coleashman

9 ms·

1.
by coleashman 2y ago
Yep! Pila qualifies for the 30% Federal Investment Tax Credit (ITC) under the Residential Clean Energy Credit if your Pila system exceeds a total of 3 kWh capacity through either: Two or more Pila batteries (1.6 + 1.6 = 3.2 kWh) One Pila ba
2.
by coleashman 2y ago
Energy arbitrage value depends a lot on your utility, agreed. For most home battery systems it's a 5-7 year payback, even with solar. In my experience most folks investing in these systems are also putting a lot of value on the backup
3.
by coleashman 2y ago
For folks that are looking for true whole-home backup, with every load protected, investing in something like a Powerwall would be the way to go. I don't see Pila trying to compete with whole-home systems. We were inspired to build Pil
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by coleashman 2y ago
Good clarification! Smarter backup batteries like Pila or Powerwall can be configured to dynamically charge and discharge, giving the benefit of outage protection and energy management. For example, charge up from the solar power you produc
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by coleashman 2y ago
On a personal note, I'll also be really stoked when we're shipping to Australia. Lots of friends down there, and have been lucky to work on some past home energy products for the Australian market. Parts of Pila's power elect
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by coleashman 2y ago
I'd love to see the price continue to come down, so more and more folks can get these products. Compared to the expensive install of a large battery systems, I'd call it a step in the right direction but I agree we need to make th
7.
by coleashman 2y ago
Appreciate the question! The coordination is similar to what a whole-home battery might be doing for you, depending on how you configure it: Timing charging to follow real-time solar production, energy arbitrage to shift home usage to times
8.
by coleashman 2y ago
Yep, and to clarify Pila includes an MID onboard so while Intentionally Islanded there is no backfeed. But in terms of a whole-home disconnect, I believe we'll see more generic options appear that are somewhat DER-agnostic.
9.
by coleashman 2y ago
The off-grid detection is based on a combination of voltage and frequency measurement over different time windows, so I'm sorry that I won't be able to give you an exact answer on your situation. I've lived in apartments with
10.
by coleashman 2y ago
Thanks for bringing more details to the thread - We've just launched, and for folks who like what they see and want to be first to get Pila the (refundable, cancel anytime) $99 deposit will lock in $999. Once we start shipping and fulf
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by coleashman 2y ago
This audience is definitely more up on tech - I've been surprised how often folks I talk to have never heard of UPS's! We know we're not the first people to think of automatic plug in backup :) Aspirationally, we aim to do to
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by coleashman 2y ago
Yes re: Home Assistant. We're stoked to have folks integrate with their own energy dashboards if that's what they prefer to do.
13.
by coleashman 2y ago
To give more functionality around energy management, we wanted all of the batteries to be able to work in concert. We could have gone with "any old wireless" network to coordinate the batteries. One thing that's really stuck
14.
by coleashman 2y ago
1. I'm actually hopeful we see a generic MID standard emerge with folks like ConnectDER well positioned to support that, so more homes can benefit and households can gain the ability to flexibly try different batteries without ripping
15.
by coleashman 2y ago
Yep, it can blackstart without AC power from the grid
16.
by coleashman 2y ago
Internet's not required, and we're aiming to pack as much offline functionality in as possible. This includes an MQTT based local API (WiFi) and ability to directly tether the phone app to the device over WiFi. Certain app feature
17.
by coleashman 2y ago
Hey there - First I will concede it's always hard to give an "average" number for something like a fridge, since all fridges consume differently based on usage, ambient temperature, ice makers, overall capacity. But I'd
18.
by coleashman 2y ago
Right! Unintentionally back-feeding is a huge safety risk, and I hope that smarter safer solutions will prevail over the all-too-common hacky unsafe approaches. But also, I get it. I’ve wired generators back into panels - safely - in situat
19.
by coleashman 2y ago
Yikes! I’ve heard so many similar sounding examples of misuse of generators and sketchy generator setups. Pila has the grid disconnect built in so there’s no risk of un-intended backfeed when islanded
20.
by coleashman 2y ago
Off-grid capable, yes. In my experience having redundant systems is a great approach for off-gridding. Pila will happily work alongside a whole-home battery system to add extra capacity wherever you need it most.
21.
by coleashman 2y ago
Often well pumps and sump pumps can be wired for either 230 or 120V, so Pila could be an option with some added effort and a conversation with an electrician. But in any case, looking forward to building the 230/240V version!
22.
by coleashman 2y ago
No monthly fees -- You buy it, you own it.
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by coleashman 2y ago
Our team's really excited about the local-first approach. Both because it's going to make the system more reliable overall (essential for devices aimed at resilience), and because we're also excited to build integrations and
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by coleashman 2y ago
Yep! All hardware is capable, and the Grid Code configuration can be set and updated at any time. So as more states follow suit, Pila's ready
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by coleashman 2y ago
Yeah thanks I appreciate the questions. I'll do my best to answer them, but let me know if I can clarify anything here! On bidirectionality: Yep this would involve backfeeding an outlet - It's new here in the U.S. but not unpreced
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by coleashman 2y ago
Our first product is focused on 120V, but we'll be iterating on a 240V option. Out of curiosity which 240V loads are you most interested to connect?
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by coleashman 2y ago
Some furnaces are still 120 volt (same as an outlet) so depending on how the furnace is connected, Pila could be an option or at least could work with some minimal electrical work. But definitely recommend chatting with a good local electri
28.
by coleashman 2y ago
To add more: To backup big 240V appliances that are hard-wired (EV charger, large HVAC, for example) you need to connect the backup system in the same hard-wired way to the electrical panel. For folks who are keen to make the big investment
29.
by coleashman 2y ago
$999 for early access! We just launched at SXSW, and will begin shipping later this year. Via our website we’re offering the $999 early access pricing for a refundable $99 deposit today. Once we enter distribution we’re expecting to increas
30.
by coleashman 2y ago
Yeah great question. The hardware is capable of bidirectional power, and electrical codes and standards in the U.S. are now catching up with Europe. “Balcony Solar” has taken off there, especially in Germany. Utah just passed H.B. 340 which

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