An apartment renter with "huge south facing windows" was trying to figure out whether solar can work without a roof or a balcony.
The renter added that neighbors have complained that the building's third-party submetering bills are "always disproportionate" to actual use, and they wanted a small backup power option ahead of any future blackout.
Here's what to know
The question came up in the Reddit thread from a big-city apartment dweller trying to gauge how practical a beginner solar setup would be in a compact home with strong sun year-round.
Rather than attempting to power the whole apartment, the renter limited the idea to smaller tasks such as lighting and charging devices and power banks.
The renter wanted solar as a limited setup tailored to strong window light and a modest energy load, not a full-apartment system.
"I don't think I would want to use it to power my appliances," the original poster said. "I'm thinking mainly my lamps, devices that need to be charged, power banks, those kinds of things."
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They also described a submetering arrangement handled by a third-party billing company, adding, "I've heard from my neighbors that the statements and bills are always disproportionate to their actual usage."
The aim, then, is partial independence: enough power for routine charging while relying less on a billing arrangement the renter does not trust.
More background
The post highlighted a common renter constraint: Many apartment residents cannot install solar panels but still want some way to generate their own power.
Those limits were central to the post. The apartment had "no outdoor space," and the renter said all of the electricity comes from "one big corpo," describing limited control over infrastructure and billing.
Preparedness was part of the motivation, too, with the renter saying they were "worried about a potential blackout in the future" and wanted something in place before an outage happened.
What can be done?
They were not trying to offset all of the apartment's electricity use, only to cover a short list that included lamps, smaller charging needs, and battery packs.
Put simply, the question was how much a renter should spend to get a modest amount of power generation that they can control.
One user didn't think the investment was worth it. They said, "You are renting an apartment. You will never see a [return on investment] on solar."
But the OP replied, "How should I prepare in the [event] of a prolonged blackout then? It seems to be more likely every day."
Where can I learn more?
Renters exploring small-scale solar are asking the same practical questions about cost, access, and whether it will actually work in an apartment.
• One homeowner said they had paid one electric bill since installing solar a decade ago.
• In Maine, lawmakers advanced access to plug-in solar panels for renters long shut out.
• New Jersey cleared plug-in solar for all, making bill-cutting systems easier for renters.
• In New York, apartment residents could plug panels into wall outlets and trim bills.
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