Charging Etiquette!

[FloridaSun]

While Supercharging etiquette has been discussed here, I wanted to post a few rules that everyone should follow when using public chargers.

1) Don't charge to a high SoC on a fast charger like Chademo (with adapter) or Superchargers when others are waiting to charge. Speed slows down significantly after 80% and you could finish the last few % on Level 2 if you really need that extra charge.

2) Don't leave your car connected to a public charger after charging has finished. Don't be a jerk, orhers may need a charge too, so move your car when done.

3) Don't just park in a charging spot without plugging in for the same reason as 2)

4) Never unplug another car to plug in yours unless they have a sign that it's ok to do so.

5) Don't use public chargers like it's your personal home charger and leave your car all day plugged in unless of course there are plenty of EVSE's and you are not stopping others from getting a charge.

6) If the charger you are using is a single charger that is not networked, please check in and out on the plugshare app, so others know if it's available or not.

7) Generally, if you can, use plugshare for check ins or comments for example if chargers are working or if they have issues so others can avoid the charger if it's broken etc..

 

[dogmodes]

2) Don't leave your car connected to a public charger after charging has finished. Don't be a jerk, orhers may need a charge too, so move your car when done.
5) Don't use public chargers like it's your personal home charger and leave your car all day plugged in unless of course there are plenty of EVSE's and you are not stopping others from getting a charge.

So what’s the proper etiquette here. We only have 2 Tesla chargers at my work (shared) garage. There are signs saying 3 hour charging be courteous. There’s a black model 3 that is there 6-8+ hours everyday. It’s only prevented me from charging once or twice but now that more people are coming to the office it’s going to be a pain. I’ll probably leave the guy a note.

If I’m at a place like a hotel with say 5 empty chargers I may leave it for a day or so but put a note on my dash with my number. If I feel there’s any chance someone would need it I move it when it’s done.

 

[FloridaSun]

So what’s the proper etiquette here. We only have 2 Tesla chargers at my work (shared) garage. There are signs saying 3 hour charging be courteous. There’s a black model 3 that is there 6-8+ hours everyday. It’s only prevented me from charging once or twice but now that more people are coming to the office it’s going to be a pain. I’ll probably leave the guy a note.

If I’m at a place like a hotel with say 5 empty chargers I may leave it for a day or so but put a note on my dash with my number. If I feel there’s any chance someone would need it I move it when it’s done.

I don't see an issue if you leave a note in the dash with your number.. I usually charge overnight at Hotels with chargers as I'm not getting up 5 am to unplug..
As for charging limits, I would leave a note for someone exceeding them on a regular basis.
I personally like the idea of the charger operator to offer 3 hours free charging and charge 40 cents per minute after that.. People will move their cars quickly..

 

[73Bruin]

While Supercharging etiquette has been discussed here, I wanted to post a few rules that everyone should follow when using public chargers.

1) Don't charge to a high SoC on a fast charger like Chademo (with adapter) or Superchargers when others are waiting to charge. Speed slows down significantly after 80% and you could finish the last few % on Level 2 if you really need that extra charge.

Regarding item #1. I have no problem going above 80%, if I need that charge to reach my destination and it's uncertain if there are other chargers that I can use in the way or at my destination. As I found out the hard way, hotel destination chargers especially may not be available. After running into that situation and thinking myself lucky to find a 110 outlet in the parking structure, I will always plan to have enough charge left to get to the next supercharger.

 

[Pianewman]

Haven't had to use destination charging, but it makes me nervous. Slow charging means the space is taken up the entire night, and there just aren't enough spots available in most places I've checked.

 

[FloridaSun]

Regarding item #1. I have no problem going above 80%, if I need that charge to reach my destination and it's uncertain if there are other chargers that I can use in the way or at my destination. As I found out the hard way, hotel destination chargers especially may not be available. After running into that situation and thinking myself lucky to find a 110 outlet in the parking structure, I will always plan to have enough charge left to get to the next supercharger.

Of course, if you need the charge, there is no issue but recently, there was a Lady with a Bolt charging on a 50kw CCS/Chademo charger.. Her plate indicated that she lived in that county and she was sitting at 95%, charging at 3kw from 95 to 100%. There was a Level 2 charger (7kw) right beside and she could have finished her charge at the same speed instead of hogging the fast charger at Level 2 speeds. There was a Model 3 and myself (in my Kona Electric, before I had the Y) waiting for like 30 mins until she charged from 95 to 100%..

 

[ATPMSD]

 

[FloridaSun]

I've seen that exact video before.. Very informative.. I watched it before I took delivery of my Y.. Haven's Supercharged yet but I had a session on a free 50kw Chademo charger today with the Chademo Adapter.. Worked perfectly!! I'll only use Supercharging for road trips.. No need to waste my free supercharger miles when I'm around my area as I have too many free Level 2 and Chademo options..

 

[threeputts]

Regarding item #1. I have no problem going above 80%, if I need that charge to reach my destination and it's uncertain if there are other chargers that I can use in the way or at my destination. As I found out the hard way, hotel destination chargers especially may not be available. After running into that situation and thinking myself lucky to find a 110 outlet in the parking structure, I will always plan to have enough charge left to get to the next supercharger.

When trip planning now I favor hotels that are near superchargers as a backup, if I bother to pick a hotel with a charger at all. Level 2 charging availability is pretty low on my list of priorities for choosing hotels for road trips. If it's a hotel I may have picked anyway great but I won't go out of the way to stay at one or pay more for a similar room.

