Using your EVSE/charger to power a garage shop heater

[bmwhitetx]

So as we all freeze our tails off in our garage, here's a guy that modified a 7.5 kW garage heater to be powered from his EVSE / charger / "slightly smart charger cord" (his words). He tricks the charger into thinking it is plugged into a vehicle requesting power and it runs his garage heater.

He discusses 240V in the garage, garage heaters, hard-wire vs. plug/socket, charging technologies, etc. Then he briefly discusses the signaling pin and how it works. Later discusses charging losses and other topics that would be informative for newbies.

And finally why what he has done is a bad idea. He covers all the negatives and how things could go wrong in a hurry (amps mismatch, arcing, etc. So watch the video before you comment.

I like in the end where he discusses how we have a myriad of NEMA connectors that are all unique. But USB-C has figured that all out with Power Delivery. So why not smart plugs and sockets that negotiate the max volts and amps with a common connector. He even gives a shout-out to the Lightning at the end.

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[Duke_239]

His charger is plugged into a wall receptacle. Wouldnt it be easier to plug the heater into the wall recptacle?

 

[bmwhitetx]

And finally why what he has done is a bad idea. He covers all the negatives and how things could go wrong in a hurry (amps mismatch, arcing, etc. So watch the video before you comment.

His charger is plugged into a wall receptacle. Wouldnt it be easier to plug the heater into the wall recptacle?

He covers that in the video. Bottom line, it isn't good practice to constantly plug and unplug these type of circuits.

 

[GarageMahal]

His charger is plugged into a wall receptacle. Wouldnt it be easier to plug the heater into the wall recptacle?

Probably yes but I like this concept anyway as the outlets are not designed for repeated unplugging/plug events.

 

[broncoaz]

A proper Hubble or Bryant 14-50 outlet is $59. Proof of concept is interesting and all, but an insurance investigation wouldn’t look kindly on it.

 

[luebri]

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009NJ6K8K/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I run this 240v heater of my Pro Power L14-30R using an adapter all the time. Works great, that said for other EV's that dont have a 240v receptacle his proof of concept definitely could be useful for some people

 

[Danface]

Yup, spend the money on a high quality plug and swap the charger for the heater.

Cheaper in the long run and the insurance company won't have a reason to blame anything on you (they do that you know). Just because you CAN do it, it may not make sense TO do it.

 

[RickKeen]

Adding a 2nd outlet will need to be on its own circuit since the charger is considered a dedicated circuit even with the outlet connections.

 

[Danface]

Adding a 2nd outlet will need to be on its own circuit since the charger is considered a dedicated circuit even with the outlet connections.

Have a plug on the charger and unplug it when you need to heat the garage.

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