Your Enphase-certified installer most likely designed your Enphase Energy System to meet your home’s electricity demands at the time. Or, if you moved into a home with solar already installed, then that system was designed to meet the needs of the people who lived there before. But things change—your needs may be different, or they may evolve as your family grows or your lifestyle changes. Not to worry—expansions and upgrades are simple.

Enphase designed IQ Microinverters in a way that allows easy addition of more panels to your system if you want to harness more solar energy to save more money and increase your independence from the grid. And while adding panels isn't quite as simple as plug-and-play, it’s not far off. So if you find your electricity needs have changed and you have enough roof or ground space, you can add more IQ Microinverter-equipped panels to your system to generate more power to meet your needs.

As you did with your original system, you can work with your Enphase-certified installer to calculate your energy needs now and in the future—when that new EV shows up in the driveway, for instance. Based on available roof or ground space, your installer can spec out the appropriate number of panels to add to accommodate as much of the future load as possible.

Sometimes expanding your solar energy system is as simple as adding more panels. But if you live in a state with net energy metering, things can be a bit more complicated, especially if you’re in California and you’re under the more generous NEM 1.0 or 2.0 programs. The good news is that with Enphase technology, you can expand your system and stay grandfathered in either of those two programs. That gives you the best of both worlds—more solar power without losing your valuable NEM 1.0 or 2.0 benefits.

Learn more about expanding NEM 1.0 or 2.0 systems here.

The way it works is that, if you want to add more than a couple of new panels to your roof, you essentially add a separate new system to your home. The original system remains under the energy exporting rules and rates of NEM 1.0 or 2.0. The new system would be non-exporting and used to power your home, because you can’t fall under two different NEM plans. However, you can still combine the power generation of both systems to power high-load uses like EV charging with renewable energy from your panels instead of the grid. And you can export all of the energy generated by your old system to maximize your NEM credits when you don’t need the extra power. To give your system new capabilities, you can also add batteries or an EV charger as part of your system expansion.

Regardless of whether your state is under NEM, your new system should be eligible for the full 30% federal tax credit (assuming your tax burden is sufficient, but consult with your CPA to confirm) and any other state, local, and utility incentives available.

If you don’t already have an Enphase installer, or your installer has gone out of business since they installed your system, you can find a new Enphase installer here. If you inherited a system with your new house or your installer went out of business, you may also benefit from subscribing to Enphase Care to ensure your system (both existing and new) is covered for any warranty repairs and maintenance it may require.

The process for installing additional panels and/or batteries is similar to when your original system was first installed. Here’s a quick overview:

• Your installer will discuss your current and future energy needs, design a system to meet them, and get your approval to move forward. At this time, they’ll discuss with you whether you need to upgrade your main electrical panel, or if Enphase Power Control technology can help you avoid an upgrade.
   
• Your installer will apply for the necessary permits from your local jurisdiction, as well as for interconnection from your utility.
   
• Once the permits and interconnection are approved, your installer can begin the installation process. Depending on the size and complexity of the new system, the installation could take one to four days.
   
• Upon completion, your local building inspector will check the system to ensure it’s installed properly on your roof and all the electrical work is done to code. If everything looks good, they’ll sign off on the system and provide you and your installer with a signed, completed permit.
   
• Finally, your installer will send a copy of the permit to your utility and request Permission to Operate (PTO) for your system. If you also added batteries and/or an EV charger, they’ll submit paperwork for any relevant state, local, and/or utility rebates.
   
• Once PTO is granted, the installer will activate your system, and if you need it, get you onboarded and up to speed on how to optimize all that new energy you’re producing.