Is there anyone who does NOT charge their Leaf at home?

[billvon]

I was talking to someone the other day who was claiming that EV charging would bring down the power grid in places like California. He said that since people needed 50 kilowatts to charge their cars quickly that any EV sales success would be quickly followed by blackouts, people stranded unable to charge etc. I told him "well, most people charge at home at night when the grid's not stressed; they don't rely on daytime charging most of the time." He said "you have no proof of that! That's green BS." (plus the usual anti-EV stuff)

So my question is - is there anyone out there who does NOT charge their Leaf at home/overnight?

 

[EricBayArea]

To answer your question, no, I mainly charge at home (95%).

But to address what the person said that you spoke to earlier, he must not be very educated. Charging a LEAF puts roughly the same amount of stress on the grid as using an electric clothes dryer, pool cleaning equipment or electric stove/oven - not together, only one. So unless everyone on your block purchased a LEAF or got a hot tub or the like, neither would be the cause blackouts

 

[davewill]

... I told him "well, most people charge at home at night when the grid's not stressed; they don't rely on daytime charging most of the time." He said "you have no proof of that! That's green BS." (plus the usual anti-EV stuff)

So my question is - is there anyone out there who does NOT charge their Leaf at home/overnight?

I suspect there's enough data out there by now that you could prove it...but a guy like that wouldn't listen.

 

[sproqitman]

Just in case your friend can be swayed by facts, there's all kinds of data on the Idaho National Lab's Advanced Vehicle Testing website

 

[Luft]

There are some people who don't care about facts They just want to regurgitate the party line and if confronted by facts or logic they just raise their fact shield.

This guy sounds like one of those. He makes ridiculous statements without any evidence and then accuses you of not having proof that his arguments are false.

Because of his 50 kilowatts remark I am assuming he is talking about DC QC usage. I know of no one who would prefer to plug in to a DC QC station each day away from home and stand around for half an hour rather than just plug in at home. Not only would it be more expensive it would also be inconvenient.

There is probably no good that will come from arguing with this guy. I'm pretty sure he lives in a fact free zone.

 

[EdmondLeaf]

If I am correct there is one person here that is using mostly public evse because condo/apartment does not allow evse installation

 

[billvon]

If I am correct there is one person here that is using mostly public evse because condo/apartment does not allow evse installation

Thanks, that's good info. There are 5233 users here, which is probably a small percentage of the 27000 Leafs sold so far. (I assume most people here are Leaf owners.) So of those 5233 we have one who doesn't charge at home so far.

 

[camasleaf]

I did talk to one Leaf owner in Vancouver, WA that was only using public charging. His comute was less then 10 miles a day (RT), and he will come at one L2 Blink EVSE and charge (and read a book) ever 3-4 days. He lived in condo.

We charge 99% of the time at home, both day and night (is the same rate). I have the Blink set to charge any time between midnight and 5:00 PM, just trying to avoid the afternoon peak usage.

 

[SanDust]

Every study has shown it's no big deal. The consensus is that the existing infrastructure could support 84% of cars, pickup trucks, and SUVs switching to electricity. http://www.ferc.gov/about/com-mem/wellinghoff/5-24-07-technical-analy-wellinghoff.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; Another small study from Oak Ridge Labs and a joint study by the Electric Power Research Institute and the National Resource Defense Council found the same thing.

That BTW was BEFORE demand for electrical power started dropping. It's now lower than it's been in decades. Electrical utilities aren't worried about having enough capacity, they're worried about having too much capacity. http://www.gold-speculator.com/mark-lundeen/75794-demand-electrical-power-collapsing-barron-s-confidence-index-approaching-depression-conditions-levels.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; An EV adds about the same power draw as four plasma TVs. Big deal. Tell him to get some LED bulbs, take two chill pills, stop worrying, and start using some of that excess power that's out there!

I usually charge at night. Maybe a few weekends a year I'll charge during the day.

 

[UkrainianKozak]

Well, I would be the one mostly charging at work, as it is... Free!
But if it was payed, I would definitely charge at home at night, like I do on weekends

To answer your question, no, I mainly charge at home (95%).

