Houston, Texas
Home Battery Backup in Houston
Two storms in 2024 left Houston homes dark for up to 11 days. A battery carries chosen circuits; your retail plan decides what exported power earns.
Beryl: 2.1M+ out, 11 days to restore · May 2024 derecho: 858,271 out, 7 days · buyback set by your retail plan.
The short answer
Houston's outage risk is long storm restorations. CenterPoint's after-action report puts Hurricane Beryl at more than 2.1 million customers out and 11 days to restore, less than two months after a derecho that took 7 days.
A battery's first job here is carrying the circuits you choose through a multi-day outage. What it earns on the grid depends on your retail electric provider: the PUCT says buyback is part of your plan contract, usually below the retail price, and Texas offers no state solar rebate.
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What the 2024 storms did to Houston's grid
From CenterPoint's Hurricane Beryl after-action report.
Hurricane Beryl: 11 days
Beryl made landfall on July 8, 2024. More than 2.1 million CenterPoint customers lost power, and restoration took 11 days. After 8 days, about 78,000 customers were still without power.
The May 2024 derecho
Less than two months earlier, the May 16 derecho put 858,271 customers out at its peak and took 7 days to restore. The after-action report says the two storms came in close succession.
Trees and rear-lot lines
Vegetation caused half of Beryl's circuit outages, particularly on lines running behind houses. More than 75% of overhead distribution circuits locked out.
How a battery fits Houston's market
Utility, retail provider, buyback and backup circuits.
Wires company, retail provider
CenterPoint owns the poles and wires and restores outages. You buy electricity from a retail electric provider. The after-action report calls this structure a communication barrier during storms.
Buyback is in your plan
The PUCT says the rate you are paid for power sent to the grid is part of your contract with your retail provider, and usually lower than the retail price. In Houston you can shop for a plan with a buyback rate.
No state rebate
The PUCT says the State of Texas does not offer grants or rebates for solar panels. A solar system does qualify for a property tax exemption under Texas Tax Code 11.27.
Choose the circuits that matter
Refrigeration, fans or a mini-split, internet, lights, well or sump pumps and medical devices. A critical load panel decides what the battery carries in a multi-day outage.
Houston next to Detroit
In Detroit, one regulated utility, DTE, both sells and delivers power, pays automatic credits for long outages, and does not allow battery export under its solar tariff. In Houston, CenterPoint delivers power and your retail provider sets the price and any buyback.
Houston also has a water page: Houston water quality.
Where these figures come from
Everything on this page traces to CenterPoint's after-action report and the Public Utility Commission of Texas.
- CenterPoint Energy — Hurricane Beryl After-Action Final Report (PA Consulting, October 25, 2024, PDF) — Beryl and derecho outage counts, restoration times, vegetation damage and the retail provider structure.
- Public Utility Commission of Texas — Thinking About Solar Panels for Your Home? — buyback rates, state grants and rebates, the property tax exemption and system registration.
What a home battery job with us covers
Installation of storage and the backup circuits behind it, with the siting and utility paperwork handled.
Battery installation
Wall or floor-mounted storage installed to the listing and to the residential code sections that govern where it may go.
Backup and critical load panel
Deciding and wiring which circuits stay live, and which must never be on backup — the choice that defines what an outage feels like.
Integration with existing PV solar
Connecting storage to an array that is already on the roof, including whether the existing inverter supports it.
Transfer switch and disconnection
The equipment that separates the house from the grid during an outage, which is what makes backup legal as well as possible.
Siting to code
Location, clearances, separation and impact protection assessed against the adopted code before anything is mounted.
Permit, inspection and utility approval
The electrical permit, the inspection, and the utility's own approval step where storage touches the service.
This is installation work. No runtime, capacity or incentive figure is quoted before your loads and your utility are confirmed. Coverage is confirmed per service area rather than promised as blanket availability.
What the work actually looks like
A battery job is an electrical job. The panel, the circuits and the disconnection are most of it.
Battery backup in Houston, answered plainly
Who is the electric utility in Houston?+
CenterPoint Energy Houston Electric delivers power and restores outages. You buy your electricity from a retail electric provider you choose, which sets your price and any solar buyback rate.
How long were Houston outages after Hurricane Beryl?+
CenterPoint's after-action report says restoration took 11 days. More than 2.1 million customers lost power, and about 78,000 were still out after 8 days.
Will my retail provider pay me for battery or solar power I send to the grid?+
Only if your plan includes it. The PUCT says the buyback rate is part of your contract with your electric provider and is usually lower than what you pay. Ask a provider for its buyback terms before choosing a plan.
Does Texas offer a rebate for solar or batteries?+
The PUCT says the State of Texas does not offer grants or rebates for installing solar panels. Texas Tax Code 11.27 covers a property tax exemption for solar.
Who do I register a battery or solar system with?+
The PUCT says the homeowner or installer must register the system with the local utility, the company that manages poles and wires. In Houston that is CenterPoint.
How long will a battery run my house?+
It depends on capacity and which circuits you put on it. After an 11-day restoration, recharge from solar matters as much as capacity, so we don't quote a runtime before seeing the panel.
Who installs it, and who is responsible afterwards?+
Seamless Home is the licensed contractor of record on the work it runs. Installation is performed by vetted installing partners engaged as our subcontractors, so the permit, the inspection and any correction notice carry one name. Coverage is confirmed per service area rather than promised as blanket availability.
Related resources
Home battery backup
The national service page behind this one.
Learn more →Home battery backup in Detroit, MI
DTE's automatic outage credits and battery export rule.
Learn more →Home battery backup in Virginia Beach, VA
Another coastal city where multi-day outages make recharge the design question.
Learn more →Houston water quality
Two rivers, deep wells and chloramine.
Learn more →All home services
Water, battery, HVAC and solar under one licensed contractor of record.
Learn more →Get a free battery estimate
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