Redditor's solar+backup wishlist: three brands deliver — SkimNews
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- Reddit user MickFlaherty asked r/solar for a home solar + battery system that auto-switches during outages, accepts generator input, and intelligently manages solar and grid power — ending with 'sorry for length of this but just trying to figure out what's really possible.'
- FranklinWH's aGate and aPower S system handles every scenario in the Reddit post, with the aGate controller auto-switching the home to battery power when it detects grid failure and managing generators through relay-based switching.
- FranklinWH's aPower S can charge from solar and a generator simultaneously — a capability Vice President of Product Ronnie Pettersson said most competitors lack — which can cut generator runtime in half depending on home size, with default battery thresholds of 20% and 80% controlling standby generator start/stop.
- Reddit user arcnsparks98, who has installed both systems, confirmed that Enphase and FranklinWH operate as MickFlaherty described, with app-controlled discharge levels that tell the generator when to kick in.
- Reddit user Head_Mycologist3917 shared that a Sol-Ark-based system also meets the requirements, adding that their solar installer's salesperson incorrectly told them it wouldn't function without a large whole-house generator.
- FranklinWH's system supports the reserve function MickFlaherty asked about: during normal operation the battery powers the home and pulls from the grid once it drops below a homeowner-set reserve (20% by default), with an app notification alerting homeowners as the threshold approaches.
- Electrek framed the article as an expert consultation but disclosed income-earning affiliate links to EnergySage at the bottom, while prominently featuring a FranklinWH executive's email response as the primary expert source.
Why it matters: Homeowners researching backup power may be overcomplicating what is now a standard capability: automatic grid failover, app-controlled battery reserves, and simultaneous solar-plus-generator charging are available across multiple mainstream battery platforms from FranklinWH, Enphase, and Sol-Ark. The practical takeaway is that the Redditor's 'complex' wishlist maps onto existing off-the-shelf products — not custom engineering — and that reading the manual beats trusting an installer's salesperson.
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