Suggestion for Tesla: allow sharing of residential charging

[diplomat33]

I am posting this in the Model 3 forum because I think that as the number of Model 3s on the roads starts to increase dramatically, this idea has the most benefit. Basically, I am suggesting Tesla do what Plugshare already does and that is to allow owners to share their residential charger with other Tesla owners. It would need to be voluntary of course but it would be easy to do. Just give tesla owners the option of adding their residential charger to Tesla's supercharging map. That way, other tesla owners could easily find a nearby residential charger from their screen in their car. Once we start seeing tens of thousands of Model 3s on the road, this could mean potentially thousands of new charging locations every month. I think it could be a great way for Tesla to supplement their charging network quickly and it would not cost anything.

 

[derekmw]

There are already apps that allow you to list your house as a charger station.

I'm not sure why people would want to just open their house up for a large amount of users to come and charge though...unless you're suggesting Tesla incentivise is by allowing the home owner to make money by charging the users?

I have my home listed on plug share app, but it's more for people who need an emergency charge. I certainly have on intention of having my home listed for people to just come and regularly charge and use a lot of electricity (even if I have solar).

 

[TexasEV]

If you want to list your home on Plugshare, go ahead. There is no reason to get Tesla involved or to clutter up the supercharger map.

 

[diplomat33]

I'm not sure why people would want to just open their house up for a large amount of users to come and charge though...unless you're suggesting Tesla incentivise is by allowing the home owner to make money by charging the users?

A small financial incentive could make it worth it both for the Tesla owner and also for Tesla. Win-Win. Tesla could expand their charging network for a fraction of the cost of installing a full supercharger station and Tesla owners could make a little money on the side to offset the cost of ownership.

I have my home listed on plug share app, but it's more for people who need an emergency charge. I certainly have on intention of having my home listed for people to just come and regularly charge and use a lot of electricity (even if I have solar).

I know plugshare does this. I am suggesting that Tesla make it an option on their charging map, because I am thinking that not everyone uses plugshare. And having everything on the same tesla charging map would make things more convenient for tesla owners.

It definitely should be voluntary since as you pointed out, not everyone will want strangers using their charger. I do think that once the Tesla network and ride sharing takes off, that this idea could have more merit.

 

[kort677]

A small financial incentive could make it worth it both for the Tesla owner and also for Tesla. Win-Win. Tesla could expand their charging network for a fraction of the cost of installing a full supercharger station and Tesla owners could make a little money on the side to offset the cost of ownership.

I suppose that you are NOT an owner of a tesla.
for the most part home chargers are like L2 chargers and charge at a very slow, time consuming rate. home chargers are not geared for travelers on the go, their best use is overnight, destination charging.
your idea is well meaning but not really a good option for most tesla drivers and as others have noted their is a way to list your home charger as being available to people via plugshare.

 

[ModelNforNerd]

A small financial incentive could make it worth it both for the Tesla owner and also for Tesla. Win-Win.

That's gonna be a no for me, dawg.

I live 12 miles from a soon-to-be finished Supercharger, and there are multiple Plugshare-listed chargers listed within a 5 minute drive of my house, but my plug is mine. Just as my car is mine.

Not all of us are "buying in" with the share-everything economy of the future. Some of us still buy things for ours and our families' personal use.

Also, get off my lawn!

 

[diplomat33]

I suppose that you are NOT an owner of a tesla.
for the most part home chargers are like L2 chargers and charge at a very slow, time consuming rate. home chargers are not geared for travelers on the go, their best use is overnight, destination charging.
your idea is well meaning but not really a good option for most tesla drivers and as others have noted their is a way to list your home charger as being available to people via plugshare.

No, I am not a Tesla owner, yet (I am a model 3 reservation holder). Yes, I know that home charging is not meant for traveling on the go. I just thought that since plugshare does it, that it could not hurt to make it an option on the Tesla map too, to consolidate charging locations in one location. I just thought it could be a nice option, that's all. Yes, it was well meaning even if the consensus seems to be that it is not needed.

But thank you for your reply.

 

[boaterva]

The main issue here (besides cost and all that) is the speed. Plugshare's listing is for emergencies. I had someone use my HPWC the day after I installed/listed it, and I gladly let him do so. It was a cold March day, and the hotel he had arranged to stay at didn't have the charger available he had planned for, so he used my HPWC and we chatted for 30 minutes.

Make that a regular occasion for people that can't be bothered to plan? I don't think so.

Tesla's map is for normal charging or for those who want to know what hotels/B&Bs have joined the destination charger program where they can completely recharge overnight (and the business can gain clients by having the HPWCs).

 

[bonnie]

No, I am not a Tesla owner, yet (I am a model 3 reservation holder). Yes, I know that home charging is not meant for traveling on the go. I just thought that since plugshare does it, that it could not hurt to make it an option on the Tesla map too, to consolidate charging locations in one location. I just thought it could be a nice option, that's all. Yes, it was well meaning even if the consensus seems to be that it is not needed.

But thank you for your reply.

