Plugging Into The Energy Revolution

Driving an EV is just part of a bigger eco picture for some people. We find out from the Philips family about life with a Renault ZOE, solar panels and the cutting-edge Tesla Powerwall battery behinditallwww.autoexpress.co.uk

MOST people can pinpoint exact moments when their life has changed. For Warren Philips of Shoreham-on-Sea, West Sussex, a key day was when his daughter, Senna, was born in June 2011. From then Warren decided his days of sports car ownership were behind him, and he would switch to an electric car; but the family’s green transformation went further.

The Philips have become one of the country’s early adopters, combining solar, home battery and electric car tech to the extent that their home gets visitors as part of an ‘eco open house’ experience. We spent a day with Warren and Senna to see how they’ve made the transition to green living and green motoring.

The big change came in August 2015 when they moved into their current house on the south coast. Four weeks later they installed 22 solar panels on the roof, and then came the electric car. “We replaced our Ford Fiesta with a Renault ZOE in October 2016,” Warren said. “This was always part of the plan; once we got the house, we then got the ZOE.”

Although the solar panels could generate up to 40kWh of solar energy on a peak summer’s day – way above the 14kWh of electricity the family normally uses – Warren quickly noticed a dilemma.