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Charging in Connecticut/Boston (and NY, NJ, and PA)

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rugbymonk

2008 Roadster #287; 2017 Model S
Apr 25, 2010
42
4
NJ
NY <---> Boston places to charge and top off????
I am trying to drive NYC to Boston this Saturday (May 22nd) in my 2008 Roadster. Can anyone lend a hand (i.e. a home charger or 50AMP plug) to help me top off the battery around noon on Saturday in Connecticut? Or if you know someone else who can help, that would be great! I'll bring pizza for lunch!!!
Please send a private message to connect.

Thanks in advance,
Mike Evans

P.S. If there is an existing forum, let me know, or we can start listing towns and phone numbers of places to offer a charge.

I, For one, am willing to accommodate any fellow owners driving down the Garden State Parkway near exit 117. Just send a private message and then call ahead:
Mike
 
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If you can't seem to "get any where" with your request ... and you have a mobile charging unit, and want to try RV/campgrounds ... try THIS application to locate RV places (enter "NYC NY to Boston, MA" for your route; the RV icons take a while to display, so be patient). Call ahead to confirm that the place of your choice has "50 amp service".

(For more details check out this thread: Use your iPhone ...)
 
Click **EDIT** on that post and remove the info.

As a Roadster owner you can poke around on the Tesla Motors owners community. It's not all that active but you can list your contact info for exchanging charge points safely.
 
Great resource! I'll contact a few people along the way. This should make my trip much less stressful.
THanks so much! Will be joining the NJ-EV soon and offering my home charger once the electrician does his magic... ;-)
 
This is harder to coordinate than I thought.
Although there are quite a few 50amp outlets available, that would take a four-to-six hour break to "fill up," but I need to be in Hingham MA at a reasonable hour.
What I really need to stay on schedule is to use a Tesla home charger. Is any owner out there along the route from NYC to Boston able to offer a home charger to speed me along?
 
Best places to install chargers

I live just north of NYC and have also thought about how I would get up to Boston or Cap Code. I know that some hotels have installed chargers but long term I think a better idea would be to install them in restaurants. I would totally drive an hour or two in CT and stop at a restaurant with a charger to eat. So any enterprising restaurateurs know what they need to do :)
 
... Although there are quite a few 50amp outlets available, ... What I really need ... is ... a Tesla home charger
Mike: Of course 70A HPC will be faster than 50A (same voltage assumed). But once you get on the road ... the difference is not as significant as you might assume (yes, 29% faster) ... even at 70A it will still take 3.5-4hrs (rather than 5-5.5) for a full charge. But that extra 90minutes won't "break" anything. If you are able to locate HPC ... make sure to verify that indeed it supplies 70A. I am aware of several HPC installations that had to be limited to less than 70A for construction, panel or other technical reasons. Also ... depending on your exact routing and speed and judicious use of your right foot ... NYC->BOS is very doable without a very lengthy top-off. Assuming you are not returning same day ...
Speaking of hotels ... I recall RAR using "The Element" ... and there's one in Lexington, MA. Not sure if they have charging yet ... check it out :smile:
 
I hope this helps our friend and anyone else needing charge info.
http://www.ev-charging.info/ I am a member of the EV club in Northern NJ :smile:
IF YOU HAVE CHARGING AVAILABLE PLEASE ADD TO THE LIST

Maybe this is the answer.

I find that since EV Charger news is run by one person it is up to that person to post images and update info. He certainly will not be able to keep up as the sites explode.

There needs to be a national effort from our government or a modern crowd sourced page set up.
 
