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“They will be in a shed at least 10′ away from the house.”
Photo Credit: Reddit
The owner of a 46-kilowatt solar array plans to give old Nissan Leaf battery packs a second life by using them to store energy from an expansive home solar installation.
Tower-mounted panels make up part of the installation, which uses three Solis inverters rated at 11.4 kilowatts each. The owner shared photos of the setup in Reddit’s r/SolarDIY community. 
Energy storage remains a planned addition rather than an operating part of the project, as the owner clarified in an edit. “No battery yet. I do have 6 old Nissan Leaf packs I’m going to use. (probably about 1/2 of their original capacity) They will be in a shed at least 10′ away from the house,” they explained.
For households considering solar, $0-upfront leases may offer electricity savings of hundreds of dollars per month, depending on the home and arrangement. EasyHome offers a free explorer tool to help estimate potential savings and find vetted local installers.
Seven panels were added to the tower’s front after the third photo was taken, which shows the tower’s top before the addition. Solar costs over the years and further system details are covered in another Reddit post that the owner pointed readers toward. The packs’ remaining capacity will help determine how much energy they can store.
For readers exploring storage for their own homes, EasyHome also provides battery-storage exploration options. Pairing solar with suitable batteries can help households manage electricity costs and provide backup power during outages, depending on the system’s design.
Adding batteries to a large solar array means thinking through storage capacity and inverter sizing. These stories follow homeowners weighing DIY storage budgets, panel-to-battery balance, and equipment upgrades.
• A homeowner considering off-grid solar heard a 100-kWh DIY setup could cost $30,000.
With energy prices through the roof, there’s never been a better time to go solar — and EasyHome can help you find the best prices from the best installers in your area.
EasyHome takes the guesswork and headaches out of energy upgrades by showing you estimated savings from a network of vetted local partners. To get started, just enter your ZIP and share a few details about your home — seeing your estimate is really that easy.
• An off-grid homeowner’s 30-kWh AGM battery bank prompted warnings about an undersized 2.8-kW solar array.
• A homeowner planning two Tesla Powerwalls faced criticism over a small 4.2-kW solar array.
• A U.K. homeowner chose 37 solar panels, then faced conflicting advice about battery sizing.
• A U.K. buyer adding a third battery questioned whether a larger inverter was worthwhile.
Get TCD’s free newsletters for easy tips, smart advice, and a chance to earn $5,000 toward home upgrades. To see more stories like this one, change your Google preferences here.
© 2025 THE COOL DOWN COMPANY. All Rights Reserved. Do not sell or share my personal information. Reach us at hello@thecooldown.com.

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