Plug in Solar operates in a gray zone. It's a solar panel with a grid tied inverter which you plug into the wall. The idea is that you could plug it in to reduce your electrical bill without going through the approval process with a grid tied solar photovoltaic system. They say it's all UL approved but that's not really true, yes each component is UL approved and many regulations are exempt for appliances that can be physically disconnected. With plug in solar, you are simply skirting the requirement that your utility have for solar photovoltaic systems to be installed by professionals approved by the utility. Plus Plug-In-Solar overcharges for what they sell, you could easily wire up an equivalent product yourself.
If you look at the address for Plug-In-Solar, they're not far from the Electronic Parts Outlet store in Houston. It's quite likely that they just drive out to pick up the parts to wire together when they need to and then sell it at triple the price.
A solar-powered recharge station for electric and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) built by the Department of Energy’s (DOE's) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) will allow researchers to explore the potential benefits of renewable energy and PHEVs to consumers and electric utilities. Developed as part of a project run by NREL senior engineer, Tony Markel, the recharge station consists of a 3.5-kW solar array that provides shade and power for two PHEVs.
The solar array was supplied by Envision Solar, which created its Solar Tree design specifically for NREL’s renewable recharge station. This station is located at NREL’s South Table Mountain site in Golden, Colorado. The structure features 20 photovoltaic panels atop a single-post, grid-tied parking canopy. The PV canopy, tilted at a 30-degree angle, was designed to produce an estimated 10-kWh while providing two shaded parking spaces. But Markel notes that the installation actually produced 14 kWhr during its first day of operation.
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Easy Install: Just plug it into an AC Outlet
Reduce your electric bill
Expandable to 5 panels per kit. (use multiple kits for even larger systems)
Grid-Tie without the difficult installation
Built-in safety shutoff - will only go live when plugged in to an A/C outlet
Qualifies for solar tax credits.
