Our Story
Utility companies can raise the price any time they want because they have a monopoly.
A conventional solar installation, on- or off-grid, costs an arm and a leg and only works for homeowners who can afford the upfront costs.
We believe there’s a middle ground where everyone can start saving with solar power without shelling out $30k+.
JustPlug’s founders, Bert and Ling, moved to sunny Caliente, CA, in the beautiful Sierra Mountains and quickly realized the solar yield from their second-hand (and rather dusty) solar panels on top of their motorhome (a fat lil' converted bus) went through the roof.
Meanwhile, they couldn’t get the power company to pick up the phone to tell them what they needed to do to hook up electricity for the new house they were planning. “That’s stupid. Let’s do it our way, cos we can.”
Chilling in their pad with air conditioning powered by free electricity from the sun, Ling saw on Nextdoor that the local utility company raised the electricity rates, and people in the neighborhood were getting bills almost double what they used to pay — during a hot summer when AC wasn’t quite an option in the 90+-degree weather. “Something isn’t right in this picture.”
“What if people can just run their AC units on solar during the day when the sun is out, and the electricity rates are the highest? We don’t need expensive batteries for that setup — the cost can be significantly lower than any whole-house solar installation,” Ling wondered out loud while sitting on their makeshift porch (aka two plastic Adirondack chairs) with a mouthful of popcorn.
Bert, who installed the solar system in their motorhome and is a battery nerd with 30 patents under his belt, says, “can be done.” He whipped out his crayon, dug out parts from his stash, and fired up the 3-D printer (powered by solar, of course)… the first JustPlug Box+Panel™️ became a reality.