Category: Charging Tips

Loose Charging Cables Susceptible to Damage

Here’s a quick tip to help keep the public EV charging infrastructure attractive, safe and operating well. Upon completing a charging session, take a few moments to hang up the charging cable so that it is completely off the ground.

It’s tempting to just put the charging connector in the holster and let the cable go. Please consider taking a few extra seconds to hang up the cable too. No need to be too fancy, just a couple big loops so that no part of the cable is touching the ground.

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Tesla owners in the path of Hurricane Florence received a message on their car’s screen on Wednesday notifying them that Supercharging would be free until mid-October. Owners in the affected area with cars that were built with a 75 kWh battery pack but sold as a 60 kWh with the capacity being limited via software were notified that they would have access to the entire capacity for a time during and after the natural disaster.

Tesla had also unlocked the capacity of those batteries so that owners could more easily escape Hurricane Irma which hit Florida last year.

I’ve created a page to provide a Resource for EV Drivers Affected by Hurricane Florence.

Thanks Green Car Reports for helping to spread the word with the following article: Web site helps electric car drivers evacuate Florence, Tesla extends range

Please be safe if you are in Florence’s path.

Updated at 10:00 AM, Monday, September 17, 2018

This page was created on September 10, 2018 as Hurricane Florence threatened the East Coast and evacuations were being prepared in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. Officials were saying to keep a full tank of gas as part of personal preparations for the approaching storm. This is a resource for electric vehicle drivers affected by Hurricane Florence.

Electric Vehicle Travel

You won’t need to worry about gas shortages if you drive an electric car but you should be aware that charging stations may become congested during a natural disaster, evacuation distances may exceed the range of a single charge and EV chargers may become unavailable due to power outages or flooded roads.

Please follow the advice of your local officials on preparation and evacuation.

This page will regularly be updated. Check back often for additional resources and follow @PlugInSites on Twitter. Send any tips or questions to lanny@pluginsites.org

Be safe.
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Tesla just made available real-time Supercharger status reporting to the Navigation screen. This update just showed up and it does not require a software update.

Now when traveling in a Tesla Model S or Model X, you can look and see how many stalls are available and choose to skip to the next Supercharging station if possible.

Thanks to @andrewket for the tip!

 

A report on Level 1 (120 volt) EV charging at work has just been published by the US Department of Energy. The 20 page report covers two scenarios for providing Level 1 EV charging at workplaces. Scenario A is making a 120 volt outlet available for employees to plug their own charging equipment into. Scenario B is the workplace providing Level 1 charging equipment with a J-1772 connector for employee use.

Level 1 charging is capable of replenishing between 30 and 40 miles of range while connected for an 8 hour workday. Over 90% of employees in the US commute less than 35 miles.

The report suggests policies that employers can put in place to help ensure the success of a workplace charging program. Fee structures to recover the cost of Level 1 charging are also suggested.

The experiences of several Department of Energy Workplace Charging Challenge partners, including Coca-Cola in Atlanta and Melink in Milford, Ohio, are shared.

A PDF of the report can be downloaded at the Dept. of Energy website: L1 Charging At The Workplace.

Using the CHAdeMO connectors on some DC Fast Chargers can be a challenge. There are buttons to press and levers to pull and release and they have to be done in the right order. Here is a short video by Yazaki that shows how to operate this kind of CHAdeMO connector.

@PlugInSites

Look for Bugs Before Plugging In

Is there a spider weaving a nest inside the EV charging connector that you’re about to plug in to your car? Or maybe a little grasshopper is seeking shelter between the pins of the J-1772 assembly.

Now that summer is here and insects are out, take a quick glance inside the connector of any public charging station before you push it onto the receptacle on your car. You don’t want any big insects to get mashed inside your car’s charging inlet port.

Check the Gasket

In addition to bugs and spider nests, check for other dirt or debris and make sure the gasket inside (the green ring in the photo above) is not coming loose.

Hope this tip is helpful. Charge on!