Outages are getting longer and more frequent: an aging grid, more extreme weather, take your pick of cause. Backup power is the piece that turns everything else in this newsletter into an actual system. A well-insulated, electrified home needs a fraction of the backup capacity that a leaky, all-gas one does. If you read our insulation and air-sealing issue, this is the payoff: efficiency work isn't just a lower bill, it's a smaller, cheaper backup system.The options ladder (cheapest and simplest to most capable and expensive)

Sizing. Specifically, starting watts, not running watts, for anything with a motor: fridge, well pump, AC or heat pump compressor, sump pump. Starting draw can run 2 to 3 times running draw, and that gap is where undersized systems fail.

Before you price anything, decide the philosophy. "Keep the essentials alive" (fridge, some lights, wifi, well or sump pump, one HVAC zone) costs far less than "run the whole house." And this is the direct payoff from efficiency work: tightening the envelope shrinks HVAC starting and running load, which is the highest-leverage way to downsize a battery or generator purchase. Insulate first, then size backup power. Same sequencing logic as everything else in this newsletter.

For standby generators and batteries, get a real load calculation from the installer, one that lists every circuit. A rule of thumb is not a load calculation.

Never backfeed a generator into a wall outlet. It's illegal, it can electrocute utility workers repairing the line, and it voids insurance. Only a listed transfer switch, manual interlock or automatic, is acceptable. Standby generators and battery systems require a permit and inspection in virtually every jurisdiction, and NEC and local utility interconnection rules apply to anything that can feed power back into the grid, especially battery and solar systems.

The federal 25D credit that used to cover 30% of battery storage and solar installations no longer applies. It was eliminated for expenses incurred after December 31, 2025. Before you budget this project, check your state energy office and utility directly: some utilities still offer rebates for grid-interactive batteries enrolled in demand-response programs, and that's often the more durable incentive going forward anyway.

If your lights dim briefly every time the fridge compressor kicks on, that's starting watts showing themselves in real time. Whatever number you had in mind for your backup system, that flicker is a hint it needs to be bigger than you think.

Your home is the most complex object you will ever own. We treat it that way. [Subscribe] or forward to a friend.

Harvesting our own energy is not only resiliency planning, but also sustainable. We current transport the majority of our power through networks called transmission lines. Above ground lines are a huge contributor to fires, as most of us know. Below ground transmission lines are common in most modern parts of Europe and offer a great potential here in the US. The cost is already being shouldered by power companies for newer, denser projects. It’s something we feel should be advocated for. While Solar is the most common, some companies are looking at harvest hydro power on a community scale, smaller wind turbines, and geo-thermal heat pumps.

Start somewhere. This issue is a lot to throw at you, all the options and choices. And while I would usually recommend patience and sequencing, with the home backup game, technology is constantly changing. First take time to insulate and air-seal as brought up in the last issue. Then go with a system that can be easily added on to or upgraded until full grid independence. There are even companies that will pay for the full installation, maintenance, and upgrades, just pay them for the service monthly like you would a utility company. A smart move until micro community cooperative energy grids.

Smart panels are helping to size down the need for larger systems of storage/backup. Rather than manager loads or knowing when to pull energy, AI is really good a reading our data and developing schematics to run. Another reason owning our own data and deploying it with AI is helping a lot of people. Try something like this. (Not affiliated).