Fast Low Cost Charging - All EVSE Questions Answered!

[adric22]

I am planning on using an upgrade as my only EVSE.

Have those with deliveries found any real necessity in having a "spare"?

Seems to me it could be left at home when you are sure to be within range that day, and would be little trouble to pack it in the trunk every day, if your "EVSE-less range anxiety" so required.

My wife has been driving her Leaf for 3 weeks (I have one on order too.. should be here in another 2-3 weeks) and so far she has never plugged in the car anywhere but at home. In fact, the first week all we had was the level-1 charger included with the Leaf. So each day she would unplug it, wrap the cord back up, and place it back in the trunk. There were a few times when visiting family on the other side of town where we had discussed plugging in while we were at their house. But when we saw how much range was available after reaching our destination, it turned out not to be necessary.

However - I would never drive anywhere without having it with me. What happens if I need to change plans in the middle of the day and end up driving further than expected. There are no charging stations in my area yet so my only hope would be to find a 110V plug and charge for a few hours.

I'm thinking of possibly ordering one of those modified EVSEs so that I can charge from 220V even at friends/family house by using the socket for their hot water heater or clothes dryer.

 

[lettcco]

Alas, my procrastination has cost me ~$30, but I suppose I should jump in now before Ingineer stop doing this all together.

something I am not sure if it has been answered before:
-What does quick 220 offer that I can't implement myself? linked fuse? If I have two adjacent plugs that are on 2 different legs of 120V, with a little work I can wire them together. The linking of fuse at the panel would be a little tricky but not impossible, but that's why I am asking questions here...

-if using quick 220, how much current would it draw from each 120V line? I have one 120v socket that is dedicated for charging, but the other 2 adjacent one has either a garage opener or a TV/stereo hooked up to it so I want to make sure it doesn't exceed the limit.

 

[waidy]

Hi Phil, I have a "long" 8 awg assembly which I use for my RAV. One end has L6-20 receptacle and the other end has NEMA 14-50. I was going to use it with the L1/L2 module then it would not "mate" (i.e. I cannot plug them in or connect them). It seems that the three blade slots on the L6-20R I have, are spaced slight apart than the nice looking L6-20R you have. Is there any trick to connect these so I can take advantage of the long cable?

How do you attach a png here?

 

[garygid]

1. The Mod-L1 (on 120v or 240v) tells the LEAF to not draw more than 12 amps.

2. Probably you do not have an L6-20R, but an L6-30R?

 

[waidy]

1. The Mod-L1 (on 120v or 240v) tells the LEAF to not draw more than 12 amps.

2. Probably you do not have an L6-20R, but an L6-30R?

You are correct. I went and looked, it's an L6-30R :-(

 

[Volusiano]

something I am not sure if it has been answered before:
-What does quick 220 offer that I can't implement myself? linked fuse? If I have two adjacent plugs that are on 2 different legs of 120V, with a little work I can wire them together. The linking of fuse at the panel would be a little tricky but not impossible, but that's why I am asking questions here...

I've read some posts where people contemplate doing a Y connector, but were advised of the danger if one of the 120 plugs gets exposed while the other plug is plugged in with a load causing the exposed plug to be live.

I think the Quick220 offers the safety feature that checks and locks out the power circuits until everything is safely connected first. And if anything is disconnected or there's power loss, the interlock will automatically disconnect. It also has a built-in detector with an LED to tell you whether the 2 120V outlets are from separate circuits or not.

There are some guesses that relays and parts may run around $60 if you're inclined to make a home-built version yourself.

 

[davewill]

-if using quick 220, how much current would it draw from each 120V line? I have one 120v socket that is dedicated for charging, but the other 2 adjacent one has either a garage opener or a TV/stereo hooked up to it so I want to make sure it doesn't exceed the limit.

It's going to draw the full 12a from both of them. They essentially become one circuit. If you have the skills, I'd take the time to wire a proper 240v receptacle rather than rely on something like the Quick220 at home. In fact, that dedicated 15a 120v circuit (if truly dedicated) could be converted to 15a 240v pretty easily. You just need a double breaker instead of a single, a new L6-20 outlet, and wire it hot-hot-ground instead of hot-neutral-ground.

