VIDEO: USE YOUR OLD LAPTOP BATTERIES TO POWER YOUR HOME!
Honestly, who needs Tesla when you have other super-intelligent-humans out there. DIY Powerwall Builders have taken the original $3000 Tesla idea and meshed it together with other hobbyists across the internet and created their very own version of a Powerwall.
The idea behind Tesla's Powerwall was that it will be able to store electricity for homeowners to either live from the grid, or through solar panels. These powerwall's battery could only store 10 kWh of electricity, but the DIY Powerwall can hold up to 14 kWh.
Jehu Garcia and people like him are deciding for themselves what the future of alternative energy will look like instead of waiting for technology companies to shape it for them. A forum member of DIY Powerwalls said that his powerwall can store 28 kWh. Peter Matthews, an Australian YouTuber and one of the most central figures of the DIY powerwall scene, built a gigantic battery that can store 40 kWh of energy. It harvests power from over 40 solar panels on his roof. The system powers nearly his whole home. Matthews created both DIYpowerwalls.com and the most popular powerwall Facebook group.
So what if you want to build your very own powerwall?
Gathering enough batteries is only the first step, every cell in the battery then needs to be tested, the reason being that not all are safe enough to be used. Lithium-ion batteries have a limited lifespan, and some laptop batteries harvested end up having too little capacity to be used. Once you have enough quality batteries, it gets arranged into holders or "packs". Many powerwall builders prefer to design and build their own. They're often crafted so that if one cell goes bad, it can be replaced without having to take apart the entire rig. (you can see an example of the Powerwall in the video below)
After enough battery packs are assembled, the completed powerwall is hooked up to an inverter and mounted to the inside of a shed or outside structures. Most of the powerwall-hobbyist prefer to keep the powerwalls outside their homes, due to safety reasons or to comply with local regulations.
Have a look at the video below to see how a DIY Powerwall is made!