With more extreme winter storms expected due to climate change, there have been calls for clearer guidelines to allow householders to use electricity from solar panels and batteries when they lose their mains power.
Many homeowners say they were told it would be against regulation.
But Safe Electric and the Sustainable Energy Authority Of Ireland now say it is allowed if done properly.
Colman O'Sullivan speaks to a homeowner who has experienced losing mains power during powerful storms.
Clifford John has solar panels and a domestic battery for storing power in his house in Galway.
They save a lot of money on his electricity bill.
He also invested hoping they would see him through the power cuts that are not unusual in his part of east Galway.
Having power in his home circuit would mean he could run his oil-fired central heating, essential during winter with an elderly relative sharing the home, but not possible when running appliances from an extension lead connected to a generator.
When he asked installers to set up his solar panels as a back up power source, he was told that it was against the rules. "Every one of the installers..that I had do quotes for the house for the solar told me that, no, it's against SEAI rules. We can't do that. So once there's an automatic switch, and when the power goes out from the grid, so do your panels go out and they're nonfunctional," he said.
When Storm Darragh hit in December 2024 and Clifford's home lost the mains supply, he managed to cope: "I was able to get by with the batteries, turning them on and off, for three days in order to keep heat and whatnot. And so that worked out okay. At the end of three days, power came back on."
A few months later Storm Éowyn hit and Clifford says that it was a different story.
"That lasted seven days. So, after three days, we had no electricity. It was, of course, really cold. It was middle of winter, and you know, we didn't have much cell coverage then, which we needed Wi-Fi for that. So, at that point in time, I said: 'Look, I got to do something’."
The problem that Clifford and many other householders faced was that safety concerns led many electricians to believe that setting up solar panels and/or batteries to provide power when the grid supply fails would be against the wiring regulations.
Protecting life is the overriding priority and if there is any power source in the home that could feed back into the grid it could endanger a line worker outside the house who is trying to restore the mains supply.
An isolation or island switch which cuts the house off from the grid addresses that issue, but it must also be clear to firefighters when they go into a house if there is any electricity in the building. They must know before they go about their work, which can include spraying water and other liquids. While the isolation switch is essential, it is not the only safety measure required.
Safe Electric is the body responsible for the wiring regulations in Ireland.
In response to a query from RTÉ News, it issued a statement saying the off-grid backup systems can be installed as long as it is done safely by a registered contractor.
"The National Rules for Electrical Installations (I.S. 10101) does not explicitly restrict back-up supplies, such as from solar PV battery systems and electric vehicles, to an electrical installation in the event of an ESB power outage. However, it is essential that these back-up systems are installed in accordance with I.S. 10101 in its entirety."
It added that the Registered Electrical Contractor or REC has to design the system to make sure it is safe: "Because of the complexity of these systems and the widely varying condition and compliance of existing electrical installations, particularly older ones, each installation must be surveyed on a case-by-case basis and a solution designed for the particular circumstances."
The SEAI did pause some grant payments for home energy upgrades earlier this year because of concerns over the safety of off-grid installations, but it says it is now satisfied these can be done properly within regulations and grants are being paid once installations are done safely.
President of the Association of Electrical Contractors in Ireland ( AECI) Darren Kinsella says there has been some confusion amongst its members.
"They have questions around the changeover switches, can it be done? Can it not be done? So, we're working with them, trying to get the explanations to them, and trying to guide them where the training can be offered. But I think the training, most of the training, has to be sought out by the contractors themselves."
'There was a lot of turmoil'
Peter Russell is a Director of Sigenergy, a company providing devices called gateways which automatically and seamlessly switch over to solar, battery or generator power when the main supply to a building fails.
He says they have sold thousands of devices around Ireland, although demand did falter until the confusion over the regulations was cleared up.
"I think it's clear everybody can move forward. But there's still a little bit of unsurety there in the market from the homeowners point of view, and from the installers point of view, because of Facebook groups, of other groups that people engaged on where in previous months, or in past months, maybe six months ago, there was a lot of turmoil."
He says his company provides training to contractors who want to install of its gateways but adds more clarity on what is permitted would help.
"I definitely think maybe the CRU (Commission for the Regulation of Utilities) or one of the departments, needs to step up and make a clear announcement about these devices or about the wiring regulations around the devices, so everybody's on the same page."
Clifford John used the information he gathered through his own research to convince a contractor to install a changeover switch and safety circuits in his home this summer.
Now when his mains supply goes off, he can use power from his solar panels and his battery, and he has a connection mounted on an exterior wall for a petrol generator.
He said the set-up cost of €3,000 "was not in the budget for me to go spend that money. But there was no way that we were going to go through another power outage of that type and not have heat and electricity. So, you know, we made the decision to spend the money and go do that".
The cost of installing an off grid set up can vary widely because the installation must be tailored to work safely with circuits in the house which may need upgrading.
The Climate Change Advisory Council has called for batteries and changeover switches to be included in the Solar PV for the Medically Vulnerable Scheme.
It provides free solar panels for household which include an individual who is "dependent on equipment, including life-protecting devices, assistive technologies to support independent living and medical equipment, or where an individual is particularly vulnerable to disconnection during the winter months for reasons of advanced age or physical, sensory, intellectual or mental health".
It is also calling for more clarity on off-grid systems saying the Department of Climate, Energy and Environment and the SEAI "should prioritise the development and provision of wider support, guidance and standards for batteries and changeover switches to increase customer resilience during extreme weather events".
