Portable 32a EVSE

LubaDriver · 15-09-2023 1:23pm #1

I've recently made the change to electric driving and its generally been going great. One problem that has surfaced now though is destination charging at my parents house however. Driving from my own house to my parents practically depletes the battery, where I'm arriving with 15% if I go non-stop which happened the last time we travelled as the ecars station on route was occupied. What I ended up doing was heading out after arriving and visiting a fast charger when we arrived.

The other problem I have is that we also tend to go driving about a fair bit in the locality when we stay there for a few days. We suffer similar issues at my partners parents house So the long and the short of it is that we need a charging solution at two destinations that we frequent. I don't particularly want to have to fit an expensive EVSE's at both places that will get used at most a handful of times a year, or continue with expensive and inconvenient public charging however we do need something better than a granny cable.

Fortunately, there are 32a commando sockets at both of the properties that we can get the car within 5m of. That has gotten me curious as car chargers are essentially 32a plugs with some smarts bolted on. There do seem to be portable 7kw EVSE's out there but none seem to be by UK/IRL sellers so that makes me wonder about their safety or legality particularly in relation to PEN faults. The other thing I was thinking of was to get a zappi and just wire it up with a commando plug.

Just wondering if there are any other forum users that have encountered this problem and how they've addressed it especially if they've used the portable 7kw chargers.

Bovakinn · 15-09-2023 1:53pm

Tesla does an adaptor for their mobile charger that allows 32a charging. I believe they work with any EV, although I could be wrong.

https://shop.tesla.com/en_ie/product/mobile-connector

https://shop.tesla.com/en_ie/product/blue-adapter---16a_32a-

the_amazing_raisin · 15-09-2023 2:12pm

I think Metron and Juice booster do 32A portable chargers

Honestly, you might just be better off getting a cheap charger and connecting it to the same circuit as the 32A socket with a priority switch

jackofalltrades · 15-09-2023 2:23pm

"Fortunately, there are 32a commando sockets at both of the properties". Why can't I ever get this lucky😀

I've had this portable charger for 2 years now, never had any trouble. Only ever ran it at 10 amps though.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Vogvigo-Charger-Electric-Portable-Charging/dp/B091H29N7Z/ref%3Dasc_df_B091H29N7Z/?tag=googshopuk-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=499333735334&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=8417174745303428066&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1007846&hvtargid=pla-1311274410367&psc=1

I'm sure you'd find something similar on Amazon.

Paul Kiernan · 15-09-2023 3:14pm

Morec sell these refurbished ones on amazon.es for €160 delivered which is hard to beat ....

https://www.amazon.es/Morec-cargador-conmutable-pantalla-port%C3%A1til/dp/B0891X3BJK/ref%3Dsr_1_11?__mk_es_ES=%C3%85M%C3%85%C5%BD%C3%95%C3%91&crid=LWNZ71FVNZPF&keywords=morec&qid=1694790608&sprefix=morec%2Caps%2C62&sr=8-11&ufe=app_do%3Aamzn1.fos.5e544547-1f8e-4072-8c08-ed563e39fc7d

LubaDriver · 15-09-2023 3:15pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121113915#Comment_121113915

Thats very interesting. I'd tend to trust tesla more than the other no-name manufacturers of portable evse that I've seen such as vevor. I don't have a tesla, but I presume the connector is the same? One thing that does lean me against it is the lack of a consumption readout on the charger as I wouldn't want to take advantage and pay for the power pulled at family locations. The car itself doesn't seem to offer that info readily either (ID4). I will keep it in mind as an option though - it isn't particularly expensive, €245 with the 32a adapter

LubaDriver · 15-09-2023 3:18pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121114094#Comment_121114094

Yes, quite fortunate. One was set up initially for an arc welder thats not used any more and the other was for a temporary supply for a mobile home during renovations. most of the hard work is done.

It looks like Tesla, metron and juice have options as well as amazon too. Plenty to ponder when I'm sitting at a high speed later this evening!

the_amazing_raisin · 15-09-2023 3:22pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121114371#Comment_121114371

The losses are typically around 10% for charging the car, seems to vary more by car than charger (my ID.4 averages around 12% but I think that's because it's starting and stopping from solar a lot)

The standby power for most chargers is pretty negligible, doubt you'd have any real impact on the electricity bill

You're required to have an isolator switch anyway, so simplest solution might be to turn it off when you aren't around

It'd be worth checking DoneDeal, there's plenty of decent 2nd hand chargers going at the moment

zg3409 · 17-09-2023 6:45am

Lugging a zappi around is not ideal.