I looked around and here's Phil's original post on doing exactly that:
http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=26&t=2707&p=73701&#p73701

Yes, you can do this. You need to purchase a new 2-pole breaker, a new L6-20 outlet, and some red electrical tape.

First, be absolutely sure that it is a dedicated circuit! Use extreme caution!

1. Cut power to the service panel feeding the circuit.
2. Shut off and remove the original single-pole breaker (15 or 20A).
3. Locate the white neutral wire and remove it from the Neutral Bus bar.
4. Use red tape to cover the white wire so that it's now clearly red.
5. Verify power off and Remove the old outlet.
6. Tape the white wire here as well.
7. Connect and install the new 240V outlet. (Black to X, Red to Y)
8. Install the new 2-pole 15 or 20A breaker.
9. Wire the black and (now) red wires to the 2 screws on the breaker.
10. Replace the panel cover, restore power, and then turn on the new breaker.

-Phil

 

[Bassman]

Have a quick 220 and Ingineers upgraded L1/now L2 capable EVSE. The Quick 220 won't allow power to the outlet unless both 120 volt outlets are plug in and on seperate circuits. It has a light that turns on when everything is correct. It also has a 20 amp 240 volt circuit breaker built in. I'll be using it tomorrow at work.

 

[Ingineer]

1. The Mod-L1 (on 120v or 240v) tells the LEAF to not draw more than 12 amps.

2. Probably you do not have an L6-20R, but an L6-30R?

You are correct. I went and looked, it's an L6-30R :-(

So you need an L6-30P to L6-20R adapter. I happen to have the L6-30P pigtails as well which you could use to make an adapter.

We have done upgrades for people using an L6-30 instead of the L6-20, and can do so upon request.

If you like, I'll be happy to swap your EVSE with one equipped with an L6-30 instead.

-Phil

 

[sdbonez]

btw, thanks Ingineer - the modified EVSE arrived back yesterday (1 calendar week turnaround from SoCal with 4 business days chocked up to UPS). I used it for the first time last night and it worked GREAT!

Oh, and I finally have a use for my Blink's cord reel (to support the modified Nissan EVSE brick!)

 

[waidy]

So you need an L6-30P to L6-20R adapter. I happen to have the L6-30P pigtails as well which you could use to make an adapter.

We have done upgrades for people using an L6-30 instead of the L6-20, and can do so upon request.

If you like, I'll be happy to swap your EVSE with one equipped with an L6-30 instead.

-Phil

You are wonderful!! I would love to have your L6-30P pigtail. Please (pretty please) bring it to the meeting on the 14th. I use my color printer to print out the "Danger" sign and use it in San Francisco today while I was charging the LEAF. Thank you thank you.

 

[Ingineer]

Uh Oh!

One of our EVSE's is "on the Blink"! :lol:

btw, thanks Ingineer - the modified EVSE arrived back yesterday (1 calendar week turnaround from SoCal with 4 business days chocked up to UPS). I used it for the first time last night and it worked GREAT!

Oh, and I finally have a use for my Blink's cord reel (to support the modified Nissan EVSE brick!)

 

[cdh]

Just received my modified EVSE from Phil - Turned around in same day (delivered 10:30am, shipped by 5pm) and returned in impeccable condition. This guy is working around the clock. EVSEUpgrade.com Good Work!

 

[lettcco]

I understand there is a $50 charge to get the volt mod add on. But Just out of curiosity, does the original 120V evse works with Volt? what about the AV unit?

 

[EVDRIVER]

I understand there is a $50 charge to get the volt mod add on. But Just out of curiosity, does the original 120V evse works with Volt? what about the AV unit?

The Volt option is now $10 and is needed to make it work for 120 or 240V, the Nissan EVSE will not work on the Volt on 120V. I can't speak for the AV unit but Phil can interject.

