In early March, high winds in the Nashville area downed trees and power lines, leaving thousands of homes without power. But about 20 miles out of town, an electric pickup truck powered John and Rachelle Reigard’s home and left the lights on.
“You can see all the houses around us and they’re all out,” said Mr. Reigard, who bought the pickup truck, a Ford F-150 Lightning, more than a year ago. “A lot of people ask the question, ‘How do you get power?'”
The Reigards are among a small group of pioneers who are using their electric vehicle batteries as a backup power source for their homes. Energy and automotive experts predict many more people will do the same in the years to come as automotive and energy companies make it easier for people and businesses to use the energy from electric cars for more than just driving.
Power grids are increasingly stressed and buckled during extreme weather conditions associated with climate change longer heat waves, violent storms And devastating floods. Lots of people bought Generators or home solar and battery systemsoften with great effort.
For some people, electric vehicles are a better option because they can serve multiple functions. Another big advantage: The battery of an F-150 Lightning or the Chevrolet Silverado electric pickup, which is expected to go on sale later this year, can store much more energy than home batteries, some of which are installed with solar panels on the roof. Pair an electric truck with a solar array for your home, the thought goes, and a family could leave the lights on for days or even weeks.
The use of electric vehicles as a source of energy has intrigued energy utility executives, including Pedro Pizarro, chairman of the Edison Electric Institute, the industry’s premier trade body, and chief executive of Edison International, which powers millions of homes and businesses in Southern California.
Mr. Pizarro’s company and other energy companies are testing whether it is practical and safe to feed electricity from electric vehicles into the grid.
By soaking up energy when it’s plentiful and releasing it when it’s scarce, he said electric vehicles could serve as “a bigger rubber band to absorb the shock and handle it day after day and week after week.” “.
Increased use of electric vehicles in this way should also allow utilities and homeowners to reduce planet-warming emissions by relying more on renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind, to provide electricity intermittently.
Currently, only a few electric vehicles can provide emergency power. But executives Teslathe leading electric car maker, and other automakers have said they are working on updates that will allow many more cars to do this.
When the power goes out in the Reigards’ neighborhood of Mount Juliet, Tennessee, their truck provides enough electricity to turn on the lights, run four refrigerators, and run a fan in a natural gas-fired heating system. The truck’s air conditioning stops running, but other vital equipment kicks in just minutes after an outage begins.
When the family lost electricity around Christmas, Ms Reigard’s parents, who were visiting, were alarmed because it was freezing outside. “They started to think, ‘Gosh, what’s going on?'” said Mr. Reigard. His answer: “Nothing is going on. We will be fine.”
The couple were so pleased with their truck that they bought ten more for their company, Grade A Construction. They estimate that the investment will save them $300 per vehicle per month since driving on electricity costs less per mile than driving on gas.
While the trucks reduce operating costs, outfitting the Reigards’ home with the electrical equipment that powers it with power from the F-150 required hiring experts and spending thousands of dollars. The couple used Qmerit, a company that manages the development, installation, and maintenance of electric vehicles, storage, and vehicle-to-home energy systems.
A handful of components relay information between the truck and the home’s electrical system, appliances and lights. Once the system is tuned to the homeowner’s preferences, it decides when the truck will charge its batteries and when it will send power back to the home.
However, such systems can be complicated, and some first-time adopters have encountered problems.
Kevin Dyer, a software quality engineer who lives near Los Angeles, has been driving electric vehicles since 2009 and bought an F-150 Lightning in September. He wanted the truck to help his family get through the power outages that have been common in California in recent years.
“We have completed the installation,” said Mr. Dyer. “The truck actually powered my house. That was the high-five moment. Then it kind of went downhill. Basically it just works, then it shuts down.”
Mr Dyer, 59, said he hoped a software update or other modest fix would solve the problem.
Energy executives said the industry is working to improve and simplify the technology for connecting electric cars to homes, which they believe will happen within a few years.
Oliver Phillips, chief operating officer at Qmerit, said that over time, more people could easily combine solar panels, home batteries and electric vehicles. Taken together, these devices would make people “bulletproof” against blackouts, he said.
Battery-powered vehicles could ultimately play an even bigger role, feeding energy into the grid when power demand exceeds supply, said Gus Puga, owner of Airstream Services, an electric, heating and cooling company that has partnered with Qmerit to install the system at Reigard’s house.
Some energy experts worry that the proliferation of electric cars could put a strain on power grids as energy demand soars. Mr Puga disagrees: “I think we’re going to bring stability to the grid.”
In the auto industry, some experts warn that frequent use of cars to power homes or the grid could drain batteries more quickly and reduce range – the distance vehicles can travel on a full charge. But automakers have downplayed these risks.
Ford and General Motors want to market the versatility of their battery-powered models to people who suffer from or are afraid of power outages.
“It’s really a game changer,” said Ryan O’Gorman, manager of business development for Ford’s energy services. “The truck is a huge source of energy. EVs are big and can power the house for several days.”
Mark Bole, GM’s head of power connectivity and battery solutions, said the company plans to offer a suite of devices and services to help customers get the most out of their electric vehicle. “It’s absolutely important for us to make it easy and affordable for the customer,” he said.
But Pizarro, the utility’s chief executive, warned that energy and auto companies still need to refine the technology that will allow cars to send power to homes and the grid. He expects more problems to be identified as more people use electric vehicles for backup power.
“It’s the beginnings,” said Mr. Pizarro. “There will be surprises.”
