Charging Etiquette

[Doug&Julie]

So I'm thinking about doing a video on charging, in which I want to cover charging etiquette. Some of it is (or should be) obvious to most of us, and I've been searching here for more help, but I thought I'd open up a thread to get any additional ideas or thoughts from the group here.

So far I have...
- Only park at a charging station if you're charging. When you're done, move ASAP.
- If the stations are busy (esp if there's a line), consider only charging to 80%, or even "only what you need".
- Park in the dedicated spots, don't take up more than one spot. You may be the only one there at first, but others could come along.
- Don't unplug someone else's car. In fact, just don't ever touch another person's car.
- Not all people are very social and want to "talk EVs"...be considerate of other's privacy.

So the last two can lead into more discussion, i.e. is there a time when it's "okay" to unplug another person's car? (late night charging at a hotel and they're clearly done?)

I also just watched Mr. EV's video on etiquette and his wife was adamant that she will never go to a public charger alone because she, among other reasons, doesn't want to deal with "creepy men" bothering her about her car or her charging status, etc. They also touched on how some women don't feel safe at charging stations for various reasons. Not sure if that falls into "etiquette", but something to consider.

So what else am I missing? Any additional input would be appreciated!

Cheers -

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[RickMachE]

I can't imagine that such a video doesn't exist, in multiple versions.

I also can't imagine that people who don't have good charging etiquette are going to watch a video and miraculously turn into polite chargers - they're a-holes and that's going to never change.

 

[dbsb3233]

I'd separate DCFC from L2. Different "rules". DCFC, yes, unplug and move when done, especially if it's busy. It's intended for higher throughput.

But L2 is intended for long charges, like overnight at hotels. No one should be a hog, of course, but it's perfectly reasonable (and expected) to leave the car on L2 until the next morning, even if the car reaches 100% at 2am.

Only time I'd consider unplugging someone else's car is if the charger has shut off (presumably meaning it reached 100%). And even then, I'd be slightly concerned they'd get pissed and damage my car. In most cases that's moot though, as we usually can't reach the charger to use it when another car is parked there anyway.

 

[TheVirtualTim]

At DC Fast Chargers that only have *one* station with a CHAdeMO plug, avoid using that one and use stations that are CCS only *if* one is available.

If someone shows up with a CHAdeMO equipped car ... that's the only station they can use ... whereas we can use any of the stations.

When I finish charging, I put the charging cable back on its hanger (I keep finding these things in a tangled mess).

At DC Fast Chargers where the station is at the front of the space, I sweep the charge cables back around the sides ... rather than let the excess hang in the front. This makes it easier for the next person to pull their car in all the way into the stall to make it easier for the cord to reach the charging port.

I generally avoid charging beyond 80% unless I know I will *need* that range. The charging speed for our car drops below 50kW (on cars with the software update). So it's usually not a good investment of time. On a road trip, you'll reach the destination faster by stopping more often but doing shorter charge sessions where the charge speeds are much faster.

 

[Rapid Ed]

Two things will lead to great etiquette IMO: Idle fees and moving chargers away from premier parking spots near the fronts of stores.

 

[RickMachE]

I generally avoid charging beyond 80% unless I know I will *need* that range. The charging speed for our car drops below 50kW (on cars with the software update). So it's usually not a good investment of time. On a road trip, you'll reach the destination faster by stopping more often but doing shorter charge sessions where the charge speeds are much faster.

Interesting conclusion. Haven't had the new charging curve on a trip yet. On prior trips, even if on a stop I only needed to charge to 63% I still charged to 80% (unless it was a per kWh state and the next stop was a per minute state) because you never know if the next charger is going to work, and stopping more eats up time getting on/off highway, going through multiple traffic lights, and then navigating to the charger in the parking lot.

You can easily eat up 10 minutes getting to, and 10 minutes getting from a charger. That's 20 wasted minutes. I would rather stay longer and get more charge and maybe eliminate a stop - but again I haven't charged above 80 yet.

 

[phidauex]

You can buy little tags for use at L2 chargers that say something like, "You can unplug me after ____AM/PM", which are intended to communicate to other EV drivers. I see them occasionally here in Boulder on shared office chargers (where people might be parked there all day, but only need an hour of charging to top off).

Not sure that such a thing will really catch on, but it would be a nice touch if you use a lot of hotel chargers and want to be nice to other users who might show up late.

 

[Ride_the_lightning]

My wife’s Audi is kind of hard to unplug from L2 chargers because it locks. You have to push a button near the charge port a few times to get it to release. Not sure I want random strangers messing with it. Honestly I wish Audi just didn’t have the lock function.

 

[dbsb3233]

Interesting conclusion. Haven't had the new charging curve on a trip yet. On prior trips, even if on a stop I only needed to charge to 63% I still charged to 80% (unless it was a per kWh state and the next stop was a per minute state) because you never know if the next charger is going to work, and stopping more eats up time getting on/off highway, going through multiple traffic lights, and then navigating to the charger in the parking lot.

You can easily eat up 10 minutes getting to, and 10 minutes getting from a charger. That's 20 wasted minutes. I would rather stay longer and get more charge and maybe eliminate a stop - but again I haven't charged above 80 yet.

Yep. I nearly always charge up to 80% rather that what the nav says (except for the final charge of the day where I have free or cheap L2 at the end). I want safety buffer. But that also means I arrive at the next charger with more left in the tank, so time-wise it's almost a wash (takes maybe 3-4 minutes longer). It's still the same kWh consumed during the trip, and nearly the same total charging time adding all the DCFCs up.

And of course I'd add a caveat to all of the above... it only applies when the station is full. Nothing wrong with sitting there longer as long as there aren't others waiting in line for your charger.

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