There is no carport in the community, and charging the electric car in the rain is scary!
2024-08-12
한어Русский языкEnglishFrançaisIndonesianSanskrit日本語DeutschPortuguêsΕλληνικάespañolItalianoSuomalainenLatina
With frequent rainfall in recent days, residents' electric vehicle charging safety has once again attracted attention. In recent years, in order to solve the problem of electric vehicle charging, many communities have added centralized charging facilities such as charging piles according to local conditions, which has greatly facilitated residents. However, some residents reported that while adding charging piles, some communities did not pay enough attention to the construction of carports. The charging piles were not covered, and car owners could only charge in the open air. Is it safe to charge in the open air when it rains? Can the carports be fully equipped? The reporter launched an investigation.
One question
Can the rainproof design of charging piles alone ensure safety?
"There is no carport in the community. Whenever it rains, electric vehicles can only be charged in the rain, which makes people nervous." Since the flood season began, residents of many communities have reported that there are not enough carports as supporting facilities for charging electric vehicles, and they are eager to make up for the shortcomings.
On August 3, the reporter first visited the fifth district of Langfang Garden in Tongzhou District. Entering from the west gate, an electric vehicle shed suddenly appeared in front of us. Not only were the vehicles parked in an orderly manner, but there was also a row of charging piles in the shed, and many electric vehicles were charging in an orderly manner.
However, when the reporter arrived in front of Building 7, he found that although there were electric vehicle charging piles, there was no carport, and the row of charging sockets were all exposed. When he got closer, he found that these sockets were not completely "naked", and plastic rainproof brims were set above and on both sides of each socket.
The charging pile in front of Building 6 in the community also does not have a carport. The charging socket here has a layer of transparent plastic protective shell. It is usually in a closed state and will only be opened when charging.
The reporter also visited District 6 and District 7 of Langfang Garden and found that the ratio of charging piles in the community was relatively high, with basically one in front of every unit building, but the configuration of carports varied.
During the interview, it suddenly rained heavily. The reporter braved the rain to check the outdoor charging piles in front of each unit building and found that there was almost no rain because the sockets were covered. However, many electric vehicles were charging at this time, and the chargers and charging cables were directly exposed to the outside, and they were still soaked by the rain.
Due to the sudden rain, many residents did not realize that their cars were still charging in the open air. The reporter observed for a long time in front of many open-air charging piles, but did not see any car owners coming to shelter from the rain.
"Sometimes it rains suddenly at night and there is no time to deal with it. The electric car and charger are exposed and connected to the power. I wonder if this is dangerous?" said a resident. Although the charging piles are equipped with rainproof brims, if it rains heavily and there is wind, people are still worried that rainwater will flow in and seep into the socket. "Since the community has enough space to install charging piles, it would be best to add a carport on this basis to avoid accidents caused by open-air charging."
There is also an open-air charging pile on the northwest side of Building 39, Xingfu Village 2, Chaoyang District. On August 4, the reporter visited and found that this charging pile is the only electric vehicle charging facility in the community. It is located in a closed and independent electric vehicle parking lot. Although the space is large enough, there is no special carport. There is a circle of railings and iron nets around it, and you need to pass a gate to enter and exit. Although the charging socket is also equipped with a plastic rainproof hat, many residents are still worried that charging in rainy days is unsafe, fearing leakage, short circuit, etc.
In addition, the open-air charging piles on the north side of Building 10, West District, Xinjing Homeland, Dongcheng District, have also been criticized by residents. On August 5, when the reporter visited, he found that the utilization rate of this charging pile was very high, and in the evening it was full of electric cars being charged. However, since there is no carport, the charging piles are close to the green belt and very close to the residential buildings, some residents are worried that if charging in the open air on rainy days causes an accident, the consequences will be disastrous. "If conditions permit, I hope to build a carport as soon as possible."
Second question
Can the community build a carport for the open-air charging pile?
Is it feasible to build carports for outdoor charging piles? The reporter found that community space, residents' opinions and funds are all important factors affecting the installation of carports.
Regarding the lack of carports in the Langfangyuan community, the Linheli Street District said that there are 29 sets of charging piles in the community, 12 of which have no carports. If new ones are to be built, they need to be approved by the District Planning Bureau. In addition, new carports cannot occupy fire passages or public green spaces, and construction can only be carried out after the consent of two-thirds of the residents. However, the community currently does not meet the above conditions and cannot build charging pile carports for the time being.
The property management staff of the community said that the local street is currently promoting the installation of the carport, and the community has not yet widely solicited residents' opinions. Once the local street agrees to install the carport, the community and the property management will fully solicit residents' opinions and discuss with residents on specific details such as whether to install it and how to install it.
Regarding whether it is possible to add awnings to the charging piles next to Building 39 in Xingfu Village 2 and Building 10 in Xinjing Home West District, the local government also stated that the public land is shared by the owners of the community and requires the consent of two-thirds of the owners before it can be carried out. Residents' opinions are currently being solicited in order to further coordinate and promote related matters.
