Portable OpenEVSE at 40A

[fromport]

Just a heads up, you can't use the ready-made RV TT-30 to 14-50 adapters as they aren't wired correctly for EVSE use. Here's a really great resource for building adapters: http://cosmacelf.net/Home%20Made%20Adapters.pdf

I found out "the hard way" you can not use the regular converters as well :-(
The RV people basically see everything running at 120V and rewire everything
to 2x120Volt in parallel:

The plug is glued together and not reusable.

Instead I bought one of those : http://www.corddepot.com/shop/30a-to-50a-adapters/30a-to-50a-rv-plug-adapter/
They are cheaper on ebay eg: http://www.ebay.com/itm/261269572512
Since you can open those up, you can rewire it the "right" way to use for EV charging only!

I marked it :

 

[ehelmholtz]

Thanks to eHelmholtz for the loaner relay and lots of help, programming the firmware, etc. Also thanks to Chris for answering my late night emails and guiding me through a couple of snags. I could not have completed it as well without them.

https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/...6052805035908074754&oid=115954433365048378822

I've been away from the forum for quite some months now! It's good to see people building more OpenEVSEs. David, you almost had the link to the photo right. To get it, just click on the link that you provided and once there, you have to right click and choose copy the URL. Now past it in like you did above.

I'm glad you got it working - it's a nice build. It's the first one to keep the cover on the chinese relay (juicebox relay) but of course, we in this thread use it with OpenEVSE. You should post photos of the completed EVSE when it's done.

 

[TonyWilliams]

 

[GlennD]

Watch the high current connectors. I have personally had a lot of failures. Where the connectors shine is for repeated temporary use. I find that they have good wiping action but poor gas tight connections. I no longer use them even though they are the defacto ham standard.

 

[jimbo69ny]

Hello Everyone,

I thought Id take the time to put together a thread showing you how I made my newest OpenEVSE.

I wanted a portable EVSE that I could charge on any source of power that I came across so I built this dual voltage unit. The relay is rated up to 80 amps but I opted for the lighter weight 40 amp j1772 from Quick Charge Power. I would've went with the larger 50 amp j1772 but I didnt like that it was bright orange. I didnt want people to be alarmed if I had this thick orange cable running from my hotel room to my car. Black is a little less conspicuous.

First off here is my parts list.

OpenEVSE Plus v2 (Built) – $85.00
http://openevse-store.myshopify.com/pro ... se-plus-v2

J1772 40 Amp Ultra Flexible 25’ Cable - $165.00
http://store.openevse.com/products/water-resistant-led-ring-push-button

JQX-62F 2Z 80A DPDT DC 12V Coil Electromagnetic Power Relay - $7.11
http://www.aliexpress.com/item/Power-Relay-JQX-62F-2Z-80A-DC12V-DC24V-AC220V-high-quality/1983274156.html

OpenEVSE RGB LCD - $29.50
http://store.openevse.com/products/openevse-rgb-lcd

GE WX9X35 4-wire Range Cord (4ft) - $15.45
http://www.amazon.com/General-Electric- ... range+cord

Aluminum Grounding Bar - $4.77
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Blackburn-Al ... YEzaaKyD8I

Cable Gland CG-16 - $7.50
http://store.openevse.com/products/cable-gland-cg-16

Cable Gland CG-17 - $9.50
http://store.openevse.com/products/cable-gland-cg-17

GFCI Current Transformer (Quick Kit) - $27.50
http://store.openevse.com/products/gfci-current-transformer

Chris’ Custom Enclosure (with seal kit, no flanges, with artwork) - $84.50
http://store.openevse.com/products/custom-enclosure

LED Push Button (quick kit) - $16.50
http://store.openevse.com/products/water-resistant-led-ring-push-button


I also made some adapters using these:

TT-30 to 14-50 Adapter *Don’t use this one unless you want to cut it open and rewire it like I did. I don’t recommend it. It is not wired correctly as it comes. I already had it so I decided to give it a try. It works and takes up less space but if I did it over again I would buy “option 2” below.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GX51AFA?psc=1

Option 2 TT-30 to 14-50 Adapter
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BUQOGI/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

Camco TT-30 to 6-15 Adapter
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00192JGA8/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER


Here is a link to my photobucket page.
http://s59.photobucket.com/user/jimbo69ny/library/40 Amp Portable OpenEVSE Build

 

[jimbo69ny]

Reserved for photos.

Ill post photos and step by step instructions later.

For now you can go to my photobucket page
http://s59.photobucket.com/user/jimbo69ny/library/40 Amp Portable OpenEVSE Build

 

[jimbo69ny]

I cant speak highly enough of Chris who has been so immensely helpful with all of my builds. Ive built 5 now and it seems like there is always something I've needed to ask of him. He really is a huge asset to the EV community and its nice to see someone dedicate so much to helping people he has never met. I truly think he has made a very real impact on the adoption of EV's. Because of him I was able to afford to build my own charging stations and install them at each of my rental properties. I offer the electricity and use of the stations free to my tenants. Without the ability to build an EVSE for $400 I cant say that I would've wanted to spend $1000+ on a manufactured unit.

Thanks Chris and OpenEVSE!!!

