Here's a tip for charging in parking garages

[dblankenbaker]

And then how do you deal with it when the owner/management of the garage pull your plug AND THEN cut your cord (the big one going into the car)?

 

[timk225]

And then how do you deal with it when the owner/management of the garage pull your plug AND THEN cut your cord (the big one going into the car)?

Well in that case they'd be into me for $300 replacement cost for personal property damage, but then there'd be the issue of proving they did it and not some other person. Hope the sentry cameras catch them!

My parking garage example is a one-off situation, it was a place I don't normally go. However if I began working in a place where I'd be in the same garage all the time, I would make the effort to get the official ok from garage management.

That aside, in the same way that sentry cameras are catching Tesla vandals, it's best not to advertise that I've got my power cord plugged into the wall, so the more I go out of my way to minimize the number of people seeing it, the better it is for me. And I'm all about what's better for me!

 

[mswlogo]

We should have a dumbest post of the month award.

And folks wonder why we get ICEd.

 

[StealthP3D]

If I act sneaky while drinking from a public water fountain is that stealing?

It's not stealing but the "acting sneaky" might be interpreted as evidence he thought he was stealing. However, in the OP's case, it sounds like he was just trying to minimize the potential of vandalism or theft of his mobile connector.

 

[Webeevdrivers]

Kinda surprised this kinda thing is allowed on this board. How to instructions on theft.

The OP will never understand why this is wrong. That’s just how he was brought up. Nothing will change that.

 

[darth_vad3r]

Kinda surprised people are so judgemental without all the information.

 

[davewill]

We don’t know if OP was stealing unless we hear from the parking lot operator that they do not allow EV L1 charging.

As soon as he plugged in without the permission, it was stealing. Only AFTER recieving permission would it be OK to plug in. It always amazing how people rationalize doing what they know is wrong.

 

[darth_vad3r]

As soon as he plugged in without the permission, it was stealing. Only AFTER recieving permission would it be OK to plug in. It always amazing how people rationalize doing what they know is wrong.

Do you require permission to take what is free of charge? Even if you don’t know it’s free? No.

If you think you are stealing water from a public water fountain and don’t ask permission it doesn’t make it stealing.

If there was a sign that said “free L1 charging” or fine print on the parking receipt saying the same, and OP didn’t read it, is it stealing?

Do you have all the facts?

Just because OP didn’t ask for permission doesn’t mean he didn’t have permission.

 

[notAnExpert]

Surprised so many disagrees when he paid $14 and “stole” (according to some) a whopping $0.17/hr of power (108 V x 16 A continuous x $0.10/kWh)....

Extending your calculations over a 24 hour period, that exceeds $4 a day – almost a third of the parking fee paid. That is indeed a whopping amount!

 

[mswlogo]

Reminds me of a funny story on the news this morning. Lady went to Walmart bakery stand and picked up a cake. Ate half of it while wandering around shopping. Got mad at the checkout because she only wanted to pay for half a cake. Offered to pay when po-po showed up. Now, she's kicked out of Walmart for life.

So (riffing off of your question above) how much groceries do you have to pay for to be able to eat some food for free while you're shopping?

That was the OP’s mom.

 

[notAnExpert]

...
I needed to get something for the ridiculous $14 the parking garage was going to charge me for all day, so I planned ahead. ...

Why not go somewhere else that didn’t charge “the ridiculous $14”?

 

[ralph142]

Do you require permission to take what is free of charge? Even if you don’t know it’s free? No.

If you think you are stealing water from a public water fountain and don’t ask permission it doesn’t make it stealing.

If there was a sign that said “free L1 charging” or fine print on the parking receipt saying the same, and OP didn’t read it, is it stealing?

Do you have all the facts?

Just because OP didn’t ask for permission doesn’t mean he didn’t have permission.

It does mean he didn’t know whether it was ok or not, and he chose not to find out, and to hide the use. That deceitful at least. In my view it’s his responsibility to go ask. Easy enough to do in a positive way: “how much to you charge for me to hook up to one of your available 120 outlets and charge while I park?”.

 

[Big Earl]

Do we really need to endlessly adjudicate this?

 

[darth_vad3r]

Extending your calculations over a 24 hour period, that exceeds $4 a day – almost a third of the parking fee paid. That is indeed a whopping amount!

If I was a parkade owner that charged $14 for 24 hours and was next to another parkade that charged $14 for 24 hours I would consider offering free EV charging to attract more business to my parkade than my neighbour. Many parkades do this with free Chargepoints. Those come with an upfront cost. Letting people plug into existing outlets is cheaper.

Average parking time is likely way less than 24 hours, and if someone wants to camp all day and “steal” $4 of my power while paying me $14, I would be perfectly fine with that and tell them to tell all their friends too. Everyone come by and enjoy your “free” power while you pay me $14. LOL, maybe I might even not bother putting signs up so people who like the thrill of thinking they are being a rebel get a kick too.

 

[darth_vad3r]

It does mean he didn’t know whether it was ok or not, and he chose not to find out, and to hide the use. That deceitful at least. In my view it’s his responsibility to go ask. Easy enough to do in a positive way: “how much to you charge for me to hook up to one of your available 120 outlets and charge while I park?”.

re: hiding the use being deceitful — if I was using the UMC in public, I’d want to hide my car as much as possible to avoid theft or vandalism. Heck I hide my car as much as possible when NOT charging to avoid dings.

re: asking, we don’t know if there was someone there to ask

OP didn’t know if he was stealing or not. Neither do we. He may have been, may not.

 

[timk225]

I'm planning to make a video of this technique for my youtube channel on Tuesday. I will film it at this same garage, and after I'm done filming, I will go to the automated parking ticket payment machines and see if there's a phone number to call. There should be. Then I will call it, ask them if it's cool, then I'll report my findings here. Or if there is a live attendant, I will ask them, although they probably won't have a clue. Maybe that'll make some people happy.

 

[daniel]

I'm reminded of the news story I saw where a homeless man was charged with stealing after plugging his cellphone into a regular 5-15 outlet on the exterior wall of a downtown store. He probably took about $0.01 worth of electricity but, hey, he was homeless. In our mixed up society the police would probably feel obligated to give a Tesla owner a warning rather than charge them. The homeless man got no second chance.

Yep. The only "crime" that's prosecuted and punished with real enthusiasm by our legal system is the "crime" of being poor.

 

[StealthP3D]

Why not go somewhere else that didn’t charge “the ridiculous $14”?

Because their outlets were not turned on?

 

[StealthP3D]

Yep. The only "crime" that's prosecuted and punished with real enthusiasm by our legal system is the "crime" of being poor.

Oh, I forgot to mention, the homeless guy was black.

 

[KenC]

While I'm not sure about the OP's surreptitious approach, it would be nice to be able to hold a maintain charge at an airport parking lot, to counter any phantom drain due to sentry cam use. Probably less than $1 a day. I'd be happy to pay that or more to know that my car battery would be fine while away. Probably should write to the airport parking manager to lay the math all out, so that they understand how little it is, and that you'll be happy to pay.