Bolt electric vehicle powering AC appliances with 1500 watt inverter

Th job at hand was pretty straightforward: cut a bunch of maple branches into short pieces for firewood.

The problem was: there was no power outlet located near the branches.

What to do?

A DC to AC inverter was the simple solution. This small machine, costing about $100, connects to the 12 volt internal battery of a car like an electric vehicle and generates 120V AC current to power household appliances. We wired up a quick connection to Kailash's Bolt EV that has a huge power capacity of 62 kilowatt hours. That would be enough to run 1500 watts for about 50 hours.

Our table saw draws about 800 watts so could run about twice that time.

But this job needed to connect it only for an hour or so.

The result was about a dozen boxes of firewood and a clean landscape!

There were a few parts needed in addition to the inverter:

1. 6' (<2 meter) power cable with large wire (#2 AWG), cost: $40

2. 150A breaker, cost: $18

3. quick connector. cost: $6

4. crimping tool to connect the wire to the quick connector, cost: $13

   
   

Here is a photo album showing some shots:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/gsk8Gh991TgigTSn6

The project was so successful I plan to repeat the installation on Kailash's all electric Leaf EV.

This is a great emergency preparedness project. When (not if) the catastrophic Cascadia subduction zone earthquake hits our area we will experience up to a Richter 9.5 earthquake. That means potential severe shaking lasting five full minutes! After an event like that it will not be surprising if the electrical grid goes down for weeks if not months.

So having a moderate amount of backup power for cell phones, laptops, other critical communication devices, and important appliances like refrigerators, freezers, and our well water pump, will be critical in helping the transition back to normal. Realistically, regarding the water and sewer grid, that could take years.