I am building an off grid solar EV station. I decided to use 8x550W bi-facial solar panels with a 50V 5kW LiFEPO4 battery and a 220V inverter-charger. Just about to realize this dream of driving on solar energy.
5KWh? I use a 9KWh setup with covers my daily 6KWh daily commute and a bit more. Probably need 12KWh to cover the commute+errands. Batteries completely bipasses electric provider shenanigans.
If you have 4kw of solar then get at least 15kwh of battery. Your solar will fully charge you battery within 2 hours and then do nothing for the rest of the day.
@@brucey5585 The EV charger can handle 7 kW, more than the inverter can produce. I wonder if the system will charge-cut-charge-cut. Perhaps I can choose the charge rate to 4or 5 kW. The Lightning battery has 131 kWh.
I have 13KWp solar panels, and ~60KWH of battery. On the average, my solar panels generate about 60KWH. My EV consumes about 5~10KWH of electricity every day 5 days a week. My solar is very enough for EV charging and home use.
Great video! I wanted to share a simple calculation that helps estimate your energy production or system size without having to use software. Phi x Watts = kWh and kWh / Phi = Watts In your example 4,000kWh / 1.618 (Phi) = 2,472-watts (~2.5kW)
@@ZachSolar anytime! Fun fact this is the date my wife and I got married. Yes, a bit nerdy but then again how many people know about Phi compared to Pi?
Nice presentation. Makes sense. The only thing that strikes me is the low cost of your electricity, and the lame payback rate. In CA my off -peak cost (12AM-7AM) when I recharge my car is $0.31/kWh, and my peak cost is $0.66/kWh. I am on NEM 2.0, and I have a home battery. So I run my home off of the battery during peak and partial-peak times, with the utility crediting me at their charge rate for what I produce from solar during the day. The net cost, including my BEV charged overnight is still more than I make from solar. But it is a fraction of the cost that I would have to pay without solar and a battery. The payback for solar/battery should still take 6-7 years, but after that it will continue to save me hundreds every month moving forward.
Thanks! Yeah, California is a different animal when it comes to cost/kWh. Most of AZ has moved away from NEM into a wholesale export rate. They all range from ~$0.04-$0.08/kWh. Similar to NEM 3.0
Good question. There are far too many variables to consider for it to be one answer for everyone. The cost you pay for the equipment, how efficient your home is for solar energy, the cost of utility energy that’s being offset, future rate increases, and so on all have to be considered.
So what's your take on an ICE car, which never achieves over 30% efficiency, and wastes 70% due to friction and heat loss? Is that worth the investment?
Just go ahead and do the Solar and forget about the payback. The moment you buy the solar in cash then it’s paid for and then forget about it because then it’s free energy for life. I got into Solar 26 years ago and I’m glad I did. I don’t pay electricity bills anymore.
It depends on your build. You can install 8kw of solar for $3400 ground mount free shipping. You can add an inverter and 10kwh battery for $4000. Total $7400. If you charge 10kw a day, that gives you 3650 kwh a year. Michigan electric is around .22 cent a kilowatt. 3650 x .22 = $803 a year. So, 10 years to break even on car charging only. But who say that electric won't be 50cent per kilowatt in 10 years.
That calc was % of energy consumed at home vs public charging or supercharging. Your percentage will be different depending on how much you charge at home. If my vehicle consumed 5,000 kWh of energy in a year, and I only charge at home for 80% of that energy..that’s 4,000 kWh.
Thanks for watching! Sub to the channel for more. I'd appreciate it! If you need assistance with breaking down a solar quote, sizing your system properly, understanding your utility options, technical guidance, or just want another quote to review: Please email me at infozachsolar@gmail.com. Are you a solar professional looking for a new installation partner in Arizona, Texas, or Nevada? Shoot me an email at infozachsolar@gmail.com.
I am building an off grid solar EV station. I decided to use 8x550W bi-facial solar panels with a 50V 5kW LiFEPO4 battery and a 220V inverter-charger. Just about to realize this dream of driving on solar energy.
Very cool setup! 😎
5KWh? I use a 9KWh setup with covers my daily 6KWh daily commute and a bit more. Probably need 12KWh to cover the commute+errands.
Batteries completely bipasses electric provider shenanigans.
If you have 4kw of solar then get at least 15kwh of battery. Your solar will fully charge you battery within 2 hours and then do nothing for the rest of the day.
