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[Doug S]

I've ordered one of DigiNow's super chargers for my 2014 SR, and I realize I have no idea how the public charging stations work. I know a lot of the systems have membership cards; do I need to have one to charge at all or does it just give me a lower price or something? In general, can I just roll up to one, insert my credit card, hook up, and get some juice? That's my preferred solution since the majority of the time I'll still be charging at home.

If I have to be a member, which one is the best to join? (If it matters, I'm in the San Diego area.) I don't want to join more groups than necessary, but I don't want to be tied to only one option either if that's going to be a problem.

I also see a lot of private residences shown on PlugShare; I assume these owners are at least somewhat amenable to allowing other people to use their hookup or they wouldn't list themselves on PlugShare. Do people generally charge a reasonable rate for using their home hookups? What's the story there? I might want to consider paying it forward a bit myself.

Funny, I've owned an EV for close to two years now and I've never charged anyplace except my home or a friend's home, at the shop while the bike is being worked on, or at work.

[benswing]

Regarding getting a network card, you probably want to get a Chargepoint card, and possibly a Blink card.  (Although my experience with Blink is bad and I stay away from them whenever possible.)  If there are chargers by a specific brand in your area (Semacharge, EVGo, etc.) then get one of those too, but Chargepoint are by far the most abundant.

People who list their home on Plugshare are friendly and basically, just call ahead to make sure they are home.  I have charged at several private residences and nobody has charged me anything, we just chat for a while.  I'm happy to reimburse them for the electricity, but they are generally excited to chat with an EV owner, especially one who rides a motorcycle.

Here is one of my residential charging experiences from my trip last summer: 

Here is another residence where I charged up and just chatted with the guy for about an hour.  (look at 4:30)   

[Erasmo]

Most charging stations work similar to this:

[benswing]

At 7:00 minutes in this video I discuss the various cards and networks of charging stations.  Basically, Chargepoint is the way to go.

[KrazyEd]

As with most things, it probably depends upon where you live. Here in Las Vegas, there are probably several hundred public chargers, and, with few exceptions,
all are free. As suggested, ChargePoint seems to be dominant in the US. I would research the systems where you live / ride, and, go from there.

[Doug S]

I had an interesting thing happen last week. Most every Saturday I do a club ride up to Major's Diner in Pine Valley, CA, have breakfast with the club, and then head home. The rest of the club proceeds about 20 miles further before turning around, but I can't do that because I don't have enough range. I'll be getting my super charger soon, however, so I emailed Major's to ask them if they'd consider installing a 14-50 outlet to allow me to quick-charge during breakfast, after which I could do the middle leg of the ride with the group, come back to the diner, recharge again if necessary (getting lunch there or just a sandwich to take home), and arrive home with no range concerns.

The wife co-owner of the diner emailed me back immediately, saying they'd get one installed as soon as their son the electrician had time available. This Saturday, she sought me out when we were up there and told me they're just waiting for one piece, but should have it installed soon. It looks like they'll be ready for me before I'm ready for them.

So now I'm wondering, is part of the answer to getting the infrastructure beefed up to where it needs to be, just ASKING for it? In the case of Major's, they're right in the middle of a big empty desert of charging sources, and having one there will open up a popular fishing area (Lake Morena), the Golden Acorn casino, Jacumba Hot Springs, and a couple of popular area desert hot-spots, Ocotillo Wells and Anza-Borrego state park, to EV travel. It seems pretty likely a fair amount of EV traffic may go through, charge at Major's, and of course enjoy a meal while they're charging up. But Major's wouldn't have known about it if I didn't say something! It's a good idea for them, and they're wise enough to run with it.

Now to get something going in Julian for apple pie runs.

[benswing]

Doug that's great that they were so receptive to the idea of installing a NEMA 14-50 outlet at your request.  Restaurants are the perfect place for charging stations! If you know of a restaurant you want to go to regularly and will actually use, then sometimes it is just as easy as asking. 

In this case it is handy that their son is an electrician because paying an electrician can add significant expense. Also it saves them money to install a 50 amp outlet as opposed to an electric car charging station.


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[Erasmo]

A charging station is quickly becoming an asset for restaurant owners. A 50 amp outlet is a nice temporally solution as you can upgrade it later to a simple wall mounted charger without breaking the bank.