 

[73Bruin]

When trip planning now I favor hotels that are near superchargers as a backup, if I bother to pick a hotel with a charger at all. Level 2 charging availability is pretty low on my list of priorities for choosing hotels for road trips. If it's a hotel I may have picked anyway great but I won't go out of the way to stay at one or pay more for a similar room.

In my case, the hotel was my destination and not a way point on a longer trip. If it had been a way point I would agree with you. In my case the hotel was the front for the time-share that my wife and I own in Carmel. I knew it had 2 Tesla destination chargers, but was told in advance that they get a lot of use by the guests and there was no guarantees that I would get charging time on them. They said that they did not monitor or otherwise control their usage and only asked the guests to be courteous.

Accordingly, I wanted to have enough juice to get to the hotel and then reach a supercharger at some point on our stay or before we started our return trip. As it turned out I was able to get a couple of overnight charges on a 110 outlet that added about 60 miles of charge which took care of our driving needs while there. Then as luck would have it, I was able to get a 90% charge on one of their destination chargers the night before we left.

 

[Boeingpilot]

To the guy in Burlington NJ. Glad you can afford a MY and a boat. Maybe next time disconnect the trailer and charge? Sheez!

 

[Pianewman]

Poor guy, can't afford matching wheels on the trailer. Was he waiting in his car, or off somewhere eating? Cutting him some slack, it's possible no one was there when he arrived, and he thought he'd get away with it.
Worthy of a nastygram on his windshield.

 

[JonB65]

I'd enjoy the video of him trying to get out of that spot now, with the other cars parked on each side...which is apparently what he desired them to do when he pulled in.

 

[TomServo]

I guess I’m a bad person, I needed and have charged well past 80% many times a few times past 95% to get to my my Charger. Louisville to Mt Vernon (199 miles) and I’m not going to unplug and look for a Level 2 Charger. That makes no sense. And when we charge at Destination Chargers I set my charge to 90% which usually finished close to 1 am. I’m not getting up to move my car.

 

[LoudMusic]

I've not personally experienced any of the things mentioned here, but I've experienced several times someone arriving at a Supercharger V2 (150KW, thick cables) and plugging in on the same shared charger as me when there are plenty of other unshared spots available. Even if you are completely unaware of the V2 shared charger situation, why are you peeing in the urinal right next to someone else when there are several other urinals available? Spread out!

 

[Boeingpilot]

Poor guy, can't afford matching wheels on the trailer. Was he waiting in his car, or off somewhere eating? Cutting him some slack, it's possible no one was there when he arrived, and he thought he'd get away with it.
Worthy of a nastygram on his windshield.

Oh he was there and apologized, but people waiting were stacking up.
Seeing as I just got back from California and had a 3+ drive home all I wanted was my 17 min of charge and keep going home

 

[Pianewman]

I guess I’m a bad person, I needed and have charged well past 80% many times a few times past 95% to get to my my Charger. Louisville to Mt Vernon (199 miles) and I’m not going to unplug and look for a Level 2 Charger. That makes no sense. And when we charge at Destination Chargers I set my charge to 90% which usually finished close to 1 am. I’m not getting up to move my car.

HAHA! As far as I'm concerned, this is why Destination Chargers aren't a desirable option. NO ONE is willing to get up in the middle of the night to unplug and MOVE their car, and for sure, no one is waiting there at 3:00am to plug in.
For this reason, I don't even bother planning for a Destination Charger. Destination Chargers are NOT convenient, and are a risky option.
TomServo: does this behavior make you a bad person???? If I pull in at 3 am, exhausted, and look for my (promised?) Destination Charger, and your car is fully charged filling a spot, I'll call a tow truck to make space for me. (jk, of course! That would make BOTH of us BAD people!)

 

[roblab]

ALWAYS put your phone number on the dash if charging at a hotel, and if you can, add the approximate time the charger will be free and your car will be moved. And then move it. We all have phones and can monitor charge from a hotel room with ease. There's no excuse.

Unfortunately, lazy, careless, thoughtless people will still block chargers. I have no compunction against leaving pointed notes, as a simple reminder doesn't seem to get through. The tow truck idea might be a bit extreme, but the car might alert the owner if someone was moving the car. Then again, the tow truck driver will likely not be able to disconnect the charger without damaging it or the car, so a pointed note taped heavily right in front of the driver's face on the windshield might be the best way to get his attention.

 

[LoudMusic]

HAHA! As far as I'm concerned, this is why Destination Chargers aren't a desirable option. NO ONE is willing to get up in the middle of the night to unplug and MOVE their car, and for sure, no one is waiting there at 3:00am to plug in.
For this reason, I don't even bother planning for a Destination Charger. Destination Chargers are NOT convenient, and are a risky option.
TomServo: does this behavior make you a bad person???? If I pull in at 3 am, exhausted, and look for my (promised?) Destination Charger, and your car is fully charged filling a spot, I'll call a tow truck to make space for me. (jk, of course! That would make BOTH of us BAD people!)

I plan for hotel destination chargers that are near Superchargers. That way if the destination charger is available, awesome. If it's not, no big deal.

But I do think destination chargers are fantastic and as more EVs hit the road hopefully the destination charging options will keep up.

 

[ATPMSD]

The easiest way to deal with the Destination Charger issue would be through idle fees. Unfortunately, these are not yet supported for the TMC.