Skip the professional fees, high upfront costs, and complex installation.

Box+Panel™️

2 minutes to solar with the JustPlug Box+Panel™️ Solar Kit

Hop onto the solar bandwagon without paying an arm and a leg for professional consultation, tens of thousands of dollars of batteries and solar panels, or complex installation.

You can do it yourself and slash your electricity bill immediately.

JustPlug turns the complex, months-long, expensive process into a 2-minute plug-and-save task.

Plug the solar panels and an appliance (e.g., AC, fridge) into the Power Box and plug the Power Box into a wall socket. No electrician, installation, or expensive power walls are required.

Sit back with your solar-chilled beer and watch your savings tick on in real-time.

Your appliance will run on solar when the sun shines. The box automatically switches over to grid power when the sun takes a break. Easy peasy.

>> Download the product specs to find a model right for you.

JustPlug Box+Panel vs. other solutions

  • The core offering from Bluetti and Jackery, at the time of writing, is essentially oversized power banks with the option to charge from solar panels. They’re designed to power campsites, RVs, or boats at night or used as power backup during outages. These applications require big batteries, making the devices very expensive.

    While you may connect solar panels to Bluetti and Jackery, their primary use cases don’t involve or require solar power. Their goal isn’t to help you cut your electricity bill using renewable energy sources. (Honestly, they’re for glamping.)

    We built JustPlug Box+Panel for solar — designed from the ground up to help you slash your electricity bill and make your investment pay off substantially faster than any conventional on- or off-grid solar installations.

    (Okay, we built it to give power companies the middle finger. And to help people get started with solar without paying an arm and a leg.)

    JustPlug Box+Panel costs less than Bluetti, Jackery, BigBattery, and conventional solar installations because it’s designed to work when the sun is out (and you pay most for AC and fridge.) When the sun sets or the clouds roll in, it switches to grid power.

    The unique concept means JustPlug Box+Panel only uses a small, basic battery to handle transitions between solar and grid. That’s how we make the product cheaper and less complicated but just as safe and convenient (if not more so) than seemingly similar products on the market.

  • We don’t know. We were wondering the same. When we learned that it doesn’t exist, we created it.

JustPlug Box+Panel setup

  • If you have ever plugged in a cable box, DSL modem, or printer, you have the skills to set up JustPlug Box+Panel. It’s literally simpler and takes only two minutes. Unfortunately, it won’t greet you with printer noises. Fortunately, it has a higher success rate.

  • The device compares incoming solar power to the power drawn by an appliance (e.g., a fridge.) If there is enough solar power available, it will deliver power generated entirely from the sun. If there isn’t enough solar, it will draw power from the wall socket.

  • It depends on local building codes. However, based on our experience, devices that aren’t tied down and require only low voltages don’t require a permit in most jurisdictions. It’s a different story if you want to install solar panels permanently — that’s why we suggest not to mount them. We recommend checking with local agencies to ensure you don’t get into trouble.

  • It depends on local laws and regulations. You probably don’t need an electrician because there is no wiring involved. Installation only requires plugging two standard 120V cords and connecting the solar panels and Power Box with one cable.

    Most people can complete the setup in two minutes. No specific skills are required, and no wiring is involved.

  • In most cases, just plopping the panels down in direct sunlight works fine. Avoid shadows, foliage, and anything that blocks the sun. In the U.S., you may tilt the panels towards the south to get a bit more power, especially during winter when the sun sits low in the sky.

  • Raising the panels off the ground by a few inches improves airflow and reduces temperatures, especially in hot climates. Solar panels work better and last longer when they stay cool — putting them on bricks or pavers gives you extra power. 

    Lying a panel flat on a concrete pad and putting one paver under each corner typically suffice. The panels are heavy — if they come loose, they may injure pets, wildlife, and children. We recommend placing them close to the ground.

  • Yes, but you may need a permit and/or professional installation. Check with local authorities.

  • No, not without extra protection. The cable that comes with the standard kit is not direct-burial-rated. 

  • Shield the cable with a cord protector rated for outdoor use. Alternatively, we find that a low-cost corrugated hose for bilge pump discharge purposes makes a fine cable cover. Split the hose lengthwise and plop the cable in.

  • Maybe, but every panel is different. We don’t support uncertified panels at this time, and using one will void your warranty. In the future, we may create a panel-agnostic solution with a bit more engineering magic.

