“Free” chargers at hotels and car dealerships

[Garbone]

Our local outlet mall has a free level 2 for shoppers. Second day I owned the car I dropped it off on the way to work and charged for free. They usually are empty.

Also keep a 50amp Tesla Tap in the frunk for destination chargers. Works great.

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[phidauex]

I don't have a lot of experience with hotel chargers yet, but from the comments on PlugShare it seems like while most are indeed intended for customers only, people generally have success just asking nicely at the front desk. I suspect that if they aren't occupied and you are polite about it you'll usually get a "yes".

 

[ChasingCoral]

I think the point of most hotel chargers is to do overnight charging, just like we do at home. Thus slow is a good fit. Most that I use are roughly 6 kW.

We drive to Las Vegas frequently. Both of our regular hotels out there now have free L2 chargers in their parking garages. Been working great for us. There's also a free bank of L2 chargers at an office building a block from the hotel we use in a town along the drive. Works out perfect because the car is just hitting 100% about the time we're ready to leave the next morning.

While free is nice, it wouldn't bother me if they charged a small amount for them. In fact I kind of wish they would, to keep unnecessary charges to a minimum (i.e. travelers actually need a charge, while locals are often just plugging in because it's free, even though they can probably just charge at home, or are just topping off because it's there).

The EA I charged at for free was at a Sheetz, right next door was a Hyatt House hotel. There are many cases where chargers are close to hotels but not part of the hotel's property. In fact, driving back from FL we charged overnight at a Starbucks across the street from the Days Inn where we were staying.

 

[Ravensfan1996]

You’ll find those to be L2 chargers and not fast chargers(20 miles per hour). SO not ideal for road trips. Most at car dealerships you might have to be you a ford dealer, but as above the HD ones maybe they let anyone. Good for overnight charging (Hotels). If you up your filters to only show 50kwh and above those will be fast chargers.

 

[HuntingPudel]

I have never used a free charger at a hotel. I have used paid chargers at hotels. I've never used a charger at a Ford dealership. The one closest to me keeps ICE vehicles parked in front of their charger (and my car had a nearly dead HV battery in it when I picked it up new, so I drove it home on gasoline).

 

[highmesa]

I was in Scottsdale over the weekend, and plugged into one of these free Volta chargers that they have in parking garages near Kierland. They are level 2 and I put on 25ish miles of range while we ate dinner. (BTW, while you can find chargers in Phoenix, DCFC in non-existent in Scottsdale).

 

[ocdxfv]

When I do a road trip, I always try to stay at hotels with charging. Some are free, some charge a small fee. The best thing is that I start my day at 100%, which is pretty nice. Also, I thank them when I check out and tell them that I stayed there BECAUSE they had EV charging.

 

[RickMachE]

When I do a road trip, I always try to stay at hotels with charging. Some are free, some charge a small fee. The best thing is that I start my day at 100%, which is pretty nice. Also, I thank them when I check out and tell them that I stayed there BECAUSE they had EV charging.

Absolutely letting them know you stayed there for the charger. We got 50 minutes of 73moh driving out of that 20% (100-80). I also let both Marriott and Hilton know why I was choosing a different brand, and that they need to add EV charger to their search criteria.

 

[JoeDimwit]

I think the point of most hotel chargers is to do overnight charging, just like we do at home. Thus slow is a good fit. Most that I use are roughly 6 kW.

We drive to Las Vegas frequently. Both of our regular hotels out there now have free L2 chargers in their parking garages. Been working great for us. There's also a free bank of L2 chargers at an office building a block from the hotel we use in a town along the drive. Works out perfect because the car is just hitting 100% about the time we're ready to leave the next morning.

While free is nice, it wouldn't bother me if they charged a small amount for them. In fact I kind of wish they would, to keep unnecessary charges to a minimum (i.e. travelers actually need a charge, while locals are often just plugging in because it's free, even though they can probably just charge at home, or are just topping off because it's there).

Also… locals will use those chargers as free parking when they don’t actually need to charge. This obviously applies to any tourist destination, not just Vegas.

 

[NoVAguy]

I JUST had this experience on labor day. Drove from Northern VA to Rehoboth Beach, DE. I charged to 100% the night before, and got to Rehoboth Beach with about 35% charge left (Premium AWD). It wasn't enough to get home, so rather than paying at a chargepoint, I plugged into a SemaConnect charging station at The Avenue Inn which was right on the beach. I made sure to document that the charger wasn't for hotel customers only, but they didn't seem to take any issue with it when I stopped in to ask where exactly it was located.

It was a rather slow charge though, slightly slower than the L2 240v I installed at home. I was able to get enough of a charge throughout the day though to make it back home that night with TWO PERCENT left! Definitely tested the limits of the range that day ?

 

[kennethjk]

When I do a road trip, I always try to stay at hotels with charging. Some are free, some charge a small fee. The best thing is that I start my day at 100%, which is pretty nice. Also, I thank them when I check out and tell them that I stayed there BECAUSE they had EV charging.

I checked with a hotel where I am meeting some people for lunch. They said they didn’t have any, I said thanks for the information but it’s disappointing and I will be having lunch somewhere else.

hopefully that finds its way to someone of importance, if they hear it enough they will install something.

 

[iam-s-Hon]

I JUST had this experience on labor day. Drove from Northern VA to Rehoboth Beach, DE. I charged to 100% the night before, and got to Rehoboth Beach with about 35% charge left (Premium AWD). It wasn't enough to get home, so rather than paying at a chargepoint, I plugged into a SemaConnect charging station at The Avenue Inn which was right on the beach. I made sure to document that the charger wasn't for hotel customers only, but they didn't seem to take any issue with it when I stopped in to ask where exactly it was located.

It was a rather slow charge though, slightly slower than the L2 240v I installed at home. I was able to get enough of a charge throughout the day though to make it back home that night with TWO PERCENT left! Definitely tested the limits of the range that day ?

sure, but also there are chargers along the way where a quick boost would have given you some cushion.

 

[NoVAguy]

sure, but also there are chargers along the way where a quick boost would have given you some cushion.

Absolutely. If I was really afraid I wouldn't make it home I would have stopped to add a few miles. But when I unplugged I had a 67% charge that was estimated to go 160 miles (my route home was 148).

I decided to test this and just go for it. I gotta say, it was really nice to not have to make any extra stops at all along the route to or from my destination for "fuel".

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