Plugshare does it well. Plus they list all the other charging options available in the area.

I appreciate your intent, but the reality is that very few people driving long distance want to stop at someone's home and kick back for several hours while they charge. It really would just be noise on the Tesla screen.

I'd have to vote no.

 

[diplomat33]

I appreciate your intent, but the reality is that very few people driving long distance want to stop at someone's home and kick back for several hours while they charge. It really would just be noise on the Tesla screen.

Well, I am not suggesting that people use it instead of the supercharger. It would be for emergencies. Maybe I have a little range anxiety that I did not know I had. I am just thinking what if you do get stranded and need an emergency charge. Having all those residential chargers on the tesla map could really help.

But I am fine with keeping things the way they are. After all, we do have plugshare for finding those other charging locations.

 

[Zythryn]

I think this was good when there were a few tens of thousands of EVs on the road, and plugshare does it well.
However, with Millions of this type of car on the roads and the infrastructure growing quickly, I no longer think that would be a good idea.
First, it would cause confusion, unnecessary expense and slow the expansion of the charging infrastructure (the more people that ask cities, states and regions for infrastructure the better).

 

[AmpedRealtor]

If you own a vacation rental, you can get Tesla to give you a free HPWC and will get listed on their destination charging map and in the Navigation of every Tesla vehicle. Just contact the destination charging team to start the process.

 

[TexasEV]

If you own a vacation rental, you can get Tesla to give you a free HPWC and will get listed on their destination charging map and in the Navigation of every Tesla vehicle. Just contact the destination charging team to start the process.

I don't think Tesla has approved vacation rentals for the destination charging program.

 

[David99]

I wouldn't share my home charger, but the fact remains that Tesla has nothing in terms of public chargers in its navigation. Thousands of public chargers! Saying the car doesn't need such a feature because there is already Plugshare is like saying, it doesn't need navigation because there is already Waze. Or it doesn't need a media player because you have that in your phone.

 

[TexasEV]

I wouldn't share my home charger, but the fact remains that Tesla has nothing in terms of public chargers in its navigation. Thousands of public chargers!

That is not correct. All the HPWCs in the Tesla destination charging program are in the navigation. That's part of the selling point for hotels, restaurants, etc.-- they are listed in the car's navigation system.

 

[David99]

That is not correct. All the HPWCs in the Tesla destination charging program are in the navigation. That's part of the selling point for hotels, restaurants, etc.-- they are listed in the car's navigation system.

Destination chargers pretty much Tesla selling their clients to hotels and resorts. By only including them, they try to direct Tesla owners to these businesses. They are of very limited use for charging. Only if you stay there you might be able to charge. Mostly there is only one charger. In 3.5 years and 125k miles and lots of road trips I have never charged a single time at a destination charger, but at hundreds of public chargers. There are many excellent and reliable public chargers and I think it would be very useful if those were available in Tesla's tip planner. Having this (Tesla) user based would make this extremely successful.

 

[NigelM]

Some of us have private local (State) lists in case of emergency but the reality is that there's rarely a case of true need. You could always see if your local Tesla Owners Group wants to set one up.

I opted out of plugshare once I had a few people just looking to park in my driveway (when we lived near the beach). After 6.5yrs of Tesla ownership I've charged at home (obviously) and plenty of ChargePoints and Tesla destination chargers but the only other private houses were when we were visiting friends. The minimal amount of trip planning I do before each long drive really hasn't been a hassle.

 

[bonnie]

Destination chargers pretty much Tesla selling their clients to hotels and resorts. By only including them, they try to direct Tesla owners to these businesses. They are of very limited use for charging. Only if you stay there you might be able to charge. Mostly there is only one charger. In 3.5 years and 125k miles and lots of road trips I have never charged a single time at a destination charger, but at hundreds of public chargers. There are many excellent and reliable public chargers and I think it would be very useful if those were available in Tesla's tip planner. Having this (Tesla) user based would make this extremely successful.

I disagree that Destination Charging is of limited use -- I almost always stay at places with Destination Charging when on a road trip. Including this last weekend. I always make a point of thanking them for the electrons -- and almost always hear about the additional business (overnight and/or restaurant) that they've received as a result.

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[chronopc]

I have my home listed on plug share app, but it's more for people who need an emergency charge. I certainly have on intention of having my home listed for people to just come and regularly charge and use a lot of electricity (even if I have solar).

Do people pay to use your home as an emergency charge location?

 

[derekmw]

Do people pay to use your home as an emergency charge location?

No, it's free for anyone who needs it. I don't know of anyone on plugshare that offers their house for charging that actually charge a fee. No one has ever asked to use my charger though.

However, I DID use/charge at another member's house in Arizona for our road trip there. The city we stayed in did not have any superchargers nearby but a member happened to live 1 block away from my family we were staying at. It was very generous of him to offer me to charge until full so that on our way home, we could start with a full charge rather than half empty and needing to stop right away at the first supercharger.

This type of usage I have no problem with. I just do not see myself or anyone opening their home for some stranger to use it on a regular basis.