Univix Power Solutions

Made in Laconia, New Hampshire

The Unix Power Solutions team of Ben Milner, director of sales, Chris Milner, CEO, and Vince Kerns, production manager. (Univix Power Solutions)

George Harvey

In May, we got an announcement from Chris Milner, CEO of Univix Power Solutions saying that the company was ready to do business, after a lengthy delay due to Covid-19. Univix is based in Laconia, New Hampshire, which means it is of local interest for most of the readers of Green Energy Times. It should be of interest to people all over the country because of the energy storage technology it offers.

Univix started up as a design challenge in 2018. To meet that challenge, it had to achieve five goals and produce a battery system with these characteristics:

1. Easy to install

2. Easy to use

3. 100% recyclable

4. Affordable for ordinary people

5. Powerful enough to run everything needed in an emergency

As hard as it might have been to accomplish these things, they were met in time for Univix to start up in January, 2020. Unfortunately, that was not a good time to launch a business, because that was when everything was just shutting down under Covid-19 restrictions.

Fortunately, Milner and Univix were able to ride out the pandemic, and the project is under way again. There have also been some technological improvements recently, which were incorporated into the product.

Univix is selling a battery storage system that is really different from anything else we have seen on the market. It incorporates nearly everything needed so it can be put into a building and hooked up. And it does this in a simple way that does not require a computer expert to understand.

Univix carbon battery storage units are powerful and low cost. They work for grid-tied and off-grid electricity systems. (Univix Power Solutions)

Milner’s announcement says, “We are one of the first to bring carbon batteries to the USA. To put this all-in perspective, we are twice as powerful as the closest competitor, but we’re half the cost!”

The carbon batteries address two of the goals, cost and recyclability. To store the same amount of energy, they are far less expensive than lithium batteries, and Milner points out that they are 100% recyclable.

We should look at what the Univix carbon batteries are. They are basically the same as the old AGM batteries that have been around for many years, except for two things. One is that there is carbon in the electrolyte. The other is that the plates are not made of lead; they are made of carbon composite.

Milner is careful to point out that a number of other companies offer “carbon” batteries, meaning that carbon has been added to the electrolyte. The carbon plates mean that Univix batteries are of a different type, in which carbon prevents dendrites from growing on the plates. This means that the Univix batteries can last as long, through as many charge cycles, as lithium batteries.

The Univix system uses a transformer-based inverter, instead of all digital circuits. This has a number of advantages, including an ability to deliver power for sudden increases of demand, such as when a household pump comes on. And this, in turn, makes the Univix bank kinder to all the other equipment in the household that could be damaged by a momentarily insufficient power supply.

The transformer system does mean that the Univix system weighs a bit more than some other batteries. This is addressed by making it a floor-mounted system that is brought in on its own powered wheels, instead of being wall-mounted. And this, in turn, means that the Univix batteries can be installed quickly by one electrician, rather than requiring a lengthy installation by a crew.

The Univix system can work for grid-tied battery backup but will work just as well off-grid, which the competing systems will not. It can be charged by solar power and other alternative sources, and according to Univix, it works seamlessly with the new Enphase Microgrid system.

In terms of price, the Univix Bank, its flagship system, costs about half as much installed as the leading competitor. The warranty period is the same, and they should last as long. Part of the difference, as we have seen, is that the Univix system is more versatile, as it can be used off-grid. But some people will find another difference more important. Where the leading competitor will provide 14.5 kilowatt hours in an emergency, the Univix Bank will provide 18.2. In terms of installed price per available energy, the Univix system only slightly more is less than half as much, making it a better system at not much more than half the price.

One final thing to point out is that the Univix Bank is made in New Hampshire of parts that come predominantly from American sources.

The Univix website is univix.com.