Balcony Solar's Biggest Problem Isn't Legalization

What’s newI’m going to be testing a plug-in solar system on my house, and as I’ve researched the best way to set it up, I’ve realized that some limitations will have to be solved before this is widely adopted in the U.S.Yesterday I went to pick up a few panels at my local Green Tech Renewables to test with my new plug-in solar inverter, and we spent most of the time I was there talking about a problem we’re both seeing.Listen to this episode here, or on:YouTubeApple PodcastsSpotifyWe interchangeably call plug-in solar “balcony solar,” but at the moment, there are only a few solutions for actually mounting these panels to balconies, and no widely available standard.That’s a big problem. Solar panels can weigh between 30 and 50 lbs., and they have sharp corners. If people are going to be mounting them on apartment balconies, we need to know beyond any reasonable doubt that they are securely mounted. We don’t want someone four stories below getting taken out by a falling solar panel.I personally live in a home that has a lot of shade in all areas except the roof, but I’m not ready to commit to mounting the panels on my roof.There are a few areas I could lean them against things, but then they’re just sitting out in the open, vulnerable to the elements and theft.This Week In Solar is always brought to you by Exact Solar, your locally owned, twenty-year-old solar installer for Pennsylvania and New Jersey.Energy costs are skyrocketing in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, and no one has a good plan to fix it.You can’t control what the power company charges next year, but you can opt out of the cycle by going solar.Our customers have told us over and over again that they don’t get mad anymore when the power company raises rates, because it just doesn’t even apply to them.If you live in New Jersey or Pennsylvania, we’d love to show you the numbers.Book Your Free Solar Estimate