[Doug S]

Actually I'm wondering if a 14-50 outlet is a better solution all around. The equipment cost is far lower, my guess is it's far more reliable, there's no surcharge for the owner to pay to Blink or Chargepoint or whoever, and because of that, the cost can be far lower to the EV owner. I recommended to the diner that they keep a small padlock on the outlet cover to keep control of it, and charge maybe $2-5 per hour when someone uses the key. The power available from a 14-50 is higher than most L2 chargers can do, and I'd bet even the equipment compatibility is higher.

I don't see a downside to it, or an upside to an official "EV recharging station".

[benswing]

The benefit of a charging station is that the driver does not need expensive specialized equipment to use it.  The standard J1772 plug works on all electric vehicles.  The NEMA 14-50 only works for electric cars with an adapter that generally costs over $200. 

Also, most restaurants are pretty happy when people eat at their restaurant who are charging.  It is a generally a better policy to offer free charging as long as the person charging eats at the restaurant.  That way the charger acts as a way to draw in customers.

[Erasmo]

I've never understood using time instead of used electricity at charging poles. That way a Tesla can siphon a lot more juice than a Zero but pay the same.

@Doug S: I'm talking a bit more in the future when EV's become more mainstream. I don't think that chargepoint will have surcharges for long and placement will be free. The more stations they have the more power they can sell.

[mrwilsn]

I've never understood using time instead of used electricity at charging poles. That way a Tesla can siphon a lot more juice than a Zero but pay the same.

@Doug S: I'm talking a bit more in the future when EV's become more mainstream. I don't think that chargepoint will have surcharges for long and placement will be free. The more stations they have the more power they can sell.

The cost of electricity is small.  If you pay by electricity used then someone only capable of charging at a slow rate (like say someone with a stock charger on a Zero with a J1772 adaptor) can tie up the charger for a long time but you don't pay a lot. While you are slow charging they can't make money from the next customer. Until we get to the point where the charging station is the bottle neck with respect to the amount of time it takes to charge (as opposed to the batteries or the onboard charger) then it probably makes sense to pay by the minute. It might make more sense to pay by electricity used with DC charging.

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[ctrlburn]

I've never understood using time instead of used electricity at charging poles. That way a Tesla can siphon a lot more juice than a Zero but pay the same.

Around here (Wisconsin) the excuse is that only a utility company can charge for electricity.  My local charging stations now charge for "parking" by the hour no matter what the draw. So I end up paying for "parking" in a free lot, or double pay in an hourly lot... when I charge.  I do charge on occasion to keep practiced with my Chargepoint.

[KrazyEd]

I work at a casino in Las Vegas. There are several hundred public charging stations around town almost all of them are free ( for now anyway ).
The property where I work had two J1772 Chargers in each valet lot ( 4 chargers total ). One Level 1, and, one Level 2. The Level 1 is pretty high
charge rate for level 1, but, the level 2 is as low as can be and still be Level 2. We have more Teslas every week than all other plug ins put together.
The Teslas never want to be charged. This week, we installed a Tesla only charger in each lot. Will be interesting to see if that changes anything.
Most of the Teslas arrive with over 200 miles of range left, so, probably not a lot of need, but, we shall see. Last week, the Casino gave away
a Tesla Model S in a drawing. Must be nice.I wonder if the Tesla chargers were part of the deal that the Casino made with Tesla.

[Chocula]

... While you are slow charging they can't make money from the next customer. ...

There are legitimate reasons to charge, but profit is not currently a reasonable expectation.  The additional costs of the equipment needed to meter and extract payment far exceed the amount that can be earned by that equipment.  If they charge enough to make a profit, it will not get used and the business will likely be perceived as gouging.  Businesses who treat this as a value add for their customers are able to install much simpler, and therefore less expensive and more reliable, equipment.  Attracting customers who will spend far more on goods and services than they will consume electricity is a much more realistic endeavor.

Some of the reasons for the J1772 plug rather than a NEMA 14-50 or similar plug are:

• The vast majority of electric vehicles support the J1772 plug. (in the USA)
• Safe to use in the rain.
• Only a 12V circuit is live until the vehicle is connected.
• Support for multiple voltages and amperage.
• Allows vehicle to adjust it's charging rate based on available amperage.
• Trivial to use correctly without tripping breakers, etc.
• Reduced liability.

There are some drawbacks, most notably the cost of the equipment.