Anbull 120v/240v 16a max, inexpensive adjustable Chinese EVSE

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jjeff

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 13, 2016
Messages
2,859
Location
MSP MN
I recently ordered and tested another EVSE :eek: I know, this must be my 10th! The purpose of this one was to include with my Leafs as I'm hoping to sell them at some point, as soon as our Rav4 Prime comes in or earlier. I don't want to include my OEM Leaf EVSEs as I spent upwards of $300 getting them upgraded to 240v and adjustability by the now-defunct EVSEupgrade. The problem is I like this new EVSE so much I think I'm going to keep it.
It goes up to 240v 16a and as low as 6a 120v, it has a very nice flexible rubber cord with a nice J1772 end and nice power cord which isn't generally the norm on these cheap Chinese EVSEs, they generally like to cheap out on the power cord and use a stiff plastic cord. It has a nice lighted display showing things like amperage, voltage, kWs and temp, C only! To change current you plug it in and then push the front button before hooking it up to your car, it has 5 preset currents, again starting out at 6a and maxing out at 16a. I ran it at 16a for several hours and things barely got warm, the cabling is 12g.
I'm not 100% sure I'd trust the current-pushbutton selector to be out in the driving rain but maybe it could, would have preferred a non-mechanical push button but it is easy to change currents.
All in all, I think it's a steal at the $115 I paid or even the current $150 it lists for now(Amazon and their yo-yo pricing!) and much better than the cheap non-adjustable Dudiosa ones you see on Amazon for more than this one lists at. Note it comes with a 6-20 240v plug so to use on 120v you need to purchase a plug adapter, not included but other ones that include the adapter plug are quite a bit more, and IMO may include a sketchy(14g) adapter plug, I'll link the one I ordered and has 12g wiring. Note I don't believe the specs say it's compatible with 120v but I can say for certain it works just fine as basically all the cheap Chinese EVSEs do, whether they say so or not.
NO! it's not UL listed, if you want a UL listed EVSE do NOT purchase this one, spend double the price if you need the UL peace of mind but for me it works just fine and I'd have no qualms suggesting it to anyone not worried about the whole UL thing.
EVSE- https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09HG8TV8K?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details&th=1
120v Adapter cord I purchased-https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08PNNMNC4?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details
 
SageBrush said:
I've never seen a 6-20r in the wild.
I have seen one: at the fishing cabins we visit in upstate NY. I've been using it one week each year since 2017. But it's the only 6-20r I've ever seen.

(I bought a 14-50r to 6-20p adapter to use with my UMC1, since that was all I could find back then. Using the adapter with the UMC means I need to have a big note on it to make sure to set the car to only charge at 20A. That was just 6 months before I got the Model X and the UMC2, for which Tesla sells a 6-20 pigtail plug; the nicer thing about the pigtail is the car automatically sets the amperage)
 
jlv said:
SageBrush said:
I've never seen a 6-20r in the wild.
I have seen one: at the fishing cabins we visit in upstate NY. I've been using it one week each year since 2017. But it's the only 6-20r I've ever seen.

(I bought a 14-50r to 6-20p adapter to use with my UMC1, since that was all I could find back then. Using the adapter with the UMC means I need to have a big note on it to make sure to set the car to only charge at 20A. That was just 6 months before I got the Model X and the UMC2, for which Tesla sells a 6-20 pigtail plug; the nicer thing about the pigtail is the car automatically sets the amperage)

Yah, but that problem existed because the UMC1 was willing to negotiate a current higher than 16 Amps. This EVSE won't go higher than 16 Amps so no problem with a car that could take a higher amperage with a different EVSE.

The EVSE is cheap, but it pretty much forces people to buy an adapter set.
 
SageBrush said:
I've never seen a 6-20r in the wild. Do you have a bunch of adapters ?
They are most often used for 240v window A/C units. I don't really like to use them for higher draw EVSEs as they are basically like a standard 120v plug with the prongs orientated differently. For EVSEs I personally like to use the L or twist-lock standard as they are beefier and the plug locks itself into the outlet. I guess for 16a and under the 6-20 standard might be OK but not my first choice. I'm thinking the reason cheap EVSEs might like it is they are probably pretty inexpensive and basically do the job.
As for adapters, I have a 6-15/20r to 14-50p adapter and once to 14-50, I have adapters to most other 120/240 volt plugs. I built lots of adapters early on and truthfully have only used a few over the years, I kind of overprepared.
 
jjeff said:
As for adapters, I have a 6-15/20r to 14-50p adapter and once to 14-50, I have adapters to most other 120/240 volt plugs.

^^ This is the exact setup I want to avoid. I'll pay more so that I use ONE well fitting adapter for any receptacle. I don't think it exists yet, but I hope in the future a generic standard of the Tesla EVSE with its set of adapters is adopted by the EV public.
 
SageBrush said:
jjeff said:
As for adapters, I have a 6-15/20r to 14-50p adapter and once to 14-50, I have adapters to most other 120/240 volt plugs.

