I BUILT A Portable Solar Power Station That Can Charge My EV!

I have always been interested in solar and battery power and now I have finally had the opportunity to build a solar generator or solar power station completely from scratch in a completely DIY style. I will show you the components I chose, explain why I chose them and then show you exactly how I built this portable solar cart step by step. I'm surprised how capable this is, especially compared to prebuilt power station (like EcoFlow). This set up is capable of 3000KW continuous output and can store over 5kWh of energy in the battery. I went with EG4 components for the simple reason of great specs for a great price. The battery I chose is EG4 LifePower4 Lithium Battery | 48V 100AH | Server Rack Battery which is UL certified and the inverter is EG4 3kW Off-Grid Inverter | 3000EHV-48 | 3000W Output | 5000W PV Input | 500 VOC Input. Both work in tandem and establish communication making it an easy set up. These are also stackable and capable of MUCH bigger loads and storage limits. In fact, I plan on adding another inverter that will double my output as well as input and power my BMW i3 (EV) as well as half of my house!
Total Cost:
Inverter: $700
Battery: $1200
Hand Cart: $30 www.harborfrei... LifePower4
PowerStrip: $20
Connectors and Crimper Tool Kit: $30 amzn.to/3yOg2qZ
Some Spare Wire and the rest: ~$20
Total: $2000 (tax included)
Comparison to EcoFlow Ready To Go Solutions:
EcoFlow DELTA Pro Portable Power Station: $2600+tax
amzn.to/3Xa8Lfk (affiliate link)
-ONLY 3.6kWh of Storage (compared to 5.1kWh)
-3600W Output (compared to 3000W)
-ONLY 1600w Solar Input!! (compared to 5000W)
Next cheapest option seems to be the Delta 2 Max, which is on sale for $1200+tax right now:
EcoFlow DELTA 2 Max Portable Power Station: $1200+tax
amzn.to/45hdMEQ (affiliate link)
-ONLY 2kWh (compared to 5.1kWh)
-Only 2400W Output (compared to 3000kWh)
-ONLY 800W charging (compared to 5000W)
Above, but with extra battery:
ECOFLOW Portable Power Station DELTA Max 2000 with Extra Battery: $2200 +tax
amzn.to/3Vts3Lp (affiliate link)
-ONLY 4kWh (compared to 5.1kWh)
-Only 2400W Output (compared to 3000kWh)
-ONLY 800W charging (compared to 5000W)
It would be more comparable if you get a second battery to go with this set up, but that’s an extra $1000 and you would still have 20% less storage!
Don’t get me wrong, these are awesome and a very elegant all in one set up, but when it comes to value for money, it’s not even close!
Wire calculator: solarwiresizec...
*- MUST HAVE CAR ITEMS - *
My Favorite BMW Scanners: amzn.to/4b6GQBa
My Favorite Car Scanners: amzn.to/3tR2VTT
My Favorite CarPlay Units: amzn.to/3Uc8lTZ
BMW Focused Mechanic's Tools: amzn.to/3krC4J1
Portable Tire Inflator: amzn.to/3V5F63v (my favorite), amzn.to/3AokFp4 (cheap, but good)
Portable Jump Starter: amzn.to/3L3YNUX
Favorite Dash Cam: amzn.to/41EdqWe (under $150)
Car Phone Mount: amzn.to/44bW1oM (MagSafe Air Vent), amzn.to/3PvG9ck (+Wireless Charger)
“BMW” Battery Charger: amzn.to/3HahLIi
GEAR I USE FOR FILMING: amzn.to/3Ex3RyI
______
If you'd like to support what I do, please consider supporting the channel for just $1 a month: / simplecarguy
/ simplecarguy
simplecarguy.com
------------------------------
Links are affiliated where possible.
This means if you click on the link and purchase the product, I will earn a commission.

[@scotty9462]

I hope you credited Will Prose for your build.

[@pilinke11]

There many more videos from solar building same setup and their videos are older probably Will get that idea from right kzbin.info/www/bejne/gGq6i5aDebaUesksi=FwcRMtbQDFtDZKUe

[@dr123hall]

I am impressed. This is a “Will Prowse type” of making sense of a complicated system of components. Explained the inverter main important settings in two minutes, otherwise someone could spend half a day researching those settings!! Just Fantastic!

