Hacker News Reader

Comment by long_time_gone | Hacker News Reader

> If we all move to EVs, the demand for electricity will go up (a lot!) But I don't see how we're planning to meet such demand with our current power grid.

I don't think anyone has proposed more EVs without an improved grid. In fact, this January, the DOE announced a "New Initiative From President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law To Modernize National Grid" [1]

> Being able to store fuel in 5 gallon increments in a cheap container has no equivalent in the EV world.

Batteries? I have multiple for my son's Peg Perego John Deere 12v [2]. My vacuum also has multiple batteries that I swap.

[1] https://www.energy.gov/articles/doe-launches-new-initiative-...

[2] https://www.walmart.com/ip/Peg-Perego-John-Deere-Gator-XUV-1...

View on HN

A gallon of gas weighs 6.1 pounds. 5 Gallons + a container is ~35lb - highly portable. That gives me roughly 100 miles of range for my vehicle at a total cost of around $20 (plus the cost of the container, said another $20.)

A 50kW Tesla (model 3) battery is what, roughly 700lb and provides a range of ~220m miles if I'm not mistaken? Batteries of this size are simply not portable, nor are they cost effective to keep 8 in case of emergency. I live in an area that has occasional hurricanes and when one is threatening the area I go fill up 8 5 gallon gas containers and store them in the yard. Assuming the storm passes without major damage (power outages, etc.) we'll use that fuel to fill our vehicles' gas tanks. There is no equivalent of this in this new-fangled electric world. Until batteries become smaller, light and a hell of a lot cheaper, I'll be sitting on the sidelines.

Gas is very energy dense and gas engines/generators are very cheap, but in an emergency I would rather have batteries.

A large portion of cars are low on gas at any one time because it is customary to run your tank to near empty. During an emergency gas can be hard to get. Electric cars are almost always above 50% charge. Gas generators need maintenance and fuel just sitting there need stabilizers. During hurricanes and freezes a lot people can't even get their generators working and good portion of those that do, don't use them safely. A battery backup is expensive and won't power things as long but it is dead simple to maintain and use. If you have fixed or portable solar panels to pair with your battery it can keep the most important appliances and electronics in your house going for a while.

> There is no equivalent of this in this new-fangled electric world. Until batteries become smaller, light and a hell of a lot cheaper, I'll be sitting on the sidelines.

The entire premise of the discussion is a world where we have transitioned the economy completely to EVs. I think it's safe to assume that, in this new energy world, batteries would be smaller, lighter, and cheaper. This has been the observed trend since 1991 [1].

[1] https://ourworldindata.org/battery-price-decline

Reply on news.ycombinator.com