e-Tron 50 mobile charging system (compact)

[Paul_123_321]

Hi,

 

I am trying to source a new EV wall charger and realised that I can use the supplied mobile charging system (Compact) with an industrial socket to achieve the 7Kw charging speeds. I could be saving over a grand by doing so. 

My concern is the weather proofing of the unit. Its IP55 according to the manual, but thats not going to protect against driving rain. The side of my house can get hot too in the summer. I dont have a garage, so its all outdoors. Does anyone use these regularly, do you have it some sort of weather proof container? I'm looking to protect my charging unit while its outdoors.

[cliffcoggin]

Paul.

As you know, IP55 is inadequate for full weather protection, IP65 would be necessary for that. However a simple canopy over the unit that keeps the rain off yet allows good ventilation should be enough.

My main concern is your expectation of drawing 7kW of power from ordinary domestic wiring. That is far too much and would trip the breaker instantly. The maximum load a normal 2.5 mm ring main can supply is 3kW, and even that is only sustainable for a short time. 3kW continuously for several hours may well overheat the wiring unless it is in top notch condition. There have been many instances of such loads melting the plug and coming close to igniting.

Having said that, your charge unit likely is only rated for 3kW anyway so there is no chance of getting more out of it, however I would still be concerned about the heat generation. I have my own charge unit turned down to 10 Amps (2.3 kW) specifically to avoid this problem. Consequently my plug is warm but not hot after 8 hours charging. As an extra precaution I have a temperature indicting sticker on it that will show if it ever reaches 80 degrees.

[Paul_123_321]

Sorry I hope I understand correctly. The car came with a Commando adapter for the mobile charger (Very same as the link below). My understanding is that if I have an industrial commando socket installed by an electrician on a separate circuit that can supply 7Kw, that the Audi mobile charger can support those charging speeds with the adapter?

 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/235704248984?chn=ps&_ul=GB&norover=1&mkevt=1&mkrid=710-169260-534375-3&mkcid=2&keyword=&crlp=670833748941_&MT_ID=&geo_id=&rlsatarget=pla-325425753764&adpos=&device=c&mktype=pla&loc=1007850&poi=&abcId=&cmpgn=20488672762&sitelnk=&adgroupid=155578564071&network=g&matchtype=&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwxNW2BhAkEiwA24Cm9NBI-_-FYLADUW3_KyLJ1OtyOBMoACg3J3cyyRUUShJayFtn3HIwMhoClxgQAvD_BwE

[cliffcoggin]

Paul.

It all hinges on the rating of your charge unit which you have not mentioned. That is what controls the power delivery. There should be label on it that tells you what the rating is. If it is rated for only 3 kW, then 3kW is all that can be extracted from it no matter what other equipment you install.

If that charge unit is capable of delivering 7kW, then yes you could get 7kW charging if you also get an electrician to install a suitably rated cable from the fuseboard to to the outside wall, and install a suitably rated MCB in the fuseboard. However it does not end there. I have only a limited knowledge of electrical regulations so you will almost certainly find that a variety of earth and neutral leakage detectors and other equipment are required.

The long and the short of the matter is that you need to consult an electrician in order to achieve 7 kW charging.

[Paul_123_321]

Thank you Cliff, you have been very helpful. I'll talk to my electrician and see what he says. 

 

Another interesting fact I found this afternoon.. A lot of the EV wall chargers for sale online (Including Ohme) are IP55 rating...  the same as the Audi mobile charging compact system. I thought they would be IP65 for external wall mounted units? 

[cliffcoggin]

I had a couple of Ohme Home Pro units for a while, but the IP rating did not concern me as I had them fitted inside a garage. I had to get them removed under guarantee for a couple of reasons. Firstly they rely on a mobile phone signal for scheduled charging, a signal that was too weak inside the garage with the door closed for them to work reliably. The second reason was my particular car model that I belatedly found was notorious for going to sleep and ignoring any wake up calls. That's why I have reverted to a portable dumb charge unit, albeit one with a built in delay timer so that I can use cheap overnight electricity.

[Anton8]

Hi Paul

My OHME charger charges at 7.4 kw. and in doing so in draws 30amp from the household system. You really ought to upgrade the house fuse to at least 80amp. Also the charger has a load compensator which monitors the load on the system, so if you have ,say, the cooker on, hob on and boiling a kettle the charger will automatically lower the load to itself until the load lowers.

Tony