 

[IBELEAF]

btw, thanks Ingineer - the modified EVSE arrived back yesterday (1 calendar week turnaround from SoCal with 4 business days chocked up to UPS). I used it for the first time last night and it worked GREAT!

Oh, and I finally have a use for my Blink's cord reel (to support the modified Nissan EVSE brick!)

I am doing the same setup and was wondering where did you order that adapter cord for the outlet?

 

[linkim]

Just received my modified EVSE from Phil - Turned around in same day (delivered 10:30am, shipped by 5pm) and returned in impeccable condition. This guy is working around the clock. EVSEUpgrade.com Good Work!

Just a gentle reminder for Phil. There are only about 168 hours before the Leaf Meeting on May 14. Many of us are looking forward to get the modified EVSE at the meeting, but if you can't fulfill all the requests, I can understand.

 

[GeekEV]

I am doing the same setup and was wondering where did you order that adapter cord for the outlet?

He got them from me.

See this thread: http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=26&t=3085

 

[ElectricVehicle]

1. The Mod-L1 (on 120v or 240v) tells the LEAF to not draw more than 12 amps.

2. Probably you do not have an L6-20R, but an L6-30R?

You are correct. I went and looked, it's an L6-30R :-(

So you need an L6-30P to L6-20R adapter. I happen to have the L6-30P pigtails as well which you could use to make an adapter.
We have done upgrades for people using an L6-30 instead of the L6-20, and can do so upon request.

I also have a RAV4 EV. So I have existing adapters that are L6-30. With the lower power charger of the 1st gen LEAF 3.3 kW (12 miles/hour of charging), an L6-20 can be used. So I got some of the L6-20 extensions from StayOnline and I'll be using those and maybe make an L6-20 to 14-50 adapter.

The majority of my adapters and cabling will be L6-30 so I can use them with the RAV4 EVs 6.6 kW charger and also re-use them for the LEAF gen 2 with 6.6 kW, or any other electric vehicle that uses the 6.6 kW charge rate (25 miles/hour of charging).

So to be prepared for the future LEAF or maybe a visiting Ford Focus EV, Tesla Roadster (using Tesla J1772 adapter), Tesla Model S, Tesla / Toyota RAV4 EV, all my EV charging circuits are 240V 40A, my plugs, receptacles and connectors are ether NEMA L6-30 or 14-50. I'll also have some L6-30 extensions with 10 Gauge wire for 30A.

I expect to be at BayLeafs meet up. I'll bring my J1772 to 14-50 adapter useful for non-J1772 EVs, like the RAV4 EV and some of the nice Camco 14-50 plugs and receptacles that have the handle molded in, making them easier to plug and unplug.

Ps. I really like Phil's EVSE mod, and will likely use it on future vehicles even though it's not 6.6 kW, when I'm visiting friends or traveling and at a place for several hours or overnight I'll still get a fair charge or even 100% over some hours. For a road trip where you're actually waiting for it to charge - you'll want the highest charge rate possible, often 6.6 kW (though Tesla goes up to 16.8 kW!), especially while we're waiting for Quick Chargers for that 30 minute charge (160 miles/hour of charging - limited to 30 minutes of 80 miles at a time) to get deployed!

 

[Volusiano]

I understand there is a $50 charge to get the volt mod add on. But Just out of curiosity, does the original 120V evse works with Volt? what about the AV unit?

The Volt option is now $10 and is needed to make it work for 120 or 240V, the Nissan EVSE will not work on the Volt on 120V. I can't speak for the AV unit but Phil can interject.

At $10 to make it compatible with the Volt, I don't see why anyone would not pay the extra $10 for this option even if they don't own a Volt, in case you ever want to sell your modified EVSE to Volt owners later. It just makes your EVSE worth a lot more.

I already prepaid for my mod before the price increase, even though my Leaf has not arrived yet. I hope it's not too late to add in the $10 Volt upgrade when I send mine in. Please advise on what people like me should do to request the $10 Volt upgrade. Thanks!