EV Charging from your RV...kinda.

[The2002Wanderer]

Most campgrounds prohibit charging EVs due to the added cost. Some may allow you to charge at extra cost to pay for extra juice you're using.

[johndjmix]

Originally Posted by The2002Wanderer

Most campgrounds prohibit charging EVs due to the added cost. Some may allow you to charge at extra cost to pay for extra juice you're using.

Which? Haven’t had any issues in the north east, south east or mountain states.

—john

[itat]

Originally Posted by Phreak480

Many parks will need infrastructure upgrades to properly support it so expect that cost to be passed on to everybody.

I'd be interested in learning what amperage EVs are pulling while charging. I've seen many campgrounds that have low voltage during the hottest summer days when big trailers and MHs are using 2 or 3 ACs full blast all day. When you add the extra load of charging EVs how much does that affect the campground's electrical infrastructure? It may be OK if there are only a couple of EVs but what about if 25% of the sites have an EV to charge? For now at least, EVs really aren't an option as a tow vehicle for anything larger than a popup but the technology will get better. Improvements to the public and campground grids will have to keep pace.

Maybe it will be a good thing in the long run for those of us who see low voltage at campgrounds now. This could force them to improve their electrical infrastructure and I won't have to deploy the Autoformer!

[Sharon455]

We do not have an EV, but I wonder how many that think EVs will create huge increases run their A/C 24/7 in the summer and their electric fireplaces all winter long? This is the same argument when winter campers found their sites were metered for electric, or there were signs at the office proclaiming no electric fireplaces allowed.

[Bob2019]

Maybe it will be a good thing in the long run for those of us who see low voltage at campgrounds now. This could force them to improve their electrical infrastructure and I won't have to deploy the Autoformer!

I will bet many campgrounds including state ones will not have the money to place meters at 200+ sites. They will keep raising camping fees to cover the increased electrical costs. Of course, the $500,000 camping unit owner won't care, as usual. I've got the money and you don't. Even though I may later in life be a bit better financially, I still remember what it was like starting out with a young family and cost. We all should do what we can for families and not price them out. Lets not grab every amp just cause we can afford it. Unless the campground owner said it is OK, it is just wrong to plug in an EV at your site. It is the same when people plug in a 30 amp cord and then run another cord to the 20 amp plug to run more stuff. Just wait until the brown outs destroy your electrical components because others keep adding electrical items.

[Iwritecode]

I wonder how much more an EV would pull vs an electric golf cart?

Those are plugged into seasonal sites all the time.

[Larry-NC]

Originally Posted by Iwritecode

I wonder how much more an EV would pull vs an electric golf cart?

A lot more. The charger for a golf cart typically provides 36 Vdc at 18 amps, corresponding to 648 watts. That's the maximum. It tapers off as the battery charges.

Looking at Tesla gear now. Looks like 11,500 watts.
So a single EV is equivalent to 17.75 golf carts.

Originally Posted by Iwritecode

I wonder how much more an EV would pull vs an electric golf cart?

Those are plugged into seasonal sites all the time.

That's a red herring. Just like an RV battery, the amount of golf cart charge current tapers off to nearly zero once the batteries are fully charged. The amount of power drawn is virtually nothing. So most of the time, the current drawn to top off the batteries of an undriven golf cart is negligible.

I don't happen to have one of those Kill-A-Watt power meters but maybe someone who does can report the maintenance current of a golf cart charger.

[johndjmix]

Well, we can’t say it will draw that much. The tesla mobile charger can daw 38 amps, but you set the charge rate in the app, so you can have it charge and only pull 1 amp if you want, or 38. So really shouldn’t be an issue.

Also, I usually don’t need to run AC at night, which is when most people charge their EVs, so charging when demand is low solves the problem. I can’t imagine many people charging durring the day since that’s when your driving the car around!

—john

[Larry-NC]

Originally Posted by johndjmix

Well, we can’t say it will draw that much. The tesla mobile charger can daw 38 amps, but you set the charge rate in the app, so you can have it charge and only pull 1 amp if you want, or 38. So really shouldn’t be an issue.

