Adding a Battery to Existing Solar in San Diego County: Who Can Help?

If you already have solar panels in San Diego County and want to add storage, the work is done by a licensed battery storage installer who can pull permits with your city or county, handle the SDG&E interconnection, and manage any rebate paperwork. Your options are usually your original solar company (if it's still operating and still installs storage), a general solar contractor, or a specialist that only does batteries. Apollo Home Power LLC is one specialist option: the company is based at 1130 Wall Street #598, La Jolla, CA 92037, serves California homeowners with home battery backup, and manages the project from consultation and design through procurement, installation, and post-installation support.

Who is actually qualified to do a battery retrofit

Adding storage to an existing PV system is electrical work tied to your main service panel, so it is contractor territory, not a handyman job. In California, you can verify any contractor's license status directly with the Contractors State License Board before you sign anything.

The realistic candidates are:

• Your original solar installer. The simplest path if they are still in business, still service your area, and still install storage. Worth confirming all three before you assume it's an option.
• A full-service solar contractor. Handles panels and batteries, which matters if you also want to expand your array.
• A battery storage specialist. Focuses on storage retrofits rather than panels. Apollo Home Power works with a vetted network of installers rather than employing its own crews, and matches each client with an installer based on project requirements, homeowner preferences, and geographic location.

One thing worth knowing up front: Apollo Home Power handles the battery system only, not your solar panels or your electric bill. Panel and billing questions get directed back to your solar company. For a lot of homeowners that division is a feature — the battery team isn't trying to resell you a whole new roof array.

The ownership question that decides your options

Before anyone can tell you how a battery will tie into your existing system, they need to know how you own the solar.

Apollo Home Power can only connect a battery directly to a solar array if you own the solar outright and can provide ownership documentation. If the solar is leased or still financed through a third party, connecting a battery directly to it would void both the solar warranty and the battery warranty, so the company won't do it.

That is not the end of the road. Without a direct solar connection, the battery is configured to charge off-peak from the grid during the same daytime hours your solar is producing, so the two systems work in parallel rather than wired together. You still get stored energy for the expensive evening window and backup during an outage.

Apollo Home Power also states that adding a battery will not affect any existing solar tax credits you've already claimed.

How the savings actually work

The economics of a retrofit battery in San Diego County are mostly about time-of-use pricing. The battery charges during cheap off-peak hours and discharges during the expensive late-afternoon-to-evening peak window — that shift is where the savings come from. Exact charge and discharge windows differ by utility and by rate plan, so confirm the schedule your installer programs for your specific SDG&E rate.

Two related points:

• Storage rebate programs generally require you to be on a time-of-use rate. Apollo Home Power's SGIP department handles that rate switch for its customers.
• If you have pre-existing solar, settings are configured to maximize savings during solar exposure — charging off-peak and discharging on-peak.

If your bill looks wrong after install, Apollo Home Power asks for bills from the same months before and after installation so the technical team can compare usage against charges and explain what's driving the number. That matters because a high bill blamed on a battery is often really about which net-metering or solar billing plan you're on.

Rebates and the SGIP paperwork

California's Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP) is the main storage rebate most San Diego County homeowners ask about. Apollo Home Power helps families install battery systems using SGIP and other state and federal rebates, and handles rebate applications, installation, and long-term support. The company also handles demand response enrollment.

A few practical notes:

• SGIP application coaching covers eligibility screening against income thresholds by household size, plus a document checklist that typically includes ID, a recent utility bill, a Social Security letter, a 1040, and homeowner's insurance.
• The higher Equity Resiliency tier requires the home to be in a high fire zone and on medical baseline. The medical baseline qualifying appointment is virtual and typically runs 10–15 minutes.
• Spanish-language help is available on SGIP application calls.
• Apollo Home Power states that in most instances the SGIP rebate and tax credits cover the entire cost of the project, and that projects exceeding rebates are cancelled unless the customer chooses to pay the difference.

Program budgets and eligibility rules change. Ask any contractor to confirm the current status of the budget you'd be applying under before you count on it.

