EV + Solar at National Drive Electric Week - EmPower Solar

EV + Solar at National Drive Electric Week

This past Saturday, September 12th, EmPower Solar had the opportunity to attend the annual National Drive Electric Week’s Long Island “Plug-In Day.” The event is celebrated nationwide to raise awareness and availability of electric cars, trucks, and even motorcycles. With the demand of electric cars growing, a number of different vehicle manufactures are expanding their offerings of all-electric and plug-in hybrid cars.

A number of different dealerships joined this year’s event, such as Nissan, Chevy, and BMW and offered test drives for event participants. Residents from all over Long Island came to show off their electric cars and discuss the vast benefits of going electric. After speaking with many of the participants, we learned that many of them power their vehicles at home with energy from the sun with a home solar system. Solar energy and EV have a very close relationship and their changing the way we think about our home and car purchases.

A Tesla Model S owner, stood and talked for hours about her recent cross country excursion with her husband. The couple began their EV adventure in California at the Tesla manufacturer and drove all the way back to New York. Their $100,000 green machine has a 17 inch touch screen that includes a number of features that helped guide their route cross country. Most notably ” the charger map, which provided all the locations of charging stations across the United States. Even if there wasn’t a charging station for 100 miles or more, this 300 mile range EV was able to make it to the next charging station with no problem. The vehicle, which can go from 0-60 in 2.8 seconds, is changing the way we look at electric cars, and hopefully the way we look at solar.

Pairing up solar panels and an EV is beneficial for not only the environment, but your wallet too. Editor of Home Power magazine, Michael Welch, stated in a recent article, “A grid-tied system is even more attractive for its design flexibility. You can spend what you can afford, and expand your system later on. On the other hand, if you oversize the grid-tied PV system, you can also offset some of your household use in addition to the EV use.” Installing solar panels on your home is not only a great investment, but a step in the right direction for a healthier future. By combining efficient electric vehicles with solar carport charging stations, we can convert our gasoline consumption to renewable energy one solar panel at a time. As a direct result, we will improve our air quality, and decrease our dependence on foreign oil, leading to a healthier more prosperous world!

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