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EVSE purchase & installation in 2017

Discussion in 'Prime Plug-in Charging' started by john1701a, May 28, 2017.

  1. pineprius

    pineprius 15th Hole #4

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    Thanks John1710a. Very clever. I see our mileage and mpge are nearly identical at this time.
     
  2. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

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    OK, I am still very new to this EV charging things. So far, I got L1 is what came with the car and its for 110V, and L2 is for 240V. Other than faster charging time with L2, are there any other benefits of having L2 EVSE?
     
  3. john1701a

    john1701a Prius Guru

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    L2 can (if enough power is available) supply electricity to the heating & cooling system directly.

    That allows you to do a spontaneous climate-prep without impact to EV miles.
     
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  4. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

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    Please bear with me. It is only my 4th day of PRIME ownership. My previous Gen3 Prius Two did not have climate-prep. The climate-prep you speak of is the remote AC thing on the dongle, correct? What do you mean by "spontaneous"?(n)
     
  5. jerrymildred

    jerrymildred Senior Member

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    Also, since you get twice the kWh per amp, there's less heat loss in the wires as well as running the battery fan for less time. But it's not enough to pay for the installation cost. Just a minor point. One nice thing, though, is if you come home and need to make another trip in, say, an hour, you'll get more juice in the battery before you have to go. That's the main reason I'd like to get one.
     
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  6. john1701a

    john1701a Prius Guru

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    - Scheduled
    - Remote
    - Phone-App

    Any of those can be used to start the A/C, the latter are immediate (spontaneous).
     
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  7. bwilson4web

    bwilson4web BMW i3 and Model 3

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    You might want to document the effect. Let me share some of my data:
    [​IMG]
    This is what I typically find in a typical charge session. But if I use the key fob to enable "A/C", I get something like this:
    [​IMG]
    I had let the car charge and then hit the key fob "A/C" and saw and heard the car come on. Hummm. I put the dogs in the car to get groceries and for good measure, hit the key fob "A/C" a second time.

    I'm going to suggest that if pre-conditioning overlaps the primary charge, it may be 'hidden' in the primary charge curve. In effect, preconditioning winds up extending the primary charge curve.

    The good thing is we are both using JuiceBox 40 Pro so we can compare data without having to worry about the sampling challenge of a ChargePoint unit. <GRINS>

    FYI for those reading this thread, I live in North Alabama whereas @john1701a lives in an area with less heat, not none, just less bad (except for the d*mn mosquitoes and other blood suckers.)

    Bob Wilson
     
    #47 bwilson4web, Aug 2, 2017
    Last edited: Aug 2, 2017
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  8. Prodigyplace

    Prodigyplace Senior Member

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    This time of year I thought the blood suckers were all in Washington DC. :D
     
  9. bwilson4web

    bwilson4web BMW i3 and Model 3

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    Naw, they call it the August recess to come home and hide-out from their constituents.

    Bob Wilson
     
  10. Prodigyplace

    Prodigyplace Senior Member

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    As long as they stay south of me. @jerrymildred might be in trouble though. :eek:
     
  11. jerrymildred

    jerrymildred Senior Member

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    Hopefully, the hurricanes, love bugs, sink holes, and mosquitos will scare them away. :whistle:
     
  12. john1701a

    john1701a Prius Guru

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    JuiceBox has already upgraded their EVSE box, despite an upgrade early this year. Of course, it did raise the price $30. But for those who made comments that it should include indicator lights, they are now available for Power, Wi-Fi, and Charging.

    It's really nice seeing an aftermarket provider being so responding to user feedback.
     
    #52 john1701a, Aug 3, 2017
    Last edited: Aug 3, 2017
  13. DavidA

    DavidA Prius owner since July 2009

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    ^ and I'll add the the JuiceBox 40, in both flavors, are now UL listed, making refunds and credits allowable (where offered). Many municipalities would only deal with UL devices and until a few weeks ago, left eMotorWerks out of the programs.

    I've got one of their older, non internet, non-UL, non new lights versions that I got at a very favorable price along with their newer locking bracket. They even lowered the price a bit more for making one with 18 foot of cable instead of 24. I really only need 6 feet of cable where I charge.

