No Garage / No driveway.... Charging?

[Concerned]

It will be in a numbered area (my reserved parking spot). In front of my townhouse. Yes, I believe one can limit the charging to only specific vehicles by VIN.

You absolutely can associate a Tesla gen 3 charger to your specific vehicle via the configuration software if you feel the need to do so, the TESLA team allotted for this scenario Especially if it’s fed from your home electrical service. Ideally with you having a dedicated parking spot, it’s no different then a charger for your “driveway” You can leave the vehicle plugged in all the time, precondition as necessary and charge off peak. Then, there are many other solutions if your condo community chooses to invest on groups of chargers, although admittedly, there is material cost and less connivence than having your own. As others have stated, I’m not sure it’s wise to own an Ev without the ability to have dedicated charging, I have installed many workplace chargers and deal with people who claim it’s their only place to charge and am perplexed as to why someone would make those kind of decisions..

 

[Concerned]

You might also wish to verify if your complex is three-phase electrical service as is most commercial operations vs one- (actually two-) phase as is most residential units in the US. The difference may determine whether you look for an electrician who works primarily on one or the other. We have apartments and condos nearby us on both types of current so it does vary.

Respectfully, and sorry but I have to: 2 phase 5 wire was last distributed in Philadelphia originating from the days of Edison vs Westinghouse ( via Tesla) arguing over ac vs dc (they both were right) and removed it in the late 1970’s.. as a young engineer I converted part of the Philadelphia zoo in 1988 from a motor generator source that dated from the 1930’s. There is no such thing anymore as “two phase”. There’s jargon of “split” phase, but that’s not an IEEE red book acceptable term anymore. You may have some odd power distribution if you are in downtown Boston, Philly or New York where delta still exists but it is exceedingly rare in a residential setting and not something generally to be concerned about. A simple litmus test is, do you have an electric dryer or range.?. if so, even if capacity limited, you can add a charger that will load manage to the available source. Any qualified electrician can readily make the determination. You can’t spell gEEk without EE.

 

[ThomasD]

If you could trench the line yourself it would save some money.

 

[thyname]

deal with people who claim it’s their only place to charge and am perplexed as to why someone would make those kind of decisions..

I stated right at the beginning of this thread that I charge for free at work. Underground garage, level 2. Big office building. I work for a living, and go physically to work every day. So not an issue for me (for now, while I have this job, for the past 12 years by the way). But of course, nothing beats the freedom and independence of having own charging at home. Eventually, I will get around to do it, and pay for it big bucks. Or, buy a new house. Whichever comes first

 

[Concerned]

I stated right at the beginning of this thread that I charge for free at work. Underground garage, level 2. Big office building. I work for a living, and go physically to work every day. So not an issue for me (for now, while I have this job, for the past 12 years by the way). But of course, nothing beats the freedom and independence of having own charging at home. Eventually, I will get around to do it, and pay for it big bucks. Or, buy a new house. Whichever comes first

Ok, glad your workplace has ample charging to offer you this opportunity. if your goal in driving an EV is to be truly environmentally friendly, the most impactful charging is off peak. I’m a power engineer, if people truly understood how utilities have to manage the peak demand with the most inefficient and polluting simple cycle equipment maybe it would change thinking. Peak utility load is generally late afternoon weekdays. Peak wind generation is usually before daybreak. My workplace has limited charging based on the sheer number of Users and we try and encourage people who have PHEV’s with limited range that actually make environmental sense to use them vs people like me who can charge at home. Then there’s also the negative noise that’s generated from not having charging at home like what happened in Chicago with the cold snap. That kind of thing discourages people from believing that EVs can handle the cold appropriately. The Norwegian‘s certainly think differently about that and it’s not sensationalized. Leaving an Ev plugged in when not in use is beneficial overall. So yes, I remain perplexed why people without a place at home would choose to buy one.

 

[thyname]

So yes, I remain perplexed why people without a place at home would choose to buy one.

Counter argument on that would be, since most of the population cannot charge privately at home (I.e urban dwellers in apartments or condos, or no access to private garage / driveway), the EVs will never be mainstream, let alone replace ICE vehicles. At least not in my lifetime (and I am not too old)

 

[Eric33432]

 

[E90alex]

Counter argument on that would be, since most of the population cannot charge privately at home (I.e urban dwellers in apartments or condos, or no access to private garage / driveway), the EVs will never be mainstream, let alone replace ICE vehicles. At least not in my lifetime (and I am not too old)

This is definitely a valid concern. L2 charging infrastructure needs an exponential expansion if EVs are to become more mainstream. I have not seen any major improvements in L2 charging near me in the last 5+ years.

DCFC is necessary for sure, but having proliferative L2 charging everywhere would be the game changer.

