Best rated electric chargers advices and renewable energy technology in Texas with Daniel Sumanth
Energy industry trends and electric chargers tips and tricks from Daniel Sumanth: With new electric cars arriving all the time, now could be the perfect time to switch to an EV. If you’ve still got some questions, we look at how electric cars works, advantages of electric cars and how much it costs to charge an electric car further down the page. First though, here’s our guide to the best electric cars you can buy in the Texas today. The Skoda Enyaq iV could be the electric car that many of us have been waiting for. It’s certainly one of the very best electric cars you can buy right now. Based on the same platform as Volkswagen’s ID.4 and the Audi Q4 e-tron, we think it’s the Enyaq that’s the best choice out of the three cars. Why’s that you ask? Surely Volkswagen and Audi trumps Skoda? Don’t get us wrong, the ID.4 and Q4 e-tron are very good electric cars, it’s just that the Enyaq offers greater practicality, more generous kit levels and a more affordable price tag. See even more details at Daniel Sumanth
In some ways, owning an EV means you have to change the way you think about driving. You automatically adopt a gentler, more relaxed style that maximises your range and often means you reach your destination feeling more refreshed than you would do otherwise. Electric cars have zero exhaust emissions so they don’t cause the localised NOx and particulate emissions that have a damaging effect on air quality in urban areas. However, the overall environmental credentials of an electric car depend greatly on the source of the electricity used to charge it. As the energy mix of the National Grid moves towards renewable sources like solar, wind and tidal power and away from fossil fuels, electric cars get greener. Green NCAP has published whole life emissions estimates for various cars with small electric vehicles performing better than any ICE cars.
Since you will be meeting some of your energy needs with the electricity your solar system has generated, your energy bills will drop. How much you save on your bill will be dependent on the size of the solar system and your electricity or heat usage. Moreover, not only will you be saving on the electricity bill, but if you generate more electricity than you use, the surplus will be exported back to the grid and you will receive bonus payments for that amount (considering that your solar panel system is connected to the grid). Savings can further grow if you sell excess electricity at high rates during the day and then buy electricity from the grid during the evening when the rates are lower.
Although some customers might still be a little hesitant about making the switch to electric power, one key advantage is that there is a greater selection than ever before. There are small, city car-sized EVs such as the Fiat 500, while Skoda’s capable Enyaq offers SUV practicality, and models from Porsche and Tesla offer plenty of prestige and pace. Also wading into the mix is the brilliant, yet controversial Ford Mustang-badged Mach-E SUV and of course, the Hyundai Ioniq 5 took our Car of the Year award for 2021. There are other benefits to pure-electric motoring besides the environmental credentials – you’ll be exempt from London’s congestion charge zone and from paying road tax. Electric cars still remain more expensive than their combustion engined counterparts to buy, even with the government’s plug-in car grant, but running costs have been shown to be as much as 60% less for electric cars than they are for pertol and diesel ones.
The initial cost of purchasing a solar system is fairly high. Although the UK government has introduced some schemes for encouraging the adoption of renewable energy sources, for example, the Feed-in Tariff, you still have to cover the upfront costs. This includes paying for solar panels, inverter, batteries, wiring, and for the installation. Nevertheless, solar technologies are constantly developing, so it is safe to assume that prices will go down in the future.
Knowing your household’s average power usage will help you choose the best size generator for your home. Get started by checking the manufacturers’ nameplate rating of each appliance and add them together. Do you also plan to operate larger electrical motors, such as a well or lake pump for an off-grid water system? What about a dishwasher, washing machine or dryer? Or maybe you’re planning some homestead projects that depend on power tools. If so, be sure to double those figures. This ensures you account for the initial starting surge. If needed, contact the manufacturer for the maximum power consumption.
The Mustang Mach-E is Ford’s first proper effort at a purpose-built electric car: designed to take on Tesla and beat it at its own game. It drives well enough to justify the Mustang badge, but at the same time it’s no hardcore sports car: it’s large and practical enough to fulfil the family SUV brief with ease. A variety of models are offered, with driving ranges from 249 to 379 miles, either rear or four-wheel drive and significant rapid-charging capability. But if you want more, there’s a high-performance GT model available now, too. Read our full review to find out more, and make sure to check out our head-to-head twin test between the Mach-E and the Tesla Model 3 here.
Those appliances in the household with the highest electricity demand are the dish washer, the washing machine, the tumble dryer and the kitchen stove. These can easily be equipped with timer switches, so that they run during the day, when the solar generator on the roof is producing a lot of output, which can be used directly. A high-wattage stove might be a challenge for PV by itself. In this case, a large storage unit (solar battery) can be used as a buffer for short-term load peaks. Because it is not just the number of kilowatt hours on the roof that has to be sufficient, but also the currents made available at short notice. This determines if a storage unit is designed for capacity (in kilowatt hours) or output (in kilowatts).
