[uwquigman]

Alright, just got off the phone with the contacts at SunRun. If you registered on their site you should be getting a call sooner than later. Here's the 411....

1) After your initial conversation they'll send you to a google forms page to answer questions about your install. Fill that out ASAP as I'm told that gets you ready to be scheduled.
2) Take the pictures that they ask for and reply back to the e-mail so they can make sure it's not custom.
3) Pricing is $1,500 which seems reasonable from conversations I've had with electricians here in So Cal (This is a short run literally on the other side of my garage) and it also includes a warranty since they partnered with Ford. If you also wanted to include the backup solution get ready for sticker shock....It's $9,200 including the Ford Station Pro though. Still that's a little too much for me to consider when I rarely if ever run out of power at my house.
4) Finally, I was told that we should be getting our Ford Station Pro Charger (I ordered an ER Lariat) sent either to our house or dealership 6 weeks prior to the ARRIVAL of our truck. The logistics of that was not disclosed but still that provides a little bit of clarity. So assuming my build week is 5/9 arrival is early June so would expect to get my charger by middle/end of April?

If I hear more if anyone else has something to add let's share the info!

 

[taxmanhog]

Following you on this journey!!

 

[Voltz]

Thanks for the SunRun update.

I wonder if any of the HIS equipment and installation costs will be eligible for federal tax credits as part of a solar installation, along with storage, EVSE, and V2H from Lightning? I imagine there is a line somewhere between the limited EVSE installation credit and solar credit.

 

[Fryballin]

Alright, just got off the phone with the contacts at SunRun. If you registered on their site you should be getting a call sooner than later. Here's the 411....

1) After your initial conversation they'll send you to a google forms page to answer questions about your install. Fill that out ASAP as I'm told that gets you ready to be scheduled.
2) Take the pictures that they ask for and reply back to the e-mail so they can make sure it's not custom.
3) Pricing is $1,500 which seems reasonable from conversations I've had with electricians here in So Cal (This is a short run literally on the other side of my garage) and it also includes a warranty since they partnered with Ford. If you also wanted to include the backup solution get ready for sticker shock....It's $9,200 including the Ford Station Pro though. Still that's a little too much for me to consider when I rarely if ever run out of power at my house.
4) Finally, I was told that we should be getting our Ford Station Pro Charger (I ordered an ER Lariat) sent either to our house or dealership 6 weeks prior to the ARRIVAL of our truck. The logistics of that was not disclosed but still that provides a little bit of clarity. So assuming my build week is 5/9 arrival is early June so would expect to get my charger by middle/end of April?

If I hear more if anyone else has something to add let's share the info!

$9,200 for them to install a switch that reverses power from Truck to the house? I understand you said “including the charge station pro” but I was thinking the full price of that was less than $3k. What else am I missing about setting up the reverse charging.

 

[uwquigman]

$9,200 for them to install a switch that reverses power from Truck to the house? I understand you said “including the charge station pro” but I was thinking the full price of that was less than $3k. What else am I missing about setting up the reverse charging.

Yeah not sustainable at that price. Wayyyy too much. It’s not eligible for tax refund as an fyi per my accountant.

 

[FM_Jack]

Based on the break down posted in another thread, it is 1500 and 7700. The 1500 is installation and the 7700 is "parts". Those parts include a battery which I'm figuring is the main bulk of that cost.

I just recently had an NEMA plug installed and I did a 100 amp line, to have that all installed it costs me roughly the same as that installation for the line, the labor. You are getting the charging station which is around 3k alone.

I'd say if you already have the NEMA plug in your garage, you are looking at ~7700-8000 depending on if that number includes the labor. Which, imo, is the lower end of the work cause you aren't running a line (if you already have a plug). You don't need 100 amp. State of Charge already confirmed this.

The kit is: a battery, switch and something else. Not just a switch. The electrician I had installing my NEMA estimated this price. He has done public EV charging stations throughout the area.

I highly recommend watching the State of Charge video on this. It is posted somewhere on the forum, but just going to youtube and looking at their last video the subject; it isn't hard to find.

 

[Fryballin]

Based on the break down posted in another thread, it is 1500 and 7700. The 1500 is installation and the 7700 is "parts". Those parts include a battery which I'm figuring is the main bulk of that cost.

