Tesla Motors invented this highly useful battery, that is the dream of everyone who would like to switch to an off-the-grid living. The battery is called Powerwall and was designed in order to entirely power one’s home, without ever having to use the power grid again. The system of the battery is based on the same one used in the Tesla electric cars and it comes in two units: 7kWh ($300) or 10kWh (#3500). The energy the Powerwall battery will store, has to come from solar or wind generators and the battery will keep running even if the grid goes down. You can order these batteries, starting this summer and we invite you to watch the presentation clip from the following link for more information about this groundbreaking product.
Here is a clip from the initial release
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKORsrlN-2k
Tesla is working on a battery that can power your home and even help large-scale utilities store energy more efficiently, according to company chief executive Elon Musk.
source: teslamotors.com
Are you sure the 7kWh one is only $300?
No, they forgot a zero. The 7kWh is $3,000, which is still an awesome deal.
Since, most off grid people don’t think about batteries in Kwh, but instead, of amp hours…. any idea how much these effectively are, in amp/hours?
120 volt system, 7KwH = 58 amp-hours
240 volt system 7Kwh = 29 amp hours
1 watt = 1 volt x 1 amp
Depends on the voltage, for 110v – standard us voltage that is 7000kwh/110v = 63,63Ah
Wanna bet this gets band or made illegal real fast? Our system won’t like this one bit. I would jump on this before it’s shut down.
It will not ber shut down since it can only be charged with solar panels or wind power. So the system needed to charge it will run you $30,000+. Storing the power is the cheap part, generating it is the expensive part.
The cheap part has been the panels for a long time, but batteries haven’t undergone any recent innovations for a while.
It depends on the time frame you are looking… Batteries have had some really big innovations with LIPO in the past decade.
if u google diy solar panels u would be surprised by the ingenuity of some people. but the price of solar panels are dropping and u don’t need to buy all that u need immediately, u can buy a few every year.
It’s already illegal to store your solar electricity in batteries in many jurisdictions. I have first hand knowledge in Los Angeles. Elon Musk didn’t “invent” it he just made a nice package out of it like the iPhone. Hopefully because of his name recognition and the media attraction to Tesla the laws will be reversed.
Source?
Coming from a guy that can’t spell simple elementary words, you have no idea what you’re talking about.
You sir, are a shit head.
You could at least quote the post to which you refer and eliminate the need for readers to scroll back to find it, Mr Smartypants.
Telsa has been around the block before…they wouldn’t invest millions and millions of dollars into a product that would instantly get banned. That’s not how it works.
So it’s $300 for the 7kWh version or #3500 for the 10kWh?
Please take the time to include accuracy in your work.
Thank you for the article.
Maybe the “#3500” was supposed to be “$500”. Too bad they still haven’t fixed it. Certainly they read the comments.?
Well said.
7kwh is for 3,000 $ not for 300$
And whats the charge for installment and compatibility?
I’m confused. How
Much is this unit. I’m interested in this. Is the unit free then we pay for kwh. Explain how this works
Is this available in australia?
This is nothing new. That is about what you will pay for batterie storage with the current ones on the market. Cool packaging though. You would need several of them to run even your general lighting load for days at a time. Better to have solar to back feed the grid to reduce or eliminate your bill and have the grid to tap for running motor circuits like a well pumps and refrigeration condenser pumps. Just say’n
Watch out big oil, we’re coming for you!
What does this have to do with oil. You’re what they call “Walter is Dumb”
First off the key here is powering the battery requires a very large and expensive solar / wind generator. You are looking at an additional cost of $25,000 to $30,000. This does not include maintenance.
No it doesn’t. Don’t spout crap off you know nothing about like it’s a fact, it makes you look like a moron.
You are actually looking like the moron here. Are you bashing on him because of his handle? Probably. Regardless, you are the one who should research this a bit more. And if you are going to refute something, try doing it with facts. Then you won’t like like a moron as well.
Did you know it only costs around 1000$ to build enough solar panels to power an entire 4 bedroom house? Buying Solar Cells and building your own panels are definitely the way to go. Now please, children, calm down.
You are not very bright are you? It’s just a battery. Do you think batteries will be outlawed?
It clearly says 300.00
which is a typo.
Distributorships, are they available
Sign me up for a 7kw if it is able to supply a 200amp service.
I’ll take two 7 kw’s
Don’t get excited about the low cost until you price a wind generator or solar system and transfer switches etc.
So $3500 for Elon then another $20,000.00 for the solar system to keep it charged. I will now device by $200 month and I owe what for how long?????
