firealarm,
Yeah, Southern California Edison rates are pretty stiff.
There are roughly 3 options:
a) Do nothing, and remain on the existing 5-tier residental rate. As you use more electricity, you hop up into the next higher tier. The amounts (in kWh) per tier will vary by region. My region's rates in central Orange County are Tier-1: $0.13, Tier-2: $0.16, Tier-3: $0.24, Tier-4: $0.27, Tier-5: $0.31. Ouch.
b) Sign up for the (single meter) time-of-use rate, also known as TOU-D-TEV. There is a peak rate (10:00am-6:00pm), an off-peak rate (6:00pm-12:00m & 6:00am-10:00am), and a super-off-peak rate (12:00m-6:00am). There are also 2 tiers for each usage. And there are different winter and summer rates for all of this.
Peak Tier-1 / Tier-2: $0.03 / $0.33
Off-peak Tier-1 / Tier-2: $0.07 / $0.18
Super-off-peak Tier-1 / Tier-2: $0.07 / $0.12
(Note that you can take advantage of the off-peak and super-off-peak times in your household as well as the electric car.)
c) Sign up for the (two meter) electric vehicle plan, also known as TOU-EV-1. Your existing meter is billed at your existing rate (probably the 5-tier rate mentioned above). You add a *second* electrical meter, and it is used *only* for the electric vehicle. There is a peak rate (12:00n-9:00p), and an off-peak rate (9:00p-12:00n). And there are different summer and winter rates.
Edison will give you the 2nd meter for free (aren't they nice?), but you will have to pay for the installation.
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Option (a) is by far the most expensive. Pumping some 25 kWh (or more) per day will certainly gain you Tier-5 status in no time. With this rate, your electric miles will cost about half of what it costs in gasoline miles.
Option (b) is cheaper, and even more so if you diligently set up your car to recharge after midnight, when you get the super-off-peak rate. Whether it be their level-1 or level-2 rate, your electric miles will be roughly 1/4 the price of our gasoline miles.
Option (c) is the cheapest, electric car-wise. A bit of a pain to set up the electric meter and the charging station (EVSE) on that line, and you don't get to save by running a thrifty household.
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Option (d) might be to go solar. The typical solar panel setup does not feed electricity directly into the car or home, but instead feeds it to Southern California Edison (!) They buy the electricity from you (at the peak rate). You recharge your car from Edison's power (at the super-off-peak rate). The differential may mean that your electricity bill is $0.00.
Find a solar panel company that you like (such as Verengo, Solar City, or Real Goods Solar). Have them put up solar panels. They can sell the panels or lease the panels. Their sales pitch is to lease it to you for the price of what you are saving in your electricity use, so your actual costs doesn't change. I know it may sound like so much sales hokum, but when you pencil it out, it begins to make sense in an odd sort of way.
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Bottom line, lousy electricity rates or not, it sure beats buying gasoline...
-- Ardie
Anyone went with option "C". Can you show me a picture of what they installed?
