New Leaf owner in SW Washington

[Dooglas]

I didn't buy my Leaf plus to be a road tripper. I bought the extra battery capacity just in case the traction battery lost it's too much of it's capacity over the next ten years.

You have not told us your vehicle requirements or which model LEAF you own. If your needs never exceed 40-50 miles per day and you purchased a new Plus model LEAF (62 kwh) so that you could maintain that kind of range for ten years, you have wasted some of your money. A used 40 kwh LEAF in good condition should easily fill that bill.

 

[marshallinwash]

You have not told us your vehicle requirements or which model LEAF you own. If your needs never exceed 40-50 miles per day and you purchased a new Plus model LEAF (62 kwh) so that you could maintain that kind of range for ten years, you have wasted some of your money. A used 40 kwh LEAF in good condition should easily fill that bill.

I bought a 2022 Leaf SV Plus certified with a bit over 14,000 miles, with the $4,000 tax credit applied upfront. As far as wasting my money, it's my money to waste!

 

[Eric Willoughby]

Hi everyone,

We just purchased a 2019 Leaf SV+. Silver, SV Tech Package, with just under 35k on it.

This is our first EV. It will generally be our around town car, probably more used by my wife than me. I wanted a plus for the occasional day-trip to visit our daughter who’s 70 miles away, and for similar length trips as needed. We have a couple of recurring short-ish road trips (300 miles) that I may tackle with it.

Now to get a Level 2 charger. Our garage has a 30A circuit (14-30 outlet). I’ve identified a couple of possibilities, but if anyone has a recommendation, I’m listening…

Cheers!

I guess this is become a pet peeve of mine but there is no such thing as a home charger. It's really annoying that the car companies and aftermarket support call this electrical cord a charger. It is nothing but a cord that connects a 240 volt wall socket to the plug that fits the car. It does have safety/fault detection. But that is all that little box is. fault detection to make sure the outlet is wired correctly.

The charger on every electric car is under the hood. The Gen 2 Nissan Leaf draws 27 amps. I piggybacked an outlet off of my electric oven and dropped it through the floor to the ceiling of my garage in the basement and connected there but you can also plug it in to a standard 30 amp dryer outlet if you file one of the pins on your plug to make it narrower so it will fit in the socket.

 

[marshallinwash]

The charger on every electric car is under the hood. The Gen 2 Nissan Leaf draws 27 amps. I piggybacked an outlet off of my electric oven and dropped it through the floor to the ceiling of my garage in the basement and connected there but you can also plug it in to a standard 30 amp dryer outlet if you file one of the pins on your plug to make it narrower so it will fit in the socket.

Don't follow this advise. Do it right. Get an electrical permit; follow the latest NEC; and get it inspected.

 

[Gusset]

I guess this is become a pet peeve of mine but there is no such thing as a home charger. It's really annoying that the car companies and aftermarket support call this electrical cord a charger. It is nothing but a cord that connects a 240 volt wall socket to the plug that fits the car. It does have safety/fault detection. But that is all that little box is. fault detection to make sure the outlet is wired correctly.

The charger on every electric car is under the hood. The Gen 2 Nissan Leaf draws 27 amps. I piggybacked an outlet off of my electric oven and dropped it through the floor to the ceiling of my garage in the basement and connected there but you can also plug it in to a standard 30 amp dryer outlet if you file one of the pins on your plug to make it narrower so it will fit in the socket.

Yes, I can understand such a peeve...it's an EVSE, not a charger. Guilty as charged. However the understanding I'm developing is that the "little box" also throttles/governs the current, which is a big deal and what's behind my requirement of being usable on a 30A circuit.

I'm not one who would modify a plug to do an end-run around, even if it saves me some $$$ over buying an adapter. I don't know how serious you were with your remark about hacking into your 220 oven circuit...maybe you're joking about all of this? Hopefully you've got some electrician credentials.

Anyway, an update for anyone who cares: after diving into several options, reading reviews (and interpreting them, as is always necessary on Amazon), I ended up ordering this unit. Made by the same folks that do the Wallbox. I like that this isn't a wi-fi unit...KISS, simpler firmware, fewer failure modes. I may change my mind on that someday, though, and want something I can connect to remotely.

https://ev-chargers.com/nema-14-30/nema-14-30-level-2-ev-charger

Should be here Monday. Cheers!