Also, I usually don’t need to run AC at night, which is when most people charge their EVs, so charging when demand is low solves the problem. I can’t imagine many people charging during the day since that’s when your driving the car around!

—john

That's 38 amps at 240 Vac, or 9120 watts. The golf cart is only 648 watts. That makes the EV equivalent to 14 golf carts.

[tomkatb]

As I remember the Tesla home unit draws 40 amps 220. 20% more in many small homes. Per car. 200 amp service in small homes. Our all electric home is 400 amp service.


Our infrastructure cannot handle this. Brown outs occur often in California now in some areas.

The electrical fairy with the magic wand is not going to show up with more juice. Very few new plants going up.

I suspect our current green plan may end up kind of dark at night.

[Bob2019]

Originally Posted by johndjmix

Well, we can’t say it will draw that much. The tesla mobile charger can daw 38 amps, but you set the charge rate in the app, so you can have it charge and only pull 1 amp if you want, or 38. So really shouldn’t be an issue.

Also, I usually don’t need to run AC at night, which is when most people charge their EVs, so charging when demand is low solves the problem. I can’t imagine many people charging durring the day since that’s when your driving the car around!

—john

Somebody pays and that is the rest of us at a campground without meters. I'm not against EV. In fact I would buy one, but when my Terrain that gets 23+ miles around town and I fill up every other week with 8 gallons, the EV would age out which is occurring too with me.

The reality is EV owners are substitute energy which they pay for from gasoline for energy of electricity. I don't expect you to pay for my gasoline and I should not have to pay for energy to drive your EV. If EV owners are using an EV charge station, that is a different situation.

Comparing a golf cart to an EV is comparing apples to oranges. I doubt there is much milage put on a golf cart in a day (at least in MN). Driving a EV uses a lot of electrical energy for the lights, motor, A/C, etc and may be driven 20-75 miles or more touring around. Nobody is putting that kind of miles on a golf cart.

[emm-dee]

Originally Posted by Bob2019

Maybe it will be a good thing in the long run for those of us who see low voltage at campgrounds now. This could force them to improve their electrical infrastructure and I won't have to deploy the Autoformer!

I will bet many campgrounds including state ones will not have the money to place meters at 200+ sites. They will keep raising camping fees to cover the increased electrical costs. Of course, the $500,000 camping unit owner won't care, as usual. I've got the money and you don't. Even though I may later in life be a bit better financially, I still remember what it was like starting out with a young family and cost. We all should do what we can for families and not price them out. Lets not grab every amp just cause we can afford it. Unless the campground owner said it is OK, it is just wrong to plug in an EV at your site. It is the same when people plug in a 30 amp cord and then run another cord to the 20 amp plug to run more stuff. Just wait until the brown outs destroy your electrical components because others keep adding electrical items.

If you think it’s wrong to have a second cord supplying up to 20 amps then you must think it’s wrong to have a 50 amp RV.

Think about the facts. A 30 amp unit like your Forester has a single 30 amp supply and the cb limits you to 30 amps. Your neighbor in a 50 amp RV has TWO 50 amp supply lines for a total capacity of 100 amps. So, with the dual line equipped unit you can still only draw ½ the total power the 50 amp rig can use.

[Bob2019]

Originally Posted by emm-dee

If you think it’s wrong to have a second cord supplying up to 20 amps then you must think it’s wrong to have a 50 amp RV.

Think about the facts. A 30 amp unit like your Forester has a single 30 amp supply and the cb limits you to 30 amps. Your neighbor in a 50 amp RV has TWO 50 amp supply lines for a total capacity of 100 amps. So, with the dual line equipped unit you can still only draw ½ the total power the 50 amp rig can use.

I disagree. Some campgrounds you pay more for 50 amp than the 30/20 service. We all understand this with 50 amp service. An RV may be limited to 30 amp, but adding another cord to the 20/15 plug below allows you to draw more juice to power whatever you have the second cord powering something additional. I've seen this and others on the forum have said they have done this with a second cord. In reality, you are using more electricity that the 30 amp rate that you rented your site for.

