Which 240 EV charger should I buy ?

[YeGolf]

I wasn't able to find similar topic.

I start looking on eBay and Amazon and get lost. There is so many. I need 240 for 14-50 outlet.
Which one would you suggest to buy. I which one better do not buy.

 

[JoulesThief]

Many here have bought Clipper Creek models, as well as e-Motorwerks. I bought both. One is sitting brand new in the box, the Clipper Creek 40Plug in version for 14-50 Nema outlet. It's for sale if you know anyone interested. It's plug and play if your outlet is installed, has passed inspection and is ready for use.

 

[RonDawg]

The only EVSE (correct term) that I would say to stay away from are the older Bl!nk units, the ones with the black surrounds and off white face. Unless modified, their charging handles have been known to overheat above 16 amps (eGolfs with the DCFC plug can draw twice that). The proper modification is to replace the charging handle, but Bl!nk cheaped out after a while and simply dialed down the supplied energy to get around the problem.

You cannot get these new, but can be obtained via eBay or Craigslist.

The newer "Blink HQ" does not suffer from this problem and is actually made by a different company.

 

[miimura]

I wasn't able to find similar topic.

I start looking on eBay and Amazon and get lost. There is so many. I need 240 for 14-50 outlet.
Which one would you suggest to buy. I which one better do not buy.

If you specifically want a station which already has a 14-50 plug on it, the list is much shorter.

JuiceBox Pro 40
Clipper Creek HCS-40P
Clipper Creek HCS-50P
Jesla Jr

Most of the other stations from reputable makers that are plug-in use a NEMA 6-50 plug. Those include:
ChargePoint Home
Bosch
Siemens
Leviton

Other makers that are reputable but don't make plug-in stations:
AeroVironment
Delta
Schneider

There are also a lot of other makers of unknown quality, especially selling on Amazon.

 

[RonDawg]

Also, do you already have a 14-50 outlet? The reason I ask is that a 40 amp EVSE (the most powerful you can safely attach to a 50 amp circuit) is actually going to be more powerful than needed for most plug-in cars currently being sold at the moment. Only Tesla cars and possibly the Toyota RAV4-EV and Mercedes B-EV (which use Tesla components) will be able to take full advantage of an EVSE that powerful.

The eGolf draws a maximum of 30 amps, so unless you're eyeing a future Tesla in your parking space, a 30 or 32 amp EVSE on a 40 amp circuit is sufficiently powerful. I'm charging mine using a 20 amp Clipper Creek unit and it's sufficient. In fact, I've dialed my charging speed down to 10 amps in CarNet in the hopes the slower charging rate will minimize heat from charging and thus postpone heat-related battery degradation.

 

[Kosta]

I wasn't able to find similar topic.

I start looking on eBay and Amazon and get lost. There is so many. I need 240 for 14-50 outlet.
Which one would you suggest to buy. I which one better do not buy.

i am running the FLO charger - fused for 40 amps - rated for 32 , and delivers 27-28 according to data ... made in Quebec , VW Canada part - supplied by dealer - have had no issues with it

 

[Rsolaregolf]

we have a 40A clipper creek, hard wired. It's has been faultless operation. We just plug it in when we get home as we have all our power from a grid tied, net metered, solar tracker.

We keep the 120V charger by our spare tire (we bought a temp spare from a 2016 gas golf) but have never had to use the 120 charger nor the spare tire for that matter.

 

[YeGolf]

Sorry,
I forgot to mention that I need to keep it in car. I want use it with outlet at work. Also the outlet is outside, it should be waterproof. And it's good to have display with meter.
Thank for all answers.

 

[f1geek]

What is the type of receptacle available at work? Once you know that, you can narrow down your search. The receptacle is either 120 V or 240 V, and then you need to know the amperage of the circuit. If plug in with the car's provided 120 V EVSE, over the course of 8 hours, you can pick up about 10 kWh, which if you can average at least 4 miles/kWh, that's 40 miles of range.

 

[YeGolf]

What is the type of receptacle available at work? Once you know that, you can narrow down your search. The receptacle is either 120 V or 240 V, and then you need to know the amperage of the circuit. If plug in with the car's provided 120 V EVSE, over the course of 8 hours, you can pick up about 10 kWh, which if you can average at least 4 miles/kWh, that's 40 miles of range.

It's 240V 40A 14-50 outlet. I tried with 120 V but it is not enough for my commute, I need 61 miles.

