The HomeGrid home battery: The complete review

Founded in 2019, HomeGrid has made a big splash in the battery industry. They offer some of the most flexible battery systems in the industry, which are about as simple to stack as a set of LEGOs. They're easy to install and easy to maintain, and unlike many other batteries available today, you can take them with you if you move (without voiding the warranty). In 2021, HomeGrid was acquired by Lithion Battery, which has helped them to grow and solidify their place in the battery storage market. In this article, we'll give you the complete rundown of what you need to know about HomeGrid's battery solutions: the Compact and Stack'd batteries.

HomeGrid's batteries pair well with solar panel systems, especially if your utility has reduced or removed net metering, introduced time-of-use rates, or instituted demand charges for residential electricity consumers. Installing a storage solution like HomeGrid's with a solar energy system allows you to maintain a sustained power supply during both day and night, as long as you store enough power from your solar panels when the sun is shining.

As with many other home battery products, HomeGrid batteries are sized for day-to-day use at your home and are primarily designed to be paired with a solar panel system. When your solar panels produce more electricity than you can use in your home, you can store the excess electricity in the battery system instead of sending it back into the grid. Later, when your panels aren't producing enough electricity to meet your home's needs, you can use the stored energy in your battery instead of having to buy it from your utility company.

When HomeGrid set out to design their battery solution, they "wanted a product that was easy to install, could power the whole home, and was modular." Their Stack'd series of batteries meets all of their original goals, and their Compact series is a great alternative for people who want a small, sleek design.

When evaluating HomeGrid batteries, there are various important metrics and technical specifications to keep in mind. Among the most important are the size of the battery (power and capacity), its chemistry, depth of discharge, and roundtrip efficiency.

Size

Two important metrics to keep in mind when comparing HomeGrid to other home storage options are power and usable capacity. Power (measured in kilowatts, or kW) can be defined in two ways: peak (maximum) and continuous. Peak or maximum power refers to the maximum amount of electricity that can be output at a single time. In contrast, continuous power is the maximum amount of electricity that can be output consistently. The power of HomeGrid batteries varies depending on the model's usable capacity – check out the table below for more details.

Usable capacity (measured in kilowatt-hours, or kWh) is a measure of the maximum amount of electricity stored in your battery on a full charge. HomeGrid's Compact series comes in one size, with 5.12 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of usable capacity. Its Stack'd series can include between two and eight modules, with each module having 4.8 kWh of usable capacity (so your battery could be anywhere from 9.6 to 38.4 kWh in total).

Here's what you need to know about the size of HomeGrid batteries:

HomeGrid batteries are also modular – meaning you can connect multiple batteries in parallel to increase the size of your battery system. You can connect up to 63 Compact series batteries (for a total of 322.6 kWh usable capacity) or up to 15 Stack'd series batteries with a Sol-Ark 15-K Inverter (for a total of 576 kWh usable capacity).

Basic functionality

The functionality of one solar power battery next to another can vary; some batteries have excellent off-grid capabilities, while others offer software solutions specific to rate arbitrage. Here are the important qualities of HomeGrid batteries:

Backup power

HomeGrid batteries are specifically designed to provide as much backup power as you need. Because of their modularity, it's easy to customize the size of your system and add additional capacity down the road if you decide you need more backup. HomeGrid batteries are a key component of Savant's Power System, an energy management system that provides monitoring and control over your energy by making your current electrical panel smart. When coupled with a smart electrical panel, you'll be able to choose what loads are powered when allowing you to get the most out of your HomeGrid battery. 

Chemistry

HomeGrid batteries are lithium-ion storage products; specifically, HomeGrid uses lithium iron phosphate (LFP) chemistry. This is one of the most common lithium-ion battery technologies, and for good reason: relative to other types of batteries, LFP batteries are known for their high power rating and safety. To learn more about how different lithium-ion battery chemistries stack up against one another, check out our overview of battery chemistry differences.

Performance metrics

Two key ways to evaluate the performance of a solar battery are its depth of discharge and roundtrip efficiency. 

Depth of discharge (DoD) indicates the percentage of a battery's energy that has been discharged relative to the overall capacity of the battery. Because the useful life of a battery decreases each time you charge, discharge, and re-charge it, many battery manufacturers specify a maximum DoD level for optimal battery performance. In general, batteries with a higher depth of discharge are considered higher-quality products. HomeGrid batteries boast a depth of discharge of 100 percent across all battery sizes, reflective of their safe and advanced LFP battery chemistry.

Roundtrip efficiency is a measure of the electrical losses involved with charging and discharging a particular battery. The higher the percentage, the more efficiently the battery is able to convert incoming electricity into stored electricity and then back into usable electricity. HomeGrid batteries have roundtrip efficiencies of 98 percent; this means that for every 10 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity you put into the battery, you'll receive 9.8 kWh of output.

In most cases, homes with a HomeGrid battery will charge and discharge their battery every day. So, how long do the HomeGrid batteries last? The Compact and Stack'd series both come with a 10-year, or 4,000 cycles, warranty, and HomeGrid guarantees that the battery will maintain at least 60 percent of its capacity to hold a charge during that time period.

HomeGrid's battery technology is similar to other rechargeable batteries, both large and small: as time goes on, the battery loses some of its ability to hold a charge. Think of how the battery life of a brand-new smartphone compares to one that is a few years old. As you continually charge and drain your phone's battery, it starts to lose some of its ability to hold a charge.

The battery life of your HomeGrid battery will deteriorate in the same way. That isn't an indicator of a product flaw – all batteries lose some of their ability to hold a charge over time after extended usage, whether it's an electric vehicle battery, a home energy battery, or a rechargeable AA battery. This is why HomeGrid offers a warranty that guarantees a certain percentage of storage capacity.

If you want to compare individual battery models side-by-side, our battery Buyer's Guide lets you select products and compare them based on efficiency, capacity, power, and more.

A solar battery installation isn't as simple as a list price for a component – depending on your electrical setup, among other factors, installation costs can vary widely. As a rough estimate, you can expect a HomeGrid system to cost between $4,500 and $17,500 (excluding installation costs).

If you want to install a HomeGrid battery system as part of a solar-plus-storage system, battery costs are just one part of the equation. A 5 kilowatt (kW) solar energy system costs anywhere from $9,000 to $15,000, depending on where you live and the type of equipment you choose.

That may sound like a lot of money, but installing a solar-plus-storage system can be a worthwhile investment. Whether or not a HomeGrid battery makes sense for you is determined by the way that your electric utility structures its rates, as well as your reasons for installing a solar battery.

In some cases, depending on where you live, you may have access to financial incentives that can reduce your home energy storage installation costs. For instance, if you live in California, you could get a cash rebate that covers most of your home battery costs through the Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP). Other states (such as Massachusetts) are in the early stages of evaluating battery storage performance incentives as well, and several states already provide cash rebates.

Whether you want to install a HomeGrid battery or another home battery pack, you will most likely need to work through a certified installer. Adding energy storage technology to your home is a complicated process that requires electrical expertise, certifications, and knowledge of the best practices required to install a solar-plus-storage system correctly.

A qualified EnergySage-approved company can give you the best recommendation about the Compact and Stack'd series and other energy storage options available to homeowners today. If you are interested in receiving competing installation quotes for solar and energy storage options from local installers near you, simply join the EnergySage Marketplace today and indicate what products you're interested in your profile's preferences section.