Public DC etiquette

[Don94578]

There are people who plug in and walk away at my local DC.
And, there is one bay.
What I did yesterday was first verified his charge was completed and then unplugged him.
Then I charged my car.
He never appeared.
I was thinking of leaving a nasty note.
It's awkward because I have to park in the handicapped spot to get near the station and there's a security card driving around so I'm anxious of a confrontation.
But it's so inconsiderate! You only get 30 mins of charge and it shuts off.
So you just walk away and come back at your leisure! You're the only person in the world??
As I write this a guy has been plugged in over an hour now.

 

[vwDavid]

preachin to the choir dude. Common sense is not common!

 

[ElectricEddy]

There are people who plug in and walk away at my local DC.
And, there is one bay.
What I did yesterday was first verified his charge was completed and then unplugged him.
Then I charged my car.
He never appeared.
I was thinking of leaving a nasty note.
It's awkward because I have to park in the handicapped spot to get near the station and there's a security card driving around so I'm anxious of a confrontation.
But it's so inconsiderate! You only get 30 mins of charge and it shuts off.
So you just walk away and come back at your leisure! You're the only person in the world??
As I write this a guy has been plugged in over an hour now.

Good thread on this here: http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=20073&hilit=etiquette. There is only 1 QC in Nanaimo and on the island they are few between, Personally I make it a point to hang around during or be back well before the 30 minutes is complete to monitor the charge and any who may be waiting.

 

[plugzin]

Here's an idea to promote across the EV community; leave a card on your dash indicating your cell phone number and approximate time of return, with instructions to call if you need the charging station earlier.

 

[grandizer52]

preachin to the choir dude. Common sense is not common!

+1 I agree

 

[arnis]

Here where I live we always have at least 2 spots per DC station: one for ChaDeMo and one for type2.
Type2 is rarely used, but not the spot. We do have rent-a-Leaf service where you can rent a Leaf within
30 seconds by just opening doors using automatic phone-call. Those cars are ALWAYS parked at DC stations.
But there is almost always a place to charge. Either behind the charger or next spot. It's true that
anybody can take a space next to the charger but charger is usually not near any entrances so ICE people
tend not to park there. Good solution for ICE owners and for EV owners (more time to charge :lol: )

We always unplug strangers (or rent vehicles) if charging is done. No way to move those vehicles unfortunately.
Can call hot-line to ask for 1 minute free usage to change the spot though.
Yesterday I saw a Tesla charging at ChaDeMo using an adapter. It is also limited to 60 minutes. Not possible to
unplug the adapter but no problem with ChaDeMo plug.

 

[desiv]

Yeah, I virtually always stay with my car.
There have been a few times I haven't, but only where there is more than 1 parking spot that the cord will reach, and I always leave a printed sheet in my window telling people that they can unplug me and it also has my name and cell number.
Haven't ever had an issue/call, but I figure it's just polite.

One of the other things that drives me crazy is that apparently it's not possible to re-coil the L2 cords for most drivers!!!
OK, maybe that's an exaggeration, but it certainly feels like every time I pull up to a DCQC charger, the L2 cords (all the QCs around here also have L2) haven't been rewound. They are usually (but not always) plugged in, but the cords are just laying all over...

I have a pretty good routine now, where I start my QC, then head over to the L2 and coil the cord(s), and then head to my car to wait.

I assume that's why gas stations have self coiling hoses. You can't trust people to do that themselves...

:-(

desiv

 

[ElectricEddy]

Yeah, I virtually always stay with my car.
There have been a few times I haven't, but only where there is more than 1 parking spot that the cord will reach, and I always leave a printed sheet in my window telling people that they can unplug me and it also has my name and cell number.
Haven't ever had an issue/call, but I figure it's just polite.

One of the other things that drives me crazy is that apparently it's not possible to re-coil the L2 cords for most drivers!!!
OK, maybe that's an exaggeration, but it certainly feels like every time I pull up to a DCQC charger, the L2 cords (all the QCs around here also have L2) haven't been rewound. They are usually (but not always) plugged in, but the cords are just laying all over...

I have a pretty good routine now, where I start my QC, then head over to the L2 and coil the cord(s), and then head to my car to wait.

I assume that's why gas stations have self coiling hoses. You can't trust people to do that themselves...

:-(

desiv

Looks hideous presents a trip hazard and deforms the lines. I also am a "cord cleaner upper". It is nice to once in a while see others do the same.

 

[LeafMuranoDriver]

I assume that's why gas stations have self coiling hoses. You can't trust people to do that themselves...

NRG EVgo just installed the pulley cables at one of my local Freedom Stations. I've seen pictures of another as well.

It prevents cables from touching the ground but it also makes it harder to reach a vehicle on the opposite side of the charger where they put a specific EV parking spot.

I always wonder who plans the station and where to put the spots and chargers. Some of them do not make sense but most are OK.

 

[2k1Toaster]

I assume that's why gas stations have self coiling hoses. You can't trust people to do that themselves...

NRG EVgo just installed the pulley cables at one of my local Freedom Stations. I've seen pictures of another as well.

It prevents cables from touching the ground but it also makes it harder to reach a vehicle on the opposite side of the charger where they put a specific EV parking spot.

I always wonder who plans the station and where to put the spots and chargers. Some of them do not make sense but most are OK.

There is one L2 station around here that has a pulley, and it prevents charging on one of the sides. It pulls so hard, that the contacts don't keep contact and charging stops as soon as it is left to go free. So now we wrap it around the EV parking sign so it pulls against the metal sign instead of the charge port and then into the car.

 

[Nubo]

One of the other things that drives me crazy is that apparently it's not possible to re-coil the L2 cords for most drivers!!!
OK, maybe that's an exaggeration, but it certainly feels like every time I pull up to a DCQC charger, the L2 cords (all the QCs around here also have L2) haven't been rewound. They are usually (but not always) plugged in, but the cords are just laying all over...

The cables get covered with schmutz and your hands get dirty from handling them. I do recoil the cables but I can see why some people don't bother.

Part of the problem is vehicle designers with the notion that ports should be in the same place as gas caps, forcing those owners to uncoil 12 or more feet of cable to plug in. You can thank GM for most of the cable sprawl.