Recommendations for an affordable 24A portable charger?

[awp0]

There are a couple of 200+ mile destinations that I'll be traveling to fairly commonly (family visits), each with accessible dryer outlets on 30A circuits. One is a 10-30R and the other is a 14-30R. I understand that that Ford mobile charger is unsafe for this because it will attempt to draw more than 30A. But it sounds like I could purchase a 24A portable charger with the correct pigtails and safely charge at level 2 rates. This would save me a lot of logistical charging headaches on trips like this.

Does anyone have a recommendation for an affordable (but safe) portable 24A charger? Just searching around Amazon, I see some interesting options like the following UL-certified product for $220: https://www.amazon.com/VEVOR-Level-Charger-Amp-110-240V/dp/B0B929NRLN/ref=sr_1_17_sspa

Any thoughts on that one, or alternate suggestions? Thanks!

Sponsored

 

[RickMachE]

Congrats on pursuing responsible charging. So many just plug in, and when their house burns down...

 

[generaltso]

Does anyone have a recommendation for an affordable (but safe) portable 24A charger? Just searching around Amazon, I see some interesting options like the following UL-certified product for $220: https://www.amazon.com/VEVOR-Level-Charger-Amp-110-240V/dp/B0B929NRLN/ref=sr_1_17_sspa

Just to clarify, the cable and connector are UL certified, but the product as a whole is not. That may or may not matter to you.

 

[awp0]

Just to clarify, the cable and connector are UL certified, but the product as a whole is not. That may or may not matter to you.

Very good catch! Thank you.

 

[Bdsmith10]

There are a couple of 200+ mile destinations that I'll be traveling to fairly commonly (family visits), each with accessible dryer outlets on 30A circuits. One is a 10-30R and the other is a 14-30R. I understand that that Ford mobile charger is unsafe for this because it will attempt to draw more than 30A. But it sounds like I could purchase a 24A portable charger with the correct pigtails and safely charge at level 2 rates. This would save me a lot of logistical charging headaches on trips like this.

Does anyone have a recommendation for an affordable (but safe) portable 24A charger? Just searching around Amazon, I see some interesting options like the following UL-certified product for $220: https://www.amazon.com/VEVOR-Level-Charger-Amp-110-240V/dp/B0B929NRLN/ref=sr_1_17_sspa

Any thoughts on that one, or alternate suggestions? Thanks!

Are the chargers that you guys are looking at any different from the FORD charger that came with the car?

 

[dafish]

Grizzly programmable will be my choice.

 

[generaltso]

Are the chargers that you guys are looking at any different from the FORD charger that came with the car?

Yes. The Ford EVSE can not be derated, so it will always try to pull 30+ amps. That's bad if you are using it on a 30A circuit.

 

[Bikespace]

Grizzly programmable will be my choice.

That's what I'm using for this exact application. All I needed was an adaptor, and to flip some DIP switches inside.

Since all the GRIZZL-E does is tell the car how much current to draw, there is zero reason why Ford couldn't add that function to the Ford Pass app to let us use our portable chargers at 24A. They'd make money selling NEMA 14-30 plug whips, too.

 

[Bdsmith10]

Yes. The Ford EVSE can not be derated, so it will always try to pull 30+ amps. That's bad if you are using it on a 30A circuit.

Wow…thanks….i need to revisit this…thats how i charge my car every time

 

[generaltso]

Wow…thanks….i need to revisit this…thats how i charge my car every time

With the Ford Mobile EVSE on a 30A circuit? Yeah, you should upgrade your circuit or use a different EVSE that can be set to 24A.

 

[dafish]

Bike:

Sorta, but sorta not. The key is the EVSE has to be set to match the NEC approved output of the circuit it's plugged into, and then it sends what's known as a Pilot Signal to the OBC. I doubt you'll ever see an OBC able to be user configured to pull whatever with a matching EVSE that was passive. The entire J1772 standard just doesn't work like that.

It could call for anything below the EVSE, and can of course call for times.

 

[dafish]

btw, the grizz can go down to 24 amps..

 

[awp0]

This is great. Thanks guys! Sounds like I should take a serious look at the Grizzl-e.

 

[Bikespace]

btw, the grizz can go down to 24 amps..

Yup! And that's how I'm using it, set to 24 A, plugged into a 30 A rated circuit. I'm the user, and I configured the GRIZZL-E. Which was my point. To the OP, it works great, and I can use it at up to 40 A on properly rated circuits.

There is no current limiting in in the EVSE. It tells the vehicle what to draw. There might be a UL reason not to do so, but there is no logical reason. We should be able to set the vehicle's max charge rate, as long as it is at or below what the EVSE says is safe.

There are plenty of 32 A chargers on 30 A circuits (or worse) that would benefit.

 

[RetiredDP]

This is great. Thanks guys! Sounds like I should take a serious look at the Grizzl-e.

You might want to look at the Autel MaxiCharger. Currently available on Amazon with a 10% discount, which comes to $503 plus tax. It'll do 40-32-24-16 amps, software selectable. My Alpha charger (uses the Grizzl-E motherboard, same mfgr.) kept shutting down in high ambient heat of 90° or higher. The Autel unit, also a smart charger, is rated to 135°. It has a big heat-sink on the back to shed heat.

Sponsored