[emm-dee]

Originally Posted by Bob2019

I disagree. Some campgrounds you pay more for 50 amp than the 30/20 service. We all understand this with 50 amp service. An RV may be limited to 30 amp, but adding another cord to the 20/15 plug below allows you to draw more juice to power whatever you have the second cord powering something additional. I've seen this and others on the forum have said they have done this with a second cord. In reality, you are using more electricity that the 30 amp rate that you rented your site for.

I’ve heard of them but personally never stayed at a CG that charged extra for 50 amp service. I use the 20 amp aux line so I can have my heater online at the same time I use the microwave. I guess that 1-3 minute daily microwave use should require an extra charge.

[Bob2019]

Several campgrounds in MN have higher rates for 50 amp service. Hennepin County has Baker Park at Lake Independence is one. You have a higher rate for an RV requiring 50 amp, and you cannot use a "dog bone" to plug your 50 amp RV into a 30 amp pedestal to get the lower rate.

[Larry-NC]

Originally Posted by tomkatb

As I remember the Tesla home unit draws 40 amps 220. 20% more in many small homes. Per car. 200 amp service in small homes. Our all electric home is 400 amp service.

Our infrastructure cannot handle this. Brown outs occur often in California now in some areas.

The electrical fairy with the magic wand is not going to show up with more juice. Very few new plants going up.

I suspect our current green plan may end up kind of dark at night.

Just to keep the units in all posts consistent, 40 amps of 240 is 9,600 watts. Similar to the 9,120 I estimated.

[johndjmix]

Correct on the 40 amps, but that’s only if you have the charger set to go wide open. The big thing here is night is a much lower seaman’s in the grid than durring the day, that’s why power costs less at night. So it will even out the power usage.

Kinda. Still the grid will need upgrades. But electric vehicles are coming, and in a few years will account for most vehicle sales. So get ready for it or be left behind.

—john

[Larry-NC]

Originally Posted by johndjmix

Correct on the 40 amps, but that’s only if you have the charger set to go wide open. The big thing here is night is a much lower seaman’s in the grid than durring the day, that’s why power costs less at night. So it will even out the power usage.

Kinda. Still the grid will need upgrades. But electric vehicles are coming, and in a few years will account for most vehicle sales. So get ready for it or be left behind.

—john

I can't imagine what the word in red, above, is supposed to be. Please elaborate.

[itat]

Originally Posted by Bob2019

I disagree. Some campgrounds you pay more for 50 amp than the 30/20 service. We all understand this with 50 amp service. An RV may be limited to 30 amp, but adding another cord to the 20/15 plug below allows you to draw more juice to power whatever you have the second cord powering something additional. I've seen this and others on the forum have said they have done this with a second cord. In reality, you are using more electricity that the 30 amp rate that you rented your site for.

Bob, I think I'd stay away from that park that charges more simply to use a 50amp receptacle on the pedestal if I knew that was the case. If you only use the 30amp receptacle on the same site it costs less? Is that for a seasonal site or transient?

My 5er has a 50amp power center but I only have one air conditioner so a 30amp site would be plenty for us. However, I prefer to use the 50amp receptable because it is typically less abused and in better condition than the 30amp receptacle. If that campground charges extra to use the 50amp receptacle, do they monitor for campers who do what you noted about using 2 power cords and ask them to leave? It sounds like an HOA and they are creating unnecessary problems for themselves.

[Bob2019]

To clarify, one loop (H) at Lake Independence everyone in that loop is charged the 50 amp rate even if they use the 30 amp outlet. So naturally, I never book a site in that loop. The other sites only offer 30 amp service. I have never gone in the different loops there to inspect what the RV hookups are. It is not my place to be the pedestal police. However, it is clearly stated when you rent spaces in the campground what it costs and why. That seems to be the problem today, rules don't apply - it is all about me. If I don't like the rules, I go someplace else, but I follow them and do not cheat.

Rates at campgrounds have gone up a lot in the last few years. Electrical usage is part of the rise in costs. Let us all be honest, fair and not cheat. If a campground has the infrastructure to handle 50 amp draws and you pay any increased cost - OK. But let's not be a pig with electricity to everyone else around us.