What is the concept of V2H technology?
Vehicle to Home or V2H describes the process of enabling electric vehicles to transfer energy back to the house, they are getting charged from.
This process is also known as bidirectional charging and its main idea is that the electric car can be used as a back-up source of energy when it’s not in use.
V2H technology is still at an early stage of adoption but its implementation is expected to be accelerated in the near future due to the need for both cheaper and greener energy.
EV batteries can supply an average household or a small business building with enough energy for two or even more days.
With that in mind, it becomes clear that homeowners who have a variable energy plan can rely on V2H to reduce energy costs, when electricity demand is high.
Substituting local grid energy with backup power from your electric vehicle is also an excellent way to make your house energy efficient and cut down on your carbon emissions.
The potential is actually even bigger if you combine V2H with other renewable energy sources such as solar energy.
In that case, you can use the battery of your EV as a storage unit for the additional energy produced by your solar panels during the day. The energy stored in the vehicle battery can subsequently used to cover the power needs of your home.
Learn more: How to stay in control of your at-home EV charging experience
What are the benefits of V2H?
By now, it’s already clear that the adoption of Vehicle to Home technology comes with a number of benefits.
First of all, you make sure that you always have access to energy even when the power grid is down. In times of emergency that can be truly valuable and it can save you the cost of investing in a storage battery or an electric generator.
V2H is also a smart way to lower the cost of the energy you are using during peak hours. Using the energy stored in the EV battery during off peak hours, you can protect your household of high electricity bills (under the condition that you have a variable energy plan).
Furthermore, it is a greener way to power your home. By combining V2H technology with solar power you could ensure that all the surplus energy, that you have generated is stored and used at a later point without going to waste.
What are the limitations of Vehicle to Home technology?
The biggest problem about V2H has to do with the fact that it’s a technology which is not widely adapted yet.
At the time being, there are very few electric vehicles in the market which can support bidirectional charging making it difficult for many EV owners to benefit from V2H.
Furthermore, the purchase and installation of the necessary hardware for V2H to work requires an initial investment that can be pricey for many people.
However, as the V2H adoption increases it is expected that things will quickly get better for those insterested in reaping the benefits of bidirectional charging.
Can V2H technology hurt your battery life?
Decreased EV battery life is one of the few legitimate concerns when it comes to V2H.
The continous charging and discharging of your electric vehicle’s battery may have a negative impact on both its range and life expectancy.
Nevertheless, things aren’t that bad as it may sound. Recent research has shown that frequent use of the battery doesn’t necessarily result in great harm for EV battery capacity.
After all, all EV batteries have a lower performance as time passes.
FAQs
What are the other uses of bidirectional charging?
Bidirectional charging has three main uses. The first one is what is known as Vehicle to Grid or V2G.
V2G can be described as the process of transferring energy from an electric car back to the grid to ensure grid stability.
Vehicle to Grid technology can be valuable when electricity demand is at its peak. It can also be an environmentally friendly way to tackle electricity shortages and by extension electricity costs.
The second use of bidirectional EV charging is V2H, which refers to the transfer of energy from the EV to the house or business building.
The third application of bidirectional charging is V2L or Vehicle to Load, which refers to the process of using the power of one electric vehicle to charge power appliances or another vehicle.
The difference here is V2L isn’t necessarily depended on bidirectional chargers to work.
Read also: What is grid balancing?
What is the difference between V2H and V2G?
Vehicle to Home (V2H) describes the process of transferring electricity from an EV to a home or small business building to cover the electricity needs of the latter.
Vehicle to Grid (V2G) on the other hand describes the process of transferring electricity from an electric car back to the grid to prevent a power outage when there is need for additional power.
Both technologies are part of what we refer to as bidirectional charging.
What is the difference between smart charging and bidirectional charging?
The main difference is that smart charging is unidirectional (one-way) charging. In other words, smart charging allows for the energy to travel only from the grid to the EV and not the other way around.
On the contrary, bidirectional charging describes the process of the energy being transferred in both directions depending on the power needs of the house or the electricity grid.
How soon will Vehicle to Home become more common?
As EV adoption increases, V2H is expected to become more common, as an environmentally and budget-friendly way to cover the energy needs of your home or small business.
If we also take into account the increasing investment in solar energy, we can say with confidence that things look very promising for V2H.
Japan is already a market where Vehicle to Home has a good momentum and the same paradigm shift is underway in the United Kingdom, as well.
According to research conducted by the V2H charger manufacturer, Indra, it is estimated that Vehicle to Home technology could eventually help households save up to £200 a month on their energy bills.
Can Tesla support bidirectional charging?
Despite the fact that, Elon Musk has desribed bidirectional charging as “inconvenient”, he has recently verified that all Tesla models will be compatible with bidirectional charging by 2025.
Which other electric vehicles support bidirectional charging?
For V2H to work, it is necessary that you have a vehicle which is equipped with a bidirectional charger.
V2H tech is still at an early stage and as a result there aren’t many vehicles which can support bidirectional charging yet.
However, there are some very solid options in the market as you can see on the list below:
- Hyundai Ioniq 5
- MG ZS EV
- Nissan Leaf ZE1
- KIA EV6
- Outlander PHEV
- Ford F-150 Lightning
- BYD Han EV
- VW ID Models
- BYD Atto 3
