Quick Charge L3 in LA, San Bernardino, Riverside Counties

[GPowers]

A shame the owner took the risk to do something no one else has done and ends up with huge demand charges.

As Leaf owners we need to support the 7-11.

 

[TonyWilliams]

A shame the owner took the risk to do something no one else has done and ends up with huge demand charges.

As Leaf owners we need to support the 7-11.

The 7-11 doesn't own the charger, although you're welcome to support them.

 

[KJD]

A shame the owner took the risk to do something no one else has done and ends up with huge demand charges.

As Leaf owners we need to support the 7-11.

The 7-11 doesn't own the charger, although you're welcome to support them.

OK now I am confused. Who does the own the charger ?

Who pays the outlandish power bill ?

What is best way to say thank you to these people ?

 

[TonyWilliams]

A shame the owner took the risk to do something no one else has done and ends up with huge demand charges.

As Leaf owners we need to support the 7-11.

The 7-11 doesn't own the charger, although you're welcome to support them.

OK now I am confused. Who does the own the charger ?

Who pays the outlandish power bill ?

What is best way to say thank you to these people ?

It's owned by a private party, who built and sold the 7-11. It has it's own electric meter, so the 7-11 doesn't have any interaction with it (besides selling you a coke while you wait).

The owner pays the power bill. I don't know how you might thank him.... Leave a note here.

 

[abasile]

We continue to be appreciative of this Quick Charger. Today my wife was down the mountain and was a little short on charge to come up. She could have stopped by Fontana Nissan for maybe 45 minutes to bring the state of charge up to a tolerable level, but instead used the QC for maybe 15 minutes, picked up coffee at the 7 Eleven, and had enough extra charge to drive faster up the mountain.

Also, our entire mountain town had a power outage this afternoon due to someone smashing their Jeep into a utility pole. :? Given that the power lines were down, we feared that the outage was going to last for days. Thankfully, Southern California Edison took care of the problem right away and our power is back up. But it was nice to know that we could have used the QC if we couldn't charge at home. (Unfortunately, CA-18 traffic is being diverted onto our neighborhood street while they deal with the aftermath.)

So, for those of you down in the urban jungle and bland SoCal suburbia, know that the QC in San Bernardino remains available to "fuel" your LEAF escape to the mountains.

 

[tbleakne]

June 1 is fast approaching, at which time the SCE demand charge is going to go to its higher Summer rate. The owner might decide to shut it off again.

 

[TonyWilliams]

June 1 is fast approaching, at which time the SCE demand charge is going to go to its higher Summer rate. The owner might decide to shut it off again.

I know he will be out of town then.

 

[hill]

Regarding the OP ... what about O.C. I mean - what are we - chopped liver?
Yes, we have the grace of Mitsu to be thankful for. But I wonder about the city of Anaheim, and THEIR separate / non Edison utility company. Aren't they on their own power? Do they hit their businesses with the mongo demand fee? If not, then it'd be a great place to start making inquiries ... or other municipalities that have their own power arrangements.

 

[TonyWilliams]

I suspect that, like any rule, the demand charge could be raised or lowered without any input from DC charger installers. Actually, I would expect that if every DC installer flocked to a low cost or non-existent demand charge utility, that is precisely what will happen.

So, the single biggest cost that cannot be unrealized (you can't really sell it) is the 5 figure installation. How much of your money would you gamble on such an arrangement?

 

[hill]

I suspect that, like any rule, the demand charge could be raised or lowered without any input from DC charger installers. Actually, I would expect that if every DC installer flocked to a low cost or non-existent demand charge utility, that is precisely what will happen.

So, the single biggest cost that cannot be unrealized (you can't really sell it) is the 5 figure installation. How much of your money would you gamble on such an arrangement?

We may have to start a non-profit agency ... after all, if the Amish can work together donating time building furniture, barns, buggies etc ... we ought to have the wherewithal to be able to trench, pull wire, set forms, pour concrete, install and maintain. There I go ... being crazy again :?

 

[TonyWilliams]

Amish can work together donating time building furniture, barns, buggies etc ... we ought to have the wherewithal to be able to trench, pull wire, set forms, pour concrete, install and maintain. There I go ... being crazy again :?

