(Part 2) Best products from r/electricvehicles

I have been batting around the idea of building an EV myself for a long time. I have a DIY electric motorcycle which is a fun project and gets commuting use occasionally but is mostly for fun. The way things are now, though, I really doubt I would build my own EV for any reason other than fun. There are so many cheap, cheap used EVs on that market that just work without all the headaches of a DIY project (believe me- they will ALWAYS have headaches- you will never, ever have 100% reliability with a DIY EV). Used, degraded-battery Leaves or i-MIEVs would meet your needs and are available for less than $8000 in many places. There would be no AWD/4x4, but I suspect that either of those cars with good snow tires would perform well in the snow if the roads aren't covered with all 18 inches.


Would modifying an EV scratch your DIY itch? Perhaps adding some heating capacity to a Leaf or i-MIEV. I have thought it'd be a good project to add a propane heater to an EV, like this one, which I own. It provides instant heat, does not produce carbon monoxide, and is safe to use indoors. The tip sensor would be the one tricky bit- it shuts off if tipped even slightly and going around a corner or accelerating/decelerating could do it. I wouldn't prefer a diesel heater because of the smell and fumes, personally, whereas the propane one is odorless. I have the hose to hook mine up to a 20lb barbecue tank for use in the house during power outages. The other problem would be moisture buildup- the propane gets turned into CO2 and water- and that water will want to turn into condensation in your windows. Still worth trying, I think. Maybe I'll try it in my Prius sometime.


If you REALLY want to build your own snow-monster EV, I would start with whatever gas vehicle would be your choice for the conditions. Since your range requirements are so low, choosing a light, aerodynamic vehicle isn't as important. Don't go for a land-barge though- maybe an older Jeep Cherokee (XJ) in good condition, or a compact truck with 4x4. Compact pickups have been popular for EV conversions because of the easy mounting for the batteries. I'd be partial to an older vehicle with fewer computers, and probably 4x4 with a manual transfer case rather than anything AWD since I suspect that'd be more complicated. Again, I would caution you that unless you are extremely technically savvy, building your own EV is going to be a challenge of finding and fixing all the little problems that will, in all likelihood, take years to sort out and be a constant time-drain. I won't say it's impossible, but do want to advise you about the kind of commitment you'd be making for building and debugging.

Edit: Which Jeep

Yes, When I had my EV I would drive under 50 miles almost every day.

Regarding the product i couldn't find a data sheet or specifications on your website.

That said from photos, and comments here, it appears to be a 5kWh external battery pack, able to be charged from a standard wall outlet (using a tiny wall wart), and with an integrated inverter powerful enough to run a factory volt EVSE (I assume something like 15A at 110V?)

Your website shows a slim female carrying the device with one hand, and you advertise the price as USD999. You state on reddit the current charge time from a wall outlet is 6 hours.

There are a few technical issues with the above that you really should look into.

Weight As an example, the chevy bolt battery pack holds 60kWh, and weights 440kg. Your pack is to be 12 times smaller, so weight will be at least 37 kg (prob more as packaging in a smaller pack will be less efficient. A 2kW inverter will be 5 - 8 kg, therefore your minimum weight will be 42 - 45kg's. No way your slim female is carrying that with one hand wearing heels.

Cost A 6.4kWh powerwall runs as USD3000. Your price is under a third of that, and you need to include an inverter & charger that will run to hundreds of dollars...

Wall Wart To charge in 6 hours, you will need to charge at 830Watts. I don't think any wall wart goes that high.

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Take a look at what is already on the market:

0.4kWh, 300W output battery bank for USD390, 12.36 pounds

Anker 0.4kWh, USD500, 9.36 pounds

1.1kWh, 1100W output, USD1,749, 20 pounds

You specs require something about 10 to 12 times the capacity / inverter power as the first two items, and about 5 times the capacity / inverter power of the last one.

As such I would expect you would need to price your device at around USD 6000, and expect it to weigh 100pounds (roughly 50kg).

With those numbers the proposal is a lot less attractive. 50kg's is very hard to move by hand, and $6000 is a lot of money to tie up in a battery bank. (I wouldn't want to leave that unattended as I charged during the day). Also that money would go a long way in terms of just buying a longer range EV in the first place (Price jump from a 30kWh Leaf to a 60kWh Chevy Bolt in the USA is $6000) and that buys you a 6x the additional range of your 5kWh power pack, with convenance to boot... (no charging car and power pack each night (just charge car), no lugging around heavy power pack. no need to change except at night (every second night) for your 40/ 50 mile days)...

Dryers are 240. Many a/c systems are also 240. You may have other 240 outlets near your garage. Here is one for $220 or so: https://amzn.to/2IewHsz. With this one, you can change the plug and use the same one for 110 and 240 charging! Get one with multiple tips and you can keep it in the car for flexible charging everywhere. If you do this, sell the charger that came with your car on eBay. Don't need it.

