120-to-240 Adapter Kit (Rev 1)

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Without the distractions of the MNL forum yesterday, I managed to get my unit just about finished. I say "just about" because I actually don't have my relays yet (they are supposed to be here next week). So the test run you see here is done with the utmost care on my part, and with particular attention to avoiding extraneous unplugging from the outlets I would use by others.

I used (more or less) the same specs as pi100, though you can see I went with 18" stubbies cut from the receptacle end of my new extension cord. I then added a new receptacle to the remainder, giving me a 22' extension cord to keep with the unit. I figured I never would be more than a foot from at least one of the sockets I'd be combining, what with the adequately long J1772 cord on the EVSE.

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Just successfully completed this project. Many thanks to all who posted information especially, pii100 and garygid. Correlating this thread with http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=26&t=4330&start=110" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; gave me enough knowledge to do it since I have little experience with this.
 
91040 said:
Just successfully completed this project. Many thanks to all who posted information especially, pii100 and garygid.
If you, 91040, have completed this project, then I am going to try it also. I have ordered the parts, including the relays. I am going with the pilot light selected by pii100. The light suggested by garygid from newark is a little smaller and cheaper, but it appears to ship from the UK with a $20 handling charge.

I have a few questions:

1. How, exactly, do the relays provide added safety ? According to the schematic, each relay is energized if its corresponding 120V circuit is complete. Each relay, when energized, connects its half of the 240v circuit to the output. So each half of the 240v circuit is energized if and only if the corresponding 120V plug is live. How is that different from just wiring the hot (black) wire from each 120v line to the output?

If both plugs are on the same phase, the neon light sees no voltage and does not light, but both relays are still energized. If one outlet has its neutral and hot wire reversed, the output will see 120v and the neon light will not light. If both are reversed the output circuit is just 2 neutrals and there is no voltage. I need help seeing the added value from the relays.

2. Are "quick connect" pairs the same as spade lugs? I found some Ideal-brand quick connect assortments at Lowes, with the different colors, but they only listed wire sizes, and did not mention .250, .157 etc. Are these values the width, in inches, of the lugs ?

3. I want to go with the L6-20 output pigtail option to avoid the big mounting hole for a L6-20R socket. However, won't this mean I have to connect both the pigtail's wires and the lamp's wires to the same relay terminals? What is the best way do that ?

Lowes has a 1/2 in drill-bit with a shaft to fit my 3/8 in drill for drilling the 1/2 in holes.
 
tbleakne said:
1. How, exactly, do the relays provide added safety ? According to the schematic, each relay is energized if its corresponding 120V circuit is complete. Each relay, when energized, connects its half of the 240v circuit to the output. So each half of the 240v circuit is energized if and only if the corresponding 120V plug is live. How is that different from just wiring the hot (black) wire from each 120v line to the output?
Assume no relays.

If the EVSE is plugged into the L6-20R, and one 120 volt plug is unplugged by an unsuspecting person, there is a direct path for the other 120 volt hot through the EVSE to the now exposed 120 volt plug.

With the relay, when the 120 volt plug is unplugged, that circuit is broken.

Bill
 
tbleakne said:
91040 said:
Just successfully completed this project. Many thanks to all who posted information especially, pii100 and garygid.
If you, 91040, have completed this project, then I am going to try it also. I have ordered the parts, including the relays. I am going with the pilot light selected by pii100. The light suggested by garygid from newark is a little smaller and cheaper, but it appears to ship from the UK with a $20 handling charge.

I have a few questions:

1. How, exactly, do the relays provide added safety ? According to the schematic, each relay is energized if its corresponding 120V circuit is complete. Each relay, when energized, connects its half of the 240v circuit to the output. So each half of the 240v circuit is energized if and only if the corresponding 120V plug is live. How is that different from just wiring the hot (black) wire from each 120v line to the output?

If both plugs are on the same phase, the neon light sees no voltage and does not light, but both relays are still energized. If one outlet has its neutral and hot wire reversed, the output will see 120v and the neon light will not light. If both are reversed the output circuit is just 2 neutrals and there is no voltage. I need help seeing the added value from the relays.

2. Are "quick connect" pairs the same as spade lugs? I found some Ideal-brand quick connect assortments at Lowes, with the different colors, but they only listed wire sizes, and did not mention .250, .157 etc. Are these values the width, in inches, of the lugs ?

3. I want to go with the L6-20 output pigtail option to avoid the big mounting hole for a L6-20R socket. However, won't this mean I have to connect both the pigtail's wires and the lamp's wires to the same relay terminals? What is the best way do that ?

