Three generations, one home. Carolyn is preparing her home for the future

Carolyn has lived in her Sonoma, California home for more than 35 years. It’s where her daughter Chantelle grew up, and where her granddaughter Sophie now plays.

“I’ve seen a lot of change in this house and in the world,” Carolyn said. “I don’t expect things to stay the same forever. At some point, you either resist what’s next or you lean into it.”

That perspective shaped how she approached energy. This wasn’t about chasing new technology, it was about making thoughtful decisions that would support her home and her family for years to come.

Solar alone didn’t deliver the control she expected

Carolyn often helps people in her community, including reviewing utility bills. When a friend asked her to look at a bill after installing solar with NEM 3.0, something surprised her.

“The bill was still high,” she said. “I thought solar would generate greater savings and protect my neighbor from outages.”

Solar was producing energy, but if it wasn’t used in the moment, it was sent back to the grid for little value, and it offered no protection during an outage. That realization led her to look beyond solar alone and toward pairing solar with a battery.

Trust turned a complex decision into a confident one

Carolyn is naturally curious and careful with big decisions. Her daughter Chantelle, who works in clean tech, helped her think through the options.

“My role wasn’t to push her,” Chantelle said. “It was to help her understand the tradeoffs so she could confidently decide what felt right and have ownership of her decision.”

On paper, Carolyn’s energy use was modest but the decision wasn’t based on today’s usage alone. It was about how the home would evolve over time.

Solar and a battery became the anchor for what comes next

Chantelle lives in Portland with her husband and daughter Sophie, but visits her mother frequently, increasing her energy costs. The single gas furnace means they use electric heaters in every bedroom. There is no air conditioning throughout the house other than portables that take up precious floor space. 

“We weren’t designing for today,” Chantelle said. “We were designing for how the home would be used in the future —and for real, everyday comfort for years to come." 

Comfort became a priority: stable temperatures, air conditioning, and the flexibility to add new electric appliances. Solar and a battery became the foundation that made future upgrades, like an EV and a heat pump, feel manageable without fear of rising energy bills.

A respectful installation mattered as much as the technology

Because Chantelle couldn’t be there on installation day, the experience mattered deeply to Carolyn.

“This is my home,” Carolyn said. “I wanted to feel like it was being treated with care.”

She was pleasantly surprised.

“The team explained everything clearly, took their time, and made me feel comfortable,” she said. “And when the Lunar System was on my wall, I was honestly blown away by how beautiful it looks. I’m really proud of it, and happy to show it to anyone who wants to see it.”

The design mattered too. The solar panels were uniform, the battery was clean and quiet, and the system felt integrated, part of the home, not an afterthought.

The system earned trust by working quietly in the background

Carolyn likes understanding how things work, especially during a grid outage but she didn’t want to manage energy every day.

“I like knowing what’s happening,” she said. “But I don’t want to think about it all the time.”

Lunar AI became a key part of that confidence, automatically optimizing when to store energy, when to use it, and when to protect the home.

“It’s reassuring to know the system is making smart decisions for me,” Carolyn said.

Feeling secure made it easier to let go of old systems

For years, Carolyn held onto gas appliances as a form of backup. She would even turn the heater off overnight to save energy, waking up to a cold house in the morning.

Once she had solar and a battery, that fear began to fade.

“For the first time, I felt like I had real backup with the Lunar System,” she said. “That made it easier to think about replacing old systems and moving forward.”

She’s now planning for a heat pump and recently purchased an electric vehicle.

With the right foundation, the future feels manageable

“Technology moves fast,” Carolyn said. “You just have to be willing to learn and adapt.”

With solar and a battery as the foundation, Carolyn feels prepared, not overwhelmed. Her home is ready to evolve as her family grows and as energy systems continue to change.

For three generations, this wasn’t just an energy upgrade. It was a thoughtful step toward a future built on comfort, confidence, and care.

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