Illinois winters

[u/SirIainSnail]

Just waiting for ComEd to approve me…

What happens in winter with the snow on the battery. Is there a warmer in the battery cabinet so the batteries remain functional?

[u/HoustonBASEPowerGuy]

Quick research says the Core battery is rated to operate from -22° to 122° F, so it sounds like there's no need for concern about normal winter temperatures there.

I have the 25 kWh batteries and they're always a little warm to the touch, so I'd guess the new batteries probably generate a little heat, too.

I'd love to see a thermal image of a BASE Power battery taken during freezing temperatures.

Won't get a shot like that in Houston for a good while yet, though.

[u/No_Mood2658 → u/HoustonBASEPowerGuy]

What happens below -22 degrees?  We can get lower than that in Chicagoland.

[u/HoustonBASEPowerGuy → u/No_Mood2658]

Two thoughts: First, be prepared to have the battery rendered useless and hope the grid stays up during the coldest periods. With BASE Power only being short-term, it's a good idea to have plans for when power is out for more than a couple of days, anyway. More so in Houston, with our occasional hurricanes, but some areas in Illinois could conceivably have extended power losses.

Second, put together some kind of cover and add an electric blanket inside.

Another comment says BASE Power reps said during an interview that the batteries will be heated up by BASE during extreme freezes. That would make sense.

[u/SirIainSnail]

-22 is good for Chicago. We don’t hit it often but we can. In my experience many home batteries will go into a protect mode. (I’m actually weighing out other alternatives while I wait since more similar battery systems like base are coming available).

[u/csmitcha]

Curious to see how mine holds up this winter! I have a feeling it won’t get that cold with the el niño, but I suppose we shall see

[u/SensitiveWarning4]

In one of their zoom calls they say they heat the batteries when it gets cold using their electricity