OpenEVSE Charge Station

[Peter del Rio]

OpenEVSE is an electric vehicle charger composed of open-source software and hardware which can be made DIY.

It comes pre-built or as a DIY kit for either 40amps or 48amps circuits.

I would be most interested in the 48amp DIY kit.

I can currently recharge my BMW i3 Rex overnight on a trickle charger, but a Rivian would take 2 full days!

Has anyone installed/built this charger?

Sponsored

 

[DucRider]

OpenEVSE is an electric vehicle charger composed of open-source software and hardware which can be made DIY.

It comes pre-built or as a DIY kit for either 40amps or 48amps circuits.

I would be most interested in the 48amp DIY kit.

I can currently recharge my BMW i3 Rex overnight on a trickle charger, but a Rivian would take 2 full days!

Has anyone installed/built this charger?

They have a good reputation, have been around for a long time, I know people that swear by them. On the flip side they claim some things that cannot be true..
" All safety features required by SAE J1772, UL and NEC are standard. "
They offer all of their units with plugs and adjustable amperages (by WiFi). The NEC requires that such units be hardwired, and user access to the settings restricted.
They also offer their units with 14-60 plugs, which also violates the NEC.
It is also questionable to claim UL compliance and not actually be UL listed.

Either they don't know what the codes require, or they choose to ignore them (and claim compliance anyway). Some people will find their claims disturbing, others will have no problem with them.

And a 135 kWh Rivian will take 4 days to recharge from empty at L1, not 2. But keep in mind you are very unlikely to routinely use nearly the full range of a Rivian on a daily basis, where that is much more likely with an i3. Miles/hr of charging is a more meaningful metric that SOC% when deciding on EVSE size. If you only drive 25 miles/day, L1 would still work to top off every night.

 

[Peter del Rio]

They have a good reputation, have been around for a long time, I know people that swear by them. On the flip side they claim some things that cannot be true..
" All safety features required by SAE J1772, UL and NEC are standard. "
They offer all of their units with plugs and adjustable amperages (by WiFi). The NEC requires that such units be hardwired, and user access to the settings restricted.
They also offer their units with 14-60 plugs, which also violates the NEC.
It is also questionable to claim UL compliance and not actually be UL listed.

Either they don't know what the codes require, or they choose to ignore them (and claim compliance anyway). Some people will find their claims disturbing, others will have no problem with them.

And a 135 kWh Rivian will take 4 days to recharge from empty at L1, not 2. But keep in mind you are very unlikely to routinely use nearly the full range of a Rivian on a daily basis, where that is much more likely with an i3. Miles/hr of charging is a more meaningful metric that SOC% when deciding on EVSE size. If you only drive 25 miles/day, L1 would still work to top off every night.

Thank you for your knowledgeable response.

My understanding is all the components are UL listed but the final product has never been tested due to expense so that does require some caution. I would want to know if any one has experienced any safety issues.

I also believe the plug they offer removes the neutral wire which is not NEC allowed. However, I would hard wire the device. I am mostly interested as a DIY project.

BTW - the last time I rode was on my 1098R #81/450 on 9/9/18 when I flipped it avoiding a distracted driver that cut me off in the twisties in Hudson Valley. I shattered my collarbone and swore to my wife I would never ride again. I still have a Tricolor Monster in the garage. I do miss riding...

 

[DucRider]

BTW - the last time I rode was on my 1098R #81/450 on 9/9/18 when I flipped it avoiding a distracted driver that cut me off in the twisties in Hudson Valley. I shattered my collarbone and swore to my wife I would never ride again. I still have a Tricolor Monster in the garage. I do miss riding...

I'm in the ST crowd, and am lucky in that my wife had her own MC when I met her and we've been riding together for ~35 years now.
We do have one gentleman who in some years shows up at our annual ST gathering on his 1098 with a gas can bungeed to the rear seat (range extender).
Another had a 1098 prepped for a Canonball run (scrubbed last minute that year), but the 1098s with the custom Multistrada bags containing race spec fuel cells was revealed:

He was a distance beast and did SF to NY in 37 hours on an ST4 (and later Prudhoe Bay to Key West on a Multi in 105).

The Rivian is our retirement phase vehicle as we find that we are wimping out on the longer rides to areas we want to go (too hot/cold/wet/smoky). May not hit 100K on my current bike.

 

[ajdelange]

Interesting concept. An EVSE is, with the exception of the control module, a very simple device consisting of a contactor which connects the vehicle to the mains, some cables and connectors, some current transformers and a suitable case and bushings. Given the way electronics are assembled these days it is not surprising that one can put together a kit that the buyer can snap together and which functions safely as EVSE. But there is, of course, no way such a device could be "listed" as I don't think any lab would list a pile of parts. And there is also the question of compliance with codes. If an up to speed inspector saw the 48A version plugged into a 14-60R rceptacle he'd flunk the installation as that violates current NEC rules.

The neutral pin in most Level 2 EVSE doesn't do anything electrical as nothing is connected to it but it does prevent you from plugging 48A commissioned unit into a 14-50R or 14-30R receptacle. Day was when I trusted myself to not do something that absent minded but today I'm not so sure. In any case you have expressed some concerns about safety with such a kit and while I am sure that it is perfectly safe out to say four nines with this stuff we like to have five or six.

The other observation here is that as final assembly is so simple the manufacturer does not save much labor cost by having you do it and cannot, thus, save you that much. These kits are, IMO, pretty expensive.

As to the learning part: EVSE is a relay controlled by a box that detects the car and responds to its request for current according to a relatively simple algorithm. You won't learn that much from assembling an EVSE. All the tech is in the control module. If the source code for that is open then you will learn all you want from looking at a listing.

 

[ajdelange]

I would be most interested in the 48amp DIY kit.

I can currently recharge my BMW i3 Rex overnight on a trickle charger, but a Rivian would take 2 full days!

Forgot to comment on this. A full charge for the BMW would take something like 42.2 kWh and for the Rivians either 135/42.2 = 3.2 times or 180/42.2 = 4.3 times that for charging times longer by those factors at whatever the charge rate. But note that 48 A is 11.5 kW which is hardly a trickle. It would charge the smaller battery Rivian completely in 11.7 hours and the larger one in 15.7. Keeping in mind that daily charging is there to replace daily use and not to provide a full charge 48A will do the job easily unless you have exceptionally large daily use requirements. Most users like to keep SoC in the 20 - 80% range implying 7 or 9.4 hours charging at 48A.

 

[Peter del Rio]

All the tech is in the control module. If the source code for that is open then you will learn all you want from looking at a listing.

Please note the control module is open-source, that is why it is so interesting, and if you can code then it enables you to truly customize and integrate it into a smart home.

Your are right as a kit it is expensive but that is because all you do is screw it together but is still $220 less that the comparable Chargepoint, while giving you real-time power usage on the device as well as through WiFi.

As part of the Radio Shack generation it looks like a fun project that I can add my own code to, I just want to know if it is safe and reliable.

 

[ajdelange]

Bought as a factory assembled unit with a UL (or other lab's) label on it I am sure it is safe. But if you buy it as a kit and "improve" the software I am not.

Sponsored