Dive Brief:

• A study by Enphase, a maker of microinverters, finds that the markets for residential batteries for backup power may not be as robust as some may have expected, according to Greentech Media.

• The Enphase study, conducted by Phoenix Marketing International, found that 20% of respondents already have a backup power system and that of the remaining homeowners, 50% said they are interested in backup generation.

• Looking more deeply at the data, though, Enphase found that batteries fit the needs of only about 2% of customers surveyed.

Dive Insight:

There was a lot of fanfare when Tesla Motors in April 2015 unveiled its Powerwall battery systems for residential use. There was quite a bit less fanfare this March when the company quietly discontinued its 10-kWh battery that was marketed as a residential backup device.

The rationale behind that move gained credence in the Enphase report.

The Enphase report surveyed 566 homeowners in California, Hawaii, Massachusetts and New York who either have solar systems or in the market to buy a solar power system.

The study found that homeowners are interested in backup power, but most respondents want backup systems that can supply power for multiple days, and they want to pay less than $10,000 for the system. In other words, most customers interested in backup power systems are interested in generators.

"It became abundantly clear that a battery isn’t the right solution for backup," Brian Korgaonkar, principal of the new energy solutions group at Enphase, told Greentech Media.

The Enphase study also found that even customers concerned about the environment are just as likely to purchase portable, standby generators as other customers. “When it comes to backup power, practicality trumps image, even amongst green-minded customers,” Korgaonkar said.

As a result, many battery companies tout the other features of their residential devices, such as their ability to store power from a rooftop solar array and sell electricity back into the grid.

Tesla, for one, teamed up with solar installer Sunrun to offer a solar-plus-storage system for Hawaii's self-supply incentive, though that net metering alternative has proved less popular than one that still allows consumers to sell power back to the grid.