Garage charging me $75/month in electricity for Model 3...

[MatildaModelY]

Downtown Chicago based: I'm trying to understand how much people's electricity bills realistically go up and figure out how/why my garage is asking $75/month in electricity.

I'm moving in to a new apartment with an included garage spot (I own). I won't be commuting anywhere and will be driving probably 1,000 miles/month. Chicago electricity is pretty cheap, but yet they insist on the $75 flat fee. Any tips or suggestions to try to get them to lower this?

 

[Rockster]

Perhaps keeping a log, with screen shots, for a few months' of travel so that you can show them that your consumption is considerably lower? They may also be attempting to recoup the cost of upgrading the infrastructure to enable charging, so their cost may very well be more than just the electricity.

 

[nowtleft]

Use a local supercharger and dont pay it?

 

[MatildaModelY]

I have to pay for the install myself. Was just looking at Plugshare and this is a likely outcome to just charge outside somewhere since my needs are low.

 

[Lloyd]

@ $.15 per Kwh average in Chicago that sounds very reasonable. 125Kwh per week is the break even.

 

[davewill]

Say, "Pretty please, with sugar on it?" Seriously, if you can get charging at an apartment complex and it only costs you $75 per month, you're doing all right. They had to put money up to install the infrastructure, and they probably expect to make money. Unless you can point to other complexes that will give it to you cheaper, I don't know how you'd convince them.

 

[MatildaModelY]

Yes that price is very reasonable

 

[MatildaModelY]

Say, "Pretty please, with sugar on it?" Seriously, if you can get charging at an apartment complex and it only costs you $75 per month, you're doing all right. They had to put money up to install the infrastructure, and they probably expect to make money. Unless you can point to other complexes that will give it to you cheaper, I don't know how you'd convince them.

It's not awful, but they are probably making a 50% markup on what most people will be using. I mentioned before that all infrastructure/charging plug will be the expense of the user (which I'm fine with). Just don't appreciate them gauging for no reason.

 

[brkaus]

I would say your best bet would be to also pay for a meter. Then you can use real data to negotiate. A meter base and meter (esp used) is pretty cheap.

They have to cover themselves, so offering a fixed price is risky to them. Hence the higher price. I don’t think it is that unreasonable.

 

[Graffi]

1,000 miles divided by 4 miles per kWh = 250 kWh per month. If all your electricity comes from this source then the garage is charging you $0.30 per kWh. In places like San Diego this is not too bad. However, in places with low electricity cost this is as much as 10 times the actual cost of electricity.

I am not sure what your rates in Chicago are, I could not find out with a web search, but you said it is pretty cheap. You do the math and determine if you wish to pay this fee or just use the Superchargers and pay their rates. The rates for IL is currently $0.24 per kWh, so for 1,000 miles this would be $60.00.

If you have a parking spot that you own, are you able to install your own electricity?

 

[mtndrew1]

Sounds like a very reasonable price to me.

When I rented and had community parking I was charged $50/mo for a 120V outlet for a Volt.

 

[brkaus]

Or if they offer the same deal to the next person and they drive 2,500 per month the building is loosing money.

Metering is likely the best approach if your a low mileage driver.

 

[davewill]

I would say your best bet would be to also pay for a meter. Then you can use real data to negotiate. A meter base and meter (esp used) is pretty cheap.

They have to cover themselves, so offering a fixed price is risky to them. Hence the higher price. I don’t think it is that unreasonable.

This will add very little to the cost of your install. You might want to do it even if they insist on the fixed fee, just so you know what your usage is. Who knows, they might try to raise the fee later and you'd have documentation this way.

I have this one:

EZ Read FM2S 200A 240V 3W Meter

 

[ItsNotAboutTheMoney]

I would say your best bet would be to also pay for a meter. Then you can use real data to negotiate. A meter base and meter (esp used) is pretty cheap.

They have to cover themselves, so offering a fixed price is risky to them. Hence the higher price. I don’t think it is that unreasonable.

I agree with this. I'd call and try to discuss it with them. It's in their interests to get it right, and this is early days, so if the OP can come to an arrangement on metering it could work out better for everybody in the long run.

