Your solar is missing the most important piece.
You already have the solar. Now it’s time to keep more of the power it produces. Battery storage lets you save excess solar during the day, use it during SMUD’s most expensive hours, and keep your home running when the grid goes down.
Where your solar goes today.
Most solar homeowners make the most energy when it’s worth the least, and need power when it’s worth the most.
Without batteries, you send your cheapest daytime solar to the grid, then buy power back during SMUD’s most expensive hours.
How batteries fix it.
Store it when you make it, use it when it’s worth the most. Tap through the steps, or just watch.
When you make power
Your panels make the most power at midday, usually far more than your home is using then.
Why two batteries?
One fills up by early afternoon and runs out mid-evening. Two Powerwalls (about 27 kWh) store a full day of extra solar and run your whole home, AC included, through the 5-8 PM peak. That’s why you need two.
What’s special about 5-8 PM?
It’s when SMUD’s rates are highest, right after your panels stop for the day. So every evening you buy power back at the most expensive time. Your batteries let you skip that, running on solar you already made.
Two Tesla Powerwalls. Basically free.
Watch $29,000 shrink to almost nothing. One stacked incentive at a time.
Retail installed cost Two Tesla Powerwall batteries + backup switch | $29,000 |
Participate Energy lease discount about 30% off the retail price | −$8,700 |
SMUD’s enrollment incentive up to $5,000 per battery | −$10,000 |
Tesla rebate $500 per battery | −$1,000 |
Effective system cost the amount you actually finance | ≈ $9,300 |
Financed over 20 years 6.99% APR, no dealer fees | ≈$80/mo |
SMUD’s quarterly rebate about $220 back every quarter (~$880/yr) | −$73/mo |
Your net cost | ≈ $7/mo |
Enough stored solar to power your home through the entire evening peak.
When the grid does go down,
your home stays on.
SMUD runs one of the most reliable grids in California, but storms, heat waves, and wildfire-season shutoffs still happen. When they do, your two Powerwalls switch on automatically and keep the essentials running. No generator. No switching. No fuel.
What stays on during an outage
Every system covers the essentials below by default. Whole-home backup is available with a larger battery configuration.
Lights
Interior and exterior lights stay on after dark.
Refrigerator & freezer
Keeps a full fridge and freezer cold through a multi-day outage.
Internet & Wi-Fi
Modem, router, and home network stay up, so remote work and devices keep running.
Medical equipment
CPAP machines, oxygen concentrators, refrigerated medications, and other must-run devices.
Home office
Computer, monitor, and Wi-Fi stay up, so an outage doesn’t stop your workday.
Garage door
Your garage opener keeps working, no manual release needed.
Security systems
Cameras, alarms, and door sensors stay armed and recording through the outage.
…and more
Sump pumps, well pumps, phones, and the specific circuits you choose to keep backed up.
Here’s why SMUD wants you to have these.
It isn’t charity, and there’s no catch. Two batteries in your garage quietly help solve a problem SMUD has, so SMUD helps pay for them.
The grid is busiest from 5-8 PM. Everyone gets home, turns on the AC and starts dinner at the same time, right as solar fades for the day. Meeting that evening spike is the most expensive part of running the grid.
Your battery is cheaper than a power plant. Rather than build plants that run only a few hours a day, SMUD leans on a little stored power from thousands of home batteries during the peak. Together they do the job of a plant SMUD never has to build.
You both come out ahead. You get backup power and a near-zero monthly cost. SMUD gets a cheaper, more reliable grid and real progress toward zero-carbon power by 2030, its most ambitious goal yet. The batteries are yours, and you stay in control.
Not a gimmick. A real program that works for both of you.
Lower bills every day. Backup when you need it.
The savings more than cover the cost.
One SMUD program, two payoffs: the savings cover the batteries, and you get backup when the grid goes down. The Tesla rebate ends June 30, 2026.
See if your home qualifies.
Funding is limited and the Tesla rebate ends June 30, 2026. Fill this out, it takes about a minute.