1. Attachments are working again! Check out this thread for more details and to report any other bugs.

Prius Prime Level 2 Charging Using 2 Ecoflow Delta Pros, No DIY Wiring

Discussion in 'Prime Plug-in Charging' started by OptpriusPrime, May 26, 2022.

  1. OptpriusPrime

    OptpriusPrime New Member

    Joined:
    May 26, 2022
    2
    3
    0
    Location:
    Oakland, CA
    Vehicle:
    2019 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Premium
    Ingredients:
    2 x Ecoflow Delta Pros (US - i.e. 120V each) $3,600 each/$7,200 total
    1 x Ecoflow Double Voltage Hub $139
    1 x AC Works 30A L14-30 to 14-50R EV Charging Adapter $47
    1 x Lecton/Duosida 240V EV Charger $300
    2 x Neutral Ground Bonding Plugs $17.50 each/$35 total

    Total cost: $7,721
    Total time needed to start: About 5 days of waiting for the shipped items to arrive at your doorstep

    Steps:
    Charge the Ecoflows in your home using 110V outlets (~2hrs)
    Take the Ecoflows to your car, and plug everything in (I have no idea if the neutral ground bonding plugs are actually needed, I just saw them in some Youtube videos about charging Teslas with these and figured might as well)
    Cut your charge time down from 5+ hours to ~2 hours
    No cutting/splitting/touching of any wires needed
    (And obviously no installation of a new outlet in your home needed)

    Why on earth would someone do this?

    We live in a condo, and although we have a dedicated space in our condo garage, we don't have our own outlet, and the HOA won't let us use any community outlets in the garage. Although we live in CA and have very favorable right-to-charge laws, which give us the right to install our own outlet, we obviously have to bear 100% of those costs.

    We spoke with numerous electricians, and all have quoted at least $10,000+ for this (on the low end), and have said it will be a pain and would likely take months, including the need for various permits, etc. Although our meter is in the garage, our circuit panel is in our apartment, on the other side of the building, and any new outlet would need to run from that (so I'm told).

    We started out with 1 Ecoflow, and were doing fine with Level 1 charging, but the hassle of lugging this giant (~100lbs., although thankfully it has nice wheels and a convenient suitcase-style telescoping handle) thing back and forth whenever we wanted to charge just didn't seem worth it for just Level 1, and one Ecoflow doesn't even fully charge the Prius Prime - you have to take the Ecoflow back home and recharge it, then bring it back to finish charging the car.

    We almost got an Ecoflow extra battery so that we could at least fill up the Prius without having to bring it back and recharge, but I was frustrated that this would still just be using slow Level 1. I researched and even tried various ways to possibly get more amps with the 120V, but obviously didn't have any luck.

    So we went all out and got a second Ecoflow, along with the Double Voltage Hub and the various adapters mentioned above, and voila, the charge time is now down to right around 2 hours.

    Sure, it's a pain in the butt lugging these things back and forth from the garage, but I wasn't ready to commit to a massive construction project with no end in sight (in terms of time, money, or fights with the HOA or city over permits). And we have no idea if we're going to stay in this condo, and if we ended up moving in a year or two, although it might help up our condo's value, we'd have to go through this all over again (or limit ourselves to finding a place that has charging). Our financial situation and areas where we can live essentially mean we will probably be living in condos or apartments for the foreseeable future. Although these things are a little heavy and big, they're not insane, and it beats having to drive the car to the nearest charging station and walk back and forth. We use the car daily in the city (i.e. generally not on highways), and we go through about 90% of the EV charge every day.

    Maybe this is stupid, but whatever. Just wanted to share.
     
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    110,156
    50,059
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    LOL, nice write up, thanks
     
  3. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 8, 2015
    10,985
    8,886
    0
    Location:
    New England
    Vehicle:
    Other Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    Wait... you actually paid a total cost of $7,721 to charge your PP from portable batteries? Wow, that's some dedication to the CA's zero emission goal. You still have to pay for the electricity to charge the batteries and conversion loss. You might own one of the most expensive EV on your street.
     
    jerrymildred likes this.
  4. jerrymildred

    jerrymildred Senior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 28, 2016
    11,518
    14,128
    0
    Location:
    Tampa, FL
    Vehicle:
    2017 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Interesting (if ridiculously expensive) exercise. Rube Goldberg, eat your heart out! :LOL: