3 Ways A Home Battery Helps You Stay In Control During Time Of Use Rates

3 ways solar battery storage saves on TOU rates

Breaking Down Time of Use and Battery Storage

Maybe you’ve heard of time-of-use (TOU) rates before, or maybe you’re just now hearing about them. Either way, TOU rates could be behind your ballooning energy bills in the future.

Smart energy storage like Sunrun Brightbox™ can help to offset the higher cost of electricity due to TOU rates. But before we get into that, let’s go over what TOU rates are.

What are TOU rates?

TOU rates are electricity rates that are set by your local utility and vary depending on the time of day. With TOU rates, electricity is most expensive during peak hours, or those when the demand is highest, such as the evening when most people are home. It could be even more costly at the height of summer or dead of winter when folks are cranking up the air conditioner or heater. Conversely, rates are cheaper during off-peak hours, or when demand for electricity is low like in the middle of the day when you typically wouldn’t be home.

TOU rates are put in place to help encourage utility customers to reduce their energy use during peak hours. But when all you want to do is come home and keep cool or stay warm, cook dinner and watch your favorite TV show, the last thing you want to think about is your electricity consumption

Thankfully, Sunrun solar panels and our Brightbox home battery offers a solution to TOU so you can enjoy peace of mind, 24/7.

Here’s how:

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Why Sunrun Brightbox?

1. Saves the Power You Make

You can save the power your solar system makes. Brightbox funnels your system’s excess power into an LG lithium-ion battery; more on that here, storing solar power in the middle of the day when you’re least likely to use electricity.

2. Powers Your Home at Peak TOU Rates

Brightbox doesn’t just stop at solar storage. It maximizes your consumption by using power generated from Sunrun solar panels during the day to avoid TOU rates when they’re most expensive, like when you get home from work at sundown. Brightbox helps you avoid buying energy from the grid at peak rates by powering your home with the solar power that is saved in the battery.¹ Brightbox is more than just electricity storage. It’s a smart home solar solution that responds to your energy needs.

3. It’s Only Getting Smarter (and Cheaper)

Not only is Brightbox on the leading edge of home battery storage technology, the cost of solar installation is more affordable than it’s ever been.² Our custom solar installations paired with flexible financing options allow you to optimize your solar potential while maximizing savings, making it a solar solution that’s efficient, durable and affordable.³

Does My Utility Use TOU Rates?

Many states offer TOU programs that you can opt into. At the present time, the only state that has mandatory TOU rates for new solar customers in Arizona. Brightbox™ is uniquely tailored to meet Arizonans’ needs, intelligently deciding when it’s most cost-effective to draw energy from your solar panels, your battery, or the grid.

Default TOU rates in California will go into effect in 2019. If you’re a California homeowner, choosing Brightbox now will make you all the more prepared to offset TOU rates once they kick in. Like in Arizona, Brightbox will automatically adjust so that you pay the lowest utility payment possible, even when your utility rates rise during peak hours. This gives you the freedom and peace of mind you deserve.

Battery Storage Offers Freedom, Control and Peace Of Mind

The future of energy lies in smart solar storage. Not sure if your local utility uses TOU rates? Do a Google search for “[your local utility] + time-of-use rates” to find out. To learn more about Brightbox, contact us today.