Cheaper to charge at 240 than 120?

The difference is small. You'd never make up the cost of a charger and the cost of running 240V electrical service to your garage to run it.

2 hours versus 5.5 hours is fooling your friend because he doesn't realize the faster one is spinning your meter two and a half times as fast while it's charging.

Look at it this way. Which coats more, a gallon bucket filled by your hose at full blast or the same bucket filled by a trickle of water from the sink? Same bucket = same cost for the water no matter how fast or slow you fill it.

 

It is all about turn around time. 2 hrs. vs. 5.5 might be important for some of us and it could allow two sets of EV-only errands on the same day while charging after the first run. For me it is about security. I'll be charging outside, 5 feet from the street that dozens of high schoolers frequently walk to and from each day. I don't want to baby sit the car any longer than necessary.

 

Steve, 240V or 120V charging should cost the same; please see other post regarding this. The charger cost is much cheaper than what you quoted. I live in Anaheim and got charger for about $500 + $600 for certified electrician to install, including all his materials, tubing, and 240V outlet to my existing panel in my garage. He ran about 30 feet of tubing. That's not all! Anaheim gave me a check for $1000 as an incentive after the installation. I provided photos and invoices for the project. Net cost: $100 !!.
I keep saying it, I love this car!
If your city does not provide a similar incentive here in California, check the state incentive program for chargers.
Good luck!


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They thought you installed a public charging station?

 

Hey, he's a member of the public.

 

No sir, seriously, the incentive is to promote private charger installations to encourage people to use EV and PHEV cars in our area. I had to furnish photos, remember, of my charger INSIDE my private garage. The charger has to be a Level 2, 240V unit. Yup, I LOVE this car!

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Ok, time to move your car out, I'm coming over to charge my car

 

You must be desperate, driving from Michigan to California for a charge. Who said the Prime was green?

 

"Based on the data analyzed in this study and the expected conditions of residential charge events, Level 2 charging would likely yield approximately 2.1% efficiency gains. Under the assumptions used in Figures 2 and 3, this would amount to an estimated 119 kWh energy savings annually and 928 kWh energy savings over the lifetime of a vehicle. At minimum the cost of a Level 2 EVSE retrofit and installation would be over $500 and the total value of kWh savings at current prevailing energy prices in Vermont would be around $150. "

https://www.veic.org/docs/Transportation/20130320-EVT-NRA-Final-Report.pdf

Add in the additional savings from the federal tax credit (still available?) and any state/local incentives for purchasing/installing a home charger and the fuel savings from more EV driving via quicker charges and, yes, the level II EVSE might pay for itself over its lifetime.

 

You are all cordially invited to share lunch, for ourselves and our Primes at my house; just give me a yell when you're comin' by, Har, har
If you want a party, I'll arrange to play with my band, A Choired Taste!
Come on down, kids
I would love to see my neighbors' faces when a bunch of Primes show up, although I do live on a cul de sac, and it might get a bit crowded! It would be fun to meet all you heretofore "anonymous" folks!

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Bummer! Anaheim does provide all utilities to residents and maybe because in or near Anaheim, we have Disneyland, Knott's Berry Farm, the Convention Center, Anaheim Stadium, The Pond, and a whole bunch more stuff going on, they have the tax base and resources for our relatively small (347,000 people) population to afford doing this sort of thing. My offer stands, Welcome All!!

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The $500 rebate I got in Roseville, CA, was specifically for a installing a home 240V charging station. In addition I got $300 for the car itself.

Regarding the question about efficiency of 240V charging vs 120V charging; that is actually a reasonable question, since one has to consider overhead in the charging process, not just the total amount of energy put into the battery. It takes a certain amount of power to operate the charger electronics and do the voltage conversion, and that will be a factor of time. I will defer to others for the actual numbers.

 

Pennies...or maybe fraction of pennies for the parasitic draw of the charging station.

A full electric charge saves me about 1/3rd gallon of gasoline, but costs me about the same for the electricity as 1/6th gallon of gas. At that rate how long will it take to pay off a Level 2 charging station? (Hint...I won't live that long.)

 

I agree that the power usage of the charging station is negligible. I was talking about the energy consumed by the charger, which is in the car.

 

I had a guy that is pretty knowledgable tell me it's cheaper to use the 240 because using the 120v would charge you twice as much as if the car was using both outlets at the same time. He said it had something to do with how the electric meter records your usage.

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.

 

When it comes to electrical things, I wouldn't trust that guy to turn on a light switch.

 

Please post location and hours of operation!

 

Ironically, the phrase, "not the brightest bulb in the bunch" also is related to electricity. If this assertion were true electric utilities would not allow 240 volt loads.