 

[eprosenx]

So I think $75/mo is a lot of money for the electricity, though installing EV charging in commercial buildings is *not* cheap depending on what existing infrastructure exists.

A friend of mine helped his condo board through this process a couple years ago. They were lucky in that they already had a spare breaker off their main electrical switchgear and it was vastly overbuilt so they did not have to upgrade their service from the utility. Had they needed to do this it could be tens of thousands of dollars.

But they did have to core drill the concrete floors in the parking garage and install 480v panels vertically stacked between floors in two locations on each floor. That was just the base install to then enable others to add service. Each condo owner when they signed up for service had to pay some fixed cost to cover their share of shared infrastructure (based on how many amps of service they wanted). Then they had to pay for conduit from these panels to their own dedicated transformer (480v to 240v) hung above their stall, plus then the EVSE itself.

They actually decided not to meter for actual electrical power since this was downtown Seattle and the power is cheap. The cost of getting someone to read the meters and send bills just was not worth it. They just charge everyone a flat fee of like $10 a month or something. Most folks living downtown in Seattle don't commute far...

 

[Electroman]

f you wish to pay this fee or just use the Superchargers and pay their rates

So between SuperCharger rate and the garage charger rate of $75/month, he may save around $30 maybe ? Is it worth losing the convenience of charging in your own garage for $30? And that too, what go to SC out of the way and sit there for an hour?

I wouldn't bat an eye lid, and just pay $75 and move on. If you want you can put a meter to show them after a few months that it costs less and see if you can change their mind. Other than that I would thank my stars and move on

 

[xyeahtony]

$75/mo is nothing. I pay maybe $100/month more in electricity. Then again i drive like 2000 miles a month so maybe thats why haha. People who live in states like Hawaii, California, Massachusetts, they pay a lot more in electricity every month.

 

[eprosenx]

$75/mo is nothing. I pay maybe $100/month more in electricity. Then again i drive like 2000 miles a month so maybe thats why haha. People who live in states like Hawaii, California, Massachusetts, they pay a lot more in electricity every month.

Yeah, we are lucky here. I just did the math tonight:

I pay a little over 10 cents per kWh not including the minimum meter fee of a little over $10 here in Portland Oregon.

Some very rough math here: 310 mile max range. 44 miles an hour of charging on my 48 amp 240v charger. That draws 11.52 kW. 310/44 = 7.045 hours. Times 11.52 = 81.16 kWh to *fill* the "tank" from dead flat to 100%. Times ten cents per kWh is $8.12 to "fill it up".

I find that to be insanely cheap.

 

[yuhong]

So I think $75/mo is a lot of money for the electricity, though installing EV charging in commercial buildings is *not* cheap depending on what existing infrastructure exists.

A friend of mine helped his condo board through this process a couple years ago. They were lucky in that they already had a spare breaker off their main electrical switchgear and it was vastly overbuilt so they did not have to upgrade their service from the utility. Had they needed to do this it could be tens of thousands of dollars.

But they did have to core drill the concrete floors in the parking garage and install 480v panels vertically stacked between floors in two locations on each floor. That was just the base install to then enable others to add service. Each condo owner when they signed up for service had to pay some fixed cost to cover their share of shared infrastructure (based on how many amps of service they wanted). Then they had to pay for conduit from these panels to their own dedicated transformer (480v to 240v) hung above their stall, plus then the EVSE itself.

They actually decided not to meter for actual electrical power since this was downtown Seattle and the power is cheap. The cost of getting someone to read the meters and send bills just was not worth it. They just charge everyone a flat fee of like $10 a month or something. Most folks living downtown in Seattle don't commute far...

Is this really one transformer per stall?

 

[Vintre]

Model 3 has 75kwh battery.

Chicago electricity rate $0.15/kwh

Model 3 range = 310 miles

Cost to fully charge is 75 x $0.15 = $11.25

Monthly charge by apartment building $75

You are being charged to fully charge $75 / $11.25 = 6.67 times per month

Total range being paid for 6.67 x 310 miles = 2067 miles

So the question to you is, do you drive more or less than 2067 miles per month?

Vin