Thanks again for all your help, guys.
A generous EV'er in Killingsworth, CT has a 50amp outlet almost exactly halfway along my journey. So I just have some final questions to decide go/no-go:
I could use some "judicious use of my right foot" advice. As a novice, since I cannot control wind or hills on Interstate 95, I should at least:
1. Charge for max distance the night before and allow the tesla to run at lower power for max range during the drive.
2. Keep speed at 60-65mph, or can I do 70-75 without too much tradeoff?
3. Does it pay to top off all the way to max wherever I stop? (If I have gone only 150 "ideal miles," how long to top off with a 50 amp outlet? Since I think it is six hours to charge from "zero to 244+miles" (according to Tesla/DOT) will it be more than three hours to top off the 150 miles, i.e. is the charging process basically linear? Could I get away without topping off, but only adding 60-70 mile cushion to get me through the rest of the journey until my overnight charge?)
4. I assume I should not use heat or AC (no problem), and keep roof on (bummer) and windows up (no problem). Again, what's the tradeoff in ideal miles?
5. What else?
 
First some general comments & background, then specific answers:

I don't know what the speed limit is along your route, but I would advise 60mph. (Something interesting happens when you are NOT running along with the pack ... many more other drivers & passengers get to notice you :smile: )

Simple formula: ( Volts * Amps / 300 ) gives you an approximation to how many Ideal Miles you are charging for each hour (in Standard Mode).

Something confusing happens (until you get used to it) when you switch from Range to Standard Mode. It has to do with "hiding" the bottom *AND* top ten percent of battery State-of-Charge (SOC), worth about 24 miles each, or 48 miles. This explains the Standard Mode maximum display of around 190+ miles and 240+ miles in Range Mode. So don't be concerned when you stop for your charge and you suddenly lose about 24 miles (because you have already used the top ten percent, you now only lose the bottom 10% in the VDS).

1. yes (Range Mode).
2. Start with 60mph. 70+ is too much of a trade-off.
3. a. No.
b. 3.75 hours.
c. The process is only linear in Standard Mode, but as you are suspecting you don't need to recharge the entire 150 Ideal Miles during the day. The last 25 miles (in Range Mode) "top off" goes much slower. (Some more detail: If you have used 150 Ideal miles out of 245, then stop, your display (which likes to default back to Standard Mode) will show 245-150-24=66, because it "hides" the bottom 10%). Now you can charge in Standard Mode at (for example) 240*50/300 = 40 miles per hour.
d. So, two hours should be good to get you to over 146 Ideal Miles for the second half of your trip (and you have a 24mile reserve in the bottom 10% SOC).
4. Right. 15%-20% (roughly) for HVAC; 20% for roof off (at 60+ mph).
5. If your Ideal Miles are "falling" much quicker than expected, a. slow down; b. "draft" trucks (but safety warning: not too close). Actually, due to low profile the Roadster can draft effectively at a relatively much larger than expected distance from an 18-wheeler. You can be as far away as 60-120 feet (depends on wind conditions) and still get a good effect. Lastly: the cruise control is so good, use it all the time up and down hills; on average it does a better job than trying to right-foot-hypermile. If your Ideal Miles are used up as expected (or better), and you are making good progress, you can of course (gradually) increase speed as you become familiar with the parameters and distance travelled.

Welcome to your first long-distance outing, good luck, enjoy, and let us know how it went :smile:
 
Hopefully the Clarion Hotel (Hull, Mass), which I reached out to. The township also has a wind turbine, so I think they are eco-friendly and I sent the town manager an email, too, just trying to find a 50amp outlet. I saw a local EV owner who shares his outlet (30 miles from my hotel), but I don't want to leave the tesla with a stranger overnight. Any other suggestions?
 
Hopefully the Clarion Hotel (Hull, Mass), which I reached out to. The township also has a wind turbine, so I think they are eco-friendly and I sent the town manager an email, too, just trying to find a 50amp outlet. I saw a local EV owner who shares his outlet (30 miles from my hotel), but I don't want to leave the tesla with a stranger overnight. Any other suggestions?
I would be more comfortable with leaving it with an EV enthusiast overnight as compared to a lot of other options. And/or socialize while charging at his place. "A stranger is an (EV)friend you haven't met yet." :smile:

And/or the town manager hopefully responds ...
(Note: an assumption is you have a mobile charger and some knowledge of the large variety of outlets that may have to be accomodated.)

If you are military or retired military: Fourth Cliff Recreation Area RV Park near Humarock (suggested as per the Road2 link posted earlier): RV Park
 
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