Your not going to be saving anything people. By the time you pay for Elon s battery it will need to be replaced.
You sound like you wish you had a clue what you’re talking about. You don’t, quite obviously.
Hey man, you need to stop coming down on people with hollow insults. It just makes you look stupid and rude. Do you really have nothing better to do than bother random people? Or do you hold some kind of allegiance to this company and just don’t have positive facts to back up your product? If you think you know so much more than everyone, then why don’t you show it instead of just making brainless comments like this. These guys are trying to help people save money or at least better inform them of the product. Plus what they are saying is actually true, so clearly they are not as dumb as you claim, you might now that if you actually looked into preparedness like they obviously do.
So $3500 for Elon then another $20,000.00 for the solar system to keep it charged. I will now devide by $200 month and I owe what for how long?????
Your not going to be saving anything people. By the time you pay for Elon s battery it will need to be replaced.
This is an awesome idea …… but ….. Considering the average household uses 40 to 50 kWh per month, which equates to 480 to 600 kWh per year, and since solar panels are at best 30% efficient you would need a system capable of producing 4 times the expected usage. 480 x 4 = 1920 kWh/yr., at $3500 for a 10kwh system you’re looking at $3500 x 192 (1920/10) or $672,000 in order to be completely off the grid. Of course that’s a one-time expense, but amortized over the expected 20 year life the solar panels you’ll be looking at a cost more in the neighborhood of $33,600 per year. Is it really worth it? There needs to be more research and development but I jump on that bandwagon!
And of course you didn’t make any mistakes in your assumptions, did you?
Are you on Drugs? Battery packs are being constantly recharged while the sun is out. DAILY power usages are well within range of this power pack and the panels will recoup the energy, even on a poor day. We have panels on our house that feed into the grid and they pump almost 4 times what we use, back into the grid each day. $30 K for the panels and a rebate of close to $600 a month from the power company, each month. We’ll be hitting the break even point in under 10 years, with 10 years of life still on the panels. Storage sets like the Tesla means we can keep running if the grid goes down and they will pay for themselves in under 5 years.
Makes pretty good sense to me. Check your local bylaws first, though.
I built an off grid home in 1998 and the complete system was just shy of $12,000. I only used 110, 12v and 24 v where applicable and I had appliances made for using off grid systems, Stabler Washing machine, Sun Frost Fridge, they are no longer available, and we heated with wood and propane and cooked with propane. We never had down time in a 3 year period.We had 6 240w panels and 16 deep cell batteries (golf cart) and a 4000w Trace inverter, the system ran flawlessly
Just buy 10 7s at that price difference. Something seems off.
This is just more junk science for the gullible. “The energy the Powerwall battery will store, has to come from solar or wind generators…” Go price a full solar or wind system that can power a modern home completely off the grid, and also can provide enough extra energy to charge this magical, mystical battery. The fantasy unravels.
Free energy ain’t free.
Of course free energy is free. Bernie tells me this all the time. Must be true, right?
nothing free
How do you order one?
Please stop being a douche
Is this just the battery cost? what about installation? Is it compatible with existing solar systems including inverters? Interested in what the price will really be as i have heard its well over $10000
U gotta stick w price quoted!
No you don’t. Please show us where it says that a typo made by a fourth party dictates what you have to charge. They aren’t even on the market yet, they can set the final price anywhere they want.
Once u quote a price in writting , u cant go bk n saw oh era, u have to sell at tha price, i kno a lil bout somethings,
Are you just an idiot or what? For openers, this is like a fourth or fifth had accountig and it’s a simple type. Second, the units aren’t even for sale yet. Third, when you try and look like you know everythig, you just look like an idiot. Fourth, there’s no law saying that because a price appears somewhere that it’s carved in stone. Typographical errors happen all the time, and all the place says is “Sorry, there was a printing error.” IF YOU DON’T WANT IT AT THE REAL PRICE, DON’T BUY IT.
Poot
You sure do rifle shoot others. Perhaps, based on your knowledge and the information currently available you could provide your best analysis and recommendations . Alternatively, if that’s not possible, you could give the people close to you one more chance to appreciate what you have to say.
Still waiting for Tesla generators for the home using grid source to generate 5x more electricity then the average home can use. The excess is feed back into the grid….each house is contributing. Less emissions less stress on the grid…..a whole lot less fuel costs …..but the power cos get driven to bankruptcy . The generators cost about $600 to build your own and there are some kits out there Soon the power cos will get around to leasing the generators and charging a maintenance fee advancing the technology and keeping the power cos in business
This technology has been around for a while…used to see those in Virginia at the F.B.I. training facility….Big Brother wants control.
anyone have first hand knowledge on this?
