Grid-tied, hybrid and off-grid solar behave very differently, and the wrong choice wastes money. The first decision is not how many panels — it is which architecture fits your objective: lowering cost, keeping power on during outages, or operating without the grid at all.
Grid-tied (on-grid)
A grid-tied system connects to BC Hydro and offsets daytime consumption at the lowest cost per kW. Under BC Hydro's self-generation rate, surplus may be exported for credit. It provides no backup power on its own — during an outage the inverter shuts down for safety and the home loses power like everyone else.
Hybrid (solar + battery)
A hybrid system adds storage so selected loads can stay on when the grid fails — useful for winter storms and public-safety shutoffs — and stored energy can cover night and winter use. It costs more than grid-tied alone and cannot run an entire building on a single battery. A good hybrid design starts by listing the loads that actually must stay on.
Off-grid
Off-grid systems serve sites with no grid or an unreliable one — remote cabins, Gulf Islands properties and interior ranches. They run autonomously, so battery sizing is critical and winter load management matters. Off-grid makes sense where the grid is absent, not where a cheaper grid-tied system would do the job.
Cost versus capability
Grid-tied is the lowest entry cost but gives no resilience. Hybrid adds resilience and night capability at higher cost. Off-grid is the most demanding to design and usually chosen out of necessity. The right architecture is the one that solves your actual problem — not the most expensive one.
How we help you choose
We compare the three against your objective, BC Hydro bills, outage experience and site, and present what each can do and what it cannot — in writing. The recommendation, with its assumptions, is documented before any equipment decision.