I just recently had an NEMA plug installed and I did a 100 amp line, to have that all installed it costs me roughly the same as that installation for the line, the labor. You are getting the charging station which is around 3k alone.

I'd say if you already have the NEMA plug in your garage, you are looking at ~7700-8000 depending on if that number includes the labor. Which, imo, is the lower end of the work cause you aren't running a line (if you already have a plug). You don't need 100 amp. State of Charge already confirmed this.

The kit is: a battery, switch and something else. Not just a switch. The electrician I had installing my NEMA estimated this price. He has done public EV charging stations throughout the area.

I highly recommend watching the State of Charge video on this. It is posted somewhere on the forum, but just going to youtube and looking at their last video the subject; it isn't hard to find.

Why do we need to purchase a battery? I thought that is what the truck was for?

 

[FM_Jack]

Why do we need to purchase a battery? I thought that is what the truck was for?

 

[ChasingCoral]

Why do we need to purchase a battery? I thought that is what the truck was for?

Short answer is the battery runs the electronics that have no power due to an outage and have to function to transfer power from grid-sourced to truck-sourced. It's a small battery.

 

[dsukia]

Short answer is the battery runs the electronics that have no power due to an outage and have to function to transfer power from grid-sourced to truck-sourced. It's a small battery.

I assume that would be if you want seamless transfer of power, if you just want backup with you flipping the switch (via app or in the truck), I dont see why battery would be needed.

I think most people can live with a few minutes of power outage while they switch to the car.

I have solar and battery but I do want the system installed for other reasons. Not sure how it will work with my enphase system. Will have to wait and see.

 

[FM_Jack]

I assume that would be if you want seamless transfer of power, if you just want backup with you flipping the switch (via app or in the truck), I dont see why battery would be needed.

I think most people can live with a few minutes of power outage while they switch to the car.

I have solar and battery but I do want the system installed for other reasons. Not sure how it will work with my enphase system. Will have to wait and see.

The way the system was developed, this is what it was going to need. That's why SunRun is the preferred installer and is the one selling the kit. They developed it this way. I'm assuming to not cause damage to the truck. If you watch the video that is part of the concern, constantly using it to back up the system could cause battery damage.

 

[CondorActual]

So, I've been going through the solar install process at my house, and I've called SunRun and a few other companies concerning setup, equipment, and this process for getting the intelligent backup power from the Lightning. I've learned a few things by looking at the SunRun equipment vs gear provided by companies like SolarEdge. Here is what I'm seeing:

• The SunRun intelligent backup power gear is three things - An inverter (could be used for PV or not), a "Micro Grid" (intelligent system for managing power from several sources), and a so called "dark start" battery.
• The inverter can take in DC power from PV panels, mounted, dedicated backup batteries, and in the case of the Lighting, power from the attached, bi-directional EVSE (charge station pro).
• The "Micro Grid" takes in grid power, power from the inverter, and potentially power from another source like a backup generator. It manages the delivery to your load panel(s), and can respond instantly when grid power fails. In both cases, power from a fixed battery or from the EV, comes from the inverter into the micro-grid, then into your load center.

Other companies like SolarEdge have a similar setup. SolarEdge calls the micro-grid a "backup interface". They offer a generic EV charging port from the inverter, but it doesn't seem to be bi-directional.

For me, this means that I am not going with the Intelligent Power system. I'm going to get a single, fixed backup battery solution from SolarEdge, and tie that into my solar panels and the backup interface. This means I can run my house off the solar/battery solution in the event of a power outage at the grid. This also means that if I really need power for a long-term outage event, I can plug the 9.6kw plug from the bed of the truck directly into the micro-grid, and that device will manage the flow of AC power from the inverter, AC from the truck, and the grid when power comes back on. This also means that If I need to leave the house during an outage, or I wasn't home when the power went out, the house is protected by the sun and/or the backup battery for hours.

In my location, the power company will pay me to be able to intelligently draw power off the stationary battery from time to time (to augment the grid during high-use times), paying for almost 50% of my battery costs. The Lightning can be an extended time power booster, and isn't tied to the house for the duration of an outage. I'll wire the Charge Station Pro to a 100 amp circuit in my panel. I'm concerned from some of the SunRun documentation that the Charge Station Pro will not be able to operate at an 80 amp rate if it's wired into the SunRun inverter and not your load panel. It seems limited in that setting to about 36 amps. Could be wrong on this bit, but that seems to be what the manual indicated.

