How deep-red Utah helped launch a portable plug-in solar movement
How deep-red Utah helped launch a portable plug-in solar movement
Utah state Rep. Raymond Ward was reading a story in The New York Times about a growing trend in Europe, and it sparked an idea to make energy more affordable and portable at home.
Plug-in solar panels â sometimes called âbalcony solarâ â allow people to generate electricity by plugging panels directly into a standard outlet and help cut down on utility bills, without the need for expensive rooftop installations. The relatively cheap technology has taken off in parts of Europe, and a recent Utah law sponsored by Ward has spurred interest across the U.S.
Utah lawmakers passed last year with bipartisan and unanimous support, becoming the first state to allow residents to plug solar systems directly into residential outlets.
âItâs great for anyone who wants a little solar power but does not want to pay $30,000 for a roof install,â Ward, a Republican, told .
Ward learned about plug-in solar panels after reading about . Balcony panels there added 10% more solar capacity to the grid in just a few months, The New York Times reported, just as Russiaâs war with Ukraine was draining energy supplies.
Since Wardâs bill passed last year, 30 more states plus the District of Columbia have drafted similar bills, according to by the plug-in solar lobbying group Bright Saver.
âThank you, Utah,â said Cora Stryker, a cofounder of the California-based nonprofit. âItâs a common-sense, no-brainer thing that should keep sweeping the country.â
Maineâs governor . Virginiaâs plug-in solar bill currently sits on the governorâs desk awaiting a signature. Colorado and Maryland have legislation approved by both chambers of their statehouses. Bills in Hawaiâi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Oklahoma, and Vermont have passed in one chamber so far.
Despite that momentum, U.S. residents still canât buy plug-in panels from the same big-box stores that sell other consumer electronic appliances, like hair dryers, washing machines, or toasters. Thatâs because Utah and other states also need rules and regulations for the panels, because while they sound simple, they flip the way the electrical utility system works on its head.
Residential households are only designed to pull power off the grid, through wires to outlets, and into plugged-in devices. Balcony solar does the opposite by creating power and pushing it backward into the outlet and âupstreamâ through a homeâs wires, Ward explained. âUtilities tend, in general, not to want anybody else to make power,â he said.
Power providers also have concerns about safety, the lawmaker said. If line workers are trying to repair an electrical line they think is switched off, for example, but a condoâs solar panels are still pushing electricity through that line, it could put those employees in danger of getting electrocuted.
To Ward, those problems were solvable. âThe electricity is the same over [in Europe] as it is over here,â he said. âAll the same rules of physics work and have proved to be safe.â
But U.S. residents canât smuggle balcony solar systems over in a suitcase from Europe, because North America uses different plugs and voltages.
Ward collaborated with Utahâs largest electricity provider, Rocky Mountain Power, to craft language for his bill so that the plug-in movement in Utah can be homegrown.
A spokesperson for Rocky Mountain Power noted the utility took no position on Wardâs bill. âWe remain concerned that some products entering the market may not meet the requirements of the bill,â the spokesperson wrote in an email, âpotentially creating electrical hazards for utility workers.â
The legislation removes liability for utilities, and owners of plug-in panels canât ask for payments for the electricity they send back to the grid. It also requires a company called Underwriters Laboratories, often shortened to UL Systems, to develop safety certification for plug-in panels.
UL develops all kinds of safety standards for consumer products, building materials, and other goods. But Utahâs legislation marked the first time they were asked to test plug-in panels, and the company got to work over the summer. Kenneth Boyce, vice president of engineering for UL, said he was surprised to see his company named in Utahâs legislation.
âBut we take it very seriously,â Boyce said.
The company issued a white paper in November outlining potential hazards with the panel systems themselves as well as how they might interact with a typical homeâs wiring. From there, it developed product-level requirements that will allow the UL mark to appear on certified products.
âWeâre ⊠making sure we keep [consumers] safe while they get the benefits of participating in the energy transition,â Boyce said. âWe can do both.â
ULâs researchers tested ways to ensure that plug-in panels donât make circuit breakers explode, or that GFCI plugs that are supposed to trip and switch off â commonly found in bathrooms, kitchens, and outdoors â donât fry and malfunction without the residentsâ knowledge.
No plug-in systems have been certified by UL to date, Boyce said. âWe expect that will change soon,â he said, noting heâs heard from multiple manufacturers. He expects the UL stamp to appear on U.S. panels in âmonths, maybe even weeks.â
Some inventive individuals, including the popular Utah YouTuber , have cobbled together their own plug-in systems. They use components that are individually UL certified, like panels, cords, and inverters. But all the components combined into a balcony system havenât been tested and green-lit for safety, Boyce cautioned.
For those willing to take the risk, a global company called , whose product is shown above, is one of the most popular online retailers for plug-in panels in the U.S. Theyâre currently in conversations with UL about how to certify their product, according to Ryan Oliver, a spokesperson for EcoFlow.
Theyâve sold portable solar systems for about four years in Europe, âwhere theyâre very popular,â he said.
An inverter, which brings electricity from the solar panels into the home and shuts down generation to ensure safety, currently costs about $300 on EcoFlowâs website. A system that includes a battery to store solar energy costs $1,200. And compatible solar panels run between $250 to $1,000, depending on the size of the array.
âItâs consistent with Utahâs values of wanting to supply your own energy, and letting people make their own decisions around meeting their needs,â said Josh Craft, director of government relations and public affairs for Utah Clean Energy.
Craft, pictured below, said heâs experimenting with his own plug-in system at home, donated by EcoFlow. âIt works. Itâs fun,â he said. âI have foldable panels set up on my patio roof.â
The panels could also amp up an entirely new market for clean energy. Their surge in popularity comes at a time when the Trump administration is slashing subsidies for wind and solar projects, even as energy bills , Craft noted.
Utah code resulting from Wardâs bill caps power output from plug-in systems at 1,200 watts, which means they wonât offset all the electrical use from a typical household.
On his YouTube channel, JerryRigEverything reported that his array saves about a dollar a day on his electricity bill. Craft figures his system, which is combined with a battery, cuts down his power bill by about 10%, but he hasnât tested it while running an air conditioner.
In just the last few weeks, Ward said heâs had conversations with lawmakers in Hawaiâi, Washington, Minnesota, and Colorado about how to facilitate plug-in solar in their states. With Maine adopting a similar policy and several other states close behind, Utahâs experiment is already spreading.
âHeck yeah,â Ward said.
This coverage is made possible through a partnership between and , a nonprofit newsroom in Utah.
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