Using the Leaf for power in a Blackout: MY "Leaf to Home"

[KillaWhat]

(and you have to guess where the Genuine Blue Nissan Leaf emblem came from)

LEAF rim center cap.

CORRECT!

From my OEM wheels.
Do not lose one.
They are like $60 each.

[DarthPuppy]

This looks like an awesome backup capability. Thanks for designing/testing/posting!

[rumpole]

This looks like an awesome backup capability. Thanks for designing/testing/posting!

I've done the same thing on my Leaf with the same Xantrex ProWatt 1000 Inverter. I just hope Nissan gets wind of the demonstrated interest in this topic and engineers it as an option for the Leaf. It's won't power your whole house, but it will power my fridge for at least three days. The Leaf-to-Home option connected to the L3 port is nice, but a 120V outlet on the car that John Q. Public would know how to use would be nice, too.

[thankyouOB]

love this.
the future; today.

[johnrhansen]

You know what else this would be good for it to tow behind an RV. If you camp out one night self contained you have a pretty big battery for lights and TV all night! You can run the generator to charge the battery for a couple hours if you need to but at least it won't be running all night!

[DarthPuppy]

Okay, I've got the inverter now. Read the manual and cross-compared with your specs section regarding parts. Thought a quick trip to Fry's would provide the remaining parts. But the best they could do was 4 gauge wire and an 80amp in-line breaker. Per the manual, the 4 gauge wire is the minimum to use. I see you went with 2 gauge. But you and the manual both stipulate a 150amp breaker. What was annoying is that Fry's carries competing inverters at that power level, but not the parts needed to make safe connections. Could that be the true source of their name?

Where do I need to go to get the right parts to make a safe and reliable connection from the battery to the inverter? Would a car parts store like Peppy Boys carry this stuff or would that be something I would find at a Home Despot? Or do I need to find an electrician's supply store or a marine supply store?

[LeftieBiker]

A real electrical supply store is your best bet. You might be able to find that wire gauge in truck jumper cables, but no guarantee. And you wouldn't find the breaker in a truck supply store.

[kubel]

Amazon carries everything needed to do this. I've got mine ready for emergencies, but it's not nearly as clean looking as this.

[DarthPuppy]

You're right - Amazon did have quite a selection to choose from. Now I just have to wait about a week for the shipping and I will be able to put it all together - minus the permanent install components.

[OakLeaf]

Other sources for these types of components:

McMaster-Carr:

http://www.mcmaster.com/#battery-connectors/=payqun

http://www.mcmaster.com/#battery-cords

http://www.mcmaster.com/#battery-connectors/=pb14vy


Grainger:

http://www.grainger.com/search/anderson ... =undefined