Arizona and other hot climates

So you have "fast chargers" in Arizona? Any available for public use?

ecoobsessive said:

So you have "fast chargers" in Arizona? Any available for public use?

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Nope, there was/is one and it is not for public access. I have used it a couple times but was asked to not do so again.

Skywagon said:

Nissan had several test cars here all last summer, some of them are still being tested here. They were left outside and fast charged often. I do not think they are expecting problems.

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Sometimes it's worse to leave cars in the hot enclosed garage and charge them inside than outside. The ambient temperature inside a hot garage can easily far exceed that outside and stay that way for a long time into the night. Especially if there's another ICE car or two parked inside next to a LEAF with engines still hot from returning in the evening's drive. I wonder if they do any kind of test with that scenario, which would be much more common than parked cars outside.

So far, our garage stays below the outside temp. It was 115 outside yesterday in the shade (here, not Sky Harbor Airport), but the garage only reached 109. I strongly doubt that as long as the garage stays below 120, there will be any problem with the battery pack. Even then, it won't stay that temp for very long. Yesterday, the 109 was for a few hours, then it began dropping.

Someone posted on another thread that they bought a hybrid hot water heater that takes the hot air out of the garage, heats the water, and cools the garage. Since our garage isn't insulated, I doubt if it would take it down 20 degrees, but even 10 would be nice. I'm not the least worried about the battery pack, but just to heat our water with 550W instead of 4.5KW is an awesome idea. So I'm buying the GE Hybrid (integrated) which lists at Spencer's for only $1299. I checked our present water heater and it is almost 9 years old (been on the blink lately) and you should have seen the dark brown 'crud' that came out the bottom. They hook up almost the same as a regular hot water heater, so installation shouldn't be too hard. There's a $300 fed tax credit for this one because its efficiency rating is 2.3 (2.0 is the minimum for energy star). So, much thanks to that OP for telling us about them! :mrgreen:

LEAFfan said:

Someone posted on another thread that they bought a hybrid hot water heater that takes the hot air out of the garage, heats the water, and cools the garage. Since our garage isn't insulated, I doubt if it would take it down 20 degrees, but even 10 would be nice. I'm not the least worried about the battery pack, but just to heat our water with 550W instead of 4.5KW is an awesome idea. So I'm buying the GE Hybrid (integrated) which lists at Spencer's for only $1299. I checked our present water heater and it is almost 9 years old (been on the blink lately) and you should have seen the dark brown 'crud' that came out the bottom. They hook up almost the same as a regular hot water heater, so installation shouldn't be too hard. There's a $300 fed tax credit for this one because its efficiency rating is 2.3 (2.0 is the minimum for energy star). So, much thanks to that OP for telling us about them! :mrgreen:

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Darn, my 9 year old + water heater just broke (5 months after the 9 year warranty expired), and I just replaced it with another same unit (for easy plug & Play plumbing). Had I read this sooner, I would have investigated it further. I paid $350 for my new one before tax. I would have been glad to pay more for a hybrid one, especially if it qualifies for a $300 tax credit.

The hybrid (heat pump) water heaters are taller than similar sized resistance heaters so the plumbing connections may require minor changes. When I had to replace my water heater 1-1/2 years ago, I could not find a hybrid in stock and could not wait for a special order so I settled for a well-insulated resistance unit. I have talked to people who have hybrids and like them. They really make sense in our climate--pump heat out of the garage and save energy.

Battery temperature gauge in my Leaf has ranged between 6 and 7 bars in the 2 weeks I have had it so far. Never over 7 even when charging to 100% and then driving immediately on the freeway with the air conditioning on high. Never below 6 even after sitting at the airport for several days without being charged and driving home late at night.

Air conditioning works better in stop-and-go city driving at 113 F than any other car I have driven. Also, I am pleasantly surprised how little battery power the A/C draws, especially after the interior cools down.

Gerry