[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":338},["ShallowReactive",2],{"page-\u002Fguides\u002Fwhats-in-a-kit":3,"author-mike":301},{"id":4,"title":5,"author":6,"bare":7,"body":8,"dateModified":280,"datePublished":280,"description":281,"extension":282,"howToSteps":283,"kits":283,"layout":284,"meta":285,"navigation":286,"path":287,"schemaType":288,"seo":289,"sources":290,"stem":294,"targetKeywords":295,"titleTag":299,"translationOf":283,"__hash__":300},"content\u002Fguides\u002Fwhats-in-a-kit.md","What's in a kit, and what you'll also need to buy","mike",false,{"type":9,"value":10},"minimark",[11,18,24,29,36,42,48,54,65,69,169,172,177,181,184,206,209,213,227,231,234,237,240,244,266,277],[12,13,14],"answer-box",{},[15,16,17],"p",{},"A kit typically includes the panel, the microinverter, the cabling between them, and generic mounting hardware. It typically does not include clamps that fit your specific railing, a tilt bracket, an outdoor-rated extension cord, or any way of seeing what it's producing. Budget about $100 on top of the kit price and you won't be caught out.",[19,20],"illustration",{"brief":21,"caption":22,"ratio":23},"The contents of one kit unboxed and arranged on a floor, every item visible and separated, shot from above.","What actually arrives. Compare it against the second list below.","wide",[25,26,28],"h2",{"id":27},"in-the-box","In the box",[15,30,31,35],{},[32,33,34],"strong",{},"The panel."," Typically 180 to 450 watts, roughly the size of an interior door, 30 to 50 pounds, with an aluminium frame and a glass face. Check the warranty — 25 years is standard.",[15,37,38,41],{},[32,39,40],{},"The microinverter."," A sealed box, usually bolted to the panel frame. This is the part that has to be certified and the part most likely to fail eventually. Warranties are usually 10 to 12 years.",[15,43,44,47],{},[32,45,46],{},"The DC cable"," between panel and inverter, pre-terminated with locking connectors.",[15,49,50,53],{},[32,51,52],{},"The AC cable"," from the inverter to a standard plug. Check the length before you buy — some are surprisingly short.",[15,55,56,59,60,64],{},[32,57,58],{},"Generic mounting hardware."," Usually a pair of adjustable brackets that fit ",[61,62,63],"em",{},"a"," railing, not necessarily yours.",[25,66,68],{"id":67},"not-in-the-box-and-what-it-costs","Not in the box, and what it costs",[70,71,72,88],"table",{},[73,74,75],"thead",{},[76,77,78,82,85],"tr",{},[79,80,81],"th",{},"Item",[79,83,84],{},"Cost",[79,86,87],{},"When you need it",[89,90,91,103,114,125,136,147,158],"tbody",{},[76,92,93,97,100],{},[94,95,96],"td",{},"Railing clamps for your specific railing",[94,98,99],{},"$30–$120",[94,101,102],{},"Round rails, square rails and glass balustrades all differ",[76,104,105,108,111],{},[94,106,107],{},"Tilt bracket",[94,109,110],{},"$40–$90",[94,112,113],{},"Whenever the panel would otherwise hang vertical. Best value item here",[76,115,116,119,122],{},[94,117,118],{},"Outdoor-rated extension cord",[94,120,121],{},"$20–$40",[94,123,124],{},"If the outlet isn't within the AC cable's reach",[76,126,127,130,133],{},[94,128,129],{},"In-use weatherproof outlet cover",[94,131,132],{},"$15–$25",[94,134,135],{},"If your outdoor outlet's cover won't close on a plugged-in cord",[76,137,138,141,144],{},[94,139,140],{},"Plug-in energy meter",[94,142,143],{},"$20–$30",[94,145,146],{},"If the kit has no app. Get one regardless",[76,148,149,152,155],{},[94,150,151],{},"Cable ties, UV-rated",[94,153,154],{},"$10",[94,156,157],{},"Tidying the cable run. Buy UV-rated or they perish in a year",[76,159,160,163,166],{},[94,161,162],{},"Anti-theft cable and lock",[94,164,165],{},"$25–$40",[94,167,168],{},"Ground-floor or shared-space installations",[15,170,171],{},"Call it $100 to $200 depending on how much you need.",[19,173],{"brief":174,"caption":175,"ratio":176},"Three railing types side by side — round tube, square tube, and glass balustrade — with a tape measure held against each.","The most common ordering mistake in this category. Measure before you buy clamps.","photo",[25,178,180],{"id":179},"measure-your-railing-before-you-order-anything","Measure your railing before you order anything",[15,182,183],{},"The most common ordering mistake in this category. Take three measurements:",[185,186,187,194,200],"ul",{},[188,189,190,193],"li",{},[32,191,192],{},"Shape:"," round tube, square tube, flat bar, or glass panel.",[188,195,196,199],{},[32,197,198],{},"Diameter or width",", in inches.",[188,201,202,205],{},[32,203,204],{},"Space behind the railing"," — some clamps need clearance to close.",[15,207,208],{},"If it's a glass balustrade, you need clamps specifically made for glass, and some buildings won't