 

[Michael Bornstein]

Camco TT-30 to 6-15 Adapter
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00192JGA8/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

Jimbo:

Thanks for the headsup on the new Chamco connectors. I built separate TT-30 to 14-30 and 6-15 to 14-30 cables for my EVSE. I see now that I can get the Chamco TT-30 to 6-15 adapter and save a lot of weight and space in my EVSE bag. I also note that they make L5-30 and L14-30 to TT-30 Adapters. Anyone with experience in the wild have any idea which of these might be most useful?

 

[ehelmholtz]

Reserved for photos.
Ill post photos and step by step instructions later.

Jim,
a step by step instruction set would be great. I looked at your pictures and particularly like the easy follow to schematic like photo. Let me make a suggestion (the same one that I made to DevinL recently). Have a look at your photo:

The way you have the relay connected to the power source and J1772, there is more of the relay conducting area that is exposed to juice. I would suggest swapping the locations of where you connect the power and J1772. If you made the switch, it would difficult for someone to accidentally touch the relay in a way that will cause a shock. Of course, this is much less an issue for a build like yours where the relay and power are enclosed and the control button is external to the enclosure.

 

[kiwiguy]

What was your total parts cost?

 

[dstjohn99]

Here are photos of the completed / closed unit. I really like that the relay fits with the cover, and the housing doesn't have any open holes / is still water tight. However, the relay does get hot. I will post information about temperature and amperage soon. I did notice initially that the relay operates at about 130°F at what I thought was 40 amps. However, when I checked with an Amprobe it was only drawing 32 - 33 amps at the panel even though the EVSE was set to 40 amps. I checked the 40 amp JESLA I was using also with the same results. I know my Amprobe is accurate, so I'll need to look into this further. I did initiate charging with the Rav4 "charge now" option. I'm not sure this makes a difference, but no matter what I set the EVSE amps to (up to 50), the car only pulled 33 amps. Anyone else checked this or noticed a similar problem? I'll need to keep a close watch on my remaining range and charging time at night to estimate the amperage at night. Most nights it only charges for 2 - 2-1/2 hours for a full charge, so I believe we're operating at 40 amps during the "scheduled" charge.

Tony Williams, any temperature information on the 2P contactor? I really like that setup as I feel it is more reliable / durable / robust and I will probably switch to that in the future, but initially I needed a quick build so I used available parts. I see you have a fuse for the coil power and the required separate relay for the AC coil voltage.

 

[jimbo69ny]

I know I have a hole in the bottom of mine but I plan on getting a plug for it and making sure its still water tight. Everything else is water tight. I just preferred that the cable went out the top for my portable evse.

 

[dstjohn99]

I just preferred that the cable went out the top for my portable evse.

Yeah, I didn't realize the Open EVSE case came with pre-drilled holes. I wanted my input at the top also, but it worked out well using the available holes.

 

[TonyWilliams]

Here are photos of the completed / closed unit. I really like that the relay

Tony Williams, any temperature information on the 2P contactor? I really like that setup as I feel it is more reliable / durable / robust and I will probably switch to that in the future, but initially I needed a quick build so I used available parts.

Sorry, no heat data. I only used it once, and gave it to somebody else to use.

Something isn't right with your 30-ish amp measurement. In the SOC% above 80% when you are charging? It does taper down to about 20 amps at the end.

What is the black foam for?

 

[dstjohn99]

Something isn't right with your 30-ish amp measurement. In the SOC% above 80% when you are charging? It does taper down to about 20 amps at the end.

Yes, SOC was nearing 80% and I was charging to extended mode. I will repeat the observations at a normal SOC for charging. Last night the car had 9 bars and charged from 2:05 to 4:18 am according to Entune emails.

What is the black foam for?

Currently the relay is not permanently mounted, so the foam on the sides and top (white strip) minimizes movement within the case should the unit get bumped or dropped. Even though all connections are heat shrink or otherwise protected, I want to minimize any risk of shorting to the case. I have a few mounting options (rail - tape or bolts, drill thru case and bolt down, two sided tape pads...) that I will pursue as the finished product evolves. I still want to keep a close watch on relay temperature at full charging amps. Since it is in a sealed case cooling is limited and a failure at any time will be unacceptable.

 

[jimbo69ny]

Why don't you take the blue case off and mount it to the plastic mounting board that came with the case? that's what I did.

 

[ehelmholtz]

...I thought Id take the time to put together a thread showing you how I made my newest OpenEVSE.

Hi Jim. I saw your ebay listing for this EVSE. eBay Listing

Nicely done but why not list it here on the forum so that forum members can buy if we want like GlennD does?

 

[jimbo69ny]

Haha yeah I thought I'd see if I could make any money selling these. I have time on my hands and I like doing this stuff.
Obviously you could build it yourself for less but this one is already done and working. Many people also don't have the time or knowhow to build them.

 

[Dsinned]

Is your output cable rated for 40A? If not, maybe the unit somehow restricts itself to 32A if that's all the cable is rated for.

 

[srl99]

I'm looking for a source for a NEMA 6-50P power cord. Stay Online has one for $87, which is awfully high, and high enough I would wire the plug onto some proper cable, or relent and use a NEMA 14-50 (but this is the wrong plug, as I don't need the neutral).