 

[cornbinder89]

Anyway, an update for anyone who cares: after diving into several options, reading reviews (and interpreting them, as is always necessary on Amazon), I ended up ordering this unit. Made by the same folks that do the Wallbox. I like that this isn't a wi-fi unit...KISS, simpler firmware, fewer failure modes. I may change my mind on that someday, though, and want something I can connect to remotely.

https://ev-chargers.com/nema-14-30/nema-14-30-level-2-ev-charger

Should be here Monday. Cheers!

Looks remarkably similar to the Primecom I have. I'd be interested if it sets a trouble code when used with the timer on the Leaf. Mine does, but only on the 1st turn on attempt, and clears with subsequent starts. Doesn't effect operation other than turning on the yellow triangle light on the dash.
I liked the look of the Grizzl mini. I may try it when I have a few sawbucks burning a hole in my pocket.

 

[Eric Willoughby]

Don't follow this advise. Do it right. Get an electrical permit; follow the latest NEC; and get it inspected.

I was an industrial mechanic at UPS worldport for over 20 years. You can follow this advice and be just fine file the neutral lug, which has no current flowing through it anyway just so you can use it in a 30 amp dryer socket. The car draws 27 amps the circuit has a breaker you'll be just fine

 

[Eric Willoughby]

Don't follow this advise. Do it right. Get an electrical permit; follow the latest NEC; and get it inspected.

I wasn't suggesting you do that I was only suggesting that you modify the plug slightly so you can use a dryer outlet

 

[Eric Willoughby]

Yes, I can understand such a peeve...it's an EVSE, not a charger. Guilty as charged. However the understanding I'm developing is that the "little box" also throttles/governs the current, which is a big deal and what's behind my requirement of being usable on a 30A circuit.

I'm not one who would modify a plug to do an end-run around, even if it saves me some $$$ over buying an adapter. I don't know how serious you were with your remark about hacking into your 220 oven circuit...maybe you're joking about all of this? Hopefully you've got some electrician credentials.

Anyway, an update for anyone who cares: after diving into several options, reading reviews (and interpreting them, as is always necessary on Amazon), I ended up ordering this unit. Made by the same folks that do the Wallbox. I like that this isn't a wi-fi unit...KISS, simpler firmware, fewer failure modes. I may change my mind on that someday, though, and want something I can connect to remotely.

https://ev-chargers.com/nema-14-30/nema-14-30-level-2-ev-charger

Should be here Monday. Cheers!

No, the little box does not throttle anything. This is just a cord people

 

[Steve52]

No, the little box does not throttle anything. This is just a cord people

Some EVSEs allow adjustable current flow to the OBC by means of settings that communicate to the OBC about how much current they should draw. That is why the other poster said the EVSE throttles/governs the current although technically the EVSE is telling the OBC to throttle the current.

 

[Eric Willoughby]

Some EVSEs allow adjustable current flow to the OBC by means of settings that communicate to the OBC about how much current they should draw. That is why the other poster said the EVSE throttles/governs the current although technically the EVSE is telling the OBC to throttle the current.

 

[Eric Willoughby]

Some?? Which ones? Why would there be a need to run that current through MOSFETs $$$$ or whatever they use to throttle the current? We're only talking about 6.6 KW or so here.
Voltage, to the transformer, bridge rectifier, to the batteries.
Not talking about the slow trickle charge of balancing of course.

It's just a cord people. Just a cord. Little bit of safety protections. Not a "charger"

 

[LeftieBiker]

Some?? Which ones? Why would there be a need to run that current through MOSFETs $$$$ or whatever they use to throttle the current? We're only talking about 6.6 KW or so here.
Voltage, to the transformer, bridge rectifier, to the batteries.
Not talking about the slow trickle charge of balancing of course.

It's just a cord people. Just a cord. Little bit of safety protections. Not a "charger"

No, it isn't a charger - that's a pet peeve of mine as well. But the adjustable EVSEs do, in a passive way, inform the OBC of their current limit.

 

[Jeffrey Stumpf]

Looks remarkably similar to the Primecom I have. I'd be interested if it sets a trouble code when used with the timer on the Leaf. Mine does, but only on the 1st turn on attempt, and clears with subsequent starts. Doesn't effect operation other than turning on the yellow triangle light on the dash.
I liked the look of the Grizzl mini. I may try it when I have a few sawbucks burning a hole in my pocket.

