Hi everyone! I drive a 2023 Bolt EV. I charge on campus where the rate for chargepoint is $0.50/hr from 4pm to 6am, and $1/hr from 6am to 4pm. $0.50 difference is negligible, but it’s a 100% difference from $0.50 to $1 and I’m a frugal student. What I’ll usually do is set an alarm for 5:58am so that I can press “stop charge” on the chargepoint app so I don’t have to pay the $1 rate after 6am. I’m curious if anyone has figured out a way to automate this (maybe through shortcuts?) process. For example, get the iphone to make a shortcut such that when it’s 5:59am, stop charge in the chargepoint app. I futzed around with shortcuts but didn’t find anything, thanks!
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you need a relay to physically disconnect the CP and CC pins of the J1772 connector, otherwise the chargepoint kiosk will still count you as being there, obviously to make sure you actually moved your car
The cheapest way of accomplishing this is to buy a J1772 extension cable and splice into the CC and CP signals, and have an Arduino control the relay via a timer. I think the other way is to buy both a Tesla to J1772 adapter and another J1772 to Tesla adapter and splice into that
Can you just make a schedule on the car itself? And i assume this station doesn’t have idle fees?
No idle fees! I try not to be an asshole and usually do 4pm-11:59pm or something and just move the car before I go to sleep, but sometimes 8 hours of charging isn’t enough. But it will keep charging you the station fee if you haven’t stopped the charging session but the battery is already full.
You should be able to set off peak hours for charging on your car itself. My niro has an option to only charge during those hours and will stop any time outside those hours. Your bolt should have something similar. https://youtu.be/AIvGk5NMJd0?si=z2NCjh6A6Nd9libr
What level is your charger?
Are you doing Gas Station Mentality where you ignore charging until the car absolutely requires charging, on the logic of optimizing for fewest occurrences of that chore?
Instead, do “Often Be Charging” such that when you plug in, your battery is still high enough that it’ll definitely be done before 6:00.
And 50 cents is negligible when it’s for a pizza slice you buy once a week. I just visited my old college pizza place and OMG the prices. When it’s once an hour it’s not negligible at all.
Unfortunately even if the battery stops charging before 06:00 I’m still charged at $1/hr for every hour after. I’m not a morning owl so let’s say it stops charging at 06:00; if I pick it up at 09:30 that’s an extra $3.50 for nothing. And I don’t know where your college town is but in the Bay Area, every cent counts 😿