Charging at an RV Park?

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LeafPowerIsIxE

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 3, 2011
Messages
85
Location
San Diego, CA
Has anyone had experience with a charger (Juicebox, Chargepoint, etc) that I could plug in at an RV park to charge my Leaf? Most parks have 30a/50a power stations. I have the 120v unit that came with my Leaf, but that is a slow process.

Thanks in advance...
 
You will most likely need to bring your own level 2 charging station with a NEMA 14-50 plug (RV park standard). Our garage Clipper Creek charging stations have these type plugs, but we have never used them at an RV park.
 
LeafPowerIsIxE said:
Has anyone had experience with a charger (Juicebox, Chargepoint, etc) that I could plug in at an RV park to charge my Leaf? Most parks have 30a/50a power stations. I have the 120v unit that came with my Leaf, but that is a slow process.

Thanks in advance...

30 Amp is "TT-30", or 120V at 30 Amps. Only a few charging cords will advertise the higher current at 120V, and you only charge a bit over twice as fast.

50 Amp is 240V, and a wide range of choices.
 
@LeafPowerIsIxE The Zencar 12/20/24/30A L1/L2 portable EVSE does everything you are looking for...

I am able to charge via:

  • the NEMA 14-50 plug on the Zencar for 50A service (max charging rate of the LEAF is 6.6 kW)
  • a 14-50R to TT-30P adapter cable I made, for 120v @ 24A charging
  • a TT-30R to standard 120V plug, for 120V @ 12A charging

In short, I can always charge at the highest rate provided by the RV park supply. Note that this is only possible with an EVSE that provides multiple amperage set points.
 
LeafPowerIsIxE said:
Has anyone had experience with a charger (Juicebox, Chargepoint, etc) that I could plug in at an RV park to charge my Leaf? Most parks have 30a/50a power stations. I have the 120v unit that came with my Leaf, but that is a slow process.

Thanks in advance...

I have used my evseupgrade unit with the 14-50 adapter at a local campground that has RV hookups. You just need the proper adapter. I have had the unit for 3 years with no issue and the price is hard to beat for L2 charging. The only downside is that it is limited to 20amps at 240V which is about half of what the onboard charger can handle with a more powerful unit.

http://evseupgrade.com/?main_page=index&cPath=1
 
Clipper Creek will install the appropriate plug on any of their charging stations when you buy one - I think for free, but I'm not certain. Their L-2 stations start at $395 or so, last I checked, for a 20A unit.
 
As others have said call ahead to reserve a “50 Amp” site. At peak RV travel times or in snowbird country, expect to pay the daily rate if you displace a camper. I have paid as much as $60 flat-rate and $20 an hour at different sites (cheaper than a tow). At low demand times you might get more reasonable rates and better availability. Mid-day access seems the most available. Check on Plugshare and filter for NEMA 14-50 connector sites to get recent site reports. I have used ClipperCreek, EVSEupgrade, OpenEVSE, and Juicebox EVSE units on trips. I have seen others use ChargePoint, Siemens, AeroVironment, Tesla, Jesla, and Bosch. All have worked well.
 
You have to be careful at a RV park. Not all 14-50 outlets are wired for 240V or 208V. Some have 120V across both L lines to neutral. Yes it is not correct bur check. You can get a cheap Harbor Freight meter for any purchase frequently with a coupon. Buy a $.80 paint brush for your purchase.
 
The actual car does not care about voltage. If you can set your EVSE for the current you are good to go. I forced an OpenEVSE unit to L2 to get the current. It was just a test since I have 240V available. On OpneEVSE units the L type is strictly cosmetic. A basic Leaf will charge at 16A or an enahansed one at 27,5A @120V.

Obviously 240 is twice as fast but 120 also works. Just slower. The car respects the pilot so the included EVSE is 12A period.
 
alozzy said:
@LeafPowerIsIxE The Zencar 12/20/24/30A L1/L2 portable EVSE does everything you are looking for...

I am able to charge via:

  • the NEMA 14-50 plug on the Zencar for 50A service (max charging rate of the LEAF is 6.6 kW)
  • a 14-50R to TT-30P adapter cable I made, for 120v @ 24A charging
  • a TT-30R to standard 120V plug, for 120V @ 12A charging

In short, I can always charge at the highest rate provided by the RV park supply. Note that this is only possible with an EVSE that provides multiple amperage set points.


Thanks to all for your helpful responses.

This looks to cover all the bases.

Is this the unit you're referencing?

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07J56WF9K/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?smid=ASIYMWBVZG7J0&psc=1

This is a 220v unit. Is it correct to assume the NEMA 15-50 power panel at the RV parks is compatible?
 
A juicebox will work fine for you in a campground connected to a 14-50 receptacle. This is how I know.

Here is our coach pulling an electric smart car.

39584071945_5ddcee6d61_k.jpg


And here is the Jucebox installed in the front cabinet that charges the car.

34808744525_c1c6c5fa43_k.jpg


Hope that helps.
 
@LeafPowerIsIxE That's not actually the correct unit. You want to order this one instead:

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

Order it with a 14-30P, then when it arrives you can remove the unused neutral blade from the plug. Doing that allows you to use it with both NEMA 14-30R and NEMA 14-50R supplies.

If you want assistance with creating an adapter cable to allow TT-30 and regular 120V outlet charging, then PM me for details.
 
@LeftieBiker Yes, that's exactly what I purchased from Amazon - a prebuilt Camco 55223, 5-15P/TT-30R adapter "block".

However, I couldn't find any reasonably priced NEMA 14-50R to TT-30P cable adapters so I made one instead. If I need to charge from a regular 120v outlet, then I plug the adapter you mentioned onto the TT-30P end of my custom cable.

It's good peace of mind to know I can charge at pretty much any RV park, regardless of the supply.
 
I just connect my LEAF with the EVSE that comes with the car to a 20A regular outlet at a campground to charge my car overnight. It makes a significant difference.
vfheDLe.jpg
 
Something doesn't make sense, if you hooked it to a 20a 240v outlet you'd immediately blow something as the Leaf draws up to 27.5a. If you hooked it up to a 20a 120v outlet using the standard OEM Leaf EVSE it would only charge at it's regular 12a as it would on any 120v outlet.....not sure what you are trying to say when you said "It makes a significant difference." :? unless you are saying having it plugged in overnight makes a difference vs not plugging it in but even then if you had a + Leaf I can't believe 12a@120v would add that much in the scheme of things.
You'd be much better charging at 240v or if you only had 120v then something closer to the max of the circuit. 16a for a 20a circuit or 24a for a TT-30 30a circuit but with either of those options you'd need an aftermarket EVSE.
Nice looking campground :)
 
I can't believe 12a@120v would add that much in the scheme of things.

We have done this also: 10 hours @ 12 amps at 120V= approx. 15kWh or about 25% of the Plus's capacity. another 50 miles of driving seems significant to me. And if you hang around the campground during the day it may be way more than 10 hours.
 
dmacarthur said:
I can't believe 12a@120v would add that much in the scheme of things.

We have done this also: 10 hours @ 12 amps at 120V= approx. 15kWh or about 25% of the Plus's capacity. another 50 miles of driving seems significant to me. And if you hang around the campground during the day it may be way more than 10 hours.
That's true I guess, plus it's free, and as you said it's not like you are waiting at a station for it to charge.\, just set it and forget it like home charging.
 
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