Tesla Motors Announces a New Home Battery

Post by higherpurpose » Tue, Feb 17, 2015, 4:42 PM UTC

gizmo wrote: post #3

It looks like Elon wants to ramp up production in the new Gigafactory right away, and create home batteries from the excess capacity. A Gigafactory running at full capacity should bring the cost of lithium ion batteries way down. Electric cars haven't hit the mainstream yet, so he has to do something with the excess capacity, and this looks pretty straightforward. So even if he sells these batteries at the break even…

Post by higherpurpose » Tue, Feb 17, 2015, 4:47 PM UTC

headShrinker wrote: post #60

brudgers wrote: post #23

So, where does lithium come from? It comes from the Earth, of course, but it doesn't require strip mining or blowing the tops off mountains like other resources do...most often, lithium is found in briny underground ponds. The liquid is pumped out and left to dry in the sun. TANSTAAFL https://duckduckgo.com/?q=lithium+pond+photos&iax=1&ia=image... Mining is mining. There isn't a "green" form. Tearing holes in the ear…

Also many municipalities don't allow battery 'grid-tie' with the option of 'off the grid' living. For example, Connecticut has laws which don't allow houses to have batteries that would allow a house to be self sustaining and have a connection to the grid. This is because if you have batteries which cause a back flow during a power outage to the power station, an electrical worker could get shocked down the road. The…

Post by danielweber » Tue, Feb 17, 2015, 5:01 PM UTC

fche wrote: post #152

danielweber wrote: post #130

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And even though the solution is right there, power line worker remains the ninth deadliest job in America. http://www.businessinsider.com/most-dangerous-jobs-in-americ...

(It's likely there are many -other- hazards to power line working, beyond presence or absence of transfer switches at on-site generators.)

Post by michaelt » Tue, Feb 17, 2015, 5:01 PM UTC

msandford wrote: post #116

engendered wrote: post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>you can't even live 'off the grid' in a grid tied system I can't find any references for your stated claim about Connecticut, however it seems deeply illogical given that a generator (which surely aren't banned), solar panels, wind, etc, all have the potential of feeding energy back to the grid in an outage. Which is why there are regulations and home inspections and all of that, to ensure that the appropriate safet…

> where some users are trying to game the system by charging a big battery array during low cost hours, and then "selling" it back to the grid during peak hours (at inflated, subsidized prices). The idea that a utility wants a heads-I-win-tails-you-lose kind of situation is annoying at best and downright infuriating at worst. If they're willing to sell power for $X now and willing to buy it later for $Y, what does it…

  If they're willing to sell power for $X now and willing to buy 
  it later for $Y, what does it matter the method?

Post by quarterwave » Tue, Feb 17, 2015, 5:12 PM UTC

it_luddite wrote: post #131

quarterwave wrote: post #57

I have home back-up power based on an inverter charging a lead-acid battery (located in a sheltered area outside the home), which costs about $100/kWh. Usage is about 1-2 hours discharge per day. No matter how well serviced, I've found these batteries don't last beyond four years. Hence I'd pay even $400/kWh for a well-engineered deep-cycle battery that is safe, maintenance-free, and will last at least 10 years. Excl…

check out these _types_ of batteries. http://www.sbsbattery.com/products-services/by-product/batte... no recommendation on the supplier, but funny thing, the power companies and telcos have already figured this out for reliable DC power :)