Hardware / Installation

Base offers a 20-50 kWh battery/batteries and an 11 kW inverter, making it one of the largest home backup systems on the market. Base’s batteries have a longer duration and can back up more appliances in your home than almost any other home backup solution.

Base batteries are designed to last up to 15 years and withstand extreme temperatures. Base owns the battery and will manage the warranty and any necessary maintenance on the system.

Here are links to the specs: Battery, Hub, Inverter.

The battery is placed outside your house. We have 3 battery configurations:

1. Wall-mounted battery (20 kWh): 58.5" tall x 27.17" wide.
2. Ground-mounted battery (25 kWh): (1) 4' tall cube with a 3'x3' base.
3. Two ground mounted batteries (50 kWh): (2) 4' tall cubes with 3'x3' bases, 3' apart from each other.

The installation will be an all-day effort, starting as early as 8 a.m. and ending as late as 6 p.m.

The logistics team will drop off a pallet of materials first, and then the installation crew will begin work between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. There will be a 1- to 2-hour window when power will be disconnected to configure backup functionality.

If your main panel is in your garage, you will need to be home during the installation.

Base’s logistics team will return later in the day or the next morning to pick up any remaining equipment and boxes.

After the installation, please login to your Base Dashboard and input your Wi-Fi network name and password (the battery requires a permanent connection).

Simply put, in a longer outage, if you reduce your usage to the fridge/freezer, lights, and a few hours of A/C per day, you’ll get around one day of backup with a single battery and up to 3+ days of backup with two batteries. If you stick to average power usage, it’ll be closer to ~12 hours with a single battery and ~24 hours with two. If you don’t reduce A/C, electric heaters, or any other power-hungry appliances, it could only provide a few hours of backup. Generation sources like solar or generators only help to extend the duration.

The backup duration of Base batteries depends on four main factors:

How much power you use: Higher usage shortens backup time, while reducing power usage extends it. This is the most impactful factor.
Battery charge when the outage starts: The backup duration is directly tied to how charged the batteries are.
How many batteries you have: This determines your total available energy. Most customers will get one battery (20-25 kWh), though some may qualify for two batteries (50 kWh).
Generation sources: Base batteries can integrate with solar panels and/or generators, increasing the duration in an outage.

Consider the following power usage scenarios:

Low usage (500 W): In more critical, longer-duration outages, most homes can reduce usage to ~300 W by running just the fridge and a few lights. For example, average power usage over 24 hours, with a baseline of fridge & freezer (150 W), lights (30 W), plus a few hours of A/C use (2 * 1500 W / 24 = ~125 W in a day), totals around 300 W of average usage.

Average usage (1.5 kW): The average Texas home uses ~1100 kWh per month. This equates to some A/C to maintain tolerable temperatures, along with typical lights, fridge, pool pump, washer/dryer, and other appliance usage.

High usage (8 kW): By running 1-2 A/C units on a hot July day or an electric heater on a cold winter day, you can pull 8+ kW continuously. This type of usage will quickly drain the battery. While most outages last only a few hours, and few occur during summer, it’s important to understand that batteries aren’t built large enough to sustainably run these types of loads.

The battery should automatically kick in within a half-second of an outage. No action is required from you!

Base offers whole-home backup, covering all the appliances on your main panel, including your A/C. The more energy you consume during an outage, however, the shorter the backup will last.

Some members with high energy consumption levels may require a soft-start installation on their A/C. Base will let you know if you need a soft-start, and Base’s HVAC partner will reach out to schedule this part of your installation. There are no additional charges for this service.

Soft-starts are necessary to ensure that the whole home is backed up during an outage by reducing the initial power surge, preventing the battery from overloading.

• Base's hardware is UL certified, the “gold standard” of electrical systems safety for all home appliances, and is also fire safety rated. 
• Base contracts certified, bonded, insured, and licensed electricians. They work under Base’s master electrician, who operates with license #476697. 
• Base also has comprehensive general liability insurance to address any unforeseen incidents. In the unlikely event of a problem, we're prepared to work with you to handle it responsibly. Additionally, Base is in charge of warranty and maintenance.

Base offers a no-noise, no-pollution, and no-hassle complement to generators. Base automatically switches on when the grid fails, providing free outage protection for short disruptions in the grid.

Base can integrate with plug-in portable generator configurations. All you need is an interlock on your main panel. However, Base cannot integrate with more permanent generators like Generac.