With a contractor's license, that might be possible. You couldn't get a permit otherwise, and business wouldn't let amateurs touch anything on their property anyway.

I don't know many contractors who would cheat themselves out of money (by working for free or reduced cost).

Even the co-ops don't have untrained (read that to mean "gunna sue you") workers doing their electrical work.

You may recall on another thread where I specified how if the unit were installed free, the charger paid for, and operational, that the "Just-Drive-The-Prius(TM)" mentality won't pay ongoing costs, which will greatly exceed the cost of driving a Prius.

Failure, with lots of money expended. I predict that any such donations of money, should they happen, would come from outside the LEAF community; perhaps from somebody who just wants to make a difference.

 

[garygid]

The Bill Gates Memorial Electrical Highway?
(Mexico to Canada for a Start)

 

[abasile]

The Bill Gates Memorial Electrical Highway?
(Mexico to Canada for a Start)

Sounds great! The only thing is, to be a "Memorial" highway, wouldn't the person for whom it's named have to be deceased?

Tony has a point - most of us buying the first affordable, mass-produced EV have some money, but not enough to feel okay dropping $50K with no expectation of seeing a dollar in return.

 

[garygid]

Memorial?
Yes, just covering the bases. :lol:

 

[Randy]

Tony,
Would you happen to know what rate the 7-11 DC FC service is on?

With SCE's recent advice letter filing, the store/owner may want to consider SCE rate TOU-EV-4 if they can or if they qualify....

http://www.sce.com/NR/sc3/tm2/pdf/2723-E.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

 

[TonyWilliams]

Tony,
Would you happen to know what rate the 7-11 DC FC service is on?

With SCE's recent advice letter filing, the store/owner may want to consider SCE rate TOU-EV-4 if they can or if they qualify....

http://www.sce.com/NR/sc3/tm2/pdf/2723-E.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

He has been advised.

 

[TonyWilliams]

Tony has a point - most of us buying the first affordable, mass-produced EV have some money, but not enough to feel okay dropping $50K with no expectation of seeing a dollar in return.

Every LEAF driver in California got a big fat check from the state, either $2500 or $5000. Ten people handing over their free $5000 check makes $50k. Twenty folks who got $2500.

Not even including the $7500 tax credit on your lease or purchase.

 

[hill]

The Bill Gates Memorial Electrical Highway?
(Mexico to Canada for a Start)

 

[abasile]

This evening, with two adults and three kids in the car plus my bicycle and a bunch of groceries, we were thankful to be able to use the Quick Charger before driving up the mountain. We arrived with about 30% and left with about 80%.

The only downside is that it took longer this time, as the maximum rate of charge has apparently been limited to about 16 kW in order to avoid demand charges. Still, that is about five times as fast as 3.3 kW Level 2 charging. Hats off to the owner for making this QC available and doing what is necessary to keep it in operation without breaking the bank!

At the lower charge rate, it now makes sense to not only pick up a treat at the 7 Eleven while waiting, but perhaps also walk over to the Stater Bros. (on the next block) for a few groceries. Not bad at all if you plan ahead. (And it's gentler on the LEAF's battery.)

 

[abasile]

Tony has a point - most of us buying the first affordable, mass-produced EV have some money, but not enough to feel okay dropping $50K with no expectation of seeing a dollar in return.

Every LEAF driver in California got a big fat check from the state, either $2500 or $5000. Ten people handing over their free $5000 check makes $50k. Twenty folks who got $2500.

Not even including the $7500 tax credit on your lease or purchase.

Yes, that is true, and we are thankful to have benefited from the government incentives. On the other hand, we factored them into the price of the car. Without the incentives, we would never have considered the purchase of an EV in the first place; we'd be driving a used Prius. As it was, I had to work pretty hard to convince my wife to agree to us buying a new car, the LEAF. While it would be nice to put more money into supporting the EV movement, we also have college expenses on the horizon, etc.

If all goes well and we manage our resources wisely, then hopefully within the next couple decades we'll be able to serve as benefactors of one or more cool projects, as the owner of the San Bernardino QC has done. You could say we are in the "wealth building" phase of our lives, though the present real estate downturn has been a setback. I have a lot of respect for the folks who are prepared to use their wealth to support good causes.