[@dkbkmk01]

And just like Will Prowse, this guy said nothing about the breakers that the manuals for this inverter and battery say are required. Like, 4 breakers. And not enough about grounding, which is also mentioned in the manuals that came with the inverter & battery. At least this guy mentions that you need better gauge AC wires. Having said that, this guy did a really good job of walking through a simple set-up. I bought this inverter and battery from Signature Solar and they were pretty good, though not helpful enough for this scared and skill-less beginner. I especially appreciated his walking through the set up menu and all the necessary options. THANK YOU SimpleCarGuy - this was very helpful. :)

[@C4rb0neum]

Thanks for going through the inverter settings. I was really curious for that!

[@SimpleCarGuy]

Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching.

[@jeffsimmons318]

Two things, First...hide your license plate number and second invest in a better dolly, them plastic wheels will not hold up in the long run.

[@ruckedupg9166]

Will says “you’re welcome for the content ideas”

[@pilinke11]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/gGq6i5aDebaUesksi=FwcRMtbQDFtDZKUe This video is older probably your youtuber got that idea from him too

[@josephwynn42]

IVE TOOK A year of electrical..and wired up some apartments...an houses..so this project is right for me..

[@NicolaMs007]

nice project .. actuallly charging your EV directly from the sun and storing it in a battery that is complexly portable, WOW...I would like to build something like this for my EV, good thing too is that I can also charge the battery on my eBike as well brilliant.... just one question: as I live in Australia could I buy the EG4 in Australia or where would I buy it from, and would they ship to Australia....thanks again for the video

[@SimpleCarGuy]

I've been using it to charge my eBike as well and now powering a mini split also. I've added a few panels and it's powering everything without any issues! As far as shipping to Australia, I have no idea.. I imagine you guys have other brands with similar set up there that would do the job just as well.

[@bornwestusa]

Links for Inverter and battery purchase? More details on solar panels? specs? cost? link?? Total cost with solar panels?? Otherwise, great information, thanks!

[@fluke2814]

NIce setup! I noticed your Illinois Plates, I live in Chicago and also have a BMW i3, nice to see i3 owners here. Thanks for sharing!

[@SimpleCarGuy]

Ive expanded it further now and its amazing! Thanks for watching and yes, there are DOZENS of us here!

[@tonyinfinity]

"I BUILT A Portable Solar Power Station" LOL That you saw someone else build on another channel.

[@pilinke11]

There are many on youtube 4 years old videos with different batteries and inverters

[@gittelrubin-soferlmhc4556]

How long does it take to charge the car with the battery vs with a regular outlet?

[@brainstorm3446]

If you buy the components from signature solar and want to return it they will charge you a restocking fee!!

[@SimpleCarGuy]

I bought them from a different website and saved a ton on shipping, so I’d suggest doing that

[@bkanegson]

Awesome build. Beautifully simple. I might be tempted to upscale to taller cart and up to 6500 EX or similar to get 240v/ faster charging.

[@SimpleCarGuy]

Great idea! Post your results if you build one. Thanks for watching.

[@MyCabinLife]

Also, you would get faster charging if you had bigger panels and more panels. You don't necessarily need to go to 240v. This inverter can output 3k Watts......

[@SimpleCarGuy]

I have since added panels and wired up a 15amp charger, so charging at 1.83kW for about 8 hours from the sun! More than enough to cover my commute!

[@NickWindham]

@@SimpleCarGuythat’s very cool. Well done.

[@NickWindham]

This is exactly what I was thinking.

[@Rock_Nemo]

By far the best and cost effective components on the market right now for this or any offgrid power, very good explanation on the configuration and set up.

[@SimpleCarGuy]

Couldn't agree more, it’s such an accessible system for DIYers and those new to solar and power banks etc. thanks for watching!

[@khalilpistons1]

Very cool! Nice job!

[@commuterbranchline8132]

A nice little system, however it’s a little small to effectively charge the i3 fully. Are you planning to scale this up?

[@SimpleCarGuy]

I added a bunch more panels and wired up a 15amp charger. Now it charges at 1.85kW. So, it takes 10 hours from 0-100. I drive around 15-20 miles a day, so this system fully recharges the car each day for me, unless it’s raining.

[@goodcitizen4587]

Nice project!

[@bimmerfan6538]

What an awesome video, I never knew I needed this!

[@SimpleCarGuy]

Thanks for watching!

[@NickWindham]

Cool build, but 120V limits your charging to adding roughly 4 miles of range per hour. It’d be worth getting a 240V capable setup to charge at least 3X faster.

