Guides

Portable power stations: how to choose one that really lasts

Usable capacity, inverter draw, battery chemistry and cost per stored kWh explained with measured data.

Balcony solar: how much it really produces and what is allowed

Yield by orientation and mounting, shading, the 800 W rule and registration in the UK, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France and Belgium.

Home and balcony batteries: when they pay off and how to compare them

Own use with and without a battery, payback, efficiency beyond the data sheet, ageing and safe placement.

Are plug in batteries legal where you live? Country by country

Panels up to 800 VA are accepted in most of Europe. Batteries are a grey zone almost everywhere. What is confirmed, what is not, as of 8 November 2026.

Power station or balcony battery: which one fits your situation?

Two products that look alike and do different jobs. How they differ in use, legality, efficiency and price per stored kWh.

Battery prices in 2027: what the Chinese export rebate change means

China is ending the export VAT rebate on batteries on 1 January 2027. What is documented, what is only expected, and how to decide without pressure.

How fast do home batteries lose capacity? What eight years of field data show

A 2024 study in Nature Energy followed 21 home batteries for up to eight years. What it found and what it means for the cycle figures on the box.

800 VA, 960 Wp or 2,000 Wp? The German law and the German standard do not say the same thing

German law allows 2,000 Wp of panels behind an 800 VA inverter. The new product standard accepts that only with a special plug. What this means in practice.

Price per stored kWh: the number that compares batteries fairly

Price per watt hour ignores cycles, aging and losses. How we calculate the cost of each kWh a battery delivers over its life, with a worked example.

LFP or NMC: which battery chemistry is safer at home?

Lithium iron phosphate and nickel manganese cobalt cells behave differently in a fire. What a 2024 study measured, and where to place a battery either way.

New EU rules for batteries and connected devices: what changes for buyers in 2026 and 2027

The Battery Regulation brings QR codes and battery passports from February 2027. The Cyber Resilience Act covers devices with an app. What is certain and what is still our reading.

Plug in solar in Great Britain: the rules since 27 August 2026

What the new route allows, what it excludes, how to register within 28 days, and why batteries are left out until at least 2028.

Balcony solar in a rented flat or a shared building in Germany

Since October 2024, landlords and owners' associations in Germany can no longer refuse a balcony system without good reason. What that means and how to ask.

Declaring a plug in solar kit in France and Belgium

In France every kit is declared to Enedis, even without feed in. In Belgium the inverter must be on the Synergrid list and each region has its own rule.

Balcony solar in Switzerland: why 600 W still applies

Switzerland still follows the 2014 ESTI rule of 600 W per circuit. A federal report of February 2026 proposes new categories that include small batteries.

How big a power station do you need for a power cut?

List what must keep running, add up watt hours, allow for losses, and check the output power. A simple method with a worked example.

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