 

[Okchamali]

I assume that would be if you want seamless transfer of power, if you just want backup with you flipping the switch (via app or in the truck), I dont see why battery would be needed.

I think most people can live with a few minutes of power outage while they switch to the car.

I have solar and battery but I do want the system installed for other reasons. Not sure how it will work with my enphase system. Will have to wait and see.

I’m on a solar/battery setup with Enphase equipment and couldn’t be happier. Net metering isn’t offered in my area so that’s initially why I used solar with battery backup. 250+ days of sunshine a year, I’m not too concerned about prolonged outages that my batteries can’t handle. I’m having the Pro charger installed in my garage and a Clipper charger installed in my shop. Whatever the pro charger runs at I’ll be fine with. I’ll normally be charging during the day so it’ll be all solar going to charge the Lightning.

 

[rtw819]

Other companies like SolarEdge have a similar setup. SolarEdge calls the micro-grid a "backup interface". They offer a generic EV charging port from the inverter, but it doesn't seem to be bi-directional.

For me, this means that I am not going with the Intelligent Power system. I'm going to get a single, fixed backup battery solution from SolarEdge, and tie that into my solar panels and the backup interface. This means I can run my house off the solar/battery solution in the event of a power outage at the grid. This also means that if I really need power for a long-term outage event, I can plug the 9.6kw plug from the bed of the truck directly into the micro-grid, and that device will manage the flow of AC power from the inverter, AC from the truck, and the grid when power comes back on. This also means that If I need to leave the house during an outage, or I wasn't home when the power went out, the house is protected by the sun and/or the backup battery for hours.

We really like our SolarEdge Backup Interface Whole Home Backup (BI-E model) setup (with an LG battery backup and Energy Hub inverters). It has been great the past ~16 months we've had ours. We don't have the SolarEdge Inverter EV charger module, but the current version is not a bi-directional capable thing, especially since its charging end is only a J1772.

The Delta gear is great if you're either starting or planning to look at solarizing your house and getting the Lightning too, but it is not so hot if you already have solar set up. Since it seems the Sunrun/Delta Home Integration System likely won't play nice with any other solar gear, we're looking at alternatives too.


That said, and as you sort of eluded in your post, the SolarEdge Backup Interface is supposed to have a "Generator Port" (supporting up to 15kW/63A per the docs), but the feature doesn't appear to be ready yet pending a firmware feature release for the connected inverters -- "Requires supporting inverter firmware". From what I've been able to find, SolarEdge hasn't released much more than basic awareness on the generator input support aside from pushing back the release timeframe in the docs to "Winter 2021" last I saw. They keep moving the Backup Interface datasheet file location on their website too, which doesn't help, and requires one to hunt for it when looking for a feature status update.

Also, something else to consider about the L14-30R twist-lock 240 Volt Pro Power Onboard receptacle in the bed of the Lightning (assuming it is the same as its Powerboost cousins) is only a 30A plug good for 7200W, 3600W max on either side of the 120V split. So using the 30A bed outlet as a "generator" input to the SolarEdge Backup Interface (whenever that feature becomes available) versus the Delta Home Integration gear (which won't integrate with the SolarEdge stuff) won't be quite the same as what we would otherwise get with the Delta Whole Home backup gear since their auto transformer has 30A available maximum imbalance current with the full 9600W via the truck's EVSE/DC and the Delta inverter box. If I'm not mistaken, the Delta gear would then allow us to pull, say, 7200W on one side of the 120V split and 2400W from the other side totaling no more than a combined 9600W. Whereas with the bed outlet we can only use up to 3600W+3600W equally across the split for the 7200W total.

While this is certainly not the worst thing, it is something to be aware of (including anyone planning to use the simpler bed outlet arrangement to an inlet with an interlock kit) versus the Home Integration gear, and may indicate to the electrician to at the very least evaluate or otherwise evenly re-distribute any "critical" loads desired for your backup situation knowing the circuits may need to be rearranged in the breaker panel (depends upon how evenly the loads were distributed by the original electrician doing the work and assumes there had been no changes to the loads/needs/equipment/etc.).

This is definitely food for thought for those of us with existing solar implementations. Let us know if you hear or learn anything more. Thanks for sharing! I'm hoping SolarEdge comes up with their Backup Interface / inverter firmware generator support update soon!