^^ This is the exact setup I want to avoid. I'll pay more so that I use ONE well fitting adapter for any receptacle. I don't think it exists yet, but I hope in the future a generic standard of the Tesla EVSE with its set of adapters is adopted by the EV public.
Funny thing is when I got my first aftermarket EVSE, a Juicebox premium, it came with the then advertised "Tesla standard" 14-50 plug. It seems as Teslas were the first EVs to use higher charging currents they decided on the 14-50 plug standard. Up to 50a and a very robust plug and somewhat common, especially for RV and range use. I figured if it was good enough for Tesla it would probably be good and stick around, so I decided to convert the various 120v and 240v plugs to a 14-50r.
Next came my second EVSE, an upgraded Nissan OEM EVSE by EVSEupgrade. They decided to standardize on the L6-30 standard which made sense for them as their EVSE maxed out at 20a. The L6-30 standard also made sense as it was much more portable than the 14-50 "range plug" standard, locked in the outlet to prevent the plug from pulling out even with weight on it(not that a 14-50 plug would pop out either but again it's much larger) and also lacked a neutral wire, not needed for EVSEs in L2 operation. I also liked the "L" standard as the female receptacle was easier to find in a portable size, and nice to use for outlet adapters as every style plug would end up terminating in a "L" female outlet to plug my EVSE into. Unfortunately while the L6 standard was probably the best fit for EVSEs the L14 (or L6 with a neutral) was far more common in typical use. The L14 standard is very common in generator use and is often included with an L14-30p to standard 120v outlets Y adapter.
So as can probably be seen, all the various 120, 240 and 120/240v plugs and all their amperages can really be a challenge if you want your EVSE to match an outlet you may run into in the wild. Are you saying Tesla has now standardized on something different than the 14-50 standard? or have they just standardized on a different EVSE standard but still generally suggest the 14-50 as their wall outlet of choice? if the first, does Tesla make adapters to go from the 20 odd 120, 240 and 120/240v plugs one might find in common use?
 
jjeff said:
SageBrush said:
jjeff said:
As for adapters, I have a 6-15/20r to 14-50p adapter and once to 14-50, I have adapters to most other 120/240 volt plugs.

^^ This is the exact setup I want to avoid. I'll pay more so that I use ONE well fitting adapter for any receptacle. I don't think it exists yet, but I hope in the future a generic standard of the Tesla EVSE with its set of adapters is adopted by the EV public.
So as can probably be seen, all the various 120, 240 and 120/240v plugs and all their amperages can really be a challenge if you want your EVSE to match an outlet you may run into in the wild. Are you saying Tesla has now standardized on something different than the 14-50 standard? or have they just standardized on a different EVSE standard but still generally suggest the 14-50 as their wall outlet of choice? if the first, does Tesla make adapters to go from the 20 odd 120, 240 and 120/240v plugs one might find in common use?
I didn't mean 14-50, although I do like that choice. I meant that Tesla sells a mobile EVSE that mates to a choice of proprietary adapters. This approach has two excellent advantages, and the disadvantage that it is proprietary.

Advantage: ONE adapter to the EVSE for any receptacle
Advantage: the adapter sets the current

https://shop.tesla.com/product/nema-adapter-bundle
 
jjeff said:
Are you saying Tesla has now standardized on something different than the 14-50 standard? or have they just standardized on a different EVSE standard but still generally suggest the 14-50 as their wall outlet of choice? if the first, does Tesla make adapters to go from the 20 odd 120, 240 and 120/240v plugs one might find in common use?
The UMC doesn't have a "standard" plug; instead, the adapter pigtail is the plug. Originally the UMC that came with the car included the 5-15 and 14-50 pigtails; so Tesla preferred the 14-50 over the 6-50. Connecting a pigtail tells the UMC what the maximum amperage it can provide (e.g., 24A on a 30A circuit), which in turn automatically tells the car.

The difference between the UMC1 and UMC2 is the form of the pigtail (the UMC1 was just an end connector with no wire), and a max limit of 40A (UMC1) vs. 32A (UMC2).

You can see the available pigtails here:
https://shop.tesla.com/product/gen-2-nema-adapters
 
^^^ Thanks guys, interesting, Tesla in its quest to standardize plugs has created a new plug standard :D
I get it that it's nice to have some smarts built into the plug telling the EVSE the maximum amperage it can draw but from both links given it looks like quite a few plugs are lacking I've seen in the wild. Most notably to me, all forums of L or twist lock plugs and secondly, all 120v outlets over 20a, which there are several, including the very common in RV parks, TT-30.
I suppose in those cases you could make or maybe purchase say a L14-30p to 14-30r adapter and use that with a Tesla 14-30p to UMC1 adapter that will tell the Tesla UMC to limit maximum charging current to 24a. Not sure how one would handle a TT-30 that maxes out at 24a but is 120v and not 240v.....I assume a Tesla will charge at more than 12 or even 16a @ 120v? Modern Leafs will charge up to 27.5a 240v or 120v, doesn't matter, assuming your EVSE is capable of that.
 
jjeff said:
^^^ Thanks guys, interesting, Tesla in its quest to standardize plugs has created a new plug standard

Not a plug to receptacle, but pigtail connection to the EVSE box of electronics. I don't know of *any* standard connector, but I can say that the Tesla solution is sweet. I personally don't care if industry settles on the Tesla solution or on another one, I just want to see it standardized. That way, EV owners could buy a set of J1772 pigtails (and/or) Tesla connector pigtails) and use them with whatever EVSE they buy now or in the future.

This current situation of buying an EVSE that is Amp compatible for the receptacle but the wrong NEMA plug is stupid, unsafe, and expensive.

---
By the way,
NEC 625.44 requires non-locking receptacles so the plugs will also be non-locking.
 
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