Where will ‘garage orphans’ charge electric cars? • Hacker News Board

Re: Where will ‘garage orphans’ charge electric cars?

#331

Post by halbritt » Mon, Aug 12, 2019, 9:49 PM UTC

stevesimmons wrote: post #318

mises wrote: post #302

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think when he says "show up looking presentable", it may be that he needs to be in suits or business casual, preferably unwrinkled. Also, I am exceptionally disinclined to bike through below-zero weather, snow tires or no (referring to the hypothetical canadian). Let alone Texas summers, which regularly hit 105 this time of year. I don't care if there are showers or not, it's just darn unpleasant to be outside this…

I cycled to work for years in the Netherlands (down to -5C in winter) and Australia (frequenctly 35C+ in summer). The secret in both cases is: (i) keep appropriate clothes at the office; (ii) wear suitable cycling gear (as the Dutch say, there's no such thing as unsuitable weather, only unsuitable clothing); (iii) find a way to shower at work; (iv) be good humored when weather or other mishaps occur...

A German guy told me that was a German expression.

Which one of you is right?

Re: Where will ‘garage orphans’ charge electric cars?

#332

Post by Aloha » Mon, Aug 12, 2019, 9:50 PM UTC

dsfyu404ed wrote: post #303

Aloha wrote: post #248

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Perhaps a laundromat with chargers. I've often said that if I were to open a retail business, it'd be a 24 hours combo, laundromat, pizza place, coffee shop and book store, probably with a side of bodega inside.

Laundromat thrift store. You need to wash all the clothing you take in and people want to wash stuff after they buy it. A food truck might bundle with a tool truck. Considering that food trucks occasionally run out of trailers you could explore the idea with minimal risk by owning one and partnering with someone who has the other The idea has potential but you'd need the experience of actually running these kinds of…

I mean adding a thrift store isn't an inherently bad idea

Re: Where will ‘garage orphans’ charge electric cars?

#333

Post by stordoff » Mon, Aug 12, 2019, 9:50 PM UTC

rhombocombus wrote: post #162

ses1984 wrote: post #157

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I believe that some of that is covered by other appliances becoming more efficient. How many 60-100w light bulbs did people used to run in their home? Tube tvs? Those devices have largely been replaced by more modern versions that use an order of magnitude less power.

This is my understanding as well, I remember reading something that said new power consumption is either flattening or decreasing because modern electronics and appliances are getting more and more efficient.

This is certainly the case in the UK. Electricity usage has dropped by 9% meant 2010-2017[1], despite a growing population (and by 18% over a longer period).

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2018/jan/30/uk-electric...

Re: Where will ‘garage orphans’ charge electric cars?

#334

Post by baron816 » Mon, Aug 12, 2019, 9:50 PM UTC

wffurr wrote: post #127

Yet another reason the real answer to the climate crisis isn't EVs - it's public transit, bicycles, e-bikes, scooters, e-scooters, walking, etc. All these other modes are much lower impact on the environment than purchasing and operating an EV, much less an ICE.

Hopefully (from a convenience standpoint) driverless will be the solution. Could still be zero emissions. Hard to imagine half the country migrating to denser areas within 30 years.

Re: Where will ‘garage orphans’ charge electric cars?

#335

Post by umeshunni » Mon, Aug 12, 2019, 9:51 PM UTC

thehappypm wrote: post #220

This stopped me from buying a Tesla with my most recent car purchase. I live in a 100 year old apartment in Boston that has 0 parking spots for over 100 units. My wife and I share a car, mostly for weekend adventuring, so we rent a spot in a dude's backyard down the block from us. It works well for us, much more convenient than the rat race of street parking. But it was hard to imagine that life with a Tesla. I could…

I've been trickle charging for the last 3+ years I've owned a Tesla. I live in a condo and the HOA was ok with me pulling an extension from an existing 110V line and charging from it for a nominal fee (we agreed to $50/mo).

I got an electrician to pull an extension (cost ~$200). I have a non-driving commute and use the car mostly on the weekends, so it's worked out great vs the cost of installing a level-2 charger ($1000+).

Re: Where will ‘garage orphans’ charge electric cars?

