[mscot]

Is there a way to keep the usb outlets powered so we can charge devices?

[nZtiZia]

Originally Posted by mscot

Is there a way to keep the usb outlets powered so we can charge devices?

If it has adequate charge, then why not? you’ll have to put it in the drive-ready state to stay on, otherwise it will go into standby after a few minutes

[aaaaaaaaaz]

Originally Posted by mscot

Is there a way to keep the usb outlets powered so we can charge devices?

open the door, buckle up the seat belt behind you, turn on drive ready mode, leave key in the car, exit the vehicle and close the door.

[mscot]

Thanks!
We have a full charge so we should be able to charge a couple devices.

[Aussiejem]

That's a very cool feature!

[AvGeek]

Better question is if you should. I'm not sure I would personally use the car as a $100k battery when you can get a $250 Anker or Ecoflow to do the same thing, with more outlets to boot.

[The Libertine]

Originally Posted by AvGeek

Better question is if you should. I'm not sure I would personally use the car as a $100k battery when you can get a $250 Anker or Ecoflow to do the same thing, with more outlets to boot.

Agree 100%. Well worth the investment to have available if the power goes out.

[BlkGS]

You can literally charge devices off any car that has a working 12v battery in it.

Also true about having a few battery packs. They're so cheap to buy now there's no reason to not have a couple of $20 or less battery packs. Hell, most brands of tools.offer inverters and other charging options for their batteries.

[TexAg91]

Too bad it doesn’t have V2G (vehicle to grid) technology…that would allow you use the X5 50e to power your house with either the battery or engine (house would have to be wired appropriately)

That’s one benefit of EV/PHEV that is not being taken advantage of…there is a lot of power in that battery (and gas tank on on the 50e) that could be real useful during a power failure.

[BlkGS]

Originally Posted by TexAg91

Too bad it doesn’t have V2G (vehicle to grid) technology…that would allow you use the X5 50e to power your house with either the battery or engine (house would have to be wired appropriately)

That’s one benefit of EV/PHEV that is not being taken advantage of…there is a lot of power in that battery (and gas tank on on the 50e) that could be real useful during a power failure.

I've looked into doing a solar setup a few times since we have a ton of sun here in FL. Unfortunately, the ROI isn't there compared to the cost, and it's a huge pain to deal with the local utility to get the required switching in place so you don't accidentally electrocute their people in an outage.

That said, we also really don't lose power here often. They keep burying a y power lines that are on poles already, and in the 4 years we've been here we haven't lost power for more than a few seconds. If we were to lose power, it'd be from the big one of hurricanes, and you don't try to ride out the big one..a Cat3, a weak Cat4, sure. But when you start talking really strong Cat5s, then it's time to get out.

[njdangelo]

Originally Posted by BlkGS

I've looked into doing a solar setup a few times since we have a ton of sun here in FL. Unfortunately, the ROI isn't there compared to the cost, and it's a huge pain to deal with the local utility to get the required switching in place so you don't accidentally electrocute their people in an outage.

That said, we also really don't lose power here often. They keep burying a y power lines that are on poles already, and in the 4 years we've been here we haven't lost power for more than a few seconds. If we were to lose power, it'd be from the big one of hurricanes, and you don't try to ride out the big one..a Cat3, a weak Cat4, sure. But when you start talking really strong Cat5s, then it's time to get out.

Up here in the northeast the ROI is almost immediate for solar because of local tax credits and incentives. I haven't had an electric bill in 5 years, aside from the $9.89 a month connectivity charge. Total install cost was just shy of 20k. Credits took the cost down to just under 13k. Prior to solar I was paying about $250-$300 a month. Boggles the mind that a state like Florida doesn't make solar installation mandatory on all new construction with the amount of sun it gets to help ease the strain on the power plants/grid and help with environmental impact. But also not surprised because, you know, Florida.

[eelnoraa]

Originally Posted by njdangelo

Up here in the northeast the ROI is almost immediate for solar because of local tax credits and incentives. I haven't had an electric bill in 5 years, aside from the $9.89 a month connectivity charge. Total install cost was just shy of 20k. Credits took the cost down to just under 13k. Prior to solar I was paying about $250-$300 a month. Boggles the mind that a state like Florida doesn't make solar installation mandatory on all new construction with the amount of sun it gets to help ease the strain on the power plants/grid and help with environmental impact. But also not surprised because, you know, Florida.

What is the size of your solar system, in terms of kW?

The ROI of solar is a function of a few things: cost per kW for installation, NEM rule, cost per kWh from utility company. In Cali, even with the super expansive electricity, and under NEM2 1 to 1 upload, abundant solar time, the break even time for solar PV system is about 8 years if you size your system correctly.

In your example, you have a electricity bill of $300/month, $3600/year. With $13k system, You break even time is 4 years. I wonder what is the cost of your electricity as well.

[njdangelo]

6.4kwh
I also have dead south exposure, literally 180degree due south which definitely helps.
I’ve heard 6-8 years as well, looks like I fell on the earlier side of that estimate.

[mscot]

A couple things.

Our prior house never had this issue. I assume b/c of buried lines. The new house has above ground line and Xcel does not maintain them at all. We have not once in the 3.5 years of owning this house seen them maintain the lines/trees. Our rear neighbor has trees growing all into it. I called Xcel out and they said there is nothing they can do b/c it's not on my property line. Which is BS, they have full access to the right of way. He just didn't want to be bothered b/c no one in CO has a work ethic. /rant

This is now the second time in less than 2 years that we gone 24hours or more without power due to a big wet snow.
We do have a couple of portable chargers. But haven't purchased a large power bank. Partly b/c we thought the last one may have been a fluke. Partly b/c we'll need a new roof in about 5 years and we're going solar when we replace it.
I think this summer we're either going to look at installing a 10kwhr battery in anticipation of the eventual solar or go the cheaper route and get a Generac or even just a harbor freight generator and have the electrician put in a hook up/detach panel.