After reading about this cable, it looks like your choice was well thought out. The existing 30 amp circuit, if wired properly can draw 80% continuously ( 0.8 times 30 = 24 amps). This charge rate will be 24 times 240 or 5,760 watts. It will charge a bit slower that the 6,600 OnBoard Charger can do, but it should be adequate and safe.

 

[Steve52]

Some?? Which ones? Why would there be a need to run that current through MOSFETs $$$$ or whatever they use to throttle the current? We're only talking about 6.6 KW or so here.
Voltage, to the transformer, bridge rectifier, to the batteries.
Not talking about the slow trickle charge of balancing of course.

It's just a cord people. Just a cord. Little bit of safety protections. Not a "charger"

An EVSE is not a charger as you say but adjustable EVSEs are not "just a cord" but have circuitry to set and communicate to the OBC to limit the current. The reason for this is EV's are charged in many different situations, including the use of 30 amp dryer circuits by many people. A 30 amp circuit is only capable of 24 amps, (80%) for long periods of time like charging an EV so you can't safely use a non-adjustable EVSE like the OEM Nissan EVSE. For examples of adjustable EVSEs, go to Amazon or Google it and you've find many examples.
If you're interested in the technical details of the EVSE protocols, take a look at this document;

 

[cornbinder89]

This explains the PWM signal and also the IEC 62196 resistor controlled cable limitation function in EVSE protocol.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SAE_J1772
In the US/NA the cable is connected to the EVSE and the PWM signal limits the charger when set below its full capacity, and the R6 resistor is set at 150 ohms (32 amp cord setting) and another resistor is cut in series with the 330 when the trigger on the plug it depressed, telling the OBC to ramp down.
On the European separate cord system, the total resistance communicates the limit the OBC can pull.

 

[marshallinwash]

I was an industrial mechanic at UPS worldport for over 20 years. You can follow this advice and be just fine file the neutral lug, which has no current flowing through it anyway just so you can use it in a 30 amp dryer socket. The car draws 27 amps the circuit has a breaker you'll be just fine

What you are suggesting is a violation of the last few years of updates to the NEC. The rated current must be more no more than 120% of the rated breaker amperage. Again do it right!

On top of that, the sockets in your typical home are not industrial grade sockets. We are seeing these fail with some pretty nasty images. So use a socket that is made for a EVSE, if not hard-wiring.

If you want to use your 50 amp kitchen range circuit. see if your local jurisdiction allows a splitter like NeoCharge.

 

[TronJockey]

@cornbinder89 mentioned the 24 amp load on the EVSE for a 30A circuit, so I would stick with that for now.

I would replace the 14-30 receptacle with a 14-50 receptacle because you will find that most plug-in style EVSEs come with a NEMA 14-50 or 6-50 plug.
I would also go for an adjustable EVSE so you can adjust it to 24A now, and allow room for future proofing.
There are a lot of great, reasonably-priced adjustable EVSEs out there -- like Grizzl-E, Autel, Lectron, ChargePoint, etc. -- so you have a good selection to choose from.

This is a good idea just make sure to upgrade the breaker to handle the increased amperage. Upgrading the outlet to allow 50 amp service but leaving the 30 amp breaker would be dangerous.

 

[cornbinder89]

This is a good idea just make sure to upgrade the breaker to handle the increased amperage. Upgrading the outlet to allow 50 amp service but leaving the 30 amp breaker would be dangerous.

SO, you replaced the breaker, and outlet, but not the wires? Breaker is there to make sure the wires are not subject to more current then they can stand, but it is the only thing you didn't replace?
30 amp breaker would trip (hopefully) when subject to a continuous 27.5 amp load, but may not, wires would overheat from the continuous load, which is why code says 80% of breaker rating.
10 ga wire is the minimum for a 30 amp circuit, 6 ga for a 50 amp, big difference in size between the two.

 

[TronJockey]

SO, you replaced the breaker, and outlet, but not the wires? Breaker is there to make sure the wires are not subject to more current then they can stand, but it is the only thing you didn't replace?
30 amp breaker would trip (hopefully) when subject to a continuous 27.5 amp load, but may not, wires would overheat from the continuous load, which is why code says 80% of breaker rating.
10 ga wire is the minimum for a 30 amp circuit, 6 ga for a 50 amp, big difference in size between the two.

My mistake. Duly noted.