With the winter backlog finally upon us here up north, I was watching a local news segment yesterday by the staff meteorologist comparing salt, sand, and kitty litter for making ice easier to drive on. She explained how salt is useful because it lowers the freezing point of water.
She then compared it to how salt also lowers the boiling point of water, saying how she loves that for cooking, because she gets impatient waiting for water to boil on the stove, and adding salt speeds that up for her.
I'll just let that sink in for those who remember middle school science.
I see these local news weather forecasters here with the same cutesy segments about winter driving "safety."
Maybe if people don't know how to drive on snow and ice, they should just stay home?!
My old Jeep is a beast with snow tires on during winter, and I've had a couple of slip and slides the past couple of days that get your attention real quick, so I'm staying home today.
Oh yeah, salting the roads doesn't do shit for controlling ice and snow under around 20 degrees F. In fact, I could argue it makes it worse.
When I lived way up north in the Keweenaw Peninsula surrounded by Lake Superior, they didn't even bother with salting the roads. Maybe some sand on the 3 block downtown streets.
Oh yeah, and the fire hydrants were 6 feet tall.
I understand the point you are attempting to make with this post. But the same argument you are making against EVs could also be used for gasoline engines as well. After all, don't gas stations require transporting gas with trucks that also consume gasoline to reach the final destination? I honestly do not understand the hate for EVs. The vehicle is nothing more than a tool that is used to complete a specific job. This may be something light in duty such as commuting back and forth to work or something more rigorous such as operating equipment used for construction. If you are driving long distances or hauling heavy loads certainly gas would be a better option. But for commuting short distances for most peoples daily commute to work, EVs would certainly be a viable option. I have been to the Australian outback and I probably would not recommend crossing vast areas of nothing in an EV. That is probably not the driving habit for most people living in Australia. Just like many/most people will be just fine with a cordless drill that operates off a battery pack, that does not negate the needs of others who may be better off with a corded drill that plugs directly into the wall.
Although it may be humorous that a solar charging station has a diesel generator as a back up system, how does that negate that the primary source of energy being produced to charge the EVs as coming primarily from renewables such as solar? As for the outback guy with his EV charging station plugged directly into a diesel generator, I think it is more stupid to drive into the outback with just and EV in the first place. Although charging stations powered primarily through solar energy would offer a better alternative, I personally wouldn't invest the money into it, or at least until EVs become more widely adopted.
Also, why does it matter if people use diesel generators to charge their vehicles in a blackout? If blackouts occur at such a rate where this becomes an issue, yes, you would be better off with a engine that uses gasoline. Otherwise, what is the problem?
Where does electricity come from?
Except for the purchase expense. And the repair costs. And the disposal expense when the break for the last time.I honestly do not understand the hate for EVs. The vehicle is nothing more than a tool that is used to complete a specific job. This may be something light in duty such as commuting back and forth to work or something more rigorous such as operating equipment used for construction. If you are driving long distances or hauling heavy loads certainly gas would be a better option. But for commuting short distances for most peoples daily commute to work, EVs would certainly be a viable option.
Here are the numbers from your state in Texas.
Energy in Texas
Petroleum - fired (0.01%)
Natural gas - fired (44.8%)
Coal - fired (19.0%)
Nuclear (9.9%)
Renewable - Hydroelectric (0.4%)
Other renewable - solar, wind, etc. ( 25.9%)
Renewables make up 25% in Texas, but that does not negate the fact that other resources contribute to this production. But beyond where the electricity is coming from, approximately 80% of the energy from the grid is converted to make you move forward in an EV. Compare that to 25% with gasoline engines. EVs are more efficient at converting this energy into mechanical work. But yes, fossil fuels are still required to power our society. But why shouldn't the rest of the states follow the lead of Texas who is leading the nation in renewable energy production?
Maintenance costs and operational costs are cheaper for an EV. But the overall breakdown depends on the specifics of what you are buying. Here is a pretty good review of the breakdown.Except for the purchase expense. And the repair costs. And the disposal expense when the break for the last time.
Access to this page has been denied
The biggest hits against the EV would be the initial up front cost and the depreciation of the vehicle, but in many cases the EV would be cheaper to own and maintain over a period of years. Once again, it is a specific tool to do a specific job. Blanket statements such of a gasoline engine or EV as being the cheaper option should be avoided.
Quite a lot actually. The whole renewable energy thing is based on base load generators, coal, natural gas, nuclear. Solar and wind cannot give constant base load as they are weather dependent. EV cars depend on lithium to make their batteries which is mined and processed by carbon based energy.
EV's still have range anxiety problems especially here in Australia and if you find a charging station your battery on a fast charge may take 30 to 40 minutes and every time you fast charge a battery pack it reduces its life span. Cold and heat are two of the biggest problems for range of an EV especially if you use heating or cooling, ask any EV owner in the the frozen north of the US.
If we all buy EV's and charge them overnight the current LV grid around our towns would not be able to supply the load when it has to compete with heating,cooling and cooking in homes. How many people do you think will buy a $3000 diesel generator that would be capable to charge at between 10 to 15 Amps and how many people would be able to afford a $2000 three phase fast charge service to their home?
I don't think you have thought about this.
Surely you see the foolishness of this?
Stone Age: EVs charged up by BURNING WOOD! | MGUY Australia - YouTube
New wood-burning BioCharger plugs in off-grid EVs
I don't know why folk cannot see it.
So you agree that Texas should lead the nation?
I couldn't think of a single sentence that is a greater flashing neon sign of "SHILL" then the bolded sentence above, combined with the earnest incredulous questioning of but why don't you love what I love???
I'm sure it's been said before, but what makes fossil fuels so great as an energy source is that they aren't really an energy source. Solar is an energy source for energy that hits the earth today. A lump of coal is a battery of stored solar energy from 400 million years ago that is incredibly stable and far superior to any battery we could make today.
If we could just dig up fully formed EV batteries that'd be peachy.