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Charging without a home?

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Hello All,

Long (relatively) time forum member here. I really want a Model S, but live in a complex that will not approve an installation of an electric socket. I wonder if any other Model S owners don't have outlets at their home and charge elsewhere.

My situation is as follows, the closest Supercharger is at JFK Airport and the Westbury Tesla store has some fast charging. I can't think of any other way to charge the car. I only drive about.... 40 miles a week all on Saturday/Sunday. I live in the Bayside, Queens area and know there's a Chaedemo charging station at a nearby 7-11, but Tesla hasn't built the adapter yet. I also know there's a nearby 110V outlet for EV's at a nearby college.

Do you think it would be possible to charge the car to the max via a Supercharger and then just let it sit for a week/2 weeks (because I drive so little) till I get to charge it again? I know it says Model S should always be plugged in, but I'm just trying to think of ways around this.:scared:
 
Hello All,

Long (relatively) time forum member here. I really want a Model S, but live in a complex that will not approve an installation of an electric socket. I wonder if any other Model S owners don't have outlets at their home and charge elsewhere.

My situation is as follows, the closest Supercharger is at JFK Airport and the Westbury Tesla store has some fast charging. I can't think of any other way to charge the car. I only drive about.... 40 miles a week all on Saturday/Sunday. I live in the Bayside, Queens area and know there's a Chaedemo charging station at a nearby 7-11, but Tesla hasn't built the adapter yet. I also know there's a nearby 110V outlet for EV's at a nearby college.

Do you think it would be possible to charge the car to the max via a Supercharger and then just let it sit for a week/2 weeks (because I drive so little) till I get to charge it again? I know it says Model S should always be plugged in, but I'm just trying to think of ways around this.:scared:

Have you consider getting a level 2 charger installed at your work place? If you are willing to pay for the charger and installation, I think most employer would let you install the charger for your car. :)
 
Hello All,

Long (relatively) time forum member here. I really want a Model S, but live in a complex that will not approve an installation of an electric socket. I wonder if any other Model S owners don't have outlets at their home and charge elsewhere.

My situation is as follows, the closest Supercharger is at JFK Airport and the Westbury Tesla store has some fast charging. I can't think of any other way to charge the car. I only drive about.... 40 miles a week all on Saturday/Sunday. I live in the Bayside, Queens area and know there's a Chaedemo charging station at a nearby 7-11, but Tesla hasn't built the adapter yet. I also know there's a nearby 110V outlet for EV's at a nearby college.

Do you think it would be possible to charge the car to the max via a Supercharger and then just let it sit for a week/2 weeks (because I drive so little) till I get to charge it again? I know it says Model S should always be plugged in, but I'm just trying to think of ways around this.:scared:

Make sure you put it to sleep to minimize the vampire power use.

Also, start looking for somewhere else to live that's more EV friendly. Well, more friendly all round. You would like a particular amenity, a relatively new thing, and they're not interested in letting you pay to add it. Maybe another place would be; in such a place you'd be more likely to be living with other PEV owners.
 
Unfortunately with all the details you provided, I would more than definitely say that it would be the best choice if you were to purcahse an electric car. If you could find a place that is close by and you do not have to wait around for charging, then that would be a different story, but you do not seem to have that opportunity. I would not take the purchase of the vehicle into consideration until you thoroughly thought of all of the problems that may occur such as snow, Supercharger wait time / availability, temperature, and worring too much about 'bricking' the battery if anything were to happen and you were not able to 'plug in' - This is not covered under warranty and you would be out $30,000. :)
 
I work in the city and I commute in. My carbon foot print is pretty small :).

I would look for somewhere else to live, but right now that's not an option unfortunately, unless my shares do REALLY well haha.

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Unfortunately with all the details you provided, I would more than definitely say that it would be the best choice if you were to purcahse an electric car. If you could find a place that is close by and you do not have to wait around for charging, then that would be a different story, but you do not seem to have that opportunity. I would not take the purchase of the vehicle into consideration until you thoroughly thought of all of the problems that may occur such as snow, Supercharger wait time / availability, temperature, and worring too much about 'bricking' the battery if anything were to happen and you were not able to 'plug in' - This is not covered under warranty and you would be out $30,000. :)

Yea that's the reality I don't want to hear :(
 
I'm sure you've asked since you said they won't allow it but will they not even allow a 110V outlet if you pay for everything and give them some kind of monthly amount ($20) to keep them happy? You can tell then how much you drive and about how much electricity you'll use and give them more than that.