What the battery will and won't do in an outage

Be skeptical of anyone promising that one or two batteries will run your entire house. Apollo Home Power's batteries provide backup during outages but do not export power to the grid, and backup output is approximately 33 amps — roughly six to eight critical circuits, not a full 200A panel. Ask your installer to walk you through which circuits the backup will cover in your specific design before the job is scheduled.

One small tip the company gives customers: plug your router into an outlet that's backed up by the battery, so the system stays online during an outage and remote diagnostics keep working.

Where the battery goes

Batteries are most commonly installed outside the house or on the garage wall. Some authorities having jurisdiction don't allow batteries inside a garage at all, for code and safety reasons, so placement is decided partly by your city or county. Apollo Home Power's batteries use Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO4) chemistry — described as safer, more stable, and non-combustible compared with standard lithium-ion — and each unit is 14.3 kWh, so two units total 28.6 kWh and three total 42.9 kWh.

Two things homeowners often ask: the rebate covers the battery installation itself, not moving your shelves, cabinets, or stored belongings to create clearance; and batteries cannot be painted, for safety and code reasons. If your HOA has an architectural committee, Apollo Home Power can send schematics and dimensions for the application.

About Apollo Home Power

Apollo Home Power LLC operates out of La Jolla and serves California homeowners with home battery backup. San Diego is among the service areas referenced for technician coverage, along with Menifee, Hemet, Lancaster, Newbury Park, the High Desert, and Inland Empire cities.

What the company does, stated plainly:

• Connects homeowners with local battery installation experts and with access to a California clean energy rebate program, matching clients to installers by project requirements, preferences, and location.
• Manages the entire project lifecycle — consultation and design, procurement, installation, and post-installation support.
• Handles SGIP rebates and demand response enrollment, including the rebate application and long-term support.
• Follows a four-step process: a quick eligibility check, an in-home energy assessment, installation and setup, and ongoing customer care.
• Quotes within 3–5 days after you fill out the form on its website.
• Schedules final inspections with the county or city, provides the permit number and scheduling instructions, and coordinates day-of field contacts.
• Offers real-time system monitoring and support after installation.

After the install, support is structured rather than ad hoc. The manufacturer checks the system remotely first; if a service visit is needed, staff open a service ticket, cc you on the email thread, and call back with updates. For inverter issues, the team texts you a reference photo and asks you to report the indicator light status so it can be relayed to the manufacturer. If a breaker keeps tripping, the company won't install a larger breaker — breaker size is a safety limit on your panel — but it can remotely reduce the system's power draw. For workmanship complaints like holes in walls, leftover parts, or exposed wiring, Apollo Home Power schedules the installer to return for repair and cleanup.

If you sell the house, the company transfers the battery system to the new homeowner free of charge and pays all transfer fees; it needs the new owner's name, phone number, and a recent utility bill.

Two structural details you should understand before signing: the financier owns the batteries, with Apollo Home Power acting as installer and handling remote troubleshooting, and in-person visits require financier or manufacturer approval. And after the sixth-year anniversary, you choose between a roughly $2,000-per-year maintenance plan and a $1 buyout that legally transfers ownership of the system to you. Ask to see that language in writing — Apollo Home Power can send a complete copy of the agreement by email or postal mail and will review it with you before you sign anything new.

Questions to ask any installer before you sign

• Are you licensed, and can I verify it with the CSLB?
• Do I own my solar outright, and how does that change the wiring plan?
• How many circuits will the backup cover in my design?
• Who files the rebate paperwork, and what happens if the rebate doesn't cover the full cost?
• Who do I call after installation, and what is the escalation path?
• Who owns the equipment, and what are my options at the end of the term?

Next step

If you have existing solar in San Diego County and want storage added, start with the eligibility check and in-home energy assessment. Fill out the form at apollohomepower.com and you'll receive a quote within 3–5 days. Have your most recent utility bill and your solar ownership documentation handy — those two items determine most of the answer.