What is blackout protection?

We all know that sinking feeling you get when the lights flicker, then flicker again, and everything turns dark. Your mind turns to the food in your fridge, the low battery status on your phone and “where on earth did I put the torch?” At Plico, we have you covered with blackout protection to keep your humble abode ticking along. 

Support from the get-go 

When you join Plico, you’ll be set up with our cutting-edge blackout protection. But what does that actually mean? Well, when your solar + battery solution is installed, we connect it to a backup circuit. This allows you to generate, store and use energy even when there is a blackout. You can use anything that is connected to the backup circuit, which will draw from your battery or straight from your solar panels if the sun is shining. What is connected to the back-up circuit is up to you. Most often it includes your fridge, lighting, TV and modem.  

The techy stuff 

Our blackout protection is unique. Standard grid-connected solar systems stop operating in the event of a blackout. When the grid goes down, so too does the inverter’s ability to operate. These are called grid-following inverters and need the frequency of the grid to function. 

Plico uses a smart hybrid inverter with DC coupled batteries, which allows the system to operate like an off-grid system in the event of a blackout. Which means you’ll be the envy of your neighbours next time the power goes out!  

Keep it simple 

While it would be great to have the entire house hooked up, the backup circuit is limited to around 3 kW - 5 kW output, depending on the inverter and battery you have. This is usually enough to run lighting and some crucial power point circuits.  

Heavy loads can sometimes overload backup circuit, for example when a number of appliances are running at the same time on a hot day. This is uncommon, however is easily managed with the flick of a switch. 

How Plico members can manage their backup circuit 

When the backup circuit becomes overloaded, it can cause mini blackouts. This is when the inverter shuts down temporarily to protect itself, then boots back up again. The best way to manage this is to bypass it if this option is available. 

If you’re not a Plico member and want to control your own power, day or night, contact us or speak to one of our friendly team members on 1300 175 426. 

If you are a Plico member and looking for instructions on managing your bypass switch, we’ve got you covered: 

Redback systems

There are a series of switches in the inverter – the grey 3-position bypass switch controls the back-up circuit bypass. Your grey switch needs to be in the DOWN position to provide your home with power in a blackout. As default, the grey switch should be kept DOWN. However, if for any reason you need to bypass the backup circuit, you can place the grey switch in the UP position and leave it there. In the event of a grid blackout, you can easily re-engage your backup circuit by switching it to the DOWN position. In either mode the battery behaves normally - discharging every night where there is demand.  

Alpha ESS systems with bypass option

There are a series of switches in your main electrical switchboard - you'll need to find the one labelled as "Change over switch". Sometimes it will have the label as "Aux" (up) and "Grid(down) OR it will have the label as "Backup"(up) and "Mains" (down). During an outage, the switch has to be in the "Aux" or "Backup" position to get the power back to the backup circuit(s). 

Note that some Alpha ESS systems do not have a bypass option - check your Owner's Manual for more information.

Just another feature of the Plico solar + battery solution that gives you back control of your energy.   

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