[@dancingrick9627]

What solar panels do you suggest? You said those were portable 300 watts.

[@SimpleCarGuy]

Anything you can find for cheap that will have enough voltage. I got 15 of these for $50 a piece and I’m building up a much bigger system with them. You need minimum 120 volts from the panels to start this inverter. These produce about 40 volts so I put 4 of them in series for the test and demonstration. If you can find some 500w panels for like $100/each, 3-4 of those would give you 1.5-2kw of solar at peek sun. There is some math involved here and Will Prause just did a great video on this topic, so check it out.

[@user713Blvd]

​@@SimpleCarGuy thanks for sharing this start idea for charging EV and I subscribed. As you mentioned this inverter has 3000 watts out and 5000 watts fro PV Max. Just curious, if I have 5k watt PV, but only able to use 3k watts. Seems like I didn't use my max PV or other words, I lost 2000 watts. Should I buy solar panel for 3k or 5k watts to work best with this EG4 Inverter? Again, thanks for sharing and please post more.

[@litestuffllc7249]

It is nice; but it isn't free which you labled on your video - you paid quite a bit for this unit; and the next question is how long will the batteries and panels last so you can determine the cost per mile.

[@cheriecronin7688]

Where did you buy the battery and inverter from as well as the solar panels. What size solar panels are you using 🤔. Thank you for the information and the awesome video.

[@josephwynn42]

aawesome and compact..........and POWERFUL............yelp I WANT ONE.....A good project 4 me

[@joeabad5908]

Good video… Gives me an idea.. I have a just converted an ICE mini pickup. A 5kW + 5kwh inverter/battery is planned and this video just came at the right time. Thanks for up loading.. Oh BTW, I have a cheapo hand cart laying somewhere in the garage.

[@chingyip371]

great overview ❤

[@Bohibou]

What about DC fast charging ?

[@SimpleCarGuy]

Impossible with this

[@Ms.Frankenbuilder]

Interesting setup, built mine in a box, a little bulkier than yours.

[@kajavaid]

Very good, detailed video...thanks for sharing

[@thomassmith3310]

Get a better hand truck

[@SimpleCarGuy]

I got that one on purpose, it’s much more compact than the other options and does the job great!

[@MyChannel-vm6dw]

Is there not an APP for this? Doing all the changes with that little archaic LCD from 1967 is lame.

[@SimpleCarGuy]

Yes, there is. You do have to be connected to WiFi though, which may not always be possible in off grid situations, so I wanted to show it live on the unit.

[@happyhamster1411]

Wouldn’t it be better to use a breaker box for the solar input for connecting and disconnecting them? Also, is there an app that you can use to adjust the settings? Thanks

[@MyCabinLife]

Eg4 has a Wi-Fi dongle and app you can use.

[@joelm077]

What size panels did you have? How much were they?

[@SimpleCarGuy]

Those are 300 watt panels. I got them for $50 each on FB marketplace.

[@johnqcitizen9177]

Great video. IM going to built now

[@jamesfearing9459]

Is there a way with that all in one to take in power from a 12v dc source like an RV alternator? I take it that all in one does not support communications with the battery (I did not see you plug in communications wiring)?

[@surfguy777]

You would have to use a step down converter. Will Prowse KZbin channel has this build with 12v converter attached to the battery.

[@SarahStuff-p5u]

You can use a 12v dc inverter that ya plug in to a cigarette lighter to charge....but it would be a really really long time and you would not get more than 5 amps of 120v AC off that inverter from the lighter socket....I would just say overall....not worth destroying your RV alternator....not designed for that.

[@andyronan1202]

For the size it's output to your car is poor , need 3kw minimum chargeing

[@PaulPaid]

Now check out Rich rebuilds to see how you can get 400 Mi range out of the i3😊

[@SimpleCarGuy]

I used to watch his channel all the time, but haven’t in a while.. now I have to check back again! That sounds amazing

[@PaulPaid]

@@SimpleCarGuy A pleasure..👍🏾

[@steveadal4735]

What if its a cloudy day how does it preform ❤❤

[@lawrencedavidson6195]

On a cloudy day solar power may be reduced to as low as 10% power output.

[@mary74724]

🧡🧡🧡💯💯💯👏👏👏👍👍👍

[@TienTran-bi1jv]

Can we use 2 battery?