The reporter further interviewed and found that some communities actually considered installing carports for charging piles after receiving residents' requests, but some residents expressed opposition due to concerns that it might affect their own lighting or traffic, so the staff had to give up. As for whether the installation can be carried out in the future, further investigation of on-site conditions is needed to determine feasible solutions. Some communities cannot install carports because the property management company is considering the cost of installation, or because the property rights relationship is complicated and the parties concerned find it difficult to reach an agreement on funding issues.
According to the "Guidelines for the Construction of Centralized Charging Facilities for Electric Bicycles" issued by the Beijing Municipal Urban Management Committee in 2022, the use of public spaces in residential areas to build charging facilities and supporting electric bicycle sheds will help improve residents' comfort and convenience. According to equipment management, planning approval procedures are exempted. "If there is no shed, the site can be selected in public areas after soliciting residents' opinions through public announcements and other means."
The reporter interviewed several communities and streets, and the relevant staff said that the key to whether the new carport can be built is whether the residents' opinions are fully solicited in advance. If only charging piles are installed without soliciting residents' opinions in advance, when residents have strong demands, they can only make up for it afterwards and solicit residents' opinions again. Therefore, it is best to fully consider the construction of carports at the beginning of installing charging piles.
Three Questions
Is it safe to charge in the open air during rainy days?
Since many communities have not yet installed awnings due to various factors, is it safe to charge on rainy days?
Next to many open-air charging piles, businesses have posted prominent warning signs saying "No outdoor charging on rainy days."
The reporter consulted several businesses about this, and the relevant staff all said that the charging piles have certificates of conformity when they leave the factory, meet national standards, have patented designs for their shells, have drainage holes at the bottom, and the cover of the device socket also has a protective function. They have also been strictly tested in bad weather before being put on the market. Therefore, even in rainy and snowy weather, there are no safety hazards when the charging piles are not in use.
However, since some communities do not have awnings, when charging in rainy or snowy weather, the charger and charging cable are usually exposed, posing a greater safety hazard. Therefore, outdoor charging is not recommended.
A staff member said that businesses are often only responsible for building charging piles and daily maintenance, and the installation of awnings should be the responsibility of the local authorities. "We also suggest that communities improve relevant rain shelter facilities. Even if there is no awning, charging on rainy days should be covered with raincoats or other protective equipment."
The reporter learned that the "Electric Bicycle Charging Facility Operation Management Service Specifications", which is a local standard in Beijing, was officially implemented on July 1, 2023. It clearly requires that "AC charging piles that are not set up in electric bicycle parking areas should have rain shelter measures, and those set up in electric bicycle parking areas can make full use of the rain shelter measures of the site" and "special safety inspections should be carried out regularly to confirm that rain protection facilities are complete."
Journalist's Notes
Supplement supporting facilities to ensure charging safety
There are charging piles but no carports, which causes electric vehicles to get wet frequently when charging in rainy days. This not only brings a lot of inconvenience, but also increasingly poses safety hazards. Such problems are receiving more and more attention from citizens.
Data shows that by the end of 2023, the number of two-wheeled electric vehicles in my country will have reached 420 million. Behind this huge number, how to ensure the safety of electric vehicle charging is a practical problem facing city managers.
In recent years, various communities have been working hard to find opportunities and tap their internal potential to add a number of charging stations, aiming to fundamentally eliminate the chaos of electric vehicles entering buildings. This is a general trend, and it also shows the grassroots' service sentiment for the people in subtle details, which is worthy of praise.
As residents become more and more accustomed to outdoor charging, higher requirements will inevitably be placed on the safety and convenience of public charging piles. How to make the carport more fully equipped and how to ensure charging safety in rainy and snowy weather will also become the next step in improving the convenience project.
In reality, there were certainly various objective conditions limiting the installation of charging piles. Some communities rushed into the project without extensive consultation with residents, and some communities lacked scientific and comprehensive planning and design and risk assessment, which led to various problems during residents' use. At this point, it would be a hassle to go back and "make up for the lost time".
However, for the safety of life and property, electric vehicles must be strictly prohibited from entering buildings. Residents have a strong demand for charging, so the gap and shortcomings of outdoor charging must be made up. This requires the local and community property management to brainstorm, discuss with residents, and patiently and firmly promote the construction and improvement of public charging facilities.
At the same time, this also reminds the communities that are considering installing charging piles to do their homework in advance and consider everything as much as possible in the early stage. Not only should the charging facilities be replenished quickly, but also the related supporting facilities such as carports should be fully considered to minimize the risks of outdoor charging, so as to face the residents with a rigorous and responsible attitude. Of course, a series of issues are closely related to the interests of all parties, and all require the residents, the local authorities and the relevant management departments to work together and negotiate to solve them.
Completing the charging facilities may seem like a "small matter", but it is actually a "big project" that complies with public opinion, is in line with public sentiment, and solves public concerns. Only by taking a step forward and making scientific plans based on local conditions, and taking into account convenience and safety, can we jointly solve the pain points of electric vehicle charging.
