How do I charge my car from solar? | Electrifying

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If you want to use solar energy to charge your electric car, you’ll need a home charger that comes with solar integration. In this video we take you through the process that will enable you to use your own solar or even wind power to charge your car.

We’re going to assume here that you already have solar panels installed, the first thing you’ll need is a charger that is compatible with home-generated energy. The EVIOS One unit that we’re using was designed to work with solar installations right from the start and has some really neat features built in. 

There’s actually no physical connection between the panels and the charger. Using a clever sensor, the charger knows exactly how much power is being generated by your solar and then matches that input from the panels with output sent to your car.

There are a couple of things to be aware of if you want to charge like this. Like all electrical appliances, your car needs a certain level of power before it can charge. For electric cars this is around 1.6kW or seven amps, so if your panels aren’t generating that, your car won’t charge.
  
Of course, the question most of us want to know is how long it will take to charge my car purely from the sun. Well that depends on quite a few factors. The first is the size of your solar array, which is the name given to your collection of panels.

Then there’s the capacity of your car battery and, of course, the weather.
Let’s say, for example, that we have a 4kW solar array on our roof and that it’s in direct sunlight all day. Our Citroen here has a usable battery capacity of 45kWh battery, which means that we would need almost 12 hours of direct sunshine in order to fill it up from empty. Now, clearly, we don’t tend to get 12 hours of direct sunshine in the UK, so an empty to full charge will probably take at least a couple of days if you want to charge purely from the sun. But it will be able to keep the average motorist topped up for their commute. With free, green energy.

To discover more about the process and read our reviews of the best solar compatible home chargers on market, check out our new Electrifying.com charging information hub.
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