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The benefits could be fairly immediate in delivering lower power bills for some households.
Photo Credit: iStock
Balcony solar has been a common sight in parts of Europe for years, but the technology may finally be finding a clearer path forward in the United States.
A newly certified plug-in microinverter may make those small home solar setups easier for both renters and homeowners to use, as Electrek detailed.
Hoymiles’ new HiFlow Pro is the first microinverter in the U.S. to be certified under UL 3700, a North American safety standard written specifically for plug-in solar systems.
“By introducing the first UL 3700-compliant plug-in microinverter in the U.S., we’re not only launching a new product — we’re helping establish a new benchmark for residential solar that combines simplicity, safety, and high performance,” Hoymiles CEO Dr. Yang Bo said, per Electrek.
Its debut comes as a policy shift unfolds with eight states having already approved plug-in balcony solar, and others weighing comparable steps.
A typical plug-in setup uses portable solar panels that feed a microinverter, which then connects to an ordinary household outlet.
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Plug-in solar has remained legally unsettled in many parts of the country. Existing regulations were largely written for much larger rooftop installations, not smaller systems meant for balconies, patios, or other compact outdoor spaces.
UL 3700 was officially published last December to help address that gap. The legislative push is widespread. 
Electrek said nearly 30 states have introduced plug-in solar bills. By this month, Utah, Maine, Virginia, Maryland, Colorado, Connecticut, Vermont, and New Hampshire had all enacted such laws, while a New York bill was still awaiting the governor’s signature.
For many people like renters and apartment residents, traditional rooftop solar is simply out of reach.
Instead, balcony solar can provide a lower-cost, smaller-scale way to produce some power at home without a major installation.
Because these systems send power into a home through an outlet, they need anti-backfeed protections during outages so utility workers aren’t put at risk.
If more states move to allow these systems, the benefits could be fairly immediate in delivering lower power bills for some households and broader access to cleaner energy.
While a balcony setup is unlikely to power an entire home, Electrek noted it can still help offset day-to-day electricity use while reducing reliance on dirty energy sources that contribute to pollution and unhealthy air.
If your state allows plug-in solar, products like the HiFlow Pro could make getting started much simpler. Hoymiles said users can pair it over Bluetooth and Wi-Fi in under a minute, adding to the plug-and-play appeal that has helped balcony solar gain traction overseas.
Electrek described the 4-pound microinverter as designed for residential balcony systems, using maximum power point tracking to improve energy collection as sun and weather conditions shift. Hoymiles lists static MPPT efficiency at 99.8% and dynamic efficiency at 99.5%. 
One 360-watt unit is rated for up to 721.08 kilowatt-hours a year, and as many as four can operate in parallel on separate outlets for 1,200 watts total and 2,403 kilowatt-hours annually, subject to local rules.
If you can’t install rooftop solar for whatever reason, that could be a great starting point for generating your own clean energy.
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