Also, get at least a 1000 watt inverter like this one https://amzn.to/2rFVPNB. With this your car becomes your backup power. A fridge uses 75 watts or so an hour. Your car most likely stores 24,000 watt hours or running that fridge for 320 hours. Plus it makes for an awesome camping source of electricity.

I am amazed no one really mentions these two items as core to EV ownership that actually adds a ton of value.

I once sold an EVSE charger that came with my car for less than it cost for one that had dual charging and came with three different 240V AC plugs! Crazy to think people hire electricians to have a Level 2 charger installed for over a grand.

Hello All,

Just got my first EV. A 2017 Chevy Volt. I’m loving it so far. I have a old detached garage with nothing but 110 outlets which has been fine for now, but I’d really like to get a fast charging setup going. In my nearby laundry room in basement which has a window I could easily run cable through I have this outlet. I’m thinking this is a 10-50 outlet if I’m not mistaken. Would this charger from Amazon work. It’s offered in a 35 foot length which should be plenty to reach my garage to charge.


https://www.amazon.com/PRIMECOM-Level-2-Electric-Vehicle-Charger/dp/B07B8W43Y3/ref=sr_1_7?keywords=Level%2B2%2Bcharger&qid=1565882061&s=automotive&sr=1-7&th=1#customerReviews

Charging:

• There are more chargers in Idaho than Arkanas
  
• if you get a 220v NEMA 14-50 EVSE you can charge at RV parks with 50A services. An adapter can be used for other types of outlets.
  
• Most, if not all EV, should come with a 110v NEMA 5-15 EVSE good for 3 to 4 miles an hour. If not you can buy one for less than $300 or get one that works both 110v and 220v with an adapter.
  
  Cold: will hurt range but if you can preheat and even have a 110v outlet at work you can use it shouldn't be that bad depending on miles you have to go.
  
  Options:
  
  
• can you afford a Tesla Model S or X, new or CPO?
  
• can you wait/afford a Bolt or Tesla Gen3?
  
• If less then 40miles, as much as I blame it for slowing down quick charge roll out, you can get a used first gen Volt, but it has a gas motor.
  
  Better thing is to tell us so we can have a lively argument/discussion:
  
  

1. how far do you plan to drive between power access
   
   
2. how long will the car be parked between drives with access to what type of power outlet
   
   
3. do you have a price limit?
   
   
4. do you take 'road trips' and if so do you have access to an ICE car? e.g: second car, rental, or exchange with friend or family

It really depends on how many miles you need to drive. L1 charging adds about 4 miles of range per hour of charging, so if you've got 10 hours to charge at night that means you'll get 40 miles of range per day. If your regular use is less than 40 miles per day in that case then you'd be fine.

You can also buy L2 chargers that plug right into your dryer outlet and will double (or more!) the charge speed, and there's no modification of anything required. You'd just have to plug and unplug the dryer and car charger every time you wanted to use one or the other, which would be inconvenient but not difficult. They are just as safe as using a L1 charger and are designed to be used that way. You just have to look at your dryer plug and make sure you buy a charger with the same kind of plug, since there are a couple different kinds of plugs for dryer outlets depending on how old your house is.

If you do eventually have an additional outlet installed for a dedicated L2 charger you could just have the same outlet installed as what your dryer uses and use the same charger you bought already, just plugging it into the new outlet so you don't have to swap it with the dryer anymore and don't have any additional expenses except the installation of the new outlet.

Bummer! Sounds like living where you do, this EV just won’t cut it -- but if you follow those tips you might be able to make it home with 20% range leftover or so, albeit slightly less comfortably, and that would be fine. Unless you’re moving out of the cold you might get one with a bigger battery if all these tips won’t get you by. Gas cars do one thing well - waste energy as heat, and without that you’ll probably chew through tons of range. If you hate cold so much I’m surprised you live there :)

Maybe try this as well in the meantime and pre warm / wrap yourself in something like this :


https://www.amazon.com/Electric-Blanket-Tailgating-Emergency-Stalwart-BLACK/dp/B006A1PGDE

> Natural gas and renewables are much cleaner than coal, but a lot of peoples' power is still coming from coal.

That's not how the grid works dude. Your post covers about 5% of the actual picture here. It's late, you'll have to read some books, I don't want to get into this now. But read these: (The Bin Wu one is fucking amazing, read it twice)
http://ca.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-0470593652.html
https://www.amazon.ca/Analysis-Electric-Machinery-Drive-Systems/dp/047114326X

This wouldn't hurt:

https://www.amazon.com/Power-System-Analysis-Design-Fifth/dp/1111425779/ref=pd_sbs_14_t_0?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=JWX7BQ73ZBNN7BCED44E (I have the 3rd edition, but the content is more or less the same)

Source: EE (CEAB)

EDIT: Oh! My point was...total shitpost on your end

Yes, it is fine with a thick gauge cord that is not worn out. Just be careful, because getting careless with it can cause a fire like with any high powered device.

I've been using this 100 ft cable for two years now. I went pretty thick on the gauge to help ensure safety, and it also helps lower losses. Thankfully I'll finally get a garage tomorrow, but this has served me well, allowing me to charge from my apartment every night I got a decent space.