Long story short didn't have to use the X5 but I am curious why some think it would be a bad idea.

[aaaaaaaaaz]

Originally Posted by TexAg91

Too bad it doesn’t have V2G (vehicle to grid) technology…that would allow you use the X5 50e to power your house with either the battery or engine (house would have to be wired appropriately)

That’s one benefit of EV/PHEV that is not being taken advantage of…there is a lot of power in that battery (and gas tank on on the 50e) that could be real useful during a power failure.

I thought this is purposeful not allowed in US for some reason (maybe the charging port standard does not support it?) but quite popular in Japan

[TurtleBoy]

Originally Posted by alanzyy

I thought this is purposeful not allowed in US for some reason (maybe the charging port standard does not support it?) but quite popular in Japan

No, V2G is allowed and used in the US.

[BlkGS]

Originally Posted by njdangelo

Up here in the northeast the ROI is almost immediate for solar because of local tax credits and incentives. I haven't had an electric bill in 5 years, aside from the $9.89 a month connectivity charge. Total install cost was just shy of 20k. Credits took the cost down to just under 13k. Prior to solar I was paying about $250-$300 a month. Boggles the mind that a state like Florida doesn't make solar installation mandatory on all new construction with the amount of sun it gets to help ease the strain on the power plants/grid and help with environmental impact. But also not surprised because, you know, Florida.

We have nuke plants. Plenty of power. Plus FPL has several large scale solar and wind plants.

The real big drawback tomsolar here is homeowners insurance. Keeping a solar array on your roof with 200mph winds and them not becoming flying projectiles isn't super easy.

[nZtiZia]

Originally Posted by BlkGS

We have nuke plants. Plenty of power. Plus FPL has several large scale solar and wind plants.

The real big drawback tomsolar here is homeowners insurance. Keeping a solar array on your roof with 200mph winds and them not becoming flying projectiles isn't super easy.

i've seen photos post-hurricane and tornado that show roofs with solar panels still intact while other roofs around them were decimated

[eelnoraa]

It is a function of the racking system. When did mine, the permit require a rack that can sustain local wind rating. If done properly panel should not come off in local wind. Now in FL hurricanes, thr roof may come off tho.

[eelnoraa]

Originally Posted by njdangelo

6.4kwh
I also have dead south exposure, literally 180degree due south which definitely helps.
I’ve heard 6-8 years as well, looks like I fell on the earlier side of that estimate.

If I do a quick estimate based in CT location, about 1400 useable solar hours per year, you electricity needs to be average to $0.3/kWh to break even in 4 years with your previous electricity bill. How far am I?

In my case, Cali, effective sun hour is 1900/year, typical contractor solar installation cost per kW of $3.5, I need 8 years to break even.

[BlkGS]

Originally Posted by eelnoraa

It is a function of the racking system. When did mine, the permit require a rack that can sustain local wind rating. If done properly panel should not come off in local wind. Now in FL hurricanes, thr roof may come off tho.

Right, and the problem is that the insurance companies don't want to own that risk, and so if they will insure you at all (many won't per my insurance agent), your rates are insane. When your homeowners insurance is extra few thousand a year because your solar panels add risk, it takes forever to break even, if ever. If the solar roofing tiles become more durable, availabile, and affordable that might become a good option for FL.

We nearly built a house in a new development when we moved here. One of their shticks was they build the houses to be super efficient and they're all pre wired for solar. Of the 50ish houses in the development (it was tiny), last time we drove by there were none with solar arrays on their houses.

It's a shame because honestly it's a great option for post hurricane power. It's almost always sunny after storms, so if you lost power and had solar+battery backup you could be powered up immediately after. It just isn't feasible yet, even with all the sun we get (which frankly, is probably less hours than you'd expect, we get a LOT of rain and storms here, and the sun we do get is super intense).

[eelnoraa]

Originally Posted by BlkGS

Right, and the problem is that the insurance companies don't want to own that risk, and so if they will insure you at all (many won't per my insurance agent), your rates are insane. When your homeowners insurance is extra few thousand a year because your solar panels add risk, it takes forever to break even, if ever. If the solar roofing tiles become more durable, availabile, and affordable that might become a good option for FL.

We nearly built a house in a new development when we moved here. One of their shticks was they build the houses to be super efficient and they're all pre wired for solar. Of the 50ish houses in the development (it was tiny), last time we drove by there were none with solar arrays on their houses.

It's a shame because honestly it's a great option for post hurricane power. It's almost always sunny after storms, so if you lost power and had solar+battery backup you could be powered up immediately after. It just isn't feasible yet, even with all the sun we get (which frankly, is probably less hours than you'd expect, we get a LOT of rain and storms here, and the sun we do get is super intense).

Since I DIY my PV, I am not sure what prewire for solar means 😅.

I think one reason for FL people don’t put in solar is the cost of kWh from utility. If you pay $0.15/kWh, it will take the length of the panel life to break even. Then you would ask why bother. In my very own case, since I DIYed, thr cost for me is about 40% of typical contractors. Months of weekend work tho, I should break even in 4 years or so if pge don’t change rate structure.