Rivian as a backup power source for home during a power outage

[deanpapa]

Anyone know if this is something Rivian plans to support? I know Scout and some of the new competitors support this and honestly it is an awesome use case that would support a nice feature with a strong ROI.
this would eliminate the need to purchase a backup power source like Generac which can go for $10k and higher based on your consumption requirements for your home. I would absolutely spend a one time or subscription for this capability and this is something Rivian product management could support without a heavy lift and it would drive revenue as they grow. Wanted to get thoughts from the community

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[Dave Cundiff]

My understanding is that the hardware is capable of vehicle-to-home, and the software will be ready... well, someday....

Best wishes!

 

[howler99]

As someone that used my Rivian to power the refrigerator during the power outage from Helene, I've eagerly waiting this too. I believe it was mentioned in a recent investor day conference in June, but I don't think there has been any other details.

 

[Hereforthesnacks]

FWIW - you will likely need a few thousand dollars in equipment and permitting. I’ve seen quotes around $6k for houses that only need the equipment for V2H. Ie, those are the houses that do not need more electrical work beyond V2H system install.

Might still be better than a dedicated generator.

That said, there are mixed signals to me as to whether, if you switch to a another car brand, whether you will need new equipment again…

 

[DeafPug]

That said, there are mixed signals to me as to whether, if you switch to a another car brand, whether you will need new equipment again…

This is my big concern with potential V2G installations right now. Until the industry locks in on a certain set of equipment needed in your home, I don't want to spend money on an installation that will lock me into a certain vehicle manufacturer or even specific vehicle model from that same company.

 

[jrproli]

As someone that used my Rivian to power the refrigerator during the power outage from Helene, I've eagerly waiting this too. I believe it was mentioned in a recent investor day conference in June, but I don't think there has been any other details.

Same thing here. I kept 2 refrigerators running for 12h during Helene. It only sonsumed 10% of my range...

 

[DrBad]

This weekend's Denver storm we were out about 12 hours with a significant chunk of the city out so XCEL was saying they didn't know how long it would take to get power back to customers. My R1T had been plugged in over night to charge, only had about 25% charge, so I charged it up at a SC in the morning and was hooking up our fridges when the power came back on. Still felt good that I had an option. I did use it to open the garage door so my wife could get to her morning yoga class and I could get to the charging station

 

[mudito]

I'm eagerly waiting for this as well. I'm okey with spending a few bucks in a smart panel, 2-way charger, etc....

I would love to use this as backup/extra power source.

 

[Electrified Outdoors]

FWIW - you will likely need a few thousand dollars in equipment and permitting. I’ve seen quotes around $6k for houses that only need the equipment for V2H. Ie, those are the houses that do not need more electrical work beyond V2H system install.

Might still be better than a dedicated generator.

That said, there are mixed signals to me as to whether, if you switch to a another car brand, whether you will need new equipment again…

RJ has said this is coming soon and that the hardware is already capable. No timeline for availability. No specs on how much output is possible. All the competitors offer it currently (Silverado/Sierra EV, Ford Lightning, and Tesla CT).

The way it works is you typically need a 2nd panel where your main service enters. It is costly to install but maybe less so than a dedicated battery storage system like powerwall for example. Plus dedicated battery storage tends to be much smaller (powerwall is around 14 kwh IIRC). It makes much more sense if you can tap the huge battery in your EV to backup your home.

Unfortunately, the post above is correct and the electrical work isn't cheap.....the marketing would have you think you just plug in and can pull power from it. The reality is that its much more complicated. I think the Tesla CT has the simplest system assuming you already have a Tesla powerwall installed as their material says all that's needed is the universal wall connector and a powerwall and you can pull from CT.

Lastly, the EV battery cannot back-feed to the grid like a powerwall can. What this means is that when power goes it there is usually a delay before the backup kicks on (no issue for me). Since something like a powerwall is grid connected it can respond to a grid outage in milliseconds and in many cases the only way you know you lost grid is via an app notification.

Currently, I use the 1500w inverted power to plug in the fridge, run coffee maker, and use microwave when needed. Having potentially up to 48amps of backup power and a 100+ kwh battery backup is very attractive.

 

[mudito]

RJ has said this is coming soon and that the hardware is already capable. No timeline for availability. No specs on how much output is possible. All the competitors offer it currently (Silverado/Sierra EV, Ford Lightning, and Tesla CT).

The way it works is you typically need a 2nd panel where your main service enters. It is costly to install but maybe less so than a dedicated battery storage system like powerwall for example. Plus dedicated battery storage tends to be much smaller (powerwall is around 14 kwh IIRC). It makes much more sense if you can tap the huge battery in your EV to backup your home.

Unfortunately, the post above is correct and the electrical work isn't cheap.....the marketing would have you think you just plug in and can pull power from it. The reality is that its much more complicated. I think the Tesla CT has the simplest system assuming you already have a Tesla powerwall installed as their material says all that's needed is the universal wall connector and a powerwall and you can pull from CT.

Lastly, the EV battery cannot back-feed to the grid like a powerwall can. What this means is that when power goes it there is usually a delay before the backup kicks on (no issue for me). Since something like a powerwall is grid connected it can respond to a grid outage in milliseconds and in many cases the only way you know you lost grid is via an app notification.

Currently, I use the 1500w inverted power to plug in the fridge, run coffee maker, and use microwave when needed. Having potentially up to 48amps of backup power and a 100+ kwh battery backup is very attractive.

I've been wanting to have Battery backup at home since forever but the $$$ never made sense to me (ROI is just too far out for me). BUT.... My thing is the following:

I live in Texas and I use a "Free nights" electricity plan from my provider with $0 electricity from 8pm to 6am. We have two EVs at home so they get charged during the night, of course. We are also "late people", and like to have dinner after 9pm (very Argentinian thing to do), so the electric Oven doesn't get used before 8pm. We do the same for the electric drier of course.

That shifts MOST of our electricity consumption to the 'free zone' and when we don't use A/C, our electricity bill might be ~$60 for a 3000kWh month. BUT... again, we live in Texas and its HOT around here.

I cool the house from 8pm to 6am as much as possible while still comfortable, and that allows me to turn off the A/C from 6am to ~1pm on a 100+ degrees day.

IF/WHEN Rivian comes out with a V2L solution, I'll jump head-on into that one. I work from home so I use the truck early morning (School drop-off, coffee, and back) and for my afternoon/evening activities (Tennis, School pickup, tournaments for my son, etc). That means I can run the A/C during the day off the Rivian and reduce my electricity bill by about $200/mo during the summer months

I don't mind the "short" power interruption, as I might just manually run this A/C load during the day, and that's pretty much it. This would be a 10/10 solution for me!

Hence why I'm (im)patiently waiting

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