R1T Max Pack powering my house, thanks Hurricane Helene

[FutureTruck]

Ah, I saw PAC NW and assumed it would be nice and cool.

Yeah I heat cool water to make it hot. I don't need a "hot water heater" because the water is already hot?

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[DeafPug]

While having enough power to run the whole house would be perfect, the power available with the R1 series satisfied most people’s needs. Run the fridge to keep from having $1k worth of food spoil; run the sump pump to avoid a $5-10k basement remodel; keep devices charged to stay in communication with family. This is why the Honda eu2000i/eu2200i inverter generator and the knockoffs are so popular.

If the need ever arises, I’ll probably run the house off my Bluetti AC180 (purchased for camping), topping that off as needed by turning on the R1T 120V outlets.

 

[Electron]

One of the great reasons to own a capable EV. There's nothing like having a giant battery bank on tap for various situations when the need arises.

I have a buddy who spent a fortune on home battery + solar. The solar is a must, but those home units-battery banks are peanuts compared to what one can get in an EV @ ~100kWh+++

One day people (ICE heads) will see the value in owning a capable EV. Phase 3 that's in my signature, the masses will expect it as self evident.

 

[Atlrivian]

We just did exactly the same thing, though we only powered a few lamps, cell phone chargers, and a small fridge. Used a pair of 100ft 10gauge extension cords I already had.

All our appliances are huge builtins with crazy hard to access plugs, so we couldn't get to the fridge, microwave, etc. Wish I could have had true V2H to run the essentials.

On a different note, Georgia Power really has done an amazing job so we were only out for 12 hours.

 

[COdogman]

You didn’t mention a blender. You’re never going to survive without a blender for smoothies.

 

[Keith Stevenson]

Yes, I’m powering two fans, full size fridge, and charging laptops, tablets, phones, etc all at the same time. Have lots of extension cords and a few power strips.

Made coffee with Nespresso. My toaster oven must have a really high draw, as when I use it, the fans struggle and the toaster oven doesn’t seem to be 100% effective. I know the outlets max out of 1500w combined, and toaster ovens pull pretty hard. Even when using my gas generator for the last storm, my generator would get really loud when I would run the toaster oven.

Last night I grilled fajitas over charcoal while the family heated tortillas on an induction cookop inside (powered off R1T).

24 hours in, I’ve burned 9% on the battery. At this rate of usage, my Max pack can power what I need for 8 more days. There is a functional DCFC about 6 miles from my house that I can go use as needed. Hoping I won’t need to go top off But glad it’s functional if I need it. Tesla Supercharger is about 15 miles from my house as a backup, it appears to be online as well looking at the app.

Ditto. Helene got us too in upstate SC. Used it all day yesterday and it went from 85% to 82%. I have a gasoline generator but haven't used it yet.

 

[FutureTruck]

You didn’t mention a blender. You’re never going to survive without a blender for smoothies.

If you mean margs, you’re right.

 

[FutureTruck]

While having enough power to run the whole house would be perfect, the power available with the R1 series satisfied most people’s needs. Run the fridge to keep from having $1k worth of food spoil; run the sump pump to avoid a $5-10k basement remodel; keep devices charged to stay in communication with family. This is why the Honda eu2000i/eu2200i inverter generator and the knockoffs are so popular.

If the need ever arises, I’ll probably run the house off my Bluetti AC180 (purchased for camping), topping that off as needed by turning on the R1T 120V outlets.

Eu2200i is an awesome gen. Love mine. Didn’t need it because of the R1T so I set my neighbor up with it to run their power needs. Runs for 8 hours on a gallon gas!

 

[Laserboy1054]

Loving this thread! While direct hurricane hits aren't an issue where I live, we get massive thunderstorms (my town was the site of a tornado that hit an Amazon warehouse a few years back that resulted in multiple deaths) in the summer and horrid ice in the winter (I'd never heard of "freezing fog" until I moved here!). I use, on average, about 50 kWh per day. Most of this is for heating water--the house is on propane. So, if we skip showers, I think the R1T will power most of what we need for almost a week. I do have a generator, but I'm a "belt and suspenders" kind of person. So here's another benefit to the truck!

Best of luck, OP! Thanks for sharing your experience. I truly hope you come out the other side with minimal negative impact!

 

[BrayBay]

I can relate to your experience! See Hurricane Beryl Report Out: Rivian for home power backup was a game changer!

Anything you would do differently?

Until V2H gets here, what I've learned from Hurrican Beryl is that I'm probably going to get a high powered "solar generator" to avoid overloading the Rivian on-board outlets. The Rivian could easily charge up those portable battery banks in a few hours. The second thing I learned is to get a "U-shaped" window unit heat pump to provide comfort.

 

[electrictaco]

I think the best set up for V2H today is using installing a generator plug in for a critical loads panel, then buying a small battery pack from Goal Zero or others that plugs into that, but gives you a higher max wattage (maybe 3kW or so peak), and then plug that into your Rivian's outlet. For the cost of $1k all in you have a pretty robust back up solution.

 

[FutureTruck]

Tonight’s update is that I went and bought a 6000 BTU Hisense Portable A/C for the master bedroom. Rivian is running it ok, but I had to unplug the fridge. With both items plugged in I ended up tripping the R1T outlets.

No big deal, the fridge is cold for the night and I will unplug the A/C in the morning and plug the fridge back in.

 

[DCFC]

Loving this thread! While direct hurricane hits aren't an issue where I live, we get massive thunderstorms (my town was the site of a tornado that hit an Amazon warehouse a few years back that resulted in multiple deaths) in the summer and horrid ice in the winter (I'd never heard of "freezing fog" until I moved here!). I use, on average, about 50 kWh per day. Most of this is for heating water--the house is on propane.

Wow. My 2-bed townhome averages about 300kWh a month not including charging the EV. Our water heater is gas though and only two adults.

I saw an interesting statistic that most people use much more energy for heating water than they need for driving an EV

 

[DCFC]

This is pretty cool. Are you powering all these at once or alternating? Would love some more detail. We live in Cali and my wife is fearing the next “big one” and what we would do if power goes out. I keep telling her we can use the truck but she’s not quite convinced.

Just show her the math.

 

[Laserboy1054]

Wow. My 2-bed townhome averages about 300kWh a month not including charging the EV. Our water heater is gas though and only two adults.

I saw an interesting statistic that most people use much more energy for heating water than they need for driving an EV

That's consistent with my experience. Heating water is really my main draw. My house (1700 sq. ft.) is exceptionally energy-efficient: I live in an earth-shelter (i.e., underground--think "hobbit hole" and you're not far off). We use about 300 gallons of propane to keep the house snug all winter, and air conditioning during the summer doesn't move the needle too much. Heating water, which we do with an electric heater, is the biggest single draw. Our general useage (two adults) is about 1500 kWh per month. We haven't had the R1T long enough for me to compile meaningful numbers, but I'm not seeing _any_ noticeable impact from it on our electric energy useage. It's in the noise. If I were really the tree-hugging environmentalist I claim to be (I do love my trees!), I'd quit bathing! But, for the sake of my minimal social interactions, I'll just be a not-too-bad-smelling hypocrite.

Anyway, sorry for hijacking the thread! OP's concerns are top-drawer at the moment.

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