    Question: For those who have any of the eMotorWerks JuiceBox models, are you finding that it is difficult to insert the J1772 handle into the charge receiver in your Prime? I'm having to push the handle with all my might to get it properly seated to the depth where the green light goes on. I can barely do it at all; my wife would never be able to. The blue cable handle that comes with the Prime also take a lot of force, but is a little easier to insert.
     
    #53 DavidA, Aug 17, 2017
    Last edited: Aug 17, 2017
  14. Okopipi

    Okopipi New Member

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    I don't have a JuiceBox yet, but I plan on getting one. But, I would have Toyota check your charging port, because I have no problem whatsoever seating the cable (the blue one that came with the car), no force needed, usually only a little adjustment to the angle is all that is needed if the light doesn't come on right away. I've also used a Level 2 EVSE at a Whole Foods, and that was just as easy to get seated.
     
  15. Prodigyplace

    Prodigyplace Senior Member

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    I believe @bwilson4web has used one with his Prime Plus. He will be along to share is experiences shortly.
     
  16. scm2000

    scm2000 Active Member

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    I ordered a Juice Box 40 Pro... it arrives tomorrow... but still need to get the outlet installed in the garage...

    Mainly... the 32 miles I get on the battery covers my commute, but would like to be able to charge up after work for trips after dinner...
     
  17. john1701a

    john1701a Prius Guru

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    One JuiceBox was quite tight. That one does take a lot of force to remove. It's definitely harder to connect that the ChargePoint chargers. Of course, the one that comes with Prime is loose in comparison.

    Our other JuiceBox wasn't as tight. That's the one my wife ended up using. It too is still more snug than preferred. The impression is that it will become easier over time.
     
  18. john1701a

    john1701a Prius Guru

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    Rapid recharge is quite handy. I tend to avoid the after dinner recharging though, since we got our outlets wired into sub-meters for Time-Of-Use discounts:

    11.68 - 13.08 cents / kWh = 8 AM - 4 PM

    41.444 cents / kWh = 4 PM - 9 PM

    6.74 cents / kWh = 9 PM - 8 AM

    btw, our electricity association provided $500 per charger rebate. That worked out really nice.
     
    hill likes this.
  19. bwilson4web

    bwilson4web BMW i3 and Model 3

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    I have no problem with our BMW i3 EVSE, our JuiceBox, or any of the local L2 chargers. But then I'm kinda big and heavy. I don't find it different than plugging in our BMW i3.

    Let me suggest taking close-up photos of both the plug and receiver to see if there are any 'wear marks.' In any manufacturing there will be some variability and wear marks might help.

    Do you have the same problem with 3d party, charging stations?

    Side note, I unplugged once and found a slug-like, goo on the plug and receiver. Since then I check both before plugging in. Who knew slugs like electrons. <GRINS>

    Bob Wilson
     
  20. hill

    hill High Fiber Member

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    John - VERY nice choice w/ the juicebox's. They even make a CHAdeMO set up, of course it's WAY costly. Anyway - didn't see any mention of it . . . did you get the wifi versions?
    thx.
    LOVE how hearty the juicebox cables are. And lenghty as well !! Our Aerovironment had similarly beefy cabling ... only it was too short to support two plugins, so i upgraded with the diy cable that is puny thin ... but still code legal. It just doesn't feel as MANLY
    :p
    but she who must be obeyed doesn't care, as long as it works.
    The nozzles typically have water tight seals (not really an o ring, other than they are round, but kinda flattened) and it really doesn't matter which unit you have. Some of the rings get twisted a tad, and some of 'em simply get dirty. You can pull 'em out and put a silicone spray on 'em. That said, we have over a dozen J plugs for Disney employees, and when complaints were lodged with Chargepoint (the manufacturer/installer/maintainers) - all they did was remove the seal. The J plug REALLY slides in easy now ! Gotta love lazy tech's.
    ,
     
    #60 hill, Sep 13, 2017
    Last edited: Sep 13, 2017