Lowes has a 1/2 in drill-bit with a shaft to fit my 3/8 in drill for drilling the 1/2 in holes.
I will let the experts cover the design issues. However, my understanding is that the relays keep one male plug from being energized by the other. garygid's quick (and dirty) "y" connector can do that! :shock:

The "quick connect" plugs seem also to be called "spade lugs" and "disconnects." I only found the correct sizes at auto part stores. My relays used .25" and .187" connectors. The biggest .187" only came in the blue size. I have extra if you want to wait until I see you next.

I used the L6-20 pig tail. The hot wires go directly to the relays with the lamp wire crimped into the same connector's as well. I used a wire nut for all the ground wires.

The wire clamps I used need a 7/8" hole. I used a 3/4" circular saw and had to file and sand to open it up enough. I also used the silicon sealer (left over from the SOC project to seal the openings in the box.

Good luck and have fun.

Though redundant, this is my parts list:

Cantex Project Box -Lowes. Item #: 10008 4"x4"x2"

L6-20R Pig tail

(2) G3411204 General Purpose Extension Cords (12/3),Single Connector,10Ft $11.09
http://www.zorotools.com/g/00057627/k-G3411204/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

G2854607 Raised Indicator Light, Red, 250V $4.99
http://www.zorotools.com/g/Indicator%20Lights/00055114/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

(3) G1448212 Compact Nylon Multicord Grips, 1 Cord,1/2 In $1.82
http://www.zorotools.com/g/00058757/k-Compact%20Nylon%20Multicord%20Grips/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

(2) G2813395 Enclosed Power Relays Magnecraft Relay,Power,4 Pin,SPST-NO,30A,120VAC $5.81
http://www.zorotools.com/g/00062830/k-G2813395/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Female Spade Lugs: (4) 0.250 yellow (12 gauge) (4) 0.187 blue

Wire Nut, yellow

(3) 1/2" lock nuts

Command Poster Strips (to hold the relays in place)

I used Zoro because they had most of what I needed. I added an extra item to avoid the shipping charge. No problem dealing with them.
 
ebill3 said:
tbleakne said:
1. How, exactly, do the relays provide added safety ? According to the schematic, each relay is energized if its corresponding 120V circuit is complete. Each relay, when energized, connects its half of the 240v circuit to the output. So each half of the 240v circuit is energized if and only if the corresponding 120V plug is live. How is that different from just wiring the hot (black) wire from each 120v line to the output?
Assume no relays.

If the EVSE is plugged into the L6-20R, and one 120 volt plug is unplugged by an unsuspecting person, there is a direct path for the other 120 volt hot through the EVSE to the now exposed 120 volt plug.

With the relay, when the 120 volt plug is unplugged, that circuit is broken.

Bill
This makes sense. I didn't consider the case you described. Thanks.
 
tbleakne said:
3. I want to go with the L6-20 output pigtail option to avoid the big mounting hole for a L6-20R socket. However, won't this mean I have to connect both the pigtail's wires and the lamp's wires to the same relay terminals? What is the best way do that ?
Check out the other thread that 91040 linked to and you'll see exactly what I did for one of these adapters with an L6-20R pigtail.
 
Definitely connect BOTH the 120v grounds together at the L6-20! There is no problem with "ground loops".

Also, I will go on record and state again; The relays are absolutely necessary for safety! Do not omit these!

For those that want the "deluxe" model with the beeper (makes it easier to quickly find the 2 correct outlets by sounding an alert for a few seconds):
pic


Note: S1 not needed unless you want a convenient way to switch to 120v 12A "on the fly".

-Phil
 
Ingineer said:
Note: S1 not needed unless you want a convenient way to switch to 120v 12A "on the fly".
If you want the ability to switch to 120v on the fly, as I did, you can also achieve this without a separate switch by substituting in an SPDT relay and connecting the opposite 120v neutral to the NC terminal on it, as I described here.
 
91040 said:
The wire clamps I used need a 7/8" hole. I used a 3/4" circular saw and had to file and sand to open it up enough. I also used the silicon sealer (left over from the SOC project to seal the openings in the box.
Now that I have received the wire clamps, it appears that one end would require 3/4" hole and the other end would fit "7/8" hole. fooljoe's photo
http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=26&t=4330&p=126261#p126261
shows his clamps mounted via lock-washers on the "3/4" side. Did you get a larger wire clamp, or did you mount the clamps via the bigger end? I have bought a "7/8" hole saw but I could take it back for the "3/4" size. I apologize for all my clueless detailed questions :) .
 
