Multiple Individual Questions | First Road Trip | NYC to Albany, NY

[GaryBowler]

I'm posting several separate questions so I don't wear anyone out - I went on my first road trip and ran into lots of issues - if anyone feels like commenting it will be welcomed!

I needed to recharge for the return trip back to NYC. I began to use the Tesla charger in Colonie, NY, and it stopped every 3-4 minutes. I switched to another and began charging at 26KW. Someone else drove up and was charging at over 96KW - he informed me that I should always use the #1, #2, or #3 chargers, not the "A", "B" or "C" charges as the current will be less.

Have you found this to be true?

 

[Derek Kessler]

That person was mistaken.

The Albany Supercharger is set up in a 1A, 2A, 3A, 1B, 2B, 3B arrangement. It's one of the older arrangements; newer Superchargers are typically more logically laid out: 1A, 1B, 2A, 2B, etc.

Regardless of the layout, the numbers are the key. Same-number stalls are paired and split a single transformer between them, i.e. 2A and 2B are on the same transformer. The individual transformers don't have enough juice to provide max power to two stalls simultaneously.

You'll want to avoid sharing numbers with another vehicle. If there are cars in 1A and 2B with the rest empty, pick 3A or 3B. If no complete pair is open, the next best bet is to figure out who is closest to completing their charge — they'll both be gone sooner and be drawing less power from the shared transformer as their battery nears full and their charge speed tapers.

 

[GaryBowler]

This makes a lot of sense - definitely will retain this information for future Tesla charging sites.

Much appreciated!

 

[SMAlset]

What @Derek Kessler said is right on. We didn't know this at first either. BTW if most of the stalls are open and you see a car parked at lets say 2A, parking next to 2B is considered bad charging ettique. Always look for an unpaired stall to use if you can.

 

[GaryBowler]

What @Derek Kessler said is right on. We didn't know this at first either. BTW if most of the stalls are open and you see a car parked at lets say 2A, parking next to 2B is considered bad charging ettique. Always look for an unpaired stall to use if you can.

I was not aware of this! And I always want to be respectful of others so good etiquette is up my alley! Thanks for this very practical and good information! Really appreciate knowing this.

 

[TexasEV]

What @Derek Kessler said is right on. We didn't know this at first either. BTW if most of the stalls are open and you see a car parked at lets say 2A, parking next to 2B is considered bad charging ettique. Always look for an unpaired stall to use if you can.

Only out of ignorance. Parking in 2B does not affect the charging in 2A in any way. It only affects the second of the pair to arrive (in this case 2B) with slower charging until 2A is tapering.

So don’t park in a paired stall if you can help it, as YOU will get a slower charging rate at first, but its not an etiquette issue as it doesn’t affect the car who is already charging.

 

[SMAlset]

Hmm OK. I heard that from people when we first started charging. We parked next to a guy who we ended up chatting with and that's what we had been told.