Frequently Asked Questions About Energy Storage
Do I need to reduce my energy consumption during a grid outage even if I have Enphase Storage at my home?
We recommend that you manage your energy consumption during an outage in order to reserve power for the most essential items in your home. The Enphase Enlighten™ mobile app will provide you with real-time energy availability and consumption monitoring to help you manage your energy usage during an outage. Your authorized Enphase installer can help you with identifying the loads that need to be backed up and configuring the appropriate.
What can I backup with Enphase Storage?
Depending on the Encharge battery capacity, the Ensemble system can either provide whole-home backup or back up your selected load items such as lights, fridge, internet router, and other essential equipment for daily needs.
The Enphase system estimator tool can help you design your system. The tool is available at below link:
https://estimator.enphaseenergy.com
What is state of charge?
The state of charge (SOC) of a battery denotes the currently available capacity as a function of the rated capacity. The value of the SOC varies between 0% and 100%. If the SOC is at 100%, then the battery is fully charged, whereas a SOC of 0% indicates that it is completely discharged.
How does Enphase Storage work?
Enphase Ensemble™ technology is an Energy Management Technology that manages many energy resources – including solar, storage, load, grid, and a generator.
With Ensemble energy management technology, the Enphase system, when connected to the grid, works as a traditional grid-tied system. In the event of a grid failure or grid outage, the Enphase Enpower™ smart switch detects the outage and seamlessly transitions the home energy system from the grid to backup operation with the help of the Encharge storage system.
The Encharge storage system depending on the time of day provides backup power to loads and helps form a micro-grid by providing reference voltage and frequency during grid outage or failure.
When the grid comes back, several hours or days later, the Enpower smart switch senses the grid and reconnects the Enphase system back to the grid.
Are Enphase batteries maintenance free?
Unlike generators that require routine maintenance, Ensemble technology systems do not require regular maintenance.
How do I read the LEDs on Encharge?
You can check and record all the LEDs’ color on the front of the Encharge batteries as below. If the Encharge lights are solid or pulsing green or blue, the batteries are operating.
During installation and commissioning
- FLASHING BLUE (
): After booting up, when Encharge has paired with an IQ Envoy and is awaiting a three-way handshake to confirm that it is an Enphase device. - FLASHING GREEN (
): After passing the three-way handshake with the IQ Envoy
During normal operation
- RAPIDLY FLASHING YELLOW (
): Starting up / Establishing communications - RED FLASHES IN SEQUENCES OF 2 (
): Error - SOLID YELLOW (
): Not operating due to high temperature - SOLID BLUE OR GREEN (
): Idle. Color transitions from blue to green as the state of charge increases. You can check Enlighten for charge status - SLOWLY FLASHING BLUE (
): Discharging - SLOWLY FLASHING GREEN (
): Charging - SLOWLY FLASHING YELLOW (
): Sleep mode activated
OFF ( 
): Not operating
Storm Guard
Storm Guard is an Enlighten application feature that monitors the severe weather condition alerts issued by National Weather Service (NWS). If a severe weather alert is active in your locality, it prioritizes the energy storage to protect you from weather-related grid outages.
The Storm Guard feature can be in one of the following two states:
1. Enabled: You can enable this feature using your Enlighten application. When Enabled, the Storm Guard feature monitors severe weather condition alerts issued by National Weather Service (NWS). If a warning is issued for your locality, it overrides your battery profile to ‘Full Backup’ mode. This allows your full battery capacity to be reserved for use during a potential grid outage.
2. Disabled: In this state, the severe weather condition alerts are not monitored for your locality. If there’s an active alert, you may face a blackout due to weather-related grid outages if your batteries are out of charge. Therefore it is recommended to keep the Storm Guard feature enabled as it reserves charge in your batteries to protect you from such outages.
How to enable/disable Storm Guard feature
- Step 1: Go to the Menu page
- Step 2: Select “Battery Storage” under “Settings”
- Step 3: Use the Toggle button to enable/disable the Strom Guard feature
What happens when the Storm Guard feature is enabled, and there's an active alert?
If an alert is issued for your locality, then ‘Storm Alert: On’ is displayed under ‘Profile’ on the Status Page and Live Status Page. At the same time, your battery profile will be set to the ‘Full Backup” mode.
After the alert ends your battery profile returns to its previous settings.
List of severe weather alerts monitored by the Storm Guard feature
| Ashfall Warning | Avalanche Warning | Avalanche Watch |
| Blizzard Warning | Civil Danger Warning | Coastal Flood Warning |
| Dense Smoke Advisory | Dust Storm Warning | Earthquake Warning |
| Evacuation – Immediate | Excessive Heat Warning | Extreme Cold Warning |
| Extreme Fire Danger | Extreme Wind Warning | Fire Warning |
| Flash Flood Warning | Flood Warning | Gale Warning |
| Hazardous Materials Warning | Heat Advisory | High Wind Warning |
| Hurricane Force Wind Warning | Hurricane Warning | Ice Storm Warning |
| Lake Effect Snow Warning | Lakeshore Flood Warning | Local Area Emergency |
| Nuclear Power Plant Warning | Radiological Hazard Warning | Severe Thunderstorm Warning |
| Severe Thunderstorm Watch | Snow Squall Warning | Storm Surge Warning |
| Storm Warning | Tornado Warning | Tornado Watch |
| Tropical Storm Warning | Tsunami Warning | Tsunami Watch |
| Typhoon Warning | Volcano Warning | Wind Advisory |
| Wind Chill Advisory | Wind Chill Warning | Winter Storm Warning |
| Winter Weather Advisory |
What are the different battery smart profiles and how to select one?
You can set your Encharge battery to work in one of the following three modes:
- Savings Mode
- Self-Consumption
- Full Backup
Savings Mode
This mode works best if your electricity rate varies during the day. It is higher during the peak-pricing hours as compared to all other times during the day (off-peak hours).
In this mode, your battery charges from solar produced during the off-peak hours. Your appliances run using the excess solar and the grid electricity if solar is not enough.
During peak-pricing hours, your battery powers your appliances. The solar is exported to the grid till the time battery alone powers your home. Electricity is imported from the grid only if solar and battery power are not enough.
This mode also comes with an additional setting where you can define a reserve for your battery. There is a certain amount of energy reserved for emergency for e.g. in an outage. When the grid is available, the battery will not discharge below the reserve.
Use this mode to reduce your electricity bill by importing less from the grid during the peak pricing hours.
Self-Consumption
In this mode, your home’s consumption comes from solar as the first choice, battery as the second choice and grid as the third choice.
Your battery gets charged only when solar is more than your home’s consumption. If the battery is full and solar is more than consumption, the excess is exported to the grid.
This mode also comes with an additional setting where you can define a reserve for your battery. There is a certain amount of energy reserved for emergency for e.g. in an outage. When the grid is available, the battery will not discharge below the reserve.
Use this mode to increase your energy independence and reduce the reliance on grid.
Full Backup
In this mode, solar is prioritized to charge the battery. The main objective in this mode is to ensure that the battery is always full and ready for an outage.
During the day, your home runs on solar and the grid electricity if solar is not enough. At night, your home uses electricity from the grid.
Use this mode to keep your home ‘on’ and your family safe during outages.
How to set a battery smart profile in Enlighten app
