New Jersey legalizes plug-in solar panels that could trim up to $50 from monthly

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• Zer0_F0x@lemmy.world ⁨23⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

  How was it illegal before…?

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  • brandon@piefed.social ⁨20⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

    Some of it is probably cynical lobbying from the utilities, but there are legitimate safety concerns with these plug in panel systems, especially if your home has older wiring. If you don’t plug the panels into a dedicated circuit you can end up in a situation where the wires in the wall are passing more current than they are designed for, which is a fire hazard.

    Panels that also put power back onto the grid when there is a power outage can also be a hazard for utility workers and linesmen. Reputable plugin systems should have protection against this, but alibaba/temu tier systems may not.

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    • huquad@lemmy.ml ⁨20⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

      This is it right here. Firefighters also have to deal with hot voltage. When responding to a house fire, protocol is to kill the power. That works for external, but solar panels will keep the lines hot. Many standard solar deployments include shutoffs right alongside the main breaker shutoff.

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    • pticrix@lemmy.ca ⁨12⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

      wait - I’m assuming what you say is true ; so shouldn’t electronics that feed electricity to the box have a different plug than things that leech electricity from the box? Just so you can confirm that the circuit is dedicated and also recently built?

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  • winkerjadams@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨23⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

    Cause this is the land of freedom /s

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    • Kind_to_Everyone@slrpnk.net ⁨7⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

      Or maybe because fire codes were written due to all the deaths.

      Now with safe shutoffs and requirements for dedicated circuits, we can allow it.

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