help! charging question

you have a choice to set either the start time or the end time (where charger will decide when to start and finish by your end time). after you set the timer, you will see a flashing green indicator. then plug in and you will see the indicator in the plug port light up for about 10s (and hear some clicks). if the light stays on for longer then it means you aren't in timer mode.

i set mine to start in the middle of the night, when the rates are lower, taking about 2.5 hrs for a full charge.

 

the brick is gfic there is a test button on the brick to verify ground fault protection is working

 

as other's at priuschat have said, "just drive it" You don't have to have a completely depleted battery to re-charge it.

 

I drive 2.7 miles to work, so that's 5.4 miles, I will opt to charge it again the next day or wait till I drive to work again and re-charge a depleted battery. It's entirely up to you.

 

What's important is that you have to press the timer button on the dash every single time before plugging in. It's not a "permanent" timer. So that's why it started charging immediately — even though you had set up the timer, you probably never actually engaged it.
I charge whenever I can. Unexpected errands come up all the time and I prefer to have my car ready to go and fully charged whenever. People who pay for their charges (houses) and who are on time-of-use electricity rate plans might prefer to schedule their charging to take place during off-peak hours.

 

Just to be more clear...each time after you power off the car you must set the timer if you want a delayed charge. It will remember the previous time (or you can modify it ) for each mode.

Mike

 

If you properly set your charge timer, there will be a green light on your dash panel that will flash every second or so until the charge cycle starts. If it is not flashing, your timer is not set and your charge is not going to start. When the charge cycle starts, the green light goes out. My first "timed" charge did not work the following morning; thought I did something wrong. Turned out the dealer set the am/pm incorrectly!

 

I used the timer at first but I have reverted to the practice of just plugging it in when I park at home. Unless you have a lower priced rate it night there is no need to use the timer. I prefer the "always ready" approach and having a full battery. There is virtually no "leakage" for several days. The theory that a freshly charged batter will inhibit the ICE from coming on in cold weather has not be verified. The CA folks are on a variable rate plan so they use the timer a lot. Us midwesterners can charge anytime with impunity.

 

It has been suggested that it is better NOT to charge a PIP right after driving it, when the battery is HOT, unless you really have to. Also, it's best to charge the PIP so that it finishes just before you're ready to drive it.

 

You'll see other posts about using the Start Timer or the Stop timer.
Some have found that the Stop timer starts the charging too early.

I always use the Start timer and set it 2:30 - 3 hours before I plan to drive.

And as stated above, you have to set the Charge Timer after turning the PIP off. It will remember the last set time. You can change the timer setting, or keep it, then press the Timer button to set it. And the green charge indicator will flash.

 

Urban Myth.

 

according to this, nissan leaf manual warns against a bunch of scenarios, including "After use, allow vehicle & battery to cool down before charging". http://www.transportation.anl.gov/pdfs/B/805.PDF

however, i don't recall this warning in the PiP manual so i do it once in a while when rates justify and have some time before going out again... we'll see in a few years

 

Indeed. PIP engineering is designed to baby the battery. I don't think you can even begin to put the loads and strain on a PIP as you can on a Leaf or Volt. The ICE comes on any time there is a significant drain. The 12 mile range of the PIP traction makes it hard to generate high temperatures. 15-20 minutes is about it. As I read the PIP manual I saw an overabundance of warnings and caution. If they believed that plugging in the charger when you parked your car was harmful they would have either warned you or built in a delay switch. I have a water well and it when it fills up the pressure tank, it will not come on for a half hour. A built in automatic delay would be simple to design if needed. I don't think they believed it was needed because the overall design quality is so conservative.

 

just checked the manual, there is absolutely nothing there about this. but keep in mind that the Prius, unlike the Leaf, has an active thermal management system.

 

When you plug into the PIP to charge it up, the cooling fans come on.