generate electricity, created by the uneven heating of Earth’s surface. 
  • Solar power: uses energy from the sun to generate electricity and heat 
  • Hydropower: utilizes fast-moving water to spin turbines and generate electricity 
  • Biomass: generates electricity from organic plant matter .
  • Geothermal: leverages heat from inside the earth to generate electricity 
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solar panel output energy production

How much energy does a solar panel produce? Solar panel output explained

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Reading Time: 7 minutes

Power output or wattage is an important factor to consider when comparing solar panel options. You may hear your solar installer say, “it’s a 255 Watt panel” or “the panel I am recommending is has a solar panel wattage of 300.” Or, when you are reading a quote from a solar installer, you might see numbers like 245W, 300W, or 345W next to the name of the panel. They are all referring to a solar panel’s wattage, capacity and power output.

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how many solar panels do i need

How many solar panels do I need for my home?

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Reading Time: 8 minutes

It’s no use installing just one solar panel–you’ll need more than that to reap the financial benefits of a solar panel system. While the answer isn’t always so simple, we’ve put together some example cases to help you understand, at a high level, how many solar panels you need to install an effective solar array.

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LBNL tracking the sun 2021

Highlights from LBNL’s 2021 Tracking the Sun report

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Reading Time: 4 minutes

In case you missed it, solar has been in the news quite a bit recently: the Biden Administration announced a goal for solar to produce 40% of the nation’s electricity by 2030; the Department of Energy released a corresponding Solar Futures Study that lays out just how to reach that lofty goal; the inclusion of clean energy incentives (including for solar!) is at the forefront of the debate around the infrastructure and budget reconciliation bills; the latest Solar Market Insight report from the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and Wood Mackenzie just dropped; and we recently released our own biannual Marketplace Intel Report. There’s a lot going on! 

Amidst this solar news frenzy, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) just released their annual Tracking the Sun report, the best resource for tracking the state of residential solar installations in the U.S., and complete with publicly-available data sets with info on nearly 80 percent of all of the solar panel systems installed in the country. Here are some of the highlights from the report:

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generator vs. battery

Home battery backup power vs. generators: which is right for you?

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Reading Time: 6 minutes

If you live in an area with frequent power outages, you already know the benefits of having a backup power supply for your home. Propane, diesel, and natural gas-powered generators have long been the system of choice for homeowners and businesses that want to ensure that the lights stay on when the power goes out in the neighborhood. Now, an increasing number of people are considering newer, cleaner battery options like the Tesla Powerwall.

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