Being stranded on the road with a dead car battery means you'll need to recharge the battery. If you drive an electric vehicle (EV), you need an electrical outlet or a charging station to plug it in. You can have a charging station installed near your home, but most of us do not have that as an expense.
Unfortunately, if you want to charge your EV while at home, you need special equipment, such as solar panels and a home battery system. Because there are many different EVs with different charging needs, Mr. Electric can help ensure you get the right equipment for your particular EV and needs.
Can Your Electric Car Use Solar Power?
Electric vehicles (EVs) use lithium-ion batteries, which store energy in the same way as a cell phone battery. Once the car's battery is fully charged, you can drive the vehicle until the battery runs out of power. However, unlike batteries used in other electronics such as smartphones and laptops, EV batteries have a large capacity and cannot be charged quickly enough with regular household electric sockets.
How do you charge an EV with solar panels?
Like your electric car, a solar panel also generates electricity from sunlight. The solar panel works by collecting photons from sunlight and converting them into electrons which then flow into an electric circuit. The electricity produced by solar panels is DC (Direct Current), which flows in one direction only. A battery charger takes this direct current from the solar panel and converts it into AC (Alternating Current) which can then be stored in your electric car's battery. Converting DC to AC is called inverting because they reverse the direction of energy flow.
Charge Your Electric Car At Home With a Solar Array, Home Battery, and a Level 2 Charger!
Electric cars are an exciting new technology that will change how we power our transportation. And with solar, you can drive in the sun all day long.
Can you charge an electric car with solar panels? Yes! Charging your electric vehicle (EV) with solar panels is a great way to maximize the benefits of your investment since EVs are often parked at home, where they can charge during the day while the sun is shining.
Since many public charging stations are powered by coal and natural gas, charging your EV at home with clean energy makes it more environmentally friendly. You can set up your own Electric Car Charging Station.
What Is a Level 2 Charger
Solar panels and wind turbines can produce electricity, but they don't always produce enough to charge an electric car. That's why it's essential to have a backup plan, like installing a Level 2 charger.
You have a few electric cars charging stations options if you're charging your car with electricity from the sun or wind. The most common are home-based chargers that use household current (120-volt AC) to give your battery enough juice to go about 100 miles on one charge. These can be installed easily without special wiring, as long as there's access to a standard electrical outlet.
If you're looking for something more flexible or live in a place with problems with power outages, using a battery-powered electric car charger is an option. Prius plug-in hybrids use these chargers, while some other popular cars are compatible with them, too.
Most level 2 chargers are based on the same technology and will provide the same power, and many also include integrated solar panels to charge the battery during daylight hours. The charger will continue charging as long as energy is available until the battery is full — often twice as fast as a standard level 1 charger.
My Electric Car Needs How Many Solar Panels To Charge?
A typical electric car (an internal combustion engine car) with a 60kWh battery will use approximately 18kWh of electricity to charge fully. This is roughly the equivalent of using 4,500 watts of power for four hours. The average solar panel produces just over 200 watts of power per hour in the peak sun hours of noon in the summertime.
You'll need 22-23 solar panels to produce enough electricity to charge your car each night, or just over four hours' worth of electricity production. If you want to charge your car faster, you can buy a higher-power charger, but this typically comes at a cost.
Upgrade Your Home With Mr. Electric
There are renewable energy solutions available for charging your electric car. A qualified electrician can install a solar array or home battery to store the free power you collect during the day and charge up your electric car at night!
Solar panels are affordable and have many perks, such as lowered electricity costs and gas and maintenance expenses. They'll pay for themselves within five years. Getting more power depends on several factors - home energy consumption, daily energy needs, and the number of days between charging opportunities.
