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Balcony solar power (en.wikipedia.org)

submitted 1 month ago by dantheclamman@lemmy.world to c/wikipedia@lemmy.world

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A balcony solar power system (also called a plug-in solar panel, mini solar system, or balcony power station) is a small photovoltaic system designed to generate electricity for direct use in a home or apartment. Unlike conventional rooftop solar installations, balcony solar systems connect to the existing electrical circuit of a building through a standard power outlet or dedicated socket, without requiring significant structural modifications or professional installation in most configurations.

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[–] SolacefromSilence@fedia.io 17 points 1 month ago

For those that want a little more info: https://www.solar.com/learn/guide-to-balcony-plug-in-solar/

"Is Balcony Solar Safe? The UL 3700 Standard

The most common question from landlords and utilities is: “Is it safe to plug a power source into my wall?”

In early 2026, UL Solutions launched the UL 3700 certification. This is the “Gold Standard” for plug-in solar safety. If a kit is UL 3700 certified, it includes:

Automatic Power Cut-Off: The system is “smart.” If you unplug the cord from the wall while the sun is shining, the metal prongs on the plug become “dead” in less than a second. This prevents anyone from getting a shock from the exposed plug.

Grid Outage Protection: If the power goes out in your neighborhood (a blackout), the panels automatically stop sending power to your home or the grid. This ensures utility workers fixing the lines aren’t accidentally shocked by your panels."

[–] dangling_cat@piefed.blahaj.zone 8 points 4 weeks ago

This is very cool stuff! They are 10x cheaper and good for renters because you can take them with you when you move! DIY power is like the most solarpunk thing ever!

[–] Treczoks@lemmy.world 5 points 4 weeks ago

We installed four panels and generate 700W max, 3.5kWh per sunny day. Not much, but we got the modules at half price, so all this power cuts into our basic use. Any kWh we generate is one less we have to pay for. And as long we are below our baseline, we don't need batteries.

[+] Hotzilla@sopuli.xyz -16 points 1 month ago (3 children)

As someone working in power grid, this is quite horrible. There are reasons why PV panels are installed properly at the houses, which proper disconnects etc. If there is fire and this is just plugged in, there is no way to disconnect them. If there is maintenance on the electricity, it can be danger to the electricians, because even if you disconnect the mains, there is still power.

Also these panels had very poor cyber security, their IoT platform had a bug that anyone could control them remotely in masses. Bad actor could have caused serious issues in grid level with them.

[–] gens@programming.dev 14 points 1 month ago (1 children)

I thought so too. Watched a review on youtube. The properly made ones got all the safety stuff. It turns off if the mains goes out, even if you got multiple of them (they put a signal on top of the sine). They are even limited to like 800W so you can plug them in anywhere without risk of fire, unless you plug like 3 in one outlet.

I still don't fully trust them but they are safer then they look. Ofc they come with a lipo battery.. but it's at least not that big of one. I'd rather they come with salt or lead batteries.

The bigger concern is the pannels themselves. A flying glass sheet is not safe. Then again many fix stuff themselves already, and not many die...

[–] starlinguk@lemmy.world 1 points 4 weeks ago

The funny thing about the feed cutting out when the mains are out is that if there's a power grid failure because too many solar panels are feeding the grid, you end up without power. It's happened to us a bunch of times.

[–] Treczoks@lemmy.world 5 points 4 weeks ago

Those DC/AC converters cut off within milliseconds if something fishy is happening on the AC side. And the cyber security is a matter of how well or stupid you manage your network.