Blog
Guides, hands-on setups, and the news that affects your Charleston bill.
July 29, 2026
July 28, 2026: the FCC added foreign-made inverters to its Covered List. The Aug 20 update carved out US-made (45X) inverters and protected firmware updates through 2029 — here's what's actually banned, and why a behind-the-meter home battery sidesteps the worst.
Read →July 29, 2026
A companion to EcoFlow's official manual — the homeowner side it skips: planning and scoping the job, permitting and inspection, the older-home upgrades that drive your quote, why to skip EcoFlow's turnkey installer, the questions to ask before you hire, and how to commission and hand off the system so you stay in control.
Read →July 29, 2026
A first-hand look at running two EcoFlow inverters — a DELTA Pro Ultra and an Ultra X, two battery packs each, plus a Smart Home Panel 3 — fully on Home Assistant over local Bluetooth, no cloud: automated Dominion Rate 7 time-of-use, ESP32 proxy setup, the BLE scan default that cost me a week, and workarounds for two firmware quirks.
Read →July 28, 2026
Dominion Energy South Carolina raised residential rates 7.6% on July 1, 2026 — about $12 more a month on a typical 1,000 kWh bill. Here's what changed, why, and what you can actually do about a permanently higher bill.
Read →July 28, 2026
NextEra has proposed to acquire Dominion Energy — announced May 2026 and filed for approval with the SC Public Service Commission in July 2026. Here's what South Carolina customers should know: what's happening, what could change on your bill, and what doesn't.
Read →July 24, 2026
Most sites still advertise a 30% federal tax credit for home batteries. For a 2026 cash or loan purchase, that credit is gone — the residential Section 25D credit ended December 31, 2025. Here's what actually applies now.
Read →June 24, 2026
There are two philosophies of home battery: modular and portable (EcoFlow, Anker) or fixed and seamless (Tesla Powerwall). Here's the real tradeoff and who each one is actually for — from someone running a modular setup.
Read →June 23, 2026
There are two very different kinds of home solar. Here's how battery-coupled solar (panels that wire into your home battery) works, why it's simpler, and how it compares to traditional grid-tied solar with net metering.
Read →June 23, 2026
Two ceilings decide how much solar a home battery can use: the battery's DC input rating and how much energy you actually consume (since battery-coupled solar doesn't export). Here's how to think about it.
Read →June 22, 2026
A Charleston homeowner's actual Dominion bills, broken down: what a home battery on Rate 7 (time-of-use) really saves versus the standard Rate 8 — and the catch most people miss.
Read →June 22, 2026
How to switch from Dominion's standard Rate 8 to the Rate 7 time-of-use plan in South Carolina — the metering requirement, how to request it, and what to confirm before you commit.
Read →June 22, 2026
Dominion Energy South Carolina's July 2026 rate case (PSC Order 2026-374) reshaped Rate 7: on-peak now applies every day, a new winter midday super-off-peak window, and higher rates across the board. What changed and what it means for batteries.
Read →June 22, 2026
Dominion Rate 7 (time-of-use) vs Rate 8 (standard) for a South Carolina home — the honest comparison, including the catch that makes Rate 7 lose money unless you have a battery.
Read →June 22, 2026
Dominion Rate 7's demand charge is the line item nobody warns you about. Here's exactly how it's measured — your single worst 15-minute on-peak interval — and how a battery keeps it low.
Read →June 22, 2026
What size home battery do you actually need to cover a Dominion Rate 7 peak and avoid the demand charge? The two numbers that matter — power and energy — explained with a real Charleston setup.
Read →Want your own numbers?
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