Usually fee for a Level 2 charger?

[Marcia L]

I have only charger via Superchargers (free for my 2018 Model X) or at home. So I am ignorant of what would be considered a reasonable fee to use a Level 2 charger NEMA 14/50. It looks like some have a flat fee and others charge by the kWh. I was recently looking at an off the beaten path Level 2 charger location that was charging .60 per kWh. Does that seem high? I'm guessing there is really no standard for what to charge, seems they are all over the place.

 

[Tam]

I have only charger via Superchargers (free for my 2018 Model X) or at home. So I am ignorant of what would be considered a reasonable fee to use a Level 2 charger NEMA 14/50. It looks like some have a flat fee and others charge by the kWh. I was recently looking at an off the beaten path Level 2 charger location that was charging .60 per kWh. Does that seem high? I'm guessing there is really no standard for what to charge, seems they are all over the place.

There's no standards so owners can charge whatever they want to.

$.6 is comparable with gasoline.

Your battery is 100 kWh x $.6 = $60 for 295 miles.

If a gasoline car is rated for 30 mpg. (300 miles/30) x $5/gallon = $50 for 300 miles.

 

[Rice&Curry]

Costs of Electricity vary by state , Typically at the high end ( California ) it can range from 42 cents/ KW during peak hours down to 28 cents during off peak hours. Charge point L2 chargers charge around 40 cents per KW in the Bay Area . I don't use L2 chargers so my info may not be current. Some hotels provide free L2 charges other charge a flat fee like $ 10~15 or so

 

[Sophias_dad]

As others have written, it depends on location. Tucson, AZ Electricity Rates suggests the rates in Tucson are 0.07(residential) to 0.10(commercial) per kwh, so yeah, 0.60 is really high. Apparently the residential average for Arizona is 0.11.

 

[RTPEV]

I have only charger via Superchargers (free for my 2018 Model X) or at home. So I am ignorant of what would be considered a reasonable fee to use a Level 2 charger NEMA 14/50. It looks like some have a flat fee and others charge by the kWh. I was recently looking at an off the beaten path Level 2 charger location that was charging .60 per kWh. Does that seem high? I'm guessing there is really no standard for what to charge, seems they are all over the place.

Your terminology is a little confusing, but I get what you are asking (NEMA 14-50 refers to an electrical outlet, and while if you plugged in your mobile connector to it it would create a level 2 charging station, usually the L2 charging stations you find that charge money are not NEMA 14-50 outlets).

As for the cost...the cost can range anywhere from free to ridiculous. There is definitely no "standard", and it rarely relates to what electricity rates are (although in areas with high electricity costs, it's natural to assume that charging costs are going to be higher). Some hosts probably don't even realize what the costs really are and simply equate it to how much they are used to paying for gas. And some (car dealerships who aren't interested in charging stations at all but were forced to install some by their affiliated manufacturer) charge outrageous fees to use their charging stations because they don't actually want anyone using it.

But something I've found helpful in determining whether a cost is "fair" or not is to not think about it in terms of the electricity you are getting, but rather the convenience you are getting, and whether that convenience is worth it to you.

If you are out in the middle of nowhere with no fast charging nearby, and your only options are plugging into a 120V outlet for 3 days so you can make it back to the nearest Supercharger, or paying $0.60/kWh for an L2 charger that will do the job overnight, which are you going to pick? Well, if you are just sitting around camping and not really doing anything anyway, the outlet might be the right choice. But if you are on a road trip and need to leave the next day, I think the option is clear. And if you don't really need the charge anyway and were just wondering if you should take advantage of the L2 charger that's sitting next door, well, I guess you can make that call.

 

[threeputts]

It varies but for reference the J1772 level 2 chargers at my office cost less per kWh than charging at home (11 cents vs 14 cents). Some around here are free but those are at businesses you typically spend an hour or less at so you don't get much charge.

 

[BitJam]

Kyle Conner recently commented on this. He said $0.39 per kWh is quite expensive for level 2 charging. He thinks level 2 should be in the range of $0.15 to $0.25 per kWh although it should be a free amenity at some hotels.

In other news, I believe the two public level 2 chargers here in Silver City, NM are free. If you're in a bind, you can charge in my driveway.

 

[karkrazy]

how much do you pay for power at home? That should be a good baseline to start from. Anything less than what you pay at home will be a bonus

 

[Marcia L]

Thanks everybody, for your input. The place that is charging 0.60 kWh is a branch of the American Museum of Natural History. Interestingly, we stayed in one of their rooms way back in 2017 and had asked about charging the car while there. The maintenance guy got information from us as to what we needed and installed a NEMA 14-50 outlet so we could charge the car while visiting! We stayed there a couple years later and they said we could still use it. Forward to 2023 and my inquiry was met with "no available rooms until October but you are still welcome to use the same outlet at 0.60 kWh. Just check into the office first". IDK if it would be free if staying there, I need to ask. I am trying to come up with a polite way to suggest their fee is excessive. I'm not very good at this. It is in a canyon near a small town and indeed there are 2 other Level 2 chargers that are free: one 5 miles away, the other 12 miles away. Maybe they would just rather not provide that service, but I find that odd for an organization as environmentally minded as this one.

 

[ATPMSD]

In addition to the cost of electricity, which varies widely, many public charging station owners are attempting to recoup the cost of installation and ongoing maintenance. Also, in the case of the American Museum of Natural History, they may also be adding a small “contribution“ to the Museum.

 

[RTPEV]

Maybe they would just rather not provide that service

That may be the case, but if that's the case, why did they even bother to install the outlet in the first place?

How are they determining how many kWh are being consumed? Not that it's impossible, but it would take some effort / equipment to hook up a meter to measure electricity consumed that would probably cost more than any of the money they would hope to recoup from charging for the electricity.

However, yes, it might be helpful to just ask for the reason for the fee, given that electricity costs are typically about $0.16/kWh in Arizona, and since they are only providing an outlet there are no equipment or maintenance costs. It could just be that they are clueless about how much/little it costs to charge an EV.

 

[RayK]

<snip>
How are they determining how many kWh are being consumed? Not that it's impossible, but it would take some effort / equipment to hook up a meter to measure electricity consumed that would probably cost more than any of the money they would hope to recoup from charging for the electricity.
<snip>

At $0.60/kWh, I would think that would recoup some of the money that it cost them to provide the outlet. Metering can be done with one of those simple current meters that you can find on Amazon. $20-40 gets you a meter that can measure the energy consumed. At the high end, one would only need to sip 67kWh, basically one full charge on a Model 3 LR, to pay for the meter.

 

[RTPEV]

At $0.60/kWh, I would think that would recoup some of the money that it cost them to provide the outlet. Metering can be done with one of those simple current meters that you can find on Amazon. $20-40 gets you a meter that can measure the energy consumed. At the high end, one would only need to sip 67kWh, basically one full charge on a Model 3 LR, to pay for the meter.

I've seen those $20-40 meters for regular wall outlets. The ones that can measure the amount of current that a 240V EVSE passes through seem to be about $140. Still, your point is valid. I was exaggerating a bit, but it still seems like perhaps they don't understand how cheap the electricity is to charge an EV.