Tesla thing should work for any car with type 2 socket.

I would double check the electric safety of the existing blue socket. For example is it small blue (16 amp) or large blue (32 amp)? Does it have a cover / cap on it still and does contacts look rusty? What size fuse / trip switch supplies it and can you find the earth rid for the house and is it in good condition?

Does either house have an instant shower like triton or a heat pump? In this case you may need a priority switch or load sensing as EVs can draw 32 amps for many hours and if someone has a shower (32 amps), then the 60 amp main fuse can easily blow if say someone turns on a kettle (10 amps).

An old welder connection or mobile home connection is slightly different to an EV which will draw maximum 100% all day long. The connection may have been installed by a DIYer, or showers may have been added later.

Typically I reduce charging speed as much as I can when using non home chargers as it reduces risk of fuse boards overheating or blowing ESB fuses etc. Typically where I can I fit a brand new socket as they are less likely to fail.

LubaDriver · 17-09-2023 7:39pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121120960#Comment_121120960

Thanks for the advice. Both sockets are the big blue ones 32a on relatively modern breakers and not screw in fuses. At one of the locations, the socket was inside a garage for use with the welder and the second its outside in a weatherproof enclosure. They were both installed properly by an electrician although neither do have a priority switch. There are power showers in both houses, no heat pumps though.

Might have to get an electrician out anyway to check them over, so maybe there's no point to this idea. Was just trying to avoid complications and just use the one charger at both destinations.

the_amazing_raisin · 17-09-2023 7:44pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121123578#Comment_121123578

You could get a 16A charger with a commando plug to be on the safe side

3.6kW over 12 hours is around 39kWh into the car after losses, should be enough for 200km of driving

Risteard81 · 19-09-2023 8:04am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121114034#Comment_121114034

It can't share a circuit.

Risteard81 · 19-09-2023 8:06am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058313907/portable-32a-evse

PEN fault protection is not a thing outside of places where BS 7671 are the Wiring Regulations. It is not relevant in the 26-Counties.

oDerak_man · 19-09-2023 8:55am

Hi, I've been using 32A portable charger for several months now. I've got a Chinese one with commando socket, a longer cable (6m) and some configuration options (timer, delay timer, selectable charging current) built-in. Cost was about 300 Euro.

Works generally ok, I used delayed timer option before the proper timing started to work in my car (ID.3 3.2 software). A few issues encountered: my socket had originally 32A RCBO and I had random trips, especially when setting 32A charging. Annoying when you charge 2-5am only :-( If the circuit trips or there is other issue, the plug in the car needs to be disconnected first, otherwise the charger starts charging at the lowest current setting (8A). In your setup, you make sure that the wiring to the commando socket is sound, if you have 32A circuit breaker/RCBO, you may not be able to charge at 32A without occasional tripping caused by current surges.

The charger itself is CE marked, has 6mA DC leakage protection so a standard RCBO with 30mA AC leakage is safe.

ELM327 · 20-09-2023 11:19am

Ive been using a 32A EVSE for over a year at the new house (came with 3 32a sockets!) as my main form of charging. You can buy them fairly easily. I didnt have the tesla when I moved here or I would just have used the UMC with the 32A adaptor.

Note: Tesla UMC works for all type 2 vehicles, it will not generally work with type2 to type1 adapters in my experience.

SnippyDog · 23-03-2024 3:42pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121113915#Comment_121113915

Hi, can anyone confirm if the Tesla Mobile Connector works with non-Tesla EVs? If it does, it's a better option than most aftermarket EVSEs.

shop.tesla.com/en_ie/product/mobile-connector

Red Silurian · 23-03-2024 5:48pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121930885#Comment_121930885

I see no reason for it not to, the type 2 AC technology in a Tesla are the same as most other cars

SnippyDog · 23-03-2024 5:51pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121133510#Comment_121133510

Sorry to bump an old thread... @ELM327 , I've tried a Tesla UMC on a domestic 3-pin and a blue 16A socket with a Toyota bz4x and a SEAT Leon PHEV, and neither will charge from it. Have you seen the UMC work with a non-Tesla vehicle?

ELM327 · 25-03-2024 9:14am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121931381#Comment_121931381

Yup, I use it most evenings our Ora needs to charge. I also used it on a Ioniq28 without issue

The only cars it won't work on are those that need type2 to type1 adapter

SnippyDog · 25-03-2024 1:23pm

Seems I'll be returning it 😮

Portable 32a EVSE

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