 

[YeGolf]

I've dialed my charging speed down to 10 amps in CarNet in the hopes the slower charging rate will minimize heat from charging and thus postpone heat-related battery degradation.

Do you thing that 10 amps is healthier for battery compare to 20 amps and 30 amps ? Than 120 V must be the best option to charge a car.

 

[miimura]

For a portable application like this, I would get a Jesla Jr unless you need built-in metering.

 

[YeGolf]

For a portable application like this, I would get a Jesla Jr unless you need built-in metering.

I like it. But a little bit too pricy. The metering is just good to have.

This one looks not bad too.
Zencar Level 2 EV Charger

 

[RonDawg]

I've dialed my charging speed down to 10 amps in CarNet in the hopes the slower charging rate will minimize heat from charging and thus postpone heat-related battery degradation.

Do you thing that 10 amps is healthier for battery compare to 20 amps and 30 amps ? Than 120 V must be the best option to charge a car.

I read somewhere else on this forum how a member likes to limit his charging to 13 amps for the very same reason I am limiting mine to 10. It may not increase battery life at all over going with my EVSE's 20 amps or the car's full 30 amps. But it certainly can't hurt. I'm not on a TOU plan (my local utility doesn't provide a price advantage) so whether it takes me 5 hours to charge, or 10, it doesn't matter except for a slightly increased cost from having to run the ancillary systems longer. If I need to speed up the charge, I can always go into CarNet and make a temporary adjustment.

Unless your range needs are modest, 120 volt charging is simply too slow. For that reason, I wouldn't go below 10 amps/240 volts as you're limiting your charging speed basically to 120 volt level.

 

[owo]

For a portable application like this, I would get a Jesla Jr unless you need built-in metering.

fwiw you can get an adapted instead of modified version of this, a TeslaTap adapter ($240) combined with a Tesla Gen 2 Mobile Connector ($300), which costs only slightly more overall but gives you the added benefit of being able to use Tesla destination chargers. I've been getting a lot of free charge from unmonitored hotel Tesla chargers with the TeslaTap.

 

[f1geek]

Check out Clipper Creek. They now offer factory certified used EVSEs for $300 on their website, but you need to call them to see what they have in stock. The LCS series is very compact and offers numerous different 240V options - 16A, 20A and 24A stations - that are all waterproof and very rugged. I own a HCS-40P installed in my garage and it's been flawless for the past three years.

 

[JoulesThief]

I have a new Clipper Creek HCS-40P in the box, for sale, in the Los Angeles area. $500 firm. Private message me if interested.

 

[YeGolf]

I have a new Clipper Creek HCS-40P in the box, for sale, in the Los Angeles area. $500 firm. Private message me if interested.

it's a good price but this one is too big to keep it in car.

 

[YeGolf]

fwiw you can get an adapted instead of modified version of this, a TeslaTap adapter ($240) combined with a Tesla Gen 2 Mobile Connector ($300), which costs only slightly more overall but gives you the added benefit of being able to use Tesla destination chargers. I've been getting a lot of free charge from unmonitored hotel Tesla chargers with the TeslaTap.

Haw can you know with one Tesla Charger will work with this adapter. That is good idea to use it for free charging.

Check out Clipper Creek. They now offer factory certified used EVSEs for $300 on their website, but you need to call them to see what they have in stock. The LCS series is very compact and offers numerous different 240V options - 16A, 20A and 24A stations - that are all waterproof and very rugged. I own a HCS-40P installed in my garage and it's been flawless for the past three years.

Looks like Clipper Creek is reliable one.

 

[JoulesThief]

I have a new Clipper Creek HCS-40P in the box, for sale, in the Los Angeles area. $500 firm. Private message me if interested.

it's a good price but this one is too big to keep it in car.

You would keep it in your garage... if you want 30 amps and 7.2 kwh capability from any Nema 14-50 outlet. When you are on the road, the less time you spend tethered to a power outlet, the better. If you are really low, you are looking at a 4.5 to 4.75 hour recharge on a 2017 e-Golf with the 35.8 kwh battery at the full 240 V and 30 amps. Add in 20% more time if you are plugged in to a commercial EVSE that puts out 200 to 208V at 30 amps.

I've taken my JuiceBox 40 Pro on quite a few trips, where a 14-50 outlet was available but a EVSE was not. 3 hours tops if I am really low, in my 24.2 kWh 2015 SEL.