#336

Post by quicklyfrozen » Mon, Aug 12, 2019, 9:51 PM UTC

stevesimmons wrote: post #318

mises wrote: post #302

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think when he says "show up looking presentable", it may be that he needs to be in suits or business casual, preferably unwrinkled. Also, I am exceptionally disinclined to bike through below-zero weather, snow tires or no (referring to the hypothetical canadian). Let alone Texas summers, which regularly hit 105 this time of year. I don't care if there are showers or not, it's just darn unpleasant to be outside this…

I cycled to work for years in the Netherlands (down to -5C in winter) and Australia (frequenctly 35C+ in summer). The secret in both cases is: (i) keep appropriate clothes at the office; (ii) wear suitable cycling gear (as the Dutch say, there's no such thing as unsuitable weather, only unsuitable clothing); (iii) find a way to shower at work; (iv) be good humored when weather or other mishaps occur...

-5C isn't particularly cold. Would you have been out in -20C with gusty winds and drifting snow? How do I get those appropriate clothes to the office, and where do I store them? Can't be all wrinkled -- and these days you may not even have an assigned desk. And I can be good humored, but will my boss be?

Really, though, if we consider bikes safe enough for transportation, why can't we have ultralight enclosed EVs?

Re: Where will ‘garage orphans’ charge electric cars?

#337

Post by IshKebab » Mon, Aug 12, 2019, 9:51 PM UTC

flyingfences wrote: post #197

kennywinker wrote: post #150

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ebike/scoot to transit hub, trains to commercial areas. It’s not rocket science.

Bikes and scooters are great (provided there are safe riding lanes and trails) until there's any weather. If I have to show up at work looking presentable then biking through a downpour simply isn't an option. If there's any sort of snow or ice on the ground then biking simply isn't an option.

Do you think people don't cycle in the rain? Just get a waterproof and waterproof trousers.

Re: Where will ‘garage orphans’ charge electric cars?

#338

Post by zimprop » Mon, Aug 12, 2019, 9:54 PM UTC

wffurr wrote: post #127

Yet another reason the real answer to the climate crisis isn't EVs - it's public transit, bicycles, e-bikes, scooters, e-scooters, walking, etc. All these other modes are much lower impact on the environment than purchasing and operating an EV, much less an ICE.

I 100% agree, not only are they much lower impact on the environment but from an implementation perspective are far simpler. I find it kind of funny that people talk about the future of travel and transit being automated electric cars that can pick one person up and take them to another predetermined place without the passenger's intervention. I immediately think it kinda sounds like a bus or a train. I think we have gotten into the habit of falling so in love with convoluted high tech solutions that we overlook the most basic and straightforward answers to these deep problems

Re: Where will ‘garage orphans’ charge electric cars?

#339

Post by umeshunni » Mon, Aug 12, 2019, 9:56 PM UTC

kelnos wrote: post #191

michaelbuckbee wrote: post #178

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've seen a few listings where EV charging parking spots are listed as a perk. You might be surprised how willingly your landlord is keen to go with you paying to upgrade their building.

Many people might think it's ridiculous to have to pay to have an expensive piece of infrastructure installed that isn't theirs to keep once they move away.

It cost me For someone in the UK, this is an even better deal since their car will charge twice as fast at 220V.

Re: Where will ‘garage orphans’ charge electric cars?

#340

Post by Pfhreak » Mon, Aug 12, 2019, 9:59 PM UTC

frankus wrote: post #250

Pfhreak wrote: post #13

Where will garage orphans add gasoline to their cars if they must park on the street? If only there was a way to add energy to a vehicle outside of the home. Cars park all over the place. Distributed charging infrastructure doesn't sound too impossible -- parking meters probably already need electricity. Park and rides or business parking lots incentivize people to shop or commute in certain ways for a relatively mod…

The main difference is that a gas pump can dump single-digit megawatts of power, so a "full charge" only takes a few minutes. The best commercial EV fast chargers (that require a six-figure DC power converter) are on the order of a quarter of a megawatt, and a good level 2 charger (basically a glorified dryer plug) is just shy of 10kW.

But it also requires human attention. There's TONS of time in a day when your car is just hanging around somewhere. It doesn't need to be as fast if it's ubiquitous.