WAY:
fritz:
apias:
Gladstone:
fritz:
Gladstone:
WAY:
bluelines:
Free energy. I can see a Nobel price coming up 
Solar power already does that?
Judging by the smiley I think bluelines already understood that I was referring to excess generating capacity available at night which is largely under-utilized. Coal fired plants don't really do well at scaling back at night and ramping up output in the morning. Overnight a large amount of heat generated is simply vented to the atmosphere instead of used to power the steam turbine. Many utilities have developed a large variety of ways to store and recover energy but there is still plenty left to waste at this time.
Ironically, the very same coal plant which least lends itself to switching on and off quickly - and therefore generally continues to be run even at low-load periods - is the dirtiest source of electricity, and therefore makes the worst ecological case for EVs.
Most nuclear power plants also do not vary their operation at night. Windmills do not slow at night. 
Lack of on demand efficiency and "dirty" are not necessarily the same thing.
Wind turbines can be taken off-line quickly f the need arises just by turning them out of the wind, and nuclear power stations can be "throttled back" to an extent.
My point was that trying to make a virtue of the inability of coal powered generators to react adequately to the night-time demand by saying that they could be used to recharge EVs at a reduced kWh rate makes a mockery of the ecological argument in favour of EVs. It'll be a different story when all coal power stations have been replaced by wind farms.
I'm not sure if "makes a mockery" is the correct term here.
Well, I wouldn't want to get sidetracked into discussing the semantics of every post I write, but I think you would you agree that it is a contradiction to drive an EV based on ecological considerations and then fully accept that it has to be recharged using electricity generated from coal. In some of the Tesla's strongest markets its widespread adoption would currently result in coal-powered electricity generation having to be ramped up or plant due to be made obsolete staying on line longer than would otherwise be the case, as there is no viable short-term alternative.
As I suggested above, It's a different story when coal power stations are displaced by wind farms, or solar plant in the case of those who can recharge their EVs during daylight as you do.
If you don't buy an EV, coal powered generators are not going to suddenly stop making electricity. Reality is that billions have been spent on this infrastructure and like it or not it is going to continue to provide electricity. So if you don't use it to charge your EV, it will go to "waste" as they will still be generated.
In some parts of the world coal power plants are being decommissioned due to their high CO2 output, but they cannot be replaced quickly enough to maintain or even increase electricity supply, as called for by the market. Events in Fukushima didn't help, as they once again raised the question of nuclear-plant safety in people's minds, reducing for many the range of acceptable alternatives. The UK, for example, is heading into a potential energy crisis at this time, due to dithering and lack of real planning on the part of governments over the last couple of decades.
The widespread use of EVs in the markets finding themselves in this situation would only compound this problem.
For me personally I will be utilising solar panels and storage battery where possible (and there are cheaper options than a Tesla wall battery!), but I recognise that not everyone live in an environment conducive to this.
Which was one aspect of the point I was making when I wrote in another post above that it was not Musk who first came up with this solution, as so many of his fans allow themselves to be misled into believing. Other companies already have systems on the market, whereas Musk announced a product well in advance of the completion of the Gigafactory which is meant to produce it, and in fact he has already had to drop plans to produce the larger version of the wall battery when confronted with the realities of the market.
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fritz
You can only imagine that Americans would install so large screen in car 
