The Tesla Model 3’s are starting to roll off the assembly line. As the new automaker has made more people its latest Model 3, the interest has increased in the best place to charge your Model 3 is? Although it can be almost a given to install something in the home, some other not-so-obvious sites people use daily.
If you are one of the lucky individuals to obtain a Tesla Model 3, installing the at-home solution is almost a mandatory requirement if you own your home. The traveling charging and the on-the-go range anxiety that most Tesla owners face are limited after finding the six best places to charge your Model 3.
At Home
There are several ways to charge your Tesla at home. Tesla recommends charging your Tesla overnight to have a full charge in the morning. You will get the best charge overnight, and it won’t cost near as much as using a public charging station.
Tesla recommends hiring a licensed electrician to install the 60-watt wall connector as the most convenient charger for all of the Tesla Models. If not installing the wall connector Tesla does have a mobile charger as a different option; however, it does charge slower.
The Downside to this option is the installation costs an electrician could cost to install the plug. A great way to save in this area is to prepare the site for the electrician.
For instance:
- Pop-out the breaker holder that you want to use,
- Pre-drill access holes and lay conduit pipe for the direction of the wire,
- Pre-cut the outlet in the drywall
- Dig any holes/Trenches.
Did You Know: If you live in a multi-unit complex, Tesla has materials on their website to request approval to install a charging station inside your community shared space! You may even be able to get level 2 or 3 chargers installed in your complex!
A Tesla Supercharging Station
A Super Charging station is best used when traveling long distances. The average cost is about $.25 per kWh. Your vehicle could be charged in a little as 1 hour. There is an excellent map on Tesla’s site to locate their superchargers and other charging stations throughout their network.
Planning a road trip in a Tesla is more than possible now with Tesla’s Trip Planner. You enter your destinations, and the software will route you through charging stations and calculate the amount of time each station will take to charge! Tesla claims that most people will charge for about 30 minutes on average per stop. Considering that you can get up to an 80% charge in thirty minutes is astonishing.
Destination Charging Networks
The Tesla Destination Charging Network is a fancy way of saying that you can charge your Tesla at public charging stations. You can find both the supercharger and the external chargers on Tesla’s network. You will want to pick up the J-1772 charging adaptor if you plan on using this route.
It is an excellent adaptor to have regardless, you can get a quick charge while doing your grocery shopping, and although it may not supercharge your car, a fast low cost/no cost charge is a cash saver. These Level 2 charge stations are located throughout the United States in various locations.
Some of the lesser known installations can be found in:
- Schools and Universities
- Parks
- Shopping centers
- Hospitals
- Apartment complexes
- Doctor’s offices
- Airports
- Private institutions
- Select Service stations
At the Office
If you work in a place with electrical outlets in the parking lot on the light poles, you may be able to plug into the maintenance plug with an adaptor. The mobile charging adaptor will allow you to use a regular plug to charge your Tesla Model 3. This option may not fully charge your car by the end of the workday, but it could be a free charge saving you money in the long run.
Some job sites may have a charge station nearby or in the shared public parking spaces. Some schools in California have installed solar panel parking spaces on their facilities. These provide shade and solar-powered energy for the state ran organizations. Plugging in your electric vehicle for a mobile charge while you work is a popular option.
Parking Garages
Parking garages in some communities offer a charging service inside their establishment. If you live in an area where you must park in a designated parking garage, check with the attendant as it may be a specifically designated area where they have a level 2 charging station.
Since more and more places are installing public charge stations, some public parking garages may even have installed the charge station.
Hotels
If you plan a trip and want to stay in hotels that offer a charging service to their patrons, you can check Expedia and find the exact locations, rates, and even how many stations there are. If you stay in a single area for more than a night, you may want to call ahead to see if you can reserve the charge station or put your name on a list before arrival.
Some of the more popular hotels are :
- The Hilton
- Marriot
- La Quinta
- Suncoast
- Best western
- The Ritz Carlton
- Sheraton
Get the Aftermarket Solar Panel Option
As of April 2020, Lightyear and Tesla are running an experimental test on a few models that lightyear claims can charge faster than the energy is depleted, leaving a positive balance charge. This type of technology could replace the need for charging stations at all.
Tesla does not currently offer solar panels as an option for their cars, but lightyear may be able to add it to your Model 3 aftermarket.
The solar panel option currently is used to run your accessories on the car, and it can add a few miles to your charge. The main benefit to having the solar panel option is running the accessories while parked. The solar panel only adds about 15 miles per day to the battery charge. You will never run entirely out of electric juice with the solar panel option.
Solar panels currently do not produce enough power to charge the vehicle and provide enough juice to sustain a reasonable charge.
Another popular option: is adding solar panels to your home, essentially using solar power to charge your Tesla Model 3.
How Much Does it Cost to Charge a Tesla Model 3
The national average energy price per Kilowatt is $.13 per Kilowatt hour. It can take up to 75KWH to fully charge the Tesla Model 3. Assuming the national average rate and the full battery charge at home. The cost to charge your new Tesla Model 3 at home is $9.75 per full charge.
The Environmental Protection Association claims that 1 gallon of gas is equal to 33.7KWH. Which at the .13 cents, you are paying about $4.58 per gallon. You might be thinking ( a gallon of gas is cheaper than that!) The savings come from the 84MPG that Tesla boasts. Both options come out to about $.10 per mile.
Pro-Tip: Using a supercharger will increase the cost to charge a model 3 will increase from $.13 a KWH to $.26 per kWh.
Conclusion
Tesla did a fantastic job of setting up a national charging network that supports long-distance travel. If you opt into getting solar panels, you can lower your range anxiety even more. Investing in the mobile charger and the J-1772 adapter are probably the most needed accessories if this Tesla becomes your daily driver.
There are several stops to charge your Tesla on the road with the convenient solar charging stations. It seems that the electric vehicle market may become part of the infrastructure of the United States.