Comment Re:That's it? (Score 1) 594
I haven't done the math, but I suspect that even if MANY millions of people were charging cars at night, it still wouldn't approach the daytime load of the grid. Keep in mind that most people would only need to top off their charge from their short (25 miles perhaps) daily commute.
This is exactly my description. I have a 12.5 mile commute each way to work and back. I am currently converting a 2002 Ford Focus to full electric. I expect to have a total range of about 40 miles per charge.
The charger I'm using is what I would consider a middle-of-the-road charger, in terms of power consumption (about 4.8KW). It is wired for a 240 VAC, 20 amp circuit, and should be able to charge my 144 volt, 28 KWH pack in about 6 hours. Keep in mind, 4.8KW is less than the steady state power consumption of a typical 1.5 ton capacity heat pump. The grid will trivially be able to handle this kind of load during the night.