How do folks charge their Leafs in the SF Bay Area?

[Deleted member 9549]

I'm considering eventually moving to the Bay Area and wondering how people charge their leafs since I assume many people rent.

Are there apartments where you can charge? Is so, how do you find them?

Do folks rely on charging at work instead of at home?

Do most leaf owners own their own home and charge at home?

Do folks rely on public charging locations all the time?

Thanks for the feedback.

 

[Cinnabar]

I have a charger at home and there are a couple at work. The ones at work are becoming increasingly crowded as more LEAFs and particularly more plug in hybrids become available.

I pretty much stick to the allowed radius of the LEAF range with rare exceptions. Others are more adventurous and plan trips based on the slowly expanding charging infrastructure in the Bay Area.

 

[mbender]

I can manage using only the Level 1 (110V) charger that comes with the car, so I avoided all the (apparent) headaches that come with finding, installing and paying (or not paying) for a Level II charger. I still make long roundtrips though using the conveniently located quick chargers that are in the area.

If you can manage with just Level 1, I think there's a good chance you could talk an apartment manager into allowing you to charge if there's a regular outlet near enough to your parking space. Although billing and/or complaints from other tenants might complicate that matter. Hopefully this issue is being worked on, and there may be another thread focused specifically on it.

 

[Arvind]

I've only had the Leaf for 18 days. TIFWIW. At first I trickle charged at home, and now use the Chargepoint CT500 in the garage which is 4 times faster. My company has 4 L2 Chargepoint charge stations which are almost always occupied by other Leafs, Volts, Prius PHEVs, ... and that has not been a reliable option. The good thing about Chargepoint is their website tells you if one is available. One day during lunch, I explored the work neighborhood as per PlugShare/Recargo maps, and checked out the Blink stations in Cisco lots, prepared to eat lunch in the car as it charged. It was disappointing: The only one near me that was not in use was broken! So my limited experience is that for reliable charging, you must have a charging source at home. For my commute purposes, trickle charging overnight is sufficient, and I don't really need the L2 charger at home.

 

[Nubo]

Out of 13000 miles I'd say maybe 500 of those are from public charging.

I probably wouldn't have considered the car unless home charging covered most of my needs. It's nice that this area has a lot of charging locations. There is even a QC less than a mile from where I work, which has come in handy a couple of times. But still, home charging covers what I bought the car for. The rest is gravy.

 

[madbrain]

I'm considering eventually moving to the Bay Area and wondering how people charge their leafs since I assume many people rent.

I think your assumption is wrong.
The Bay area is very large. You have to specify where.

In San Francisco county, home ownership rate is 37%. But that is really the exception. It does not apply to the rest of the bay area.

In Santa Clara County, it is 58%, which is close to the state average.
In San Mateo County, 60%.
Stats are from the US census bureau :
http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/06/06081.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
You can check specific counties and cities there.

Do most leaf owners own their own home and charge at home?

That is my situation. I think most people with a Leaf need to be able to charge at home. That doesn't mean they are necessarily owners. Those who rent might still rent single family homes or townhomes where they can charge a Leaf in the garage, at least at level 1. An apartment is not the only rental option.

Do folks rely on public charging locations all the time?

No. I use the few Blink QC there are once in a while, but they tend to be unreliable and go down a lot. I don't rely on them for regular use. Only for the few trips I have done with my Leaf that exceeded its range. And that required checking the QC charger status before hand.

 

[johnqh]

It's not about rent or own.

If you rent, as long as you have your own garage (especially outside SF, when renting SFH), you can trickle charge.

And in SF, a lot of owners, including SFH owners, do not have garage.

 

[Rat]

I agree with pretty much all the other responses, but I don't think they are that helpful to the OP. I believe there have been various polls on this issue either on this forum or by the BayLeafs - the local Leaf users club - and if I'm not mistaken most Leaf owners around here own their own homes, so they don't face the issue presented. The OP may have heard of the housing "sticker shock" in the area, which is very real, and may have no option but renting. If so, you need to do some research and be sure that charging where you rent is an option. Charging at work is a nice option for many, but with EVs becoming more popular, it's not always reliable, and not possible for most. If the landlord says you can charge where you rent, be sure you check that there is a plug in the right location and that your access will not be blocked by other tenants and that the landlord does not change the policy after you move in. L1 is usually fine for overnight charging, but if you decide to spring for an L2 EVSE, be sure you work out the details of who is responsible for electrical issues and what happens when you move out. I recommend putting those details in the lease. Having said all that, the Bay Area is a great place for EVs, with its mild climate, many charging locations (L2 at least, L3 not so much), and good public support and acceptance of EVs.

 

[KeiJidosha]

I'm considering eventually moving to the Bay Area and wondering how people charge their leafs since I assume many people rent.

Are there apartments where you can charge? Is so, how do you find them?

Do folks rely on charging at work instead of at home?

Do most leaf owners own their own home and charge at home?

Do folks rely on public charging locations all the time?

Thanks for the feedback.

Looked into this for apartment in Cow Hollow with free-for-all street parking. $225/mo for unassigned space in garage with on-site charger (free), five blocks away. So about $7.50/day to park, charge, and exercise

 

[katieandbrian]

A lot of peninsula businesses are planning to keep their blink chargers free even after blink rolls out their finalized fee structure as of 6/4/2013 (that's what the rep said on the phone). So I L2 charge at home with a modded EVSE from EVSEupgrade.com and an outdoor 240v/30a dedicated plug I had installed for 200 out the door. I can top up at lunch in about 20 minutes for free. As far as renting goes, the post about finding a lot is a really cool idea if you are going to live in the city. If you lived in a complex with a large parking lot or covered parking areas, it would probably be PITA to charge at home. I'd just assess the current availability and convenience of chargers near your work, then try to find a place with convenient outlets or a parking lot situation. Good luck!