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Have solar at home? Supercharge that investment with this other crucial component


You may be generating solar power, but can you store it?

In other areas, though, especially ones that charge different rates based on the time of use, the specter of modern supply and demand will rear its head and bill you more for usage during peak hours while paying you less for what you send back to the grid during the day. So while some people might have eyes a little bit bigger than their wallets -- uninterrupted whole-home backup from a stand-alone battery system would be cost-prohibitive for most of us -- the desire for energy storage as a household capability is nevertheless alive and well, especially for those with recent solar investments. An inverter -- most of them roughly the size of a toaster oven, or smaller in the case of a microinverter -- is the key piece of hardware that converts solar DC power into AC for home use, or back and forth between the two when supporting energy storage as well.

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