Don weller
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Will it be possible to transfer power from the standard battery to power your home, or do you need to have the extended battery to do that.
The transfer of power from the F150 to power you're home.
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Don weller
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What would be your best guess as to how long it would last. 24hrs 48hrs 72hrs? I am sure there are some folks who loose power for a short time and are wondering the same thing. And wondering if they might be able to go with the standard battery.
corradoborg
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You'll also need the 80 amp Ford Charge Station Pro, which comes standard with the extended range battery, but is an extra cost for the standard range. Expect to pay several thousand dollars for the charge station, inverter, and transfer switch, with installation.
The target ranges of the batteries should give us a good clue as to how long the standard range will last powering your home. The extended range battery - with a planned range of 300 miles - is said to be able to power an average US home for up to 3 days of regular use or up to 10 days with only essential items powered up. The standard range battery - with its planned range of 230 miles - should easily give you at least 2 days at full power or 7 days at reduced power. That's rounding down, even, to account for any factors that prevent it from being such a straight calculation.
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Don weller
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So based on the information you just provided if the charger and a transfer switch and what ever else you might need may be several thousand dollars. I think I read somewhere the extended battery would be about 7,ooo more if true ,with the extended range and the equipment you get with that setup that may be the way to go. Cost wise I think it would be cheaper than having a home generator to maintain and buy propane for. I would like to know your opinion on this though.
corradoborg
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Yes, the proposed cost of upgrading the XLT or Lariat models to the extended range battery is $7k. For Platinum trim, the ER battery is standard. For Pro models, the ER is only available to fleet buyers, and even then its $10k.
Keep in mind that the ER battery only comes with one of the three components necessary for the "Ford Intelligent Backup Power" system - the 80 amp Ford Charge Station Pro. It does not come with the transfer switch or inverter, which will be additional costs regardless of which battery you get.
I wouldn't buy the ER battery just to get the Ford Charge Station Pro, which will likely be available for $1k-$2k separately.
So whether the cost of the ER battery is justified for you has more to do with whether you think you'll regularly need the added range. For me, I'm leaning towards the SR battery because it will be enough for 99% of my driving. I rarely drive very long trips, and even when I do I will be fine with stopping to charge more frequently. I don't like being on the road for hours on end. I prefer to stop more often and stretch my legs, get a snack, and rest a little. I don't often tow large, heavy trailers. YMMV, of course (literally).
One workaround for powering items in your home without the expense of the inverter and transfer switch will be to just plug in the very few things that truly matter - the fridge, a few lights, and other small appliances - via extension cords from the Lightning's power outlets. It wouldn't be automatic like with the special equipment, but it will work just fine. This is probably what I'll do, at least at first. I may upgrade to a true "Ford Intelligent Backup Power" system later on.
I'm not saying that it is the right way to do it, but if the truck has a 240 volt plug in the bed and you manually switch off your main breaker so that you don't back feed the grid you could power your home. You could make a male-male adapter to plug the truck into your house assuming you have a 240 outlet nearby (dryer or non-hardwired evse). I haven't checked how many amps the 120V plugs will put out, but a male-male 120 volt adapter could also be made and could plug into any outlet to feed one leg in your breaker box. For me, I'd probably do the 240, but I can make sure that our boiler, pumps (for heat) and refrigerator are all on the same leg and then I would only need to power a 120 volt circuit. This could be done with both the extended range or regular battery. My way requires manual connections/disconnections, but would be safe and effective. Just make sure that your extension cord connecting the truck to the outlet is appropriately sized for the amp load that will be carried.
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Don weller
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I have a 220 volt outlet I installed in my garage to plug in my 2017 chevy volt. So if I made a male to male pig tail using #3 wire to plug in to the 220 volt outlet in the truck and throw my main brakes in the house.then I could plug the pig tail into my 220 outlet I installed and power the house, am I understanding you correctly. Is doing it this way perfectly safe.
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Don weller
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If you did the same thing using 110 outlet would you still have to throw your main bracker to no back feed the grid?
As long as you throw the main breaker so that you don't back feed the grid (240 or 120), this is the purpose of the transfer switch if automated, it would be safe. Using a m-m adapter would be no different than a generator.
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Don weller
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Order bank opens January 4
