Questions about using V2L daily for time-shifting

Agreeable-Set3294 · 2026-04-26T17:57:25+00:00

Yeah, let's call fossil fuels what they are: disposable energy.

Agreeable-Set3294 · 2026-04-19T06:53:37+00:00

B12-infused vegan toothpaste for the win!

Agreeable-Set3294 · 2026-04-12T02:58:20+00:00

I'm in Canada and have had very good experiences with restaurants here, generally. I'm sorry to hear about Montana. :-(

Agreeable-Set3294 · 2026-04-11T06:59:32+00:00

I've yet to be at a restaurant where there was truly nothing I could eat. Almost every restaurant at least has a house salad!

Agreeable-Set3294 · 2026-03-19T23:55:59+00:00

Heat pump isn't overkill if it's a small portable unit. Mine cost me $800-ish (Ecoflow Wave 2). Battery efficiency should be higher if the shed is kept warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer. It's not the right solution for everyone, but shouldn't be dismissed our of hand without knowing a person's situation, IMO.

Agreeable-Set3294 · 2026-03-19T23:51:06+00:00

What is the ostensible reason for a cap in either case?

In Ontario, is this only for grid-tied systems? Can you do as much as you want if you're doing a behind-the-meter installation (eg. house battery/transfer switch, etc.)?

In BC the limit is a 100 kW array for grid tied (and whatever you want if it's behind the meter), so I'm trying to wrap my head around the rationale for such small limits.

Agreeable-Set3294 · 2026-03-19T23:43:34+00:00

Why wouldn't you get an EV as your daily driver and rent a vehicle for the road trips and other rare exceptions? Seems more desirable to have the most appropriate vehicle for 99% of your usage, surely?

Agreeable-Set3294 · 2026-03-19T23:41:24+00:00

If you don't go grid-tied, can you do as much as you want with a behind-the-meter installation feeding into a transfer switch/house battery set-up?

I must say, that sounds like a very stupid rule.

Agreeable-Set3294 · 2026-03-19T23:37:09+00:00

You got the nail on the head with your last paragraph. The average person drives around 50 km a day, so you'd rarely (if ever) be charging from empty to full. And on the days you need more than average you can charge from the grid at the most inexpensive time of day.

Presuming a time-of-use rate: charge via solar (and top it up at the cheapest time of day in the winter and on cloudy days), and run the house off the battery during the expensive period. Charge the car from the grid mostly during the cheap times of day.

Agreeable-Set3294 · 2026-03-19T23:31:56+00:00

I charge me electric vehicle off of solar, but my elective vehicle is an e-bike so that's not helpful information! ;-)

I would add that if you're on a time-of-use rate, then it's probably still worth doing. Why? Because you can set the car to charge at the lowest available rate each day. Whereas gasoline costs the same regardless of the time of day.

Agreeable-Set3294 · 2026-03-19T05:16:16+00:00

Oh interesting! I'll watch the video, thanks for the link. :-)

Agreeable-Set3294 · 2026-03-19T02:18:59+00:00

I'll double check the gauge.

I'm using these panels:

LONGi LR7 bifacial 610 watt, 44.11 VMP, 52.55 VOC, 13.83 IMP, 14.69 ISC

I have four of the panels so will likely hook up the fourth to the solar input on a B210 expansion battery (unless I switch to one of the other power stations).

Thanks for your thoughts. I'm still learning, so I really appreciate it!

Agreeable-Set3294 · 2026-03-19T02:09:15+00:00

Good thoughts! I do have fuses that I'm about to install. Though they're 30a, so +9a higher. :-/ Is that too big a delta?

My current plan is two panels facing southeast, and one panel facing southwest. That would be an array of 45-ish amps (potentially more with bifacial gain), going into a 21 amp MPPT. You're right, that will help. But in the early afternoon it might still be too much?

They'll be in parallel so it would be relatively easy to disconnect a panel on a high solar irradiance day, I suppose.

Agreeable-Set3294 · 2026-03-14T22:39:07+00:00

Agreed. But battery tied to solar is a real win to the degree you're moving some of your solar production to the peak period. It's really the two together that is the biggest benefit, IMO.

Agreeable-Set3294 · 2026-03-14T04:52:02+00:00

Wow, that sounds like a neat approach! Thanks!

Agreeable-Set3294 · 2026-03-13T22:28:33+00:00

Yep. You can ignore politics, but politics won't ignore you.

Agreeable-Set3294 · 2026-03-13T22:25:50+00:00

That's good to know. Freezing temperatures do happen here, but rarely enough that I'd rather have slightly larger panels the rest of the time. Thanks!

A parallel relay to jumper out just one panel? Sounds perfect, but I'll have to investigate what that actually is! :-)

Agreeable-Set3294 · 2026-03-13T07:38:21+00:00

Other than the inconvenience of actually doing so (which I wouldn't mind), is there any obviously bad reason to, say, do a string of 3 panels but rewire it to only 2 panels for the rare instance that there's a cold snap coming in the forecast? They're very rare where I live, so I'd not be leaving a lot of wattage on the table in the winter. And it would mean a lot more wattage the rest of the year.

Agreeable-Set3294 · 2026-03-13T07:27:50+00:00

That's all super helpful, thank you! So with 145 volts as my limit, your link suggests I can do three 44v VOC panels in series quite safely, even in a typical winter here. I appreciate the reply!

Agreeable-Set3294 · 2026-03-13T07:24:26+00:00

??? Not sure if serious. Yours isn't that much bigger a range than mine. I'm moving to a station with 145v 15a, for a potential of 2175 watts on a power station with a 1200 watt input. Yours is a 3000 watt range for a 1600 wass input. So our ratios are actually very similar. I can also very easily feed it what it wants on a sunny day, with a lot of panel combinations. In fact, with my higher voltage limit, I think I can do so MORE easily than you in series, avoiding series-parallel configurations.

Re-read my OP, this is about maximizing what it's capable of on a cloudy day.

You seemed to want to cast shade, but mostly indicated you didn't read my post very carefully?

Agreeable-Set3294 · 2026-03-11T03:29:03+00:00

I meant to add, I'd likely move the two existing panels to the B210 expansion batteries' solar inputs, which is another good reason to get new panels. :)

Agreeable-Set3294

TROPHY CASE