Tesla says keep it plugged in. My service provider says run it down b/4 charging!
Now I'm confused! Thoughts?
Now I'm confused! Thoughts?
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McManX
Member
Everything I have seen says leave it plugged in, 90%. Never heard someone say to drain it.
EcoHeliGuy
Member
People need to really move past the Nicad era. Plug it in, the computer does maintaining your batteries for you.
Plug it in, plug it in... isn't that a jingle?
We plug it in, full charge (90%) every night. Beauty of the Tesla.
We plug it in, full charge (90%) every night. Beauty of the Tesla.
What do you mean by your "service provider"? Electrical service, internet service? Why would someone in some other industry know better than Tesla how the battery packs in their cars are built and how they operate and what is best for them?
My "service provider" is a Tesla technician at the local location. All three techs nodded agreement when he said "let it run down b/4 charging to 90%>
It won't hurt anything to let it run down first, but it's not needed, and that's not what is recommended in the manual for the car from Tesla. Also, the cars used to come with a little laminated card that said, "A plugged in Tesla is a happy Tesla.", and it explained to just plug it in every night and let the battery management take care of it. It does kind of bother me a bit that some of the technicians they are hiring are giving this kind of advice that is contrary to Tesla's own official recommendations.
Are there negative effects of not charging the car nightly?
Would it be ok to charge 2-3 times a week? I live 10 minutes from a Supercharger and was thinking of just using that a few times a week.
I haven't heard if fewer charges would ruin or depreciate the battery faster, but perhaps it does if Tesla recommends keeping it plugged in.
Are there pros and cons with regards to battery health?
Would it be ok to charge 2-3 times a week? I live 10 minutes from a Supercharger and was thinking of just using that a few times a week.
I haven't heard if fewer charges would ruin or depreciate the battery faster, but perhaps it does if Tesla recommends keeping it plugged in.
Are there pros and cons with regards to battery health?
If you charge up at that supercharger close to you several times expect a call from Tesla.
They are not fond of local supercharging. They see and now promote supercharging as free for long distance travel.
SSD420
Member
systemcrashed
Please Reboot
Glad to see another FL tesla fan up this early
I agree that this would be the poorest battery management option you could choose. Plugging in every night and charging to 80-90% is optimal. Continuous high speed charging at high temps and full charging increases the batteries resistance over time, you could end up losing range over a shorter period than if you "slow charged" nightly when the battery was cooler. Besides, the overuse of a local Supercharger is bad Supercharger etiquette.
If you're asking this question you have a bit to learn about Lithium Ion batteries.
I suggest searching a bit online for more details but the gist is this:
~90% charging nightly is what Tesla recommends. It give you 90% of your range for daily use and it allows the batteries to stay balanced and conditioned.
Charging to 100% gives you full range but should only be used when you expect to use/need full range. Such that you are leaving in the morning or the next day for a long trip beyond your normal daily in town usage.
Charging to 100% and keeping the batteries charged at that level without discharging any energy from them is not healthy for these type of batteries.
I'll just add that this is really clear in the settings of the car. When you select to choose the charge limit, the display shows a section from 50% to 90% marked as "Daily". And then it has the 90% to 100% section marked as "Trips". I think it does still have the logic in the car that if you do actually charge to 100% for a few days in a row, it will display a warning to you that this is probably not good practice to use 100% all the time.
Ahhh - thx @pijjava34 for educating me!
Thx @NSXROX for this reminder.
@systemcrashed - If i'm only commuting 30 miles a day (round trip) is it still recommended to charge every night to 80-90%? Fortunately we have chargers at work as I was just planning to charge normally (won't use the superchargers nearby) every few days. Why does charging nightly to 90% keep the battery healthy, rather than just have the battery drain down to a certain threshold (i.e. 20% remaining?) I'm stingy about charging at home since I have chargers at work.Glad to see another FL tesla fan up this early
I agree that this would be the poorest battery management option you could choose. Plugging in every night and charging to 80-90% is optimal. Continuous high speed charging at high temps and full charging increases the batteries resistance over time, you could end up losing range over a shorter period than if you "slow charged" nightly when the battery was cooler. Besides, the overuse of a local Supercharger is bad Supercharger etiquette.
Thank you all for the education and insights!
systemcrashed
Please Reboot
Keeping the battery within the "middle 1/3" is where li-ion works best / lasts longest. Not good to stay below 20% or at 100% for an extended period of time. If you have chargers at work and use them daily you should have no issue (you are lucky to have that). Parking my car at home I would still plug it in just not schedule a charge (not sure you're aware you can do that) to avoid vampire drain as well. Assuming you work Mon-Fri, it will be charged to 80-90% on Friday when you get home, if there is 5-7% vampire drain, you would be ok. By plugging in at home and not scheduling a charge, or setting charge threshold to below 80% manually each Friday, you still won't be drawing much juice from home. Another idea would be to just use a 110v outlet adapter with your UMC to trickle charge when you're home.
Do you wait until your iPhone or android phone battery is low before plugging it in? Of course not. So why all these questions about the Tesla? Just plug it in every night (or at work every day if that's where you plug in) and let the battery management system manage the battery.
If you read the owners manual you will find this advice in bold print.
If you read the owners manual you will find this advice in bold print.
SSD420
Member
As per your comment here about our phones. I like your analogy!
I use an iPad charger to charge my iPhone. It's kind of like using a supercharger all the time. Apple has confirmed that this will not ruin my battery. I would assume this is the same case with Tesla?
I do however, every few months let my my die - down to 0%. Is this bad for a Teala? Would there ever be a reason to let my Tesla battery drain all the way down?
1. Yes
2. No (there is an exception for this you can search for, but best to think of this as no because of answer to question 1.)
Tesla owners REALLY need to RTFM even if you've never read a car owners manual before. This is unlike any car you've ever owned.
SSD420
Member
Oh trust me, I know this is like no other vehicle I've ever owned! I'm going from
a 2012 Toyota Camry SE to a Tesla Model X. Zero comparison!
a 2012 Toyota Camry SE to a Tesla Model X. Zero comparison!
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