Canadian made EVSE - EVDuty - anyone own one?

[alozzy]

Just found this EVSE manufacturer in Ontario, Canada:

http://evandmore.com/collections/frontp ... 240-evduty

Considering purchasing as price is good.

Would love to get feedback from anyone who's purchased one of these, or has heard anything good/bad about the manufacturer.

[alozzy]

I'm noticing lots of views on this post, but I guess no one has heard of this EVSE manufacturer. Here's a link to the manual for reference:

http://www.elmec.ca/wp-content/uploads/ ... y-EN-3.pdf

It seems like a quality product and I like the fact that it's appears to be easy to use and comes with a 3 year warranty.

Some advantages of the EVDuty vs evseupgrade:

• Compact unit that includes a cable caddy
• The plugin unit is fairly portable (but can also be wall mounted on a bracket)
• Seems simple to operate
• The J1772 trigger handle and cable appear to be easily replaced
• Free shipping - nice!
• Made in Canada, so no cross-border headaches

Some disadvantages of the EVDuty vs evseupgrade:

• Cost - about $200 CA more
• Only comes with a NEMA 6-50 plug, so RV park charging might not be possible if I can't find an adapter
• Can't select the current it delivers - 30A only (I don't really see a downside to this. Anyone else?)
• Can't use 120V input, 240V only. Not really a problem though, as I'll still have my original Nissan charge cable

Some advantages of the evseupgrade option vs EVDuty:

• Very reasonably priced (about $500 CA for mod, pigtails, and shipping)
• Very portable
• Would definitely give me the flexibility to charge at RV parks (using this pigtail: https://goo.gl/VGbnEQ)

Some disadvantages of the evseupgrade option vs EVDuty:

• No warranty provided
• No cable caddy
• It may not be as robust in the long term
• Selecting amperage rate seems a bit fiddly, but at least it has the option

I'd really appreciate some feedback on which choice MNL forum members would make and why.

Thanks in advance for your comments!

[jjeff]

Comparing those two I'd have to ask how you plan on using them and also what model/year Leaf you have. The EVSEupgrade option is nice if you plan on carrying it around in your car, if not I'd go with the separate EVSE and just leave your OEM EVSE in the car all the time for emergencies and wall mount your other EVSE. It gets to be a pain having to coil up the factory EVSE every time you drive(and personally I'd ALWAYS want a EVSE in the car, just for emergencies but maybe your comfortable not having it with, and thats up to you).
The EVSE upgrade route is also much slower charging if you have a 6.6kw Leaf charger, if you have a '15 or newer Leaf they can only be upgraded to 16a, pre '15 can go up to 20a. If I were satisfied with just 16a I'd probably just get one of the many <$300 portable EVSEs sold on Amazon or even right here on MNL by VegasBrad or Tony Williams, the latter 2 currently have a sale going on selling a 16a EVSE for <$250 shipped, act fast if thats of interest.
A 30a EVSE is nice to have if you have the 6.6kw Leaf charger and a >30a home service, gains you about 30%/hr as apposed to ~15%/hr with a 16a L2 EVSE, a 20a L2 should give you about 20%/hr again assuming you have the 6.6kw Leaf charger.
Even if you only have a 3.6kw Leaf charger there is no disadvantage of getting a larger EVSE other than cost of the EVSE and wiring to it. If you ever get a 6.6kw EV you'll be all set and most modern EVs will probably have 6.6kw or larger chargers. PHEVs might skimp on a smaller charger but true EVs especially larger ones will have the larger potential.

[alozzy]

Thanks for the details!

As noted in my OP, I have a 2013 SV, so 6.6kw charger onboard.

Having said that, this is mentioned in the sales copy for evseupgrade:

With this upgrade, Your 6kW 2013-2014 LEAF can safely and efficiently charge at up to over 4 times faster than it did on the original unit when used on any 208-240 volt 30 amp outlet!

Which is why I thought it can safely charge at almost full capacity (240V x 24A = 5.76kw).

If that's accurate, then I do value portability as we camp a lot in summer, so I'd love to be able to charge at RV parks.