Short answer: You can, but only in optimal conditions. I don't recommend it.

Long answer: I use a kill-a-watt to charge my Clarity PHEV, but this is a special case. As a PHEV, it charges for a maximum of ≈8hrs at a time, at 1250W. The outlet is metal-housed (good for heat dissipation) and ≈15ft from the breaker (good for fire prevention). Most importantly, the charging cable is 10AWG. For a brief time, I charged with a 16AWG cable, and the kill-a-watt contacts got suspiciously hot.

If you're using a proper BEV, charging for long cycles over 1300W, and your outlet is buried in the wall, there's a lot that could go wrong. If you want and off-the-shelf way to measure power consumption, I'd recommend getting a Level 1 or 2 smart charger like this one: https://www.amazon.com/MUSTART-TRAVELMASTER-Intelligent-Identification-Auto-Adjusts/dp/B07RLQXMN5/ref=sr_1_3?crid=7KJOKT3M8CX4

If you're on a penny budget, and not afraid of a bit of DIY, I'd use a CT-based watt meter like this one: https://www.amazon.com/Current-Amperage-Voltmeter-Multimeter-Transformer/dp/B07JB9B2QL/ref=sr_1_6?keywords=ct+watt+meter

Have the electrician quote installing a 50 amp 220v receptacle (to fit the plug below) near your current electrical panel. (Shortest run as possible to save $ on professional wiring)

Then you could run this extension cord out to your vehicle when needed.

https://www.amazon.com/Parkworld-886177-Extension-Receptacle-Lighted/dp/B079JBWR6W/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?keywords=rv+extension+cord+75ft&qid=1558613108&s=gateway&sprefix=rv+extension+cord+75&sr=8-4

Would also recommend getting a garden hose reel to wind up the cable when not in use.

What no that's not what I was implying.

I meant flipping the transfer switch and connecting the inverter to the generator inlet receptacle using a cord like this https://www.amazon.com/dp/B076ML3MXK/

Totally safe and not a suicide cord. If the inverter is a good one it will output a proper sin wave between it's two outlets to support this.

What about something like this? https://www.amazon.com/ACOPOWER-Portable-Generator-Storage-Inverter/dp/B01MRO4Q5M/

My only concern would be how the car would handle trying to pull from a low wattage source. If it handles it well, something like that seems feasible, no? It is rated to 400Wh. By my calculations (Energi has 7.6kWh capacity, and I'm getting ~28 miles, so I use about 270Wh per mile), depleting that would give me ~1.5 miles, which would pretty much be exactly what I need.

Like others have said, you need a 40 amp circuit, minimum.

I had the Active E, which was the precursor to the i3. BMW gave me an Aerovironment charger (the same one as the Leaf) and it worked fine.

I find Clipper Creek chargers to be very reliable. They can also be quasi-portable if you want to charge at an RV park or something.

Do you have a private natural gas field? I don't. In fact, there is very little (9.4 billion m^3 /year, falling) natural gas production in my country.

Do you think that natural gas is inexhaustible? I'm afraid this pattern https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peak_gas#/media/File:Global_Giant_Gas_Discoveries_1900-2000.png is only slightly lagging this pattern https://www.ft.com/__origami/service/image/v2/images/raw/http%3A%2F%2Fcom.ft.imagepublish.prod.s3.amazonaws.com%2F7b96d2ba-f14a-11e6-8758-6876151821a6?source=next&fit=scale-down&width=600

> The only reason hydrogen was considered

To widen your very narrow view, check out https://www.amazon.com/Beyond-Oil-Gas-Methanol-Economy/dp/3527312757/ -- it addresses some of the issues of hydrogen economy.

I do that exact thing with this cord. And I have the charge rate limited to 10amp, when anything 12 or under should be perfectly safe, as far as not overheating the outlet itself. It's still sketchy as hell and a pain to boot, so I use it to supplement charge, rather than my main charging source. Also it means I'm looking for a place with a better charging solution as soon as my lease is up.


Also first, if you haven't already, check and see if your apartment management is willing to work with you to get a better charging situation. Mine wasn't, but hopefully you'll be luckier.

Good points. I like the comparison with the PC power supply. Since this is a semi-permanent setup, OP should probably go with a higher gauge. There are quite a few 10/3 gauge extension cables, but I'm having trouble finding any higher than that. Below is a 10/3 on Amazon. Do you know any better than this?

https://www.amazon.com/ProStyle-25ft-Conductor-Extension-Lighted/dp/B01F2RFSFC/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1520000962&sr=8-5&keywords=10%2F3+extension+cord&dpID=51mNZb8MCdL&preST=_SX300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch

I have one of those Mr Heater little propane heaters for camping so I put it in my car if the day should come that I NEED the heat but cant afford to turn on the cabin heat. It actually heats very well but propane also gives off a lot of humidity so it fogs the windows too. Have to heat with the windows slightly open which is a bit counter productive.

Early adopter problems, eh?