It seems since the invention of the Internet, nobody needs to proof read or spell check. Completely takes away from the article.
Where can this be purchased
readers are leaders.
We have many friends with remote non electric power we run solar power and battery systems year round near Bissett Mb Canada check your map A high end solar system including batteries and instalation averages $16000 Canadian imported from the US Check out Shapiro solar panels USA cost would be less as Canadian dollar is at 75 cents today A simple setup in the US should cost under 120000 not what some people claim as 30000
Finally- someone who knows what they are talking about. For me what it boils down to is the “quality” of the the battery and it’s expected life span!!
Ooooh, this is easy. The gentleman that said it’s that expensive, is, in fact, an idiot. I just bought quite a bit of solar energy for a lot less. He is, in fact, spouting nonsense and it appears you are too!
Where did you get your numbers? In 2014 the US residential average was 911 kWh per month. Assuming you already have a solar system and you are just looking to cover for night time and storm use, based on the 911 kWh average and estimating 31 days a month you have an average of just under 30 kWh per day. Which means if you have a solar system that currently covers tou entire day time usage and then some, you would only need 3 10kWh batteries making you cost for the batteries only $10,500 one time cost, not $600k. I have a 13.86 kWh system and currently i generate near 7000 kWh extra over my day time use. I use between 500-900 kWh of on grid power per month at night/stormy days depending on the month here in Arizona. So to cover the highest end of my needed energy back up i would need 3 10kWh batteries minimum, which will cover ALL night time and average storm use. Add in 3 more batteries, doubling your capacity for an extra comfort zone and you total is still only $21,000 one time charge in addition to what ever you paid for the solar system. With how sunpowers lease works, which allows you to pay off your lease with a depressiation value on the system, allowing you to go from leasing to owning, I got my $70k system for roughly 35k (total monthly payments made plus pay off amount). Add the $21k for 6 batteries and my total investment is $56k which is still less then what I would have paid for the system on its own. Add the piece of mind you get with not having to deal with the utility companies attacking me or jack my rates up and it becomes well worth it. Is there a chance that you have a freak storm that causes you to drain all you saved power before you can recharge, yes but its still a very low chance. Most systems are sensitive enough to still produce some power even in cloudy days.
Edit* My systen generates 7,000 kWh extra a year.
Thay was ment to be a reply to Ron who posted on November 29, 2015 at 2:06 pm. For some reason it didnt pyt my last comment in as a reply.
Wow. Epic typo. Top editing work people.
Many thousands of us already have solar. The battery is the missing link to make coal-fired energy plants obsolete. The prices quoted for solar in these posts are soon to be lower by log scales. Here’s the big problem: what do we do with municipal utilities that are necessary for the few when the masses don’t support them
The little blue dot of area that would be required for solar power to supply the US is vastly underestimated. True the amount of solar energy that hits that small area is more than enough but harvesting that energy is not at all efficient. The Agua Caliente Solar Project in Arizona is an array of photovoltaic (the same panels you can put on your roof) cells that covers an area of 2400 acres and produces a mere 626GWh/year, about half of what the city of Burbank, Ca uses in a year.
I think I’ll wait until the batteries are smaller. Those monsters wouldn’t fit in my small house. What happened to the kid genius on 60 mins. that had a house generator that also stored energy that was the size of a Kleenex box !!! I think he was ghosted by SCE!!!
A Magnum Energy 3500 watt 12 vokt power inverter with an Outback conditioner is roughly $2500.00 bucks and would only require and minimum panel set of 9 solar panels and about 250 bucks each. Read the tech data and wiring schematics and You’ll realize quickly installation is quite easy. If Your uncomfortable hire a master electrician for the grid tie in.
Solar is not so great if you live in the northeastern US. I live in Ohio, and all graphs show me as only being able to utilize less than 20% of the sun’s rays, on solar panels. (No matter the direction they point)
Also… That % is lower in the winter months.
I have been watching the articles for a few years now.
No it won’t. Ours was only 20k
I get a kick out of watching adults who disagree with each other revert t name calling. Kindergarten behavior over renewable energy? And yes, there are probably misspellings in this post.
Where are you all getting that this system can only be charged by wind or solar??? You are wrong. Quote from Tesla website: “Powerwall is a home battery that charges using electricity generated from solar panels, or when utility rates are low, and powers your home in the evening.”
So…as most utilities charge a premium rate during evenings(peak hours), your powerwall will charge from the grid during off peak hours and allow you to use the stored energy during peak hours…thus saving you from being price gouged even more by your utility company.