permit anything clamped to glass at all. Check before you buy.",[25,210,212],{"id":211},"what-good-mounting-hardware-looks-like","What good mounting hardware looks like",[185,214,215,218,221,224],{},[188,216,217],{},"Stainless or anodised aluminium. Not painted mild steel — it's California, but it's also outside for twenty years.",[188,219,220],{},"Rated for the panel's weight with margin, and for wind load if you can get a figure.",[188,222,223],{},"Clamps rather than penetrations. This is what makes the whole thing acceptable to a landlord.",[188,225,226],{},"Adjustable, so you can change the tilt if you learn something.",[25,228,230],{"id":229},"the-monitoring-question","The monitoring question",[15,232,233],{},"Some kits come with an app. Some don't.",[15,235,236],{},"If yours doesn't, buy a plug-in energy meter — the kind that sits between the plug and the outlet and reads out watts and cumulative kilowatt-hours. It's $25 and it's the difference between owning a panel and understanding one.",[15,238,239],{},"You'll want it for three reasons: confirming it's actually working, learning your own production curve so you can decide about a battery later, and settling the question of whether models like ours are any good.",[25,241,243],{"id":242},"what-you-dont-need","What you don't need",[185,245,246,249,252,255,263],{},[188,247,248],{},"A charge controller. That's off-grid equipment; a grid-tied plug-in kit doesn't use one.",[188,250,251],{},"An electrician, for a normal install into an existing outdoor outlet.",[188,253,254],{},"A permit, in most cases — you're not altering the building.",[188,256,257,258,262],{},"A battery, unless you've decided you want one. ",[63,259,261],{"href":260},"\u002Fguides\u002Fbattery-or-no-battery","That decision",".",[188,264,265],{},"A special meter. Your utility's existing meter handles this fine.",[15,267,268,272,273],{},[63,269,271],{"href":270},"\u002Fkits","Compare kits →"," · ",[63,274,276],{"href":275},"\u002Ftools\u002Fbuyers-checklist","Printable checklist →",[278,279],"sources-block",{},"2026-09-01","Kits are sold as if they arrive complete. They rarely do. Here's what's in the box, what isn't, and what the extras cost.","md",null,"article",{},true,"\u002Fguides\u002Fwhats-in-a-kit","Article",{"title":5,"description":281},[291],{"title":292,"url":293,"accessed":280},"Bright Saver kit specifications","https:\u002F\u002Fbrightsaver.org","guides\u002Fwhats-in-a-kit",[296,297,298],"what's in a balcony solar kit","balcony solar mounting hardware","solar panel railing mount","What's In a Balcony Solar Kit? Plus the Missing $100","Keb7gG0iZ4AxFzJZTpE8pvZJ4V-e2fWSXy0gMTnuH4s",{"id":302,"title":303,"body":304,"description":329,"email":328,"extension":282,"location":330,"meta":331,"name":310,"navigation":286,"path":332,"photo":333,"role":334,"sameAs":283,"seo":335,"stem":336,"__hash__":337},"authors\u002Fauthors\u002Fmike.md","Mike",{"type":9,"value":305},[306,312,315,319,322],[15,307,308,311],{},[32,309,310],{},"Mike Yu"," started SmallSolarCo after working out that a plug-in panel was the only kind of solar available to him — he rents in Irvine with a west-facing balcony and no roof of his own. He is not an electrician, a solar installer, or a lawyer, and the site says so wherever it matters. He has a background building web products, and built the savings model here himself, using NREL irradiance data and Southern California Edison's published rates.",[15,313,314],{},"Since September 2026 he has been running a plug-in kit on that balcony and logging what it actually produces. Every measured figure on this site comes from that kit. Everything else is labelled as an estimate.",[25,316,318],{"id":317},"editorial-independence","Editorial independence",[15,320,321],{},"We don't accept review units on terms that involve anyone approving the review first. If a manufacturer sends us a kit, we say so on the review, and we keep the right to publish a bad one.",[15,323,324,325,262],{},"Reach him at ",[63,326,328],{"href":327},"mailto:hello@smallsolarco.com","hello@smallsolarco.com","Mike Yu started SmallSolarCo after working out that a plug-in panel was the only kind of solar available to him — he rents in Irvine with a west-facing balcony and no roof of his own. He is not an electrician, a solar installer, or a lawyer, and the site says so wherever it matters. He has a background building web products, and built the savings model here himself, using NREL irradiance data and Southern California Edison's published rates.","Irvine, California",{},"\u002Fauthors\u002Fmike","\u002Fimages\u002Fauthors\u002Fmike.jpg","Founder",{"description":329},"authors\u002Fmike","kb0uodhMlGk_YV3nMOIXdr6bpZgtB5zNoRxdGxsXMQ8",1788387858269]