I installed the cord grips the same way fooljoe shows in his picture. The "collar" between the grip threads is on the outside. On the grip I used, the end that held the lock washer needed a hole larger than 3/4". I assumed that the hole needed to be 7/8" but it could be 13/16".
tbleakne said:
91040 said:
The wire clamps I used need a 7/8" hole. I used a 3/4" circular saw and had to file and sand to open it up enough. I also used the silicon sealer (left over from the SOC project to seal the openings in the box.
Now that I have received the wire clamps, it appears that one end would require 3/4" hole and the other end would fit "7/8" hole. fooljoe's photo
http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=26&t=4330&p=126261#p126261
shows his clamps mounted via lock-washers on the "3/4" side. Did you get a larger wire clamp, or did you mount the clamps via the bigger end? I have bought a "7/8" hole saw but I could take it back for the "3/4" size. I apologize for all my clueless detailed questions :) .
 
I did about the same as 91040. 7/8" looked a little too big, so I drilled 3/4" holes then grinded them out until they were just big enough to screw the grips in. I'd say this was actually the hardest part of the project.
 
garygid said:
A Step-Drill usually has many sizes all in one drill, and makes nice, clean holes.
A closer examination with a better ruler confirms that 3/4" is a wee bit too small for the wire clamps while 7/8" looks definitely too large. I can appreciate that filing the tough box material is not trivial. I have never heard of a "Step-Drill" until now. Harbor Freight does indeed have a step-drill set with a 13/16" size (twice). These projects, together will all the helpful advice from you all, are filling-out my tool box with some clever tools that I might well use again. Not much more than the price of the hole-saw, which, being still sealed, I can return. Thanks.

image_11970.jpg
 
tbleakne said:
A closer examination with a better ruler confirms that 3/4" is a wee bit too small for the wire clamps while 7/8" looks definitely too large. I can appreciate that filing the tough box material is not trivial.

I used a slightly undersized drill bit and then my rotary tool (Dremel), fitted with the small sanding wheel, to enlarge the holes to the perfect size for a snug fit. Did the same with the hole for the outlet too - slightly undersized hole saw with the Dremel to enlarge it (but since it's a much bigger hole, you can use a regular sanding wheel rather than the small one).
 
I finished my project several weeks ago. The 13/16" step-size on the step drill worked great for the cord holes, and the 1/2" step worked well for the indicator lamp hole. I had some trouble getting all the crimps tight on the wire lugs, so I did several over (with new lugs) until I was sure I had them all real tight.

I tested it, using two outlets in my home. I could hear the relays activate, the light lit, and the SOC meter showed I was getting full 3.3kW power with my Rev2 EVSE. Everything looks very nice. Thanks to all for a nice design.

IMG9650-M.jpg

IMG9652-M.jpg
 
Yesterday, Dec 13, was supposed to be my big chance to use my 120-to-240 Adapter to charge while having lunch at some friends' house 45 miles and +1Kft altitude from my home. Unfortunately notsomuch.

The house is upscale, about 6 years old, with a large main electrical panel but no 240V dryer outlet. First I tried a pair of receptacles on the outside of the house that appeared to be non-GFCI. No neon light lit on the Adapter, suggesting both were on the same phase. I tried one outside outlet with one inside. Still no go. Then I realized that the inside receptacle, in the kitchen, was clearly a GFCI. After questioning my hosts, I learned that the outside outlets were on a common circuit protected by a GFCI somewhere else. The outlets in the garage all had GFCI. It looked like the whole house might be on GFCI, so I gave up and settled for +10% of pathetic L1 charge. I couldn't drive any further as originally planned, and even going straight home I chose to stop at my Nissan dealer for 30 min of L2 to give me some margin.

Upon further reflection I realized I should have looked for a non-GFCI outlet in the living room. I believe kitchens, outside, garage, and bathrooms now require GGCI. I am not sure about bedrooms. Finding two non-GFCI could have required more time and cable than I had.

Today I bought a little outlet tester that features a GFCI test so I can quickly eliminate outlets that have hidden GFCI. I also added a lamp socket adapter to my kit so that one side could come from a lamp fixture. I realize that many lighting circuits are on 15A breakers and there is no ground, but I only need ground on one side.

I was disappointed that a modern house with up-to-date wiring would be such a challenge.
 
tbleakne said:
I was disappointed that a modern house with up-to-date wiring would be such a challenge.
I would always check the laundry room first.... especially if laundy is in the garage.
Very often the washer/dryer duplex is wired with split phase service and you will have 240 right there.
 
garygid said:
Tom,
Do you have an exact parts list (source, part number, cost) for your very nicely packaged construction?
I used 91040's parts and source list on pg 5. Lowes had the .250 yellow 12 gauge lugs and Pep Boys had the .187 blue lugs as someone suggested. I did have trouble finding the lock nuts, because I was so clueless I looked for them in the hardware aisle when they are actually with the pvc conduit.
 
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