But to address what the person said that you spoke to earlier, he must not be very educated. Charging a LEAF puts roughly the same amount of stress on the grid as using an electric clothes dryer, pool cleaning equipment or electric stove/oven - not together, only one. So unless everyone on your block purchased a LEAF or got a hot tub or the like, neither would be the cause blackouts

I think even this is exaggeration... Leaf only pulls 3.3 kW, regular drier on max setting can pull up to 25Amp from 220V, which is more than 5kW, and for stow again, Leaf will be more like 2 1.5kW heating elements, so stove will pull more than leaf if you use all of it...

 

[Jagular]

We live in a condo building in downtown San Jose and we do not charge in our building. San Jose has city parking lots that have charging stations and street charging stations that we use. San Jose doesn't charge EVs for parking (street or garage), if you have a permit ($35 I believe and the permit is for garage parking - street parking is always free for EVs in a charging area). My wife is the primary driver (I work from home) and she also charges at her work (Apple) and that's free, as well. The Apple charging stations are typically in use, however. If she does charge at Apple, she charges during the day, although we occasionally charge in the parking lots at night. The nearest parking lot is literally one block away so that is our primary charging station.

 

[LEAFfan]

Leaf only pulls 3.3 kW, regular drier on max setting can pull up to 25Amp from 220V, which is more than 5kW, and for stow again, Leaf will be more like 2 1.5kW heating elements, so stove will pull more than leaf if you use all of it...

I used to think that too until I looked at the Blink meter and it said it actually uses 3.8kW h, not 3.3.

 

[garsh]

Count me as another owner who charges mainly at work.

 

[DaveEV]

We live in a condo building in downtown San Jose and we do not charge in our building. San Jose has city parking lots that have charging stations and street charging stations that we use. San Jose doesn't charge EVs for parking (street or garage), if you have a permit ($35 I believe and the permit is for garage parking - street parking is always free for EVs in a charging area). My wife is the primary driver (I work from home) and she also charges at her work (Apple) and that's free, as well. The Apple charging stations are typically in use, however. If she does charge at Apple, she charges during the day, although we occasionally charge in the parking lots at night. The nearest parking lot is literally one block away so that is our primary charging station.

Perfect use of charging infrastructure. And people say that EV ownership for condo/apartment owners is not possible! Seems like you guys are doing quite well with a combination of public charging in your area along with charging at work. $35/month is a very fair price to pay for garage parking w/charging, too!

 

[ColumbiaRiverGorge]

I charge 110V at my coworkers house for a $1 a day, but my carpool partners more than offset that cost. It is .08 Kwh in The Dalles, OR. I charge day and night at home, in Hood River, .0615 Kwh. We have an abundance of hydro power here.

 

[Jagular]

We live in a condo building in downtown San Jose and we do not charge in our building. San Jose has city parking lots that have charging stations and street charging stations that we use. San Jose doesn't charge EVs for parking (street or garage), if you have a permit ($35 I believe and the permit is for garage parking - street parking is always free for EVs in a charging area). My wife is the primary driver (I work from home) and she also charges at her work (Apple) and that's free, as well. The Apple charging stations are typically in use, however. If she does charge at Apple, she charges during the day, although we occasionally charge in the parking lots at night. The nearest parking lot is literally one block away so that is our primary charging station.

Perfect use of charging infrastructure. And people say that EV ownership for condo/apartment owners is not possible! Seems like you guys are doing quite well with a combination of public charging in your area along with charging at work. $35/month is a very fair price to pay for garage parking w/charging, too!

Sorry, I didn't make myself clear on the registration fee: $35/year.

 

[GoingGreener]

Jagular -

Is the EV parking permit specific to San Jose residents? Is it required for the free street parking at street charging stations that you mentioned? Just wondering, if we come from out of town and find one by any restaurant/shopping area.

We purchased the EV parking sticker from CA DMV along with the HOV sticker, but :roll: I don't think that parking sticker is applicable for anything now.

 

[surfingslovak]

Is the EV parking permit specific to San Jose residents?

Here is the application form. The vehicle must have been purchased from a dealer located in San Jose: http://bit.ly/sjparking (PDF)

 

[jkirkebo]

Leaf only pulls 3.3 kW, regular drier on max setting can pull up to 25Amp from 220V, which is more than 5kW, and for stow again, Leaf will be more like 2 1.5kW heating elements, so stove will pull more than leaf if you use all of it...

I used to think that too until I looked at the Blink meter and it said it actually uses 3.8kW h, not 3.3.

Correct. 3.3kW is what is put into the battery. The rest is charging overhead (cooling pumps, charger losses etc.).

 

[GoingGreener]

Thanks Surfingslovak.