Khons 32a portable L2 EVSE

Pretty sure the source for that "these are cheap EVSE units..." quote is these guys:

https://www.evdriver.co.uk

They appear to use ChargePoint EVSEs exclusively...

irv said:

These are cheap EVSE units with Doestar handles. They have compliance issues, design flaws, and are made by companies with little understanding of standards, safety and reliability and sold under many names to people in the us to resell them and make a quick buck.

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Hi, is there real basis for the claim about the "compliance issues and design flaws" for these cheap EVSEs? I know that these do not have UL certification, but at the same time I've seen people using them successfully. I just want to know if the claims are based on facts or if those are just general sentiments since there are no guarantees for these products. Thanks.

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I've used my "cheap EVSE" hundreds of times, use it several times/day and it's never given me problems. I believe the issue with the white Duostar handle was an old issue, long since fixed. My J1772 mates to my Leafs just fine, not too much pressure, not too little, just perfect IMO.
The company they are made by is a large factory in China churning out lots of EVSEs for markets all over the world, they aren't made by some backyard mechanic, although I'm not against that if they are made correctly.
It's your call, many people don't want to take what they consider a risk and instead purchase something like a Clipper Creek or other major US mfgs. and thats OK too, I took the small risk and couldn't be happier
I agree, wiring the 14-50 plug wrong in that report was somewhat unforgivable, all I can say is modding to our N. American plug is probably done after the initial assembly, the unit itself should be somewhat assembly line produced, my Zencar EVSE had the L6-30 plug I wanted and was wired correctly.

I've got one of these that I ordered from EVSEadapters.com with a "universal" 14-30/14-50/14-60 plug (basically they just remove the neutral since it isn't used for charging anyway). I've been using it since February nearly every day without issue. I also got a 14-50 to 10-30 adapter for older dryer plugs and setting the unit to 24 amps worked fine when I used it with a 10-30 before getting my 14-50 installed in the garage. I'd like to get a nicer EVSE (with wifi so I can stop charging remotely) at some point and just use this one when travelling, but it's worked great so far without issue for the past three months. For the EVSE and the adapter I think it was about $430 total.

Most cheap Chinese EVSE's work fine but many (most ?) lack the GFCI coil. That means that they work well but if there is a grounding failure then you are on your own. The J1772 standard is optional and many Chinese EVSE's do not fully comply.

GlennD said:

Most cheap Chinese EVSE's work fine but many (most ?) lack the GFCI coil. That means that they work well but if there is a grounding failure then you are on your own. The J1772 standard is optional and many Chinese EVSE's do not fully comply.

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True but when I asked Zencar, the mfg. of this Khons or at least a very close clone, they said they could add GFCI(possibly for an extra fee??) but most customers(probably with sketchy power sources in Asian countries) didn't want GFCI as they got frequent nuisance trips
From my use of GFI outlets I kind of concur, mine are frequently tripping by such little things as switching a light switch, unplugging another device on the same line, etc. As charging my EV can be critical if I need to get somewhere I'd just as soon eliminate one source of this not happening. I realize GFCI can help with safety but I'm personally willing to forgo a little safety and possibly gain a little more reliability that my car will actually be charged when I want it to be
Of course if you have a hardwired setup and dedicated circuit, nuisance tripping may not really happen but I like to charge out and about and don't always know what else is on the line.

jjeff said:

GlennD said:

Most cheap Chinese EVSE's work fine but many (most ?) lack the GFCI coil. That means that they work well but if there is a grounding failure then you are on your own. The J1772 standard is optional and many Chinese EVSE's do not fully comply.

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True but when I asked Zencar, the mfg. of this Khons or at least a very close clone, they said they could add GFCI(possibly for an extra fee??) but most customers(probably with sketchy power sources in Asian countries) didn't want GFCI as they got frequent nuisance trips
From my use of GFI outlets I kind of concur, mine are frequently tripping by such little things as switching a light switch, unplugging another device on the same line, etc. As charging my EV can be critical if I need to get somewhere I'd just as soon eliminate one source of this not happening. I realize GFCI can help with safety but I'm personally willing to forgo a little safety and possibly gain a little more reliability that my car will actually be charged when I want it to be
Of course if you have a hardwired setup and dedicated circuit, nuisance tripping may not really happen but I like to charge out and about and don't always know what else is on the line.[/quote

GFCI is really hard to implement. I have an OpenEVSE that is driving me nuts. To sense a current imbalance requires a very sensitive input amplifier and it can readily see glitches. I am tempted to take the Chinese approach and just eliminate the GFCI circuit entirely but no, it has worked on other units.

GlennD said:

jjeff said:

GlennD said:

Most cheap Chinese EVSE's work fine but many (most ?) lack the GFCI coil. That means that they work well but if there is a grounding failure then you are on your own. The J1772 standard is optional and many Chinese EVSE's do not fully comply.

Click to expand...

Click to expand...

Click to expand...

True but when I asked Zencar, the mfg. of this Khons or at least a very close clone, they said they could add GFCI(possibly for an extra fee??) but most customers(probably with sketchy power sources in Asian countries) didn't want GFCI as they got frequent nuisance trips
From my use of GFI outlets I kind of concur, mine are frequently tripping by such little things as switching a light switch, unplugging another device on the same line, etc. As charging my EV can be critical if I need to get somewhere I'd just as soon eliminate one source of this not happening. I realize GFCI can help with safety but I'm personally willing to forgo a little safety and possibly gain a little more reliability that my car will actually be charged when I want it to be
Of course if you have a hardwired setup and dedicated circuit, nuisance tripping may not really happen but I like to charge out and about and don't always know what else is on the line.[/quote

GFCI is really hard to implement. I have an OpenEVSE that is driving me nuts. To sense a current imbalance requires a very sensitive input amplifier and it can readily see glitches. I am tempted to take the Chinese approach and just eliminate the GFCI circuit entirely but no, it has worked on other units.[Well, I finally found my problem. The EVSE was mounted next to the relay. I replaced it with a contactor and the GFCI problem was consistent. It is much easier th troubleshoot a reproducible problem. It even occurred with the GFCI opamp removed. I finally determined it was magnetic interference from the relay coil. Moving the board totally fixed the problem. With the original relay I never would have found the problem. With the contactor it was always there and easier to troubleshoot. There is no shielding on the OpenEVSE board and the supple problem was hard to find.

Remember the field drops with the square of the distance so moving the board a small distance makes a lot of difference. Every once in a while A problem will drive you to drink! The problem said GFCI but it was not.

Does anyone know what the parasitic draw is for the KHONS L2 EVSE? It says 0.23kW on the display when not plugged into the car which is 230 watts. That equates to $750 per year at my top tier power rate. The reseller, EVSE Adaptors says it draws less than a watt at rest, but that's not what the display says. Maybe I need to ask my electrician to measure the draw accurately.

While I don't have a KHONS, I do have a very similar Zencar EVSE and I believe the draw was just a tad over 2 watts when not charging. If I had to venture a guess I'd bet the KHONS was drawing 2.3 watts, not .23Kw.