What is wrong with all of you? Do you sit at home thinking of ways to make fun of people? This is why America sucks. And we have two numbskulls leading for the Democrats and the Republicans. Look enjoy this awesome opportunity! If we do not change we will fall. And when we do its going to hurt. So learn to get a long or just don’t post.
Interesting. I’m living in europe where solar and Wind is all the rage. I guess if you’re going off the grid, you’d probably be living somewhat remotely, or at least enough so that you can afford the space for a small windmill. Some of the smaller systems we have could easily power a fairly large household, don’t know about heating though, my beef here lies with the batteries, as someone stated they need replacing once in a while. ofcourse there’s wear on the windmill too, but what we really need is a dramatic improvement, either in batteries or an entirely new approach to energy storage. I like the idea of using renewable energy where we can, leaving fossiles to where it isn’t practical. But storage is still not good enough.
The price of my solar panels was $25,000, My actual cost was $6900.00 the electric co , Orgeon , and US govt. paid the remainder of then $25,00.00. Check it out with your tax advisor.
The big kicker in the solar calculation is the HVAC loads- we are just not there tech wise. The big systems draw big loads. Calculate your usage on just house and cut the HVAC out – ends up more manageable-
Doesn’t goal zero already have this?
This comment makes no sense. The battery would only have to store enough energy to get you through periods of little to no sun, not an entire year. So not 40kwh*12 but 40kwh/4 which would last 1 week with no sun. The fact that solar panels are 30% efficient doesn’t increase your storage requirement just the number of solar panels you need. So in summary your post is nonsense.
It has to be an official quote on official paper and digned by a company representative or on dtore premises for legal reasons for that to apply. 3rd party. Word of mouth. All moot…
My concern exactly. Anything that threatens big oil is in danger of being blocked by any means possible. I love this new technology. Let’s hope the good guys win.
I can fart out enough power to power my little section 8 house and leave comments like this with my free government provided internet through my free cell phone given to me because I don’t want to get a job. I don’t pay bills anyway. I ley you guys taxes pay that for me. yeehaw.
Any engineer can overcome any obstacle. I can convert it to accept a water wheel. I am waiting on this design of batteries so I can switch over. Currently I use submarine batteries this unit will be much more effecient and last longer. PS I am not a salesman nor do I have any affiliation with this company. I am a senior master heavy duty EVT mechanic
Omg ďo you need to go back and look at your post again…if you use 50kw you only require 5 10kw units…and that you only pay once….then you will need to add the cost of solar/wind at approx $25,000.000 . So to my wee brain that comes to approx $60,000.00 plus taxes. And that my friend is a far cry from your $672,000.00.
To the. Who cute others down because Thay can’t spell right I dear you to say that to my face I will Kiki your a hole out watch out man
If you think your better your not
Is this specific to LA? I know y’all have some wacky earthquake related requirements. We’ve not been able to get any information out of Tesla about depth of discharge, but I suppose them calling them 7k and 10 k batteries clears that up. These are not big batteries.
My house is off grid and entirely powered by the sun. My father’s house is also solar…Plus he charges his electric car all from solar. It CAN be done. Too bad more of you might actually TRY and change the way we live instead of just argue about it
I am in off grid intelligent street lighting. If I read the comments I will add a new business and make power packs. We all use the same cells… ICR18650 model from about 9Wh a piece. I use now 24VDC so a 7S model with BMS (a smart battery management system) and intelligent module. I can easily redesign the powerpack to the voltage wanted (best is 60V) with a BMS and a tracking system to control your MPPT. Who is interested to try a system? [email protected]
It can be charged from grid. It is already installed in houses now. The initial home use was to charge at night during off peak and run during the day.
However, it is best used being charged by solar or wind or water generator.
We live in Fairbanks, Alaska and have a home that is ran almost entirely by solar power 9 months of the year and generator supplemental the other three. We are totally off the grid. Not connecter at all!
I think not many Alaskan off gridders use a Tesla Powerwall. They rely on gel- or semi-traction batteries. And of course, Tesla is way to expensive.
Tesla powerwall is nothing but a lot of 3.7V batteries. Nothing special.
The average house hold would use 400 to 500 kwh per month. Not 40-50 kwh.
A bunch of money is being dumped into making these batteries because the truth about nuclear power is starting to surface. It’s safe and actually easy to have your own personal small reactor that pumps out endless and free energy. They’re not going to end the battery scam.
To buy these you will have to go through a certified electrian/company that has participated in the corse required to sell and install the systems. It won’t be something you can just buy.