Mastodawn

Deborah Pickett

So one of our two corporate JetCharge ChargeMate units, not even three years old, has failed. JetCharge doesn't sell the units now and it's looking like they don't even repair units out of warranty any more. So,

Who can recommend a type 2 EV charger, available in Australia, 3-phase 32 A ("22 kW"), that can be operated in non-smart "plug it in and it charges" mode? Not Tesla brand.

#EV #ElectricCar

@futzle calling @evcricket to the chat

Evan Beaver 1d ago

@Kels_316 @futzle I've got an Ocular Smart Charger which is good enough https://evse.com.au/home-ev-charging/ They're a Chinese charger, white labeled with Australian software support that's actually pretty good. Those Charge Mates were shit. This is a question I get a lot at work and my general response is; I can't honestly say any AC chargers are Good. The Ocular hasn't broken after a few years, that's a pass at least

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Evan Beaver 1d ago

@Kels_316 @futzle That Plug and Charge feature you want is configurable in the Ocular. Make sure the sparky commissions it properly

ǝlqɯnɹ uoɯᴉS 1d ago

@evcricket @Kels_316 @futzle I have the Ocular (7kW version) and it's not bad. Plugs and charges for me.

Also talks to Home Assistant (via OCPP) and Amber, if that's important.

@shermozle OOI how does the Amber integration work?

ǝlqɯnɹ uoɯᴉS 1d ago

@voltagex Oh actually I should clarify that. Wasn''t thinking it through. Amber controls the _car_ which requests a charge. So the charger isn't really doing much there. My bad.

@evcricket @Kels_316 @futzle FWIW I know someone whose Ocular did die after about a year, and the company sent out a warranty replacement unit without any fuss - which I'd take as a good sign as well, on balance.

(I know this because they also didn't ask for the dead one back, and it's been sitting in my cupboard for about 18 months waiting patiently for me to try and resurrect it. Unclear what it'll be good for if I succeed, though...)

neoluddite 1d ago

@futzle We have a Fronius WattPilot at our place. It's only a single phase one, but it seems solid so far, about three years in.

(modulo our crappy wifi not quite reaching between it and the inverter on the other side of the house, but that just means that it won't do the 'send excess solar power to the EV' thing, it'll still charge full bore)

@neoluddite @futzle
One thing I will say is always connect via Ethernet. Never rely on WiFi.

The Wallbox is mounted to the wall, the the Sparkie needs to run power to it.

It is zero extra effort to run Ethernet and a solid Internet connection can stop your wallbox from bricking itself when it tries to do a software update.

neoluddite 1d ago

@Salvo @futzle neither my charger or my inverter have an ethernet port. From what I can tell, it's not a common option.

@neoluddite @futzle
I must not have been exposed to as many as you.
The three different model wall boxes I have dealt with all have perfectly fine Ethernet ports and woefully bad WiFi antennas and configuration.

One of the models we support is constantly bricked by software updates failing over WiFi and does not authenticate the vehicle until it can phone home.

We constantly have people wanting to make warranty claims and refusing to accept that if they connect it via Ethernet, it will fix itself.

This is the one that the business I work for is forced to sell.

I still maintain that any appliance that is fastened to the wall of a building should have Ethernet.

neoluddite 1d ago

@Salvo @futzle it sounds to me like the problem isn't the wireless, but the charger not downloading and verifying the whole software update before it starts its update, likely to save a dollar or two on storage. The people making warranty claims are right.

@futzle I have a zj beny and it's been really solid

David de Groot 1d ago

@futzle the bmw one we got with our Mini ticks most of those boxes (except the 22kw requirement, it’ll do 11kw only - 3phase 15amp).

@futzle We have an Evnex at home and it’s fine (we have the 3 phase version). It does have an app, but defaults to dumb mode. That one brand/model constitutes 100 per cent of my AC charger experience, but I have no complaints about it.

@futzle I've got a 22kW Zappi and it's OK.

Michael Strasser 1d ago

@futzle We have a single-phase Wallbox unit. Not sure if the same unit can do three phase.

The original failed and was replaced under warranty with an updated model. The firmware update process using an app is hit and miss: sometimes it works; other times not.

@futzle I’ve got a Zappi which works fine in dumb mode or has an optional additional module for Internet connectivity and smarter modes. I only have the 1 phase model though, so can’t comment on the 3 phase.