Ford Intelligent Backup Power: 15 Questions Answered By Ford

You had questions, we got the answers.

Jan 29, 2022 at 4:04pm ET

With Ford's Intelligent Backup Power system, the F-150 Lightning can be used to power your home in the event of a power outage. There is a lot of interest in this system, the first of its kind in an electric vehicle. However, Ford hasn't really offered a lot of information to date, and we've fielded a good amount of questions from prospective F-150 Lightning customers.

We reached out to Ford to see if they would be willing to answers some of the most common questions our followers have asked, and they not only said yes, they were actually quite enthusiastic about the opportunity to have this information disseminated.

We set up an interview with Ryan O'Gorman, Ford's Energy Services Co-Lead, and Head of Intelligent Backup Power. We asked Ryan the questions that you asked us and made the video above to provide the answers.

Notable chapters:

2:29 Does Intelligent Backup Power require a 320-amp electric service?
5:50 Does Ford Charge Station Pro require a 100-amp circuit?
7:40 If you reduce the power of Ford Charge Station Pro, can you use IBP at the full rate?
8:20 How long is the cable on Ford Charge Station Pro?
9:34 Is Ford Charge Station Pro a DC fast charger?
12:23 Can you charge a Tesla vehicle with Ford Charge Station Pro?
14:52 Can your solar array power your house with Ford Charge Station Pro on?
16:42 Can your solar array charge the Ford F-150 Lightning while IBP is running?
17:29 What equipment do you need to use Ford Intelligent Backup Power?
19:10 Are you required to use Sunrun to install Ford Intelligent Backup Power?
20:40 Is there any version of the F-150 Lightning that cannot use Ford IBP Power?
24:00 Will using Ford Intelligent Backup Power frequently affect my battery warranty?
26:30 Will Ford Intelligent Backup Power turn on automatically?
28:34 Can you limit how low the battery state of charge goes while using IBP?
31:47 How long can Ford Intelligent Backup Power power your home?

Last week we posted a video from the YouTube channel, Engineered Explained, which made the argument that's it's a better choice to get a Ford F-150 Lightning and use the Intelligent Backup Power system than it is to buy a stationary energy storage system for your home, like a Tesla Powerwall. We agree, especially if you're someone that likes or needs to drive a pickup truck.

The Intelligent Backup Power system can deliver up to 9.6 kW to the home and can be set to turn on automatically during a power interruption, or manually which is controlled through an app.

F-150 lightning customers that get the extended range battery pack (131 kWh usable), get the Intelligent Backup Power system activated upon delivery of the vehicle, as well as Ford's Charge Station Pro, an 80-amp charging station that's required to use the system.

F-150 Lightning owners that have the standard range battery pack (98 kWh usable) can also get Intelligent Backup Power, but they need to purchase the Charge Station Pro and pay Ford to activate the system on their vehicle, and Ford hasn't disclosed how much those two items will cost.

Customers will also have to purchase Ford's home integration kit from partner Sunrun, which includes an inverter, a transfer switch, and a small battery to initiate the system when the power goes out. Sunrun hasn't released pricing on the home integration kit yet.

So check out the video and let us know if you have any further questions in the comment section below.