diy solar

diy solar

EV's and Batteries

The backing on the panels we have had in service for ~15 years are reaching their end of life. I expect the acids generated to start cutting traces in a few years.

The studies we have seen, suggest the new bifacial panels will last 30 years or more in accelerated tests. Ask me again when I'm in my late 80's and I can confirm if that was true or not!
 
This ignores the issues of sourcing raw and scarce materials and their costs and impacts on the Earth. Just look at the Atacama Desert as one example of an impact most EV drivers are oblivious to.

If all you consider is the cost of energy without any other impacts, then more efficient energy production at an efficient and significant energy plant is better. However, there is a lot more driving the costs of transportation than just the cost of electricity or gasoline and its relative efficiency. Total lifecycle costs/impacts go far beyond just the electrical plant or refinery/gas station. My Diesel VW's all got over 50MPG where and how I drove them and my motorcycle routinely got 110~120MPG. Non-EV transportation can be pretty efficient. In Europe, I generally don't rent a car and use trains exclusively which to me is even better than EV options over there.

I'm looking at total lifetime costs and impacts. What are the costs and impacts of making the car, operating it, and, then recycling it, and the impacts of procuring those raw materials needed to begin with? Total lifetime costs of ownership and their overall impacts matter! Looking at just one aspect of a much larger system overlooks all the issues that impact the decision. If all I care about is efficient and Earth-friendly energy production, it is hard to beat a bifacial solar panel with a ~30-year lifespan.
There is a lot of earth harvesting in both types of new cars.
Keeping the old cars is better the the planet, but the atmosphere is another matter.

In yhe 10year lifespan of a new car...

Evs do far less damage.

Period.
 
Ah, the old issues revisited, and many miss the problem of not looking at an EV society from a "system" standpoint, and not individual vehicles.

1) For instance : in the very early diy EV days in Australia, it was figured out that what good was building an EV, when your charging source was a coal-fired power plant?

Ie, one was only moving their tailpipe emissions from their driveway to the coal-burning power plant instead. Some EV consumers today don't think beyond their driveway.

2) Infrastructure issues:
What happens at 5pm in an EV world, when everyone comes home from work and charges up? Is there enough infrastructure capacity to support that surge?

3) As mentioned elsewhere - vendor / proprietary charger lock-in. If there is the modern equivalent of a "gas station", will the chargers and vehicular connectors all be brand-specific? In other words, a separate charger "pump", for Tesla, a different one for Ford, and yet another different one for Chevrolet? Will you have to drive around to find vehicle-specific charging stations?

As a manufacturer, that's the way I'd want it - total lock-in and brand-specific charging stations. Of course as a consumer, that's NOT the way I'd want it.
 
2) Infrastructure issues:
What happens at 5pm in an EV world, when everyone comes home from work and charges up? Is there enough infrastructure capacity to support that surge?
In my area these drivers will pay peak TOU rates and soon learn not to charge in the evenings.

My car mostly charges at work during the day when peak grid solar is king.
 
Ah, the old issues revisited, and many miss the problem of not looking at an EV society from a "system" standpoint, and not individual vehicles.

1) For instance : in the very early diy EV days in Australia, it was figured out that what good was building an EV, when your charging source was a coal-fired power plant?

Ie, one was only moving their tailpipe emissions from their driveway to the coal-burning power plant instead. Some EV consumers today don't think beyond their driveway.

2) Infrastructure issues:
What happens at 5pm in an EV world, when everyone comes home from work and charges up? Is there enough infrastructure capacity to support that surge?

3) As mentioned elsewhere - vendor / proprietary charger lock-in. If there is the modern equivalent of a "gas station", will the chargers and vehicular connectors all be brand-specific? In other words, a separate charger "pump", for Tesla, a different one for Ford, and yet another different one for Chevrolet? Will you have to drive around to find vehicle-specific charging stations?

As a manufacturer, that's the way I'd want it - total lock-in and brand-specific charging stations. Of course as a consumer, that's NOT the way I'd want it.
And again we revisit that EVEN a coal fired plant is superior to the most efficient fuel powered vehicle...
 
vendor / proprietary charger lock-in. If there is the modern equivalent of a "gas station", will the chargers and vehicular connectors all be brand-specific? In other words, a separate charger "pump", for Tesla, a different one for Ford, and yet another different one for Chevrolet? Will you have to drive around to find vehicle-specific charging stations?

As a manufacturer, that's the way I'd want it - total lock-in and brand-specific charging stations. Of course as a consumer, that's NOT the way I'd want it.


 
will the chargers and vehicular connectors all be brand-specific?
Only the Tesla Chargers are specific to Tesla. All others are common to all brands.

Tesla vehicles have adapters available to charge at any public charging station.

Can get an adapter to charge your non-Tesla at a Tesla wall charger or Tesla opportunity charger.

Tesla Superchargers are for Tesla only.

Map of N. America Charging stations
 
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