@@brucey5585 The EV charger can handle 7 kW, more than the inverter can produce. I wonder if the system will charge-cut-charge-cut. Perhaps I can choose the charge rate to 4or 5 kW. The Lightning battery has 131 kWh.
I have 13KWp solar panels, and ~60KWH of battery.
On the average, my solar panels generate about 60KWH.
My EV consumes about 5~10KWH of electricity every day 5 days a week.
My solar is very enough for EV charging and home use.
Sweet! That’s a lot of energy storage 🔋
@@ZachSolar Enough for 2 houses. Enough for today and half of tomorrow (in case of bad weather).
This is great. You can do the same thing but using the PW3 to see if a battery is worth it for you home.
Thanks for watching!
Great video! I wanted to share a simple calculation that helps estimate your energy production or system size without having to use software.
Phi x Watts = kWh and
kWh / Phi = Watts
In your example 4,000kWh / 1.618 (Phi) = 2,472-watts (~2.5kW)
Appreciate it, Dale! Thanks for sharing that formula. That’s an easier shortcut for sure.
@@ZachSolar anytime! Fun fact this is the date my wife and I got married. Yes, a bit nerdy but then again how many people know about Phi compared to Pi?
@@dalerolph I learned something new! Was not familiar with Phi
Nice presentation. Makes sense. The only thing that strikes me is the low cost of your electricity, and the lame payback rate. In CA my off -peak cost (12AM-7AM) when I recharge my car is $0.31/kWh, and my peak cost is $0.66/kWh. I am on NEM 2.0, and I have a home battery. So I run my home off of the battery during peak and partial-peak times, with the utility crediting me at their charge rate for what I produce from solar during the day. The net cost, including my BEV charged overnight is still more than I make from solar. But it is a fraction of the cost that I would have to pay without solar and a battery. The payback for solar/battery should still take 6-7 years, but after that it will continue to save me hundreds every month moving forward.
Thanks! Yeah, California is a different animal when it comes to cost/kWh. Most of AZ has moved away from NEM into a wholesale export rate. They all range from ~$0.04-$0.08/kWh. Similar to NEM 3.0
The best deal supplemental solar would be to get me through Peak rates 4:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. - which means HVAC, easy to charge the evf peak
Agreed! Scheduled charging off-peak is the best strategy
I saw another RUclipsr Calculate 2.7 Kwhs of panels gives you 70 Klms or about 40 Miles a Day.
Yeah that’d be about in line with what my example calcs produced. Granted, your specific inputs are gonna vary a bit person to person.
How much does it cost to break even over the long years? It its cost over 20 years or more to break even its not worth the investment.......
Good question. There are far too many variables to consider for it to be one answer for everyone. The cost you pay for the equipment, how efficient your home is for solar energy, the cost of utility energy that’s being offset, future rate increases, and so on all have to be considered.
So what's your take on an ICE car, which never achieves over 30% efficiency, and wastes 70% due to friction and heat loss? Is that worth the investment?
Just go ahead and do the Solar and forget about the payback. The moment you buy the solar in cash then it’s paid for and then forget about it because then it’s free energy for life. I got into Solar 26 years ago and I’m glad I did. I don’t pay electricity bills anymore.
It depends on your build. You can install 8kw of solar for $3400 ground mount free shipping. You can add an inverter and 10kwh battery for $4000. Total $7400. If you charge 10kw a day, that gives you 3650 kwh a year. Michigan electric is around .22 cent a kilowatt. 3650 x .22 = $803 a year. So, 10 years to break even on car charging only. But who say that electric won't be 50cent per kilowatt in 10 years.
Calculation is wrong when you apply charging efficiency.
Not : 5000 x 0.8 = 4000
Correct : 5000 / 0.8 = 6250
That calc was % of energy consumed at home vs public charging or supercharging. Your percentage will be different depending on how much you charge at home. If my vehicle consumed 5,000 kWh of energy in a year, and I only charge at home for 80% of that energy..that’s 4,000 kWh.
@ZachSolar oh I see. I thought that number is charging efficiency.
Thanks for watching! Sub to the channel for more. I'd appreciate it!
If you need assistance with breaking down a solar quote, sizing your system properly, understanding your utility options, technical guidance, or just want another quote to review:
Please email me at infozachsolar@gmail.com.
Are you a solar professional looking for a new installation partner in Arizona, Texas, or Nevada? Shoot me an email at infozachsolar@gmail.com.