What do the lights on my Tesla Powerwall 3 mean?
Short answer
Powerwall 3 has one light, the Tesla logo. Tesla's 2025 owner manual lists four states: solid white means normal, flashing white means idle and about to sleep, off means switched off or asleep, and flashing red means an inverter fault. Expansion units have no light. Details of any fault only appear in the Tesla app.
Last checked 24 September 2026 · 2 sources
What does this mean?
Flashing red: the installer manual says this is an inverter (PWS) protection fault, for example arc-fault (AFCI) or ground-fault (GFCI). The manual allows owners one power-cycle: turn off any separate solar inverter, set the On/Off switch and the built-in DC isolator to OFF, switch off the Powerwall and Gateway breakers, wait at least one hour, then switch everything back on in reverse order. If it flashes red again, contact your Tesla Certified Installer. Powerwall 3 and Backup Gateway 2 are not user-serviceable.
What should I do first?
Record the code and current battery state before changing settings. Follow only the owner-safe reset steps in the manual.
When do I need an engineer?
Use an installer or manufacturer support route if the fault returns, involves isolation or protection, or the manual does not give an owner reset.
What to do next
If the system is hot, smoking, damaged or making unusual electrical noises, move away from it and follow the manufacturer emergency guidance.
Sources
- Tesla — energylibrary.tesla.com/docs/Public/EnergyStorage/Powerwall/3/OwnerManual/Print…
- Tesla — energylibrary.tesla.com/docs/Public/EnergyStorage/Powerwall/3/InstallManual/Bac…
Last checked: 24 September 2026