Can you get a home battery without solar in Florida?

• Tesla Powerwall. Tesla says that when Powerwall is installed without solar, it charges from the grid to power your home during outages. Powerwall 3 has a built-in solar inverter and is designed mainly for new solar-plus-storage systems, so ask your installer which setup fits.
• FranklinWH aPower 2. FranklinWH says it can be used with or without solar and switches to battery power automatically when the grid fails.
• Enphase. Enphase's batteries are built to pair with solar, including existing solar from other brands. We couldn't confirm a battery-only setup.

See the best home batteries for Florida.

Only as long as its stored charge. Berkeley Lab found that backup performance depends first and foremost on the battery's size and which loads you back up. With solar, the battery can recharge each day during a long outage; without it, once the battery is empty it stays empty until the grid comes back or a generator recharges it.

After Florida hurricanes, outages can last days. If backup through a long outage is the goal, solar plus a battery, or a battery plus a generator, holds up much better than a battery alone. See solar battery backup for hurricanes and generator vs. solar battery.

Not by much. Most Florida homes pay a flat rate per kWh, so charging the battery at night and using it during the day doesn't save money. FPL offers an optional time-of-use rate, which is where a grid-charged battery could shift some use away from peak hours, but the savings are small next to the battery's cost.

We found no open FPL, Duke Energy Florida or Tampa Electric program that pays homeowners for a battery. Duke's 2026 home battery pilot in Orlando is limited to a set group of homes.

Probably not. Florida's sales tax exemption covers equipment used exclusively in a solar energy system, and the property tax exclusion in s. 193.624 covers devices that collect, store or use solar or other renewable energy. A battery that only stores grid power likely doesn't qualify for either; ask your installer before you buy.

The federal 30% credit for home batteries ended for systems installed after December 31, 2025. See Florida solar incentives.

Very little. Tesla rates the Powerwall 3 at 13.5 kWh with a maximum charge rate of 5 kW, so it can refill from empty in under three hours, enough time to top up when a storm is forecast. Using Tesla's 89% round-trip efficiency rating as a guide, a full charge at our estimated FPL rate of 13.7¢ per kWh costs about $2.08, before taxes and fees.

That's also why a battery without solar saves little on a flat rate: it buys power at the same price it later uses it. Its value is backup.

For a few essentials, sometimes. Portable battery power stations hold far less than an installed home battery and usually connect through a manual transfer switch or extension cords, so they suit a fridge, fans and phones rather than a whole home.

Florida's permanent sales tax exemption for disaster supplies, in effect since August 1, 2025, names portable generators of 10,000 running watts or less. It's not clear that battery power stations count, so ask the retailer before you assume the purchase is tax-free. See generator vs. solar battery.

Usually. FranklinWH and Tesla batteries can work with solar added later, which then lets the battery recharge during outages and qualify the system for Florida's solar tax breaks. If you might add panels, tell the installer now so the battery, inverter and electrical panel are planned for it.

A battery still needs a building permit and must meet Florida Building Code rules on where it can go in a home, with or without solar. See the cost of a home battery in Florida.

For what it would take to leave the grid completely, see off-grid solar in Florida.