I agree with looking for some place else to live if that is even an option or looking into seeing if your work will play ball.
 
worring too much about 'bricking' the battery if anything were to happen and you were not able to 'plug in' - This is not covered under warranty and you would be out $30,000. :)

This is out of date:

  • With Model S (unlike Roadster) it is quite difficult to 'brick' the main battery: a portion of the capacity is reserved for bricking protection, and the car goes into a deep sleep to protect the battery. You might kill the 12V battery if you leave the car un-charged for a long period, but not the expensive main battery.
  • If you do somehow manage to 'brick' the battery, it's now covered by warranty anyhow - see http://www.teslamotors.com/blog/creating-world’s-best-service-and-warranty-program-0
 
Having had the same challenge as OP, I went a similar route to what dsm363 describes.

To keep my 1992 Porsche trickle charged, TOTMBO (the ones that must be obeyed) of my building let me install a 230V outlet (Schuko), connected directly to my own circuits. They didn't seem to like the extension cord I used before, as it wasn't proper installation code. :)

Last year I added a 400V 3-phase outlet for the Model S UMC next to the schuko outlet without any discussion with TOTMBO.

The official name is 'salami tactics', me thinks.
 
Would you have someplace to leave the car if you were gone for an extended period, say three months? If you can cover an extended period like that, then I say buy the car if you want it. I think your plan of charging at a supercharger to the max, then driving it on the weekends will work. When you park it it will have 200 miles of charge on it, and it will drain about 3 miles/day, so the next weekend it will be down to about 185. Maybe in the winter it will use more to keep the battery in spec (not sure), but it should still have plenty as long as you park it with around 200 miles on it. But call Tesla and verify - tell them exactly what you want to do. I bet they say its workable, although not ideal. The only thing you can't do is leave the car unplugged for a long time - that's just not smart. It may survive but you wouldn't want to risk that. You won't always live where you are now, and the next place will at least have a 110 outlet.
 
Unfortunately with all the details you provided, I would more than definitely say that it would be the best choice if you were to purcahse an electric car. If you could find a place that is close by and you do not have to wait around for charging, then that would be a different story, but you do not seem to have that opportunity. I would not take the purchase of the vehicle into consideration until you thoroughly thought of all of the problems that may occur such as snow, Supercharger wait time / availability, temperature, and worring too much about 'bricking' the battery if anything were to happen and you were not able to 'plug in' - This is not covered under warranty and you would be out $30,000. :)

I think you've made this claim before and it is not true. Can you provide prof that 'bricking' is not covered under warranty and costs $30,000? Elon Musk has said in public that it is included under warranty so he probably knows.

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The Model S is great but would want at least a 110V outlet or a place to charge at work before I bought one. Having to treat it like a gas car and find charging once a week would take away part of the fun of owning it.
 
1. You are not going to brick your car by charging once per week. Bricking occurs when you let it drain to near 0 and continue to let it sit for a long time (like weeks+). Even if this occurred you're covered by warranty.

2. Tesla says you can charge it everyday. This for convenience, not a requirement of ANY kind.

3. Can you change your shopping/eating habits and get some short charges here and there?

4. You need to factor about 5 miles per day in vamp loss. Its been reported to be lower in some cases but lets be safe.
5*7 = 35 miles lost per week + 40 miles commute = ~80 miles per week, minimum

5. Do you have another car? You didn't state which battery 60 or 85?

Bottom line: I think this is definitely doable with either battery - but I guarantee you're underestimating how much you need to drive.
 
Hello All,

Long (relatively) time forum member here. I really want a Model S, but live in a complex that will not approve an installation of an electric socket.

Not even a plain simple 120V outlet? For your usage it would be more than enough. I drive about 30 miles each day and have been fine with nothing more than a 120V 15A outlet at home for a year and a half.

I'd push the complex a bit more on the 120V.
 
