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DIY Home EV Charger

jamesfotherby.com

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Re: DIY Home EV Charger

#31

Post by mindslight »

tw04 wrote: post #27
foobarian wrote: post #12

I'm disappointed at the anti-DIY sentiments here, it's this safety obsessed mentality that got us to where kids can't walk outside by themselves any longer. The box in that guy's build is outside and could probably burn to a crisp without hurting anything else. I suspect it would not hurt anything even inside a garage, other than making a lot of smoke and setting off smoke detectors.

>I'm disappointed at the anti-DIY sentiments here, it's this safety obsessed mentality that got us to where kids can't walk outside by themselves any longer. Just no? That analogy is EXTREMELY strained. From his own link: A word about safety. I’m not an electrician. I’m not allowed to make alterations to my consumer unit. I let my kids play outside all the time solo and with friends without supervision. On the flip s…

> would nullify my homeowners insurance

What is up with this common refrain? One of the main functions of insurance is to indemnify you against your own negligence. Let's say you turn a small stovetop fire into a house fire by trying to put it out with water - the insurance company doesn't just get to stiff you because you were responsible for causing the problem. Are there actually prevalent and enforceable weasel clauses about DIY work in some areas, or is this a scare story popularized by oversocialized redditors fantasizing about what might happen, or what?

Re: DIY Home EV Charger

#32

Post by balls187 »

newZWhoDis wrote: post #25
wannacboatmovie wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Software engineers have a tendency to overestimate their own abilities, the arrogance is often on full display here for all to see. Maybe we need a few to burn their own houses down to act as a deterrent and encourage others to stay in their lane.

Some of us here are actually Engineers (Electrical). I’ve installed 3x 240V 60A EV chargers, was a cakewalk. I didn’t build my own in this case since I was going for an aesthetic match. Meanwhile you can enjoy paying some alcoholic $1000 for 30 minutes of work to: * pop out a hole on the back * Tap and install 2x screws into studs * pull 3 wires 6” through, wrap around the strain relief, strip/insert/torque * flip a…

First, it’s a bit more complicated than that—unless you went ahead and installed a 60A line without checking if your service(s) can handle the additional load. Advice like this is what gets people to screw up.

Second, what’s the material difference between a 40A circuit and a 60A circuit? A few extra hours overnight to charge?

Re: DIY Home EV Charger

#33

Post by balls187 »

shmoe wrote: post #29
newZWhoDis wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Some of us here are actually Engineers (Electrical). I’ve installed 3x 240V 60A EV chargers, was a cakewalk. I didn’t build my own in this case since I was going for an aesthetic match. Meanwhile you can enjoy paying some alcoholic $1000 for 30 minutes of work to: * pop out a hole on the back * Tap and install 2x screws into studs * pull 3 wires 6” through, wrap around the strain relief, strip/insert/torque * flip a…

You're 100% right, but it not being "high voltage" is totally negated by the fact that the two legs together will kill me if it seeks ground via the right (wrong?) path for sure.

Don't work with a live panel.

Re: DIY Home EV Charger

#34

Post by clnq »

tw04 wrote: post #27
foobarian wrote: post #12

I'm disappointed at the anti-DIY sentiments here, it's this safety obsessed mentality that got us to where kids can't walk outside by themselves any longer. The box in that guy's build is outside and could probably burn to a crisp without hurting anything else. I suspect it would not hurt anything even inside a garage, other than making a lot of smoke and setting off smoke detectors.

>I'm disappointed at the anti-DIY sentiments here, it's this safety obsessed mentality that got us to where kids can't walk outside by themselves any longer. Just no? That analogy is EXTREMELY strained. From his own link: A word about safety. I’m not an electrician. I’m not allowed to make alterations to my consumer unit. I let my kids play outside all the time solo and with friends without supervision. On the flip s…

You’re responding to a statement you straw-manned. The comment you’re responding implies a slippery slope, not an equivalence between DIY safety and letting kids be outside.

Re: DIY Home EV Charger

#35

Post by Comfy-Tinwork »

dreamcompiler wrote: post #26
eigenvalue wrote: post #9

More like a DIY arson investigation. You might not only burn down your house, but also get in trouble with the law and not receive compensation from your property insurance company. This is a horrendous idea. Just do basically anything else DIY besides high current/voltage electronics.

Page is hugged to death right now but I strongly disagree with parent. I'm an EE and I'm quite familiar with the National Electric Code. I build high current/voltage devices and I've wired two houses (both of which passed inspection). If you're trained, experienced, and generally know what you're doing there's nothing wrong with working on high power electronics.

Suppose you aren't trained, experienced or generally know about working with high voltage systems, like the author?

Re: DIY Home EV Charger

#36

Post by conk »

foobarian wrote: post #12

I'm disappointed at the anti-DIY sentiments here, it's this safety obsessed mentality that got us to where kids can't walk outside by themselves any longer. The box in that guy's build is outside and could probably burn to a crisp without hurting anything else. I suspect it would not hurt anything even inside a garage, other than making a lot of smoke and setting off smoke detectors.

Except this DIY project could kill someone if it malfunctions. There are several inadequate parts of this design that make it a safety risk beyond the fire risk.

Re: DIY Home EV Charger

#37

Post by sowbug »

jtagen wrote: post #28

Given what's in this, why are EVSEs so expensive? Given the quantities we see, the $150 range should be more than enough for a decent profit.

Supply and demand. See also $40 HDMI cables at Best Buy.

Re: DIY Home EV Charger

#38

Post by pardoned_turkey »

foobarian wrote: post #12

I'm disappointed at the anti-DIY sentiments here, it's this safety obsessed mentality that got us to where kids can't walk outside by themselves any longer. The box in that guy's build is outside and could probably burn to a crisp without hurting anything else. I suspect it would not hurt anything even inside a garage, other than making a lot of smoke and setting off smoke detectors.

All the no-name $6 extension cords from Amazon that we have in our homes are far more likely to burn your place down than this project.

It's surprising that we have such cavalier attitudes when it comes to our own field, but so much fear and magical thinking about the power of government oversight when it comes to everything else...

Re: DIY Home EV Charger

#40

Post by flashback2199 »

foobarian wrote: post #12

I'm disappointed at the anti-DIY sentiments here, it's this safety obsessed mentality that got us to where kids can't walk outside by themselves any longer. The box in that guy's build is outside and could probably burn to a crisp without hurting anything else. I suspect it would not hurt anything even inside a garage, other than making a lot of smoke and setting off smoke detectors.

Don't DIY what you can buy.
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