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WReed82

Well-known member
Joined
Nov 28, 2018
Messages
81
Hi Folks,

I got an OpenEVSE Advanced Kit, assembled and installed it.
Now, if needed, we can charge at better than three times the factory 120V charger speed.

) Went with this model because it can use 120V/240V.
) Can be set to 6A at 120V up to 40A at 240V.
) Small enough that it can go in the car for trips.
) Weather resistant, is currently living in a custom outdoor cabinet.
) Very nice 25' J-cable with two pairs of 12Ga for the two hot legs, 10Ga ground, other wires are 18ga.
Conductors are made of fine-gauge wires so cable is easy to handle.
Good J-connector.
) Building the kit some money was saved, and I got familar with the guts of the thing.
) Can be scheduled to start/stop when needed, and can be set to add a certain number of killowatts.
) Can detail multiple metrics on energy consumption patterns.
) For what ya get, price is pretty reasonable.
) Three-year warranty.
) Fast ship.
) I like that the software is open-source.

) What's not to like:
) For the limited amperage of the I-Mieve, a lighter gauge J-cable would be fine.
And I would have specified a shorter cable.
) Online instructions aren't entirely intuitive or current.
I watched a couple online videos and read a couple assembly pages to grok it all.
) No instructions on mounting the WiFi module. Ended up putting a bit of
self-adhesive Velcro hook inside the case, and Velcro pile on the module, to
make for easy service.

I haven't had time to get the WiFi control happening.
For now, front button control is fine.

For the Neutrik Powercon True 1 TOP chassis connector I couldn't find a coverplate with the
right size hole so had to buy a blank and drill a main hole and two screw holes. Works fine.
In addition to the 240V outlet, I put in a 120V 5-20 convenience outlet for the vacuum, etc.

I used a mix of 12ga and 10ga existing and new supply wiring, so
limited to a 20A breaker and 16A continuous draw.
Am happy that voltage drop is limited to about 1%, from breaker to J-plug.

All I-MiEVs welcome to plug in, Asheville, NC, USA!

Thanks and good health, Weogo
 
I built an Open EVSE from scratch 5 years ago - Ordered the main board from them and bought all the pieces myself elsewhere. Mounted it all in a small waterproof plastic camera case. It has charged our two iMiEV's most days ever since. Doesn't have most of the features your new one has, but it's been bullet proof reliable since day one!

Don
 
I have two pre-built Advanced units, one for the i-MiEVs, one for the Bolt. Having the long cord is really nice, and combined with my NEMA 14 extension cord, I have almost 50 feet of cable to work with. My units have the Wi-Fi, but I haven't messed with it much to see what it can do. I don't much care to have charging data on the internet, otherwise I might have bought ChargePoint Home instead.

With their newest kits, you have to go Advanced to get Level 1 support, and if you meter your charging like I do, it's definitely worth it.

The only thing I wish they would change is to not use FedEx for shipping. They're the reason I have two. First one ended up being delivered to a relative's house, which we found out a few days after dealing with FedEx over the lost shipment and ordering a replacement. This whole deal was aggravating as I was already on a time crunch to get one, which is why I bought pre-built instead of the kit.
 
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