Tesla Launches Solar Charging Feature to Lower Electricity Bills

By Abdullah Shahid ⏐ 3 years ago ⏐

2 min read

Named ‘Charge on Solar’, the new feature will let Tesla owners charge their cars with excess electricity produced by their solar panels

Renewable energy sources such as solar and wind are becoming increasingly common and are now even producing surplus energy, allowing people to store and utilize it for later or even sell it to others.

Electric car company ‘Tesla’ also recently announced that its electric car owners can now charge their vehicles using solar energy; saying that people who own solar, Powerwalls, and Tesla vehicles can easily charge their vehicles using excess solar power.

First spotted earlier this year in a Tesla’s mobile app update, the feature is now launched with the name ‘Charge on Solar’.

Currently the feature is available to all Tesla customers in the US and Canada, who happen to have a Tesla powerwall with solar on site.

“With Charge on Solar, your Tesla vehicle can charge using only excess solar energy produced by your Tesla solar system. Using excess energy to charge your electric vehicle maximizes the value of your home’s solar system. Use the Tesla app to set Charge on Solar limits and have your vehicle charge using extra solar energy,” said Tesla in its statement.

“Your vehicle will charge from solar and the grid when your current charge level is below the left sun slider. After your vehicle’s charge level passes the sun slider, your vehicle automatically switches to only charge on excess solar up to your charge limit. Solar power and home loads are variables so if you ever want to charge faster, you can simply increase the lower charge limit to a desired range,” they added.

In order to make the whole thing more convenient, Tesla has even added a scheduling feature, which will allow you to turn the charging on and off at specific times when energy consumption is expected to be higher.

While the feature is an amazing step towards the promotion of renewable energy, it’s limited to people who own a Tesla powerwall, a condition that has surely upset Tesla customers who have a different solar system.