At one point or another, most people have found themselves stuck at home with no power. This can be both a massive inconvenience and possibly even a life-threatening event; only 14% of U.S. households own a backup power generator, according to research by Oberlin College.
But now, people who own certain electric vehicles don't ever have to be powerless again.
General Motors recently launched its GM Energy vehicle-to-home bundle, nicknamed V2H, and it effectively allows an electric vehicle's battery to power an entire home in the case of a power outage.
GM showcased the abilities of its new product via a demonstration with Chevrolet's new electric Silverado at a Beverly Hills mansion; Car and Driver reported that after momentary darkness, the lights winked back on again thanks to the EV parked in the garage.
Forbes broke down how the V2H tech works. The bundle includes a charger as well as an "enablement kit," which redirects power back to the home. There are several other components, including a dark start battery and a transfer switch, which can enable the system to reboot if external power goes down as well as disconnect the circuit for making repairs.
All these pieces can be mounted separately and located throughout the home, and all are weatherproof for outdoor storage. GM Energy's Bill Hotchkiss pointed out that separating the components "provides extra flexibility for future upgrades and adding new capabilities to the platform," according to Forbes.
Like GM, Ford has been innovating its charging equipment and home-power solutions. EV enthusiasts hope that this will usher in a new wave of adoption as the use cases expand for switching to electric.
Forbes also said the average American household uses approximately 29 kilowatt-hours of electricity a day, which means that an F-150 Lightning "can power a home for three days while retaining about 30% of the battery to get to a charger and replenish" and that the "much larger 200-kWh battery in the Silverado should be able to last nearly six days with a similar amount of reserve energy."
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