Using PIP As A Generator

Well if you knew about it then you would know that storing gasoline isn’t that big a deal.

You were the one who said:

“Prius, all the hybrids for that matter, are particularly good since they are designed as electric generator and storage device. Hybrid will run off the battery and only start the engine to charge while a regular car will require the engine to stay running which is very wasteful of the fuel.“

If it’s good enough for you, then fine with me.

 

Thanks for the concern, but I have checked it and the sine wave, frequency, and regulation are all adequate and I have had no problems with any of my electronics. But you are correct that not all generators or inverters are created equal in that regard.

 

Most are battery operated and the charger/transformers don't care about the perfect wave...nor do the basic household electronics. If you are running an NSA listening station in your basement, by all means get a 100KW Diesel generator with power filter for $50K.

Otherwise the 1.5KW of lights, microwave, computer and heat from a Prius will make a great emergency generator.

 

Storing gasoline is not a big deal, just not safe and requires constant maintenance.

Couldn't have said it better myself.

 

I'm not sure why we're still arguing over this, BUT, can you please get some perspective? Most of the folks in this country do NOT live in the conditions you describe. The majority of the population lives in cities and has running water and gas. So your suggestions about generators have absolutely zero relevance. Also, a lot of us live in apartments. Where do you propose we run our generators? In our living rooms? I guess there is that whole CO issue you kept bringing up…

 

most on the east coast do have running water & electricity & gas ... but there are about a half million right now that are wishing they had a nice gen set, and taken a few other precautions. I don't know why it is that many folks find prep'ing for a big disaster (2way radios ... generator ... extra food ... extra medical supplies, extra ammo etc.) to be so onerous.

Most appliances, true. Still, many won't. For instance - in order to spoof our PV inverters into believing the grid is "ON" (they won't run if the grid is down - keeps you from back-feeding the grid) our backup power needs to have grid quality wave form. Grid tied PV inverters don't look for voltage/amps - but rather a pure sine wave. Running our PV during a power outage gives us an additional 4kW to 7kW of juice during the day time hours.

 

All household appliances, all the ones anyone would need to power up during an outage. Talking quality of sine waves is irrelevant to the discussion.

 

One more option to consider:

Why not use the inverter to get 1500W, hook it into the house electrical panel (after disconnecting from the grid of course), AND use the grid-tied solar panels to give more than 1500W. If the invertor can provide the 60Hz frequency lock necessary for the grid-tie inverters, it would seem possible to get 1500w plus the size of the solar system during daylight hours. Only at night would one be limited to just 1500W.

Would a grid-tie inverter require a pure sine wave to lock to or would a modified sine wave inverter work?

Would the 1500W PowerBright inverter be ok being coupled with the grid-tie inverters? The grid-tie inverters would set their voltage at just higher then the PowerBright inverter, so I think power would come 1st from the solar panels and 2nd from the car, which would use the Prius mostly as just a locking signal for the solar panel inverters.

 

Millions of Americans live in rural areas, where electric transmission lines travel for miles through all kinds of conditions. Power failures can be frequent. Apparently the only perspective that matters is yours.

Zero relevance to you, who can’t seem to see farther than his own reflection. Again there are millions for whom my suggestions are completely relevant. By the way I have running water; I pump my own up from a well. I have indoor plumbing just like you, except I am the water department.

If you live in an apartment then you can’t power it with your Prius either, so I don’t understand why your commenting on this. Do you park your Prius in your living room? However I still would like to point out that not all city folks live in apartments. How about the hundreds of thousands on Staten Island who are mere miles from the center of Manhattan who at this very moment are without power, water, food, and many are without shelter; they would kill to have a generator. No not everyone is in a position to use a generator, but millions are and it can help them to be self reliant and survive an emergency.

 

I guess you missed the part where I said "most", i.e. a majority. I never said "no one".

 

I used to live in a very remote area where electricity frequently failed. I would prefer a real generator, properly wired to my electrical system, if I still lived there and had the means. No doubt. But it's a different deal when you're buying a product you may never use.

Earthquakes are the threat here, and they're nature's most random disaster. Maybe you home is destroyed, maybe your car is... It's all unpredictable, unfortunately. In 1989, we lost power for only about 12 hours.

 

PiP2012, I appreciate your addition. Contributive information like your post is a great benefit of this forum.

 

Grid tie inverters expct to see a substantial load that may not always be there when powering the house.

 

As things are developing, it looks like the only problem would be keeping enough gasoline for the car. That could mean 10--30 gallons. If one isn't flooded out and house and garage are still standing. Apartment dwellers are screwed.

 

DLee, I am talking now with tech expert in the franchised PV installer company for my SunPower PV system about these and similar tech details. We'll see...

 

Do you know of any such spoofing device?

 

Details at the links below on how to get several thousand watts from the traction battery, I have a Gen II but there are at least 1 or 2 current models with the same batt voltage (which would make them compatible with the UPS I use). Mine outputs 4000 watts, although the Prius can only handle 3000 continuously. I ran mine for 27 hours after Sandy hit, plus two half-day tests in the past. My Prius will run all of my 120 volt circuits and could run my 240 volt stuff with load management (I don't since I have a 12 kw generator). If you keep your eyes open on Ebay you can get the UPS and transformer for about $250 each. One tank of gas will last about 2 1/2 days of constant use - 2 or 3 times that if you go with 12 or 8 hours of run time per day (alternating on-off every couple of hours to keep the fridge cold). Any questions you can email me at [email protected]​

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Doug's PriUPS​

Using a Prius as a generator​

 

He is talking about a good sine wave inverter.

 

Very cool!