The point of value charge

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Am I correct in that the point of value charge is to find a time to charge when the rates are cheapest? So if the rates in my area are the same 24/7 there is no point to this feature for me?
 
That is correct. Value charge is there to minimize the cost of electricity when charging your vehicle.
 
I can think of a couple of other, perhaps less important, reasons to use value charging:

1) Charge at night when it is cooler, to put less strain on the system (this might not be real, but I notice when I charge in the late afternoon in the heat, the car fan runs continuously, vs charging at night when it is cool).

2) Charge at night when demand is lower, hence putting less stress on the power grid.
2a) If you have an older house, charge at night when your useage is lower, hence putting less stress on your electrical system (some older houses don't have power systems that are designed for such high loads at the same time).
 
that or if you're in a situation where you need a little boost at a public charger, but it costs (and is expensive), maybe charge only what you really need using a time window... although I haven't checked to see how granular the time windows are or how quickly you can identify the current GPS location as a valid charger...
(it looks like you have to begin charging, first, in order to identify the current GPS location as a charging location, then you'd have to set up a value charge profile and hopefully it can switch to your new profile while it's charging)
 
My car gets home around 5pm, maybe an hour or two later. If it starts charging right then, it adds to the peak demand, which is when people get home, hit the a/c, cook dinner, watch TV, etc... When demand is added to this peak, it makes it more likely that another plant somewhere would come online to satisfy that peak demand. The "peaker" plant is usually an inefficient gas turbine.

After midnight, the wind is still blowing, and most people are asleep. Outside temps are milder and a/c's don't have to work as hard. Demand for electricity drops to the lowest point. There may be enough wind power, that most of the power may come from wind. Even some coal plants might "go to bed."

So.... do you want your car charged by a peaker at 6pm, or by a wind turbine at 2am ?

For me, that's an easy call.
Richard
 
There is another reason: The battery will last longer if it isn't at full charge all the time. Thus if you use value charge to ensure its only full right before you leave in the morning the battery will spend a minimum amount of time at full charge.
 
Guys, thanks for the great replies. Some things I never thought of. I typically get home from work at 10 or 11 pm so I guess my schedule kind of accomplishes the same thing. So many things on this car to learn about.
 
spirilis said:
that or if you're in a situation where you need a little boost at a public charger, but it costs (and is expensive), maybe charge only what you really need using a time window... although I haven't checked to see how granular the time windows are or how quickly you can identify the current GPS location as a valid charger...
(it looks like you have to begin charging, first, in order to identify the current GPS location as a charging location, then you'd have to set up a value charge profile and hopefully it can switch to your new profile while it's charging)
It will not stop charging if your car is not fully charged and you're out of Value window.
 
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