[@SimpleCarGuy]

Of course, this system can be expanded in almost any way

[@TienTran-bi1jv]

@@SimpleCarGuy In your experience. How many of this battery do we need to power the house without hvac system?

[@SarahStuff-p5u]

@@TienTran-bi1jv with 2kw of panels you can use two of those batteries pretty well, 10kwh of 48v.

[@WakeUpPeople1776]

Hi. Curious if the outlets and usb are for 48v appliances? Would my computer fry if I plug it in to the outlet? I figured I would need some 48V to 12V down converter?

[@WakeUpPeople1776]

I think I just realized why my question. The 48V is converted to DC and will run most appliances on DC until.3000W are taken?

[@hughes500pilot1]

There is no need for a "48V to 12V down converter." The storage battery is 48V DC (Direct Current). The inverter (the yellow box) makes that 48V from the batteries into 110V AC (normal household power - just like the power outlets in your house). As such, you can plug anything into the power strip (he has a power strip hard wired into the yellow box) as long as it is not over 3000 watts total. Keep in mind that power strip is most likely only rated for 13 amps (or about 1500 watts total). Therefore, even though his inverter is capable of putting out 3000 watts continuous, his power strip is limiting the output to 1500 watts. That is why he hard wired a second NEMA 5-15 plug into the inverter so he could use the car charger without overloading his cheap power strip. Bottom line, any normal item you could plug into your houses wall power outlets, you can plug into this system. Of course, everything plugged in can not be over 3000 watts in total. Or, in his specific case, 1500 watts total since he is using a lightweight power strip. -Steve

[@alals6794]

@@hughes500pilot1 Great answer and thanks.... I was wondering about that limited watt power strip. haha

[@valleyc]

@@hughes500pilot1 Thanks for putting all that information into simple understandable basics, it really helps, thanks!

[@B0X2002]

Can you do 2 of them sitting next to each other and get 240v for ev charging?

[@SimpleCarGuy]

Yes, you can. In fact, that’s exactly what I’m doing at the moment!

[@B0X2002]

@@SimpleCarGuy but how you going to be like hooking up together? 🤔

[@vevenaneathna]

you can build your own 24v 8kwh battery for around 450 bucks. if you run an EU spec inverter which has double the voltage, therefore half the cost (since cost is based on amps), you can get a 3kwh inverter for around 200-300 bucks if you cheap out on the solar input. if you use small balance boards instead of expensive BMS', one for each 12v 4s cell group, you can cut the price of the battery in half. cheap bms' are the cause of most battery fires. imo 3$ inductive 4s active balancer > most resistive bms' on the market. ironically 8x 280ah lifepo4 cells (~8kwh) fits perfectly inside of a surpluss 20mm ammo can if you face all the contacts inside. fire resistant, would catch any electrolyte spills/explosions. the cans are like 30-40 bucks depending on how many you buy, and they come with heavy duty handles and a lid that seals really well. ya 700-800 bucks and you can build twice the battery pack for half the price. almost all ev's charge off 220v, usually way faster. you can wire in an E bike charger and connect your 240v home ev charger to charge the battery pack and even do pass through charging to your car if you find a free charger when youre out and about

[@artadams1]

Wow, just copy content from other KZbinrs and present it as your idea.

[@SimpleCarGuy]

Never said I came up with the idea of making an inverter and battery portable. There are loads of similar videos on KZbin. Simply showing how I did it and how I charge my car with it.

[@artadams1]

@@SimpleCarGuy no time to read replies, I'm too busy going to all of your videos and hitting thumbs down...

[@koolumar101]

No time or brains, just hate lol

[@pilinke11]

​@artadams1 there are many 4 years old videos showing same setup, just because that video was new to you doesn't meant it was the first one

[@dalel2810]

This same set-up has been done like 100 times on KZbin already. I'm sure you know this

[@SimpleCarGuy]

What hasn’t been done on KZbin, though? It’s all about documenting it for myself and expanding the project further as I’m building it up. Thanks for watching!

[@deniseschnose337]

@@SimpleCarGuy We are almost done with this type of install in our camper van. And yes, I've been scouring YT for information. Your video is extremely helpful with little details that others don't cover. Thank you.

[@noluck33]

Sorry ALL EV's Need to be Outlawed and removed from the roads!!!

[@SimpleCarGuy]

Why is that?

[@madebytiwari]

@@SimpleCarGuyLook up how bad Lithium mining is for the environment.