Storage recommendations and battery charging while away

[tezco]

Date on the video was January and he was gone for a month. Guessing that he was running 5.0 to 5.2 firmware vintage 11/13. That was when everyone was complaining about vampire drain the loudest. We have come a long way since then.

The firmware wiki shows sleep restored with v5.0 (I went from 4.5 to 5.6 and got 5.6 in mid Nov). Prior to that I had the S unplugged for 5 days in August '13 while my solar panels were installed and power to the garage was off. Went from 166 miles to "charge now" (30 miles left). I could never have left the car unplugged for an entire month until my Nov update, which brought me sleep for the first time.

Since then I've left the S unplugged for two weeks several times and the vampire loss is minimal, so a month is possible without much sweat (provided your 12V stays healthy). If your 12V is on it's last legs, then all bets are off since a bad 12V can bleed the charge off the main pack fairly rapidly.

 

[ABVA]

We were overseas for more than two weeks. Left my MS plugged in at 45% SOC, no issues

 

[caddieo]

I've been away for as long as 6 weeks. Left it plugged in at @140-150 miles SOC and with scheduled charging (to top off/vampire loss) every midnight. No problems.

 

[mknox]

Date on the video was January and he was gone for a month. Guessing that he was running 5.0 to 5.2 firmware vintage 11/13. That was when everyone was complaining about vampire drain the loudest. We have come a long way since then.

I thought as soon as they enabled Sleep Mode that the vampire problem was minimized.

 

[staze]

Leave it plugged in. Set the slider at 50%. Don't worry.

Maybe a silly question, leave it at 50% after a 90% charge or bring the battery below 50% and then set to 50%. My guess is that it doesn't really matter but I just wanted clarification if it made any difference of the pre-vacation charge level.

 

[djp]

Maybe a silly question, leave it at 50% after a 90% charge or bring the battery below 50% and then set to 50%. My guess is that it doesn't really matter but I just wanted clarification if it made any difference of the pre-vacation charge level.

It's better to run it down to 50% and leave it at 50%. You'll be spending more time at a lower SOC, which is easier on the battery.

 

[staze]

Thanks djp!

 

[SnakeEyes]

Just wanted to say "Thank you" to everyone who has responded to my original question or relevant commentary since. Very helpful!

 

[montgom626]

Leave it plugged in. Set the slider at 50%. Don't worry.

I would worry. My UMC failed while I was gone and if I had not checked I would have come home to a bricked battery.

 

[mknox]

I would worry. My UMC failed while I was gone and if I had not checked I would have come home to a bricked battery.

My understanding is that Tesla would replace it for you. They've said they will cover battery failures except for intentional destruction.

 

[dsm363]

I would worry. My UMC failed while I was gone and if I had not checked I would have come home to a bricked battery.

How long would you be gone? Tesla has said the car should last a year at 50% charge and that would be covered under warranty. If that scenario was still a major concern just charge to 90% before you leave and keep it plugged in.