This is out of date:

  • With Model S (unlike Roadster) it is quite difficult to 'brick' the main battery: a portion of the capacity is reserved for bricking protection, and the car goes into a deep sleep to protect the battery. You might kill the 12V battery if you leave the car un-charged for a long period, but not the expensive main battery.
  • If you do somehow manage to 'brick' the battery, it's now covered by warranty anyhow - see http://www.teslamotors.com/blog/creating-world’s-best-service-and-warranty-program-0

Okay, it is still very bad to leave the car at a low state of charge, it can degrade the battery permanently. I was more or less mentioning if the OP leave his car charged at 90% and we have a huge winter storm (I am from NJ and the temperature can get well below freezing, not including wind) and in NYC it is hard because it is mandatory that a owner must move their vehicle in order for the City to plow the snow. Finding parking can take a while and it can become extremely cumbersome to keep worrying about the state of charge. For the summer this car would be awesome and useful, but not for our harsh winters.

If the OP bricks his battery or gets to a low state of charge then he has to worry about driving X amount of distance to the nearest charger. Unless you have a charger nearest ones location or place of work, then I would argue it would not be a smart purchase. In this situation a Volt would definitely be a better alternative to a greener technology approach.
 
Maybe a controversial point here, but if you only drive 40 miles a week and you have easy access to a chademo charger then you are probably better off with a Leaf than a Model S.

That's assuming the CHAdeMO adapter never comes out. We know it's late but it is in testing. I'd argue you'd be better off with the Model S as you have four times the range before you need to charge again.
 
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Okay, it is still very bad to leave the car at a low state of charge, it can degrade the battery permanently. I was more or less mentioning if the OP leave his car charged at 90% and we have a huge winter storm (I am from NJ and the temperature can get well below freezing, not including wind) and in NYC it is hard because it is mandatory that a owner must move their vehicle in order for the City to plow the snow. Finding parking can take a while and it can become extremely cumbersome to keep worrying about the state of charge. For the summer this car would be awesome and useful, but not for our harsh winters.

If the OP bricks his battery or gets to a low state of charge then he has to worry about driving X amount of distance to the nearest charger. Unless you have a charger nearest ones location or place of work, then I would argue it would not be a smart purchase. In this situation a Volt would definitely be a better alternative to a greener technology approach.

How does winter make the car not useful? If he only drives 40 miles a week and is willing to charge once a week while running errands it's possible. He could even skip a few weeks of doing this before coming close to running out. If the car becomes non drivable I'd imagine he'd get it towed to revive the pack. With the CHAdeMO adapter coming out even easier. Yes it's not ideal and I'd rather have at least a 110V outlet at home but it's not impossible and he wouldn't 'brick' his car unless he left it parked for months. Probably not going to happen.

There is a difference between the car becoming not drivable because the pack is down to zero range and bricking. The car has a reserve and will be fine for at least a month while it is in hibernation. If he sees the likelihood of driving a long trip, going to zero then going on a two month trip in winter then you are correct, this is not the car for him.
 
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I work in the city and I commute in. My carbon foot print is pretty small :).

I would look for somewhere else to live, but right now that's not an option unfortunately, unless my shares do REALLY well haha.

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Yea that's the reality I don't want to hear :(

Since you commute into the city there are TONS of garages in manhattan that have chargers...I park at Manhattan Plaza on 42nd between 9th & 10th six days a week and they have 2 J1772 chargers and a Chademo. Check out plugshare.com and find a garage near where you work that has chargers.
 
I'm driving much more than that and I don't have a home charger either. It works fine. The car doesn't need a lot of power not being plugged it. I have read something like 10 miles or more per day when it's sitting and not plugged it. That's nonsense. I'm doing it all the time (because of the lack of a home charger) and the losses are much less. Maybe a mile or two a day. I use public chargers here and there, and once in a while the Supercharger that is 20 miles away.

According to Tesla's email that I got, the ChaDeMo adapter will come in June or July.
 
I think you've made this claim before and it is not true. Can you provide prof that 'bricking' is not covered under warranty and costs $30,000? Elon Musk has said in public that it is included under warranty so he probably knows.

After looking up the 'bricking' part, I was wrong, but I would rather not get to the point of ever having to deal with that regardless of having it replaced for free.

I was only estimating when I mentioned $30,000. I was wrong, but my number seems a bit better than what I found. http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=...jYHIBQ&usg=AFQjCNF0-toyI-dgqTpJj2cQgC67oT0UMA (around $44,000)


I read somewhere that a gentleman upgraded his 60 to a 85 and he had to pay $8,000 and also had to hand over his battery.

You are able to pre-order a battery pack replacement for $10,000 - $12,000.
 
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