 

[Concerned]

Counter argument on that would be, since most of the population cannot charge privately at home (I.e urban dwellers in apartments or condos, or no access to private garage / driveway), the EVs will never be mainstream, let alone replace ICE vehicles. At least not in my lifetime (and I am not too old)

Not sure an urban planning simple solution exists with legacy infrastructure designed when the demand of EV’s wasn’t conceptualized, even though there were EV’s powered by the subway dc traction supplies in the 1930’s.. (Jay Leno has one in his garage) that aside, I think that a solid discussion of level 1 vs level 2 for the users that actually have a commute.. could come from this thread, but at the same time, I thought that the major argument for all of the forced investment into urban transport: bus, trolley, subway et al, was to minimize personal cars in the cities. Your statements could also be an arguement for hybrids vs BEV’s.. Personally, I have a 130+ mile daily commute from a rural setting into an urban one, my MY LR FSD does it just fine.. so does my F150.. but I choose the EV 99% of the time. There are no simple solutions. I’ve installed hundreds of L2 workplace charging, on average at a cost of $100K each, not an overstatement, union labor, creating the entire distribution systems from scratch, 50+ EV’s charging simultaneously is a large load that building systems were not designed to accommodate.. two or three chargers, give or take, are easy, yet people need to share and human behaviors as shown in poor charging etiquette all break down. All for a Kennedy challenge… I’m dating myself.. but then, engineers solved issues with inspiration and united national pride / goals. We’re a far cry from that now. Chicago proved that a local supercharger treated as a local gas station, just doesn‘t work and winds up giving EVs a black eye.

 

[Eric33432]

I've been trying to explain this to my anti-EV friends who say the grid will never be able to handle mass adoption of EVs.

When I was born, very few people had air conditioning, now many years later almost everyone does. How did the grid handle that?

My answer is: not everyone got a/c the same year. It was a gradual implementation, just like EVs will be.

This video explains it very well, I think:

 

[Concerned]

I've been trying to explain this to my anti-EV friends who say the grid will never be able to handle mass adoption of EVs.

When I was born, very few people had air conditioning, now many years later almost everyone does. How did the grid handle that?

My answer is: not everyone got a/c the same year. It was a gradual implementation, just like EVs will be.

This video explains it very well, I think:

The YouTube video makes my point, off peak charging is a primary solution. It also states that the totals ignore other demands on the “grid” (while they’re really talking about generation) while challenges exist throughout the transmission and distribution, most of the discussions here are about the so called last mile, or probably better said, the last couple hundred feet. The “electrification” push for all uses greatly exceeds a 30% “grid” peak demand increase. The discussions about TX grid stability in cold weather where 60% of the residential secondary heating is resistance and nearly triples the load when outdoor air temps are below freezing is driven by heat pumps. The peak secondary heat demand is generally just before daybreak. While I agree that industry will react in time, there are “mandates” in place presently that short circuit the planning much less the design and build cycle for major infrastructure.
this whole discussion started for folks looking to get level two charging without a dedicated driveway or garage.. and for the one off’s your “not everyone has a/c“ arguement fits well. My points are not to fuel the anti-Ev crowd with zealots buying something without the supporting infrastructure then crying that Elon needs to do better. I’ve driven to Ev charging deserts in the mid west in zero degree weather without issue. Planning and an extension cord can make all the difference.

as to heat pumps… a fellow Treker simply said… “resistance is futile”

 

[easyev]

Hey just wanted to update you guys on this thread. (See white Plaid pic post near top). She got an Atlas cord protector for the sidewalk, and an extension cable for wall connector cord, and she's happy. The neighbours are freaking she may use her new paving-stoned "lawn" as an (illegal) parking pad and even mentioned their concern to me. I mentioned the number for city complaints and they stopped talking. What's with some people? I guess having that Plaid on a street filled with anything but doesn't help?

 

[thyname]

Hey just wanted to update you guys on this thread. (See white Plaid pic post near top). She got an Atlas cord protector for the sidewalk, and an extension cable for wall connector cord, and she's happy. The neighbours are freaking she may use her new paving-stoned "lawn" as an (illegal) parking pad and even mentioned their concern to me. I mentioned the number for city complaints and they stopped talking. What's with some people? I guess having that Plaid on a street filled with anything but doesn't help?

Neighbors are going to complain. No escape. For various reasons. Good luck to “she”.

 

[easyev]

Neighbors are going to complain. No escape. For various reasons. Good luck to “she”.

So true, thank you very much.

 

[Dear_OP]

I must admit, I'd simply won't bother with an EV. But I applaud the pioneers who have to deal/innovate under such living arrangements. There are some liabilities & risks when running electric cables on sidewalks. It will some time before we become more like Norway.