[alozzy]

Sent Mark @ evseupgrade an email to clarify, as in their FAQ (https://evseupgrade.com/?main_page=faq_info&faqs_id=26) it states this:

Some of our upgraded EVSE's are capable of 24 amps when used on a 30 amp 240 volt outlet, and this gets you 5.76kW which is 4 times faster than the original Level 1 capability!

If I can get 5.76kw charging, then I'm pretty happy with that as that's almost 90% max charging rate for my Leaf...

[jjeff]

Sent Mark @ evseupgrade an email to clarify, as in their FAQ (https://evseupgrade.com/?main_page=faq_info&faqs_id=26) it states this:

Some of our upgraded EVSE's are capable of 24 amps when used on a 30 amp 240 volt outlet, and this gets you 5.76kW which is 4 times faster than the original Level 1 capability!

If I can get 5.76kw charging, then I'm pretty happy with that as that's almost 90% max charging rate for my Leaf...

24a is NOT for the Leaf, trust me I got mine upgraded and it's only 20a max. The limiting factor is the J1772 cord which is 12 gauge and 20a is the max it can safely carry. The '15's and on only have 14 gauge wire hence the 16a max charge rate.
If you want more than 20a ability to limit the current and low cost then I might suggest the Zencar EVSE I have listed in my sig, a little less than $400 shipped direct from China and I had mine configured to the output amps I most use.
Finding a 30a portable EVSE(that also works on 120v) is quite hard to fine, Clipper Creek(CC) makes portables but are strictly L2(208-240v) and non adjustable output, that is if your Leaf can draw 27.5a and you have a 40a CC it will, regardless of your circuit. The Zen I bought can be dialed down to as low as 12a and works on 120-240v. It comes in handy at campgrounds that only have a TT-30 plug(the old RV standard) which is 120v 30a, a CC EVSE would not work on this and EVSEupgrade would only give you 12a @ 120v. A cheap 16a L2 EVSE like the ones I mentioned in my other post charge 16a at any voltage, including 120v but note there is no way to dial them down, if your car can draw 16a(yours can) the EVSE will even if it's only on a 15a circuit and will more than likely blow your breaker/fuse.
I had my EVSEupgrade'd but it does have it's limitations which is why I've kind of moved onto other options most of the time.
Tony Williams(one of the sellers of the cheap 16a portables) also sells a much nicer higher amp EVSE that automatically adjusts the current depending on what type of outlet you have, it's more expensive than any of the EVSEs I've talked about but it's also very nice, check out his web page for more info(I believe it's priced somewhere North of $700).

[alozzy]

Weird, this is the response I got from evseupgrade:

"If you have 3X 12AWG marked on your cable it will be 24A"

But you are right, when I lookup a wire gauge/amperage chart it states that 20A is max for copper.

Guess I won't be getting the evseupgrade afterall, too bad as I really like the portability.

This is why MNL forums are so awesome, thanks guys!

[jjeff]

And note even 20a is pushing it for continuous use. For a hardwire situation 16a is the max allowed for 12 gauge wire, extension cords are a bit different since they can more easily dissipate heat so your allowed to push amps for temporary use. Personally I would not run 20a on 12 gauge wire for more than short term use and never more than a 3 or so hours in a row. It will get warm and heat = lost efficiency.

[alozzy]

That rules out the evseupgrade then, thanks!

The EVDuty EVSE is reasonably priced, once I factor in the free shipping, 3 year warranty, decent portability with the plugin model, and the fact that the $700 is in CA funds ($530 US). Also, I like the fact that it's made in Canada (I'm sure the parts are made in China anyways, but at least I can easily ship to them for warranty).

I'm going to considered this Zencar 32A portable EVSE too:

http://www.e-zencar.net/product/evse-32a/

It's adjustable to 6A 8A 10A 13A 16A 20A 32A, which is nice (I would set to 32A and my Leaf will pull 240V/27.5A @ 6.6kw). Also works with 110V - 240V, which is a bonus - as you mentioned.

I've sent them an email, asking for a quote in $CA, including shipping costs. I'm guessing it's not any cheaper than the EVDuty though (likely more once shipping is added). Also, it has only a 2 year warranty (in China), although it is more portable. It's too bad they don't have a Canadian distributor who would back the warranty. That makes me a little leary...

[alozzy]

lol, just found your detailed post on this exact same EVSE:

http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?t=23217

Reading it now, wish I'd found that earlier