JustPlug Box+Panel usage

  • While it can power most devices with a power cord, you can maximize savings by using JustPlug Box+Panel for appliances plugged in all the time and running for hours on end.

    Refrigerators, chest freezers, and air conditioning units are good candidates. JustPlug Box+Panel comes in different power ratings. If you run big loads, like a 10,000 BTU air conditioner, you’ll need a more powerful version than if you were to run a dorm fridge.

  • Yes, you can. But it’s not a good use of your money. You’ll need to buy a big unit to support the big load. But you likely won’t get your money’s worth with these intermittent loads because your investment will sit idle most of the time. 

  • Yes. But you better not be in a hurry. You can only charge at the rate your JustPlug Box+Panel model is built for. If you charge at 5A, the minimum for most electric vehicles, it may take up to a week to get a full charge.

  • Yes, you can! Those devices are often power hogs, so our solution can help you achieve meaningful savings. Some may have issues switching between grid and solar power, so contact us if your box doesn’t play nice.

  • Yes, you can.

  • Yes, you can. But unless you watch hours of TV when the sun is out, it’s not the best use of your money. 

  • Yes, you can. We recommend deploying a UPS (uninterruptible power supply) between the Power Box and the device to make the very brief transitions between solar and grid power invisible to your nerdy gadget.

  • We won’t say you can’t, but we didn’t design the product for camping. If you need to charge your phone in the field, it’s better to buy a power bank-type device.  

  • Typical use requires grid power. However, some versions of JustPlug Box+Panel include a power outage override button, allowing you to activate the device without grid power.

    You will lose some features, such as temporarily drawing power from the grid to start devices with high surge current requirements. But you can charge your phone or run most modern, energy-efficient fridges.

    This override mode only works when the sun is out, and we recommend testing for these emergency scenarios before using JustPlug Box+Panel as power backup.

  • Yes. It will offload the off-grid power system and expand its capacity. You can run more appliances (e.g., AC) while the sun shines. You may supplement a conventional panel-and-battery setup with JustPlug Box+Panel to lower the cost of the overall off-grid installation.

  • Yes. It will offload the generator the same way as it does a grid connection to cut your energy bill. We haven’t encountered one that doesn’t work, but if you bought a vintage model out of the back of a van, you should try it first with some non-critical loads.

  • No.

    “Why not? I have a generator backup and a transfer switch installed.”

    Don’t do it. Even the largest JustPlug Box-and-Panel unit is NOT rated for powering an entire building. It’s not the right tool for the job.

  • We plan to offer a 230V unit for Europe, Asia, and South America. You can’t use the 120V North American version on 230V networks. It’ll go 💥.

JustPlug Box+Panel safety, durability, & maintenance

  • Like any electronic device (e.g., a microwave oven), there is a small risk of failure. And when failure happens, there’s a tiny chance of causing a fire. But the likelihood of it occurring is extremely low.

    We don’t use highly flammable components like lithium-ion batteries, and all the cables come pre-prepared. We built this product to be as safe as, if not more than, any electronic device on the market.

  • JustPlug Box+Panel is designed for indoor use. It is as abuse-resistant as, say, a microwave oven. It won’t break easily, but it’s better not to bang it around unnecessarily.

  • Avoid dusty environments because the Power Box requires some air cooling, and the dust will clog up the filter quickly. That means more work for you to clean it out regularly!

    A typical residential garage, office, kitchen, and basement will all work well.

  • While the solar panels can stay in the elements, current versions of the Power Box are not designed for outdoor use. Like any electrical device rated for indoor use, if it gets wet, it can become a safety hazard. It is as rain-tolerant as, say, a microwave oven. Rule of thumb: Water and electricity don’t mix. Let’s use common sense.

  • A direct hit on the solar panels would be bad news. But it’s no better or worse than, say, lightning hitting a porch lamp and blowing up every device and light bulb in the house.

  • It’s no safer or more dangerous than most electrical cables, like the one powering lightbulbs in your house. A damaged cable could become a fire hazard. It’s your responsibility to inspect the cable periodically. It’s also a good idea to cover the cable and avoid driving over it.

  • Other than cleaning the fan filter and the solar panels once in a while, JustPlug Box+Panel is a set-it-and-forget-it device. But check the display occasionally because seeing how much electricity you have saved will make you smile!

  • Yes. If your panels are dirty, they may not produce as much power. Check them periodically and clean them with soap, water, and a squeegee if necessary. Don’t use any solvent.