 

[kazyovka]

Hey, thanks for posting.

SunRun hasn't gotten back to me yet. I'm currently looking at putting in a full solar panel install on my house from another vendor. These panels are specced with Enphase IQ8 microinverters which are "grid forming", meaning the panels can run when the power is out.

Ford says you can buy the Home Integration System from SunRun and have another vendor put it in but they recommend SunRun because they "know the system inside and out". I am no worried that my solar vendor doesn't know what it's doing, but I am worried about whether the panels and panel inverters I have put in will work with the SunRun Home Integration System.

Can the panels operate the home when the power is down? According to this, Ford can't guarantee that the panels can operate the home while the HIS is feeding power from the truck. I am wondering this means tat the panels need to have grid-forming microinverters (as no panels can operate off-grid without them), or if it needs something extra special from SunRun.

Does anyone have an actual SunRun bid w/ panel installation on the table that specs the components that they want to pair with the HIS?

 

[Okchamali]

Not knowing the specs of your future install, but using mine as an example, it should run on solar when the grid is down. Mine has done that quite a few times already in the past few months. I only knew the grid was down because of neighbors asking about my setup because their power was off.
My solar goes from IQ microinverters to an IQ combiner box that is installed between my meter and my home. The batteries are also routed to the combiner. It’s what controls power to and from the batteries and controls where the power is coming from, whether it’s the grid, solar or batteries to my home. I believe it’s only one source at a time to my home (grid, solar, or battery). The combiner box can be called an automatic switch because that’s what disconnects the solar from the grid in case the grid is down. If the grid does go down, I still get power from solar or the batteries.
Your solar installer should be able to clarify what they are installing and how it’ll work for you based on their bid for your system.
The home integration hardware has been posted on here but I’m not installing it because I already have a battery system in place. I do remember seeing hardware in the kit being similar to what I have installed already. If SunRun is as responsive as they are to me, I’d show your installer the hardware kit and get their thoughts instead.

 

[kazyovka]

So how bone-headed would I be to install solar from another vendor before I know what SunRun requires?

It'll probably integrate just great, but what could in theory go wrong?

 

[208]

So how bone-headed would I be to install solar from another vendor before I know what SunRun requires?

It'll probably integrate just great, but what could in theory go wrong?

Sunrun will install a grid tie inverter that is also a grid creating inverter to power your home that pulls off of the lightning pack (and solar panels). If you install a system from another merchant, the chances of those two working together are extremely slim. My bet is that you would end up having to replace part of your equipment, and spend a lot of extra money to get it converted over.

 

[Okchamali]

My installer said I could connect another power source like a Lightning or a wind mill to my system because of the combiner I have installed. It’s what’s tying everything together to power my home and is the go between between my home, the solar panels, the batteries and the grid. You may not need all of the home integration kit if you have solar and battery already, but may need parts of the integration kit depending on what you have installed. I’d check with your installer and see what they think.

AEE Express- The online store of AEE Solar, wholesale distributor of solar products and equipment - Sunrun Home Integration System (required to enable Ford Intelligent Backup Power)

<img alt= class=wp-image-4147 height=38 loading=lazy sizes=(max-width: 194px) 100vw, 194px src=https://www.aeesolar.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Sunrun-Logo-Dark-Blue-1024x206.png srcset=https://www.aeesolar.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Sunrun-Logo-Dark-Blue-1024x206.png 1024w...

aeeexpress.com

If this is the actual kit, I already have the hardware installed because I’m running solar and a battery backup. It works great, as it has already seamlessly provided my power when the grid was down during the day and provides my power in the evening when the panels aren’t producing any power.

 

[208]

I design and install solar and backup systems for a living. All solar systems with battery backup (or off-grid) use a battery system. The Lightning can replace the battery pack in such a system, but! All such systems require a "grid creating" inverter to convert the DC power in your batteries to the AC power that runs your house.

None of the inverters in these systems are "interchangeable" with other brands. If I build an SMA system, I cannot just "insert" SolarEdge parts. Every one of these systems is highly proprietary. I get paid well to design systems, because in the end it is my responsibility that all components properly "talk" to each other.

I do not work for SunRun, but I can tell you with great confidence that you will not be able to just "plug in" an inverter from SunRun into a Solar Edge or SMA system (the two I primarily install).