Dual EV Charging Setup [Grizzl-e Duo]

[NeverGoingBack]

So I just thought I’d share.

Got a Model Y a couple-ish years ago and finally couldn’t stand driving our ICE second car any more. Just picked up a new M3 last weekend to replace it. So now we are fully de-ICEd over here ………… but I had to figure out how to charge both cars.

I live in a crummy little rented house with a single carport and was able to talk my landlord into installing me a dedicated NEMA 14-50 circuit back when I got the Y. Told her the presence of an RV plug might enhance value of home. I’ve been charging the Y with the mobile connector that came with the car (back then) ever since.

After pondering how to do two EVs I ended up with this setup. For a few days, I shared the mobile connector between the two cars ….. just plugging it into the one we weren’t using at the time. That worked, but was slightly inconvenient. I like this much better.

The Grizzl-e Duo box is pretty awesome (in my opinion):

• Pros
  • No wiring required - plugs into the existing NEMA 14-50 outlet (easy peasy installation)
  • Shares power between vehicles in a reasonable manner:
    • 40amps to a single car if just one is plugged in and charging
    • 20amps each if both cars are plugged in and charging
    • 32amps to the charging car and 8amps to the non-charging car if both are plugged in and just one is charging
    • 8amps each to both cars if two are plugged in and neither is charging
  • Super heavy duty construction suitable for outside installation
  • Easily portable
  • Just one box on wall - reduced clutter and complexity
  • Simple (see Cons), nothing fancy, just charges two cars. Only interaction with box is an indicator light for status of each charge circuit.
• Cons (but only if you like complicated wifi devices and need to charge two cars at once with more than 20 amps each)
  • Simple - no wifi connection, no ability to control charging from box, no tracking of charge activity, etc (all of that is done/provided by cars)
  • Max power to two cars limited to 20amps because sharing one circuit (plenty for overnight charging, and if you have to charge one fast just unplug the other)

Here’s what the setup looks like:

 

[davewill]

Nice that it can be configured for smaller circuits, and can be ordered with a 6-50. They even offer Tesla wall holsters if you want to hang the cord with a Tesla adapter on it. Reserving 8a for a plugged in, but not charging car is a bit of a bummer, but I can see how that would make the sharing logic much simpler.

Pricey, but with all that copper cable, it really can't be cheap.

 

[Cosmacelf]

Nice that it can be configured for smaller circuits, and can be ordered with a 6-50. They even offer Tesla wall holsters if you want to hang the cord with a Tesla adapter on it. Reserving 8a for a plugged in, but not charging car is a bit of a bummer, but I can see how that would make the sharing logic much simpler.

Pricey, but with all that copper cable, it really can't be cheap.

It's actually not that pricey considering you are getting 2 EVSEs. The Tesla option (buying two Wall Chargers) would be more expensive.

 

[NeverGoingBack]

It's actually not that pricey considering you are getting 2 EVSEs. The Tesla option (buying two Wall Chargers) would be more expensive.

Correct - that was a big part of the decision. Two Wall Chargers plus circuit installation ends up way more expensive. Sacrificing “intelligence” of wall unit and ability to charge two cars simultaneously at 40 (or more) amps was easy. Just don’t need that.

 

[jjrandorin]

I have recommended that grizzl-e unit to a few people now, as one of the easiest ways to do what you wanted to do, OP. Thanks for some of the details around it.

I think its the easiest solution for people to load share one circuit when they fit the requirements, like the cable being able to reach both cars. I have (2) Gen 2 wall connectors, but I think this is a viable solution and accomplishes what many are after.

Thanks again for sharing your experience with it, OP.

I added the name of the product to the thread title as that way if people are looking for information on that product, this thread will come up (and in the future if I refer someone here to that product, it will be easier for me to find this thread, lol).

 

[samps]

Well that's pretty darn cool. I think this is the same unit I was pondering when we picked up our 3 also. We had been using the mobile connector on a 30A, with a neocharge shared with our dryer (we have a 40+y old house with 100A service). In the end though, we just alternate as we're city drivers and don't really use our cars much. I like your setup though!

 

[rltsx]

I've been driving my X for 6 years my R1S is finally enroute. I've been just plugging in the mobile cable to my 14-50 outlet for the MX, nothing fancy, but I'm facing the same situation as you did on how to charge 2 EV's without much additional construction/cost. Seems like the two most popular options are the Grizzl-E and the ClipperCreek. Leaning towrds Grizzl-E due to cost (half price of the ClipperCreek!).

For the OP, does the scheduled charging feature still works as intended? You just plug in the car and it won't start charging until the scheduled time programmed in the Tesla? I read a review saying Grizzl-E is so "not smart" that you can't even use that feature with the Tesla, meaning it will always charge right away if you manually plug in. That doesn't really make sense but I wanted to confirm, thank you.

 

[NeverGoingBack]

does the scheduled charging feature still works as intended?

Scheduled charging absolutely works with the Grizzl-e. That is frequently what I do. The charger manual does warn though that using scheduled Departure with multiple cars can be problematic for some reason ….. but not clear why. Subtle difference, I suppose, but must have to do with signals from car being different if car is determining for itself when to charge( in order to be ready for departure) rather than being told when to charge (via preset time set through the app or the car). I use Scheduled Charging with both cars often with no problems.

Here/s what the manual says ….

 

[davewill]

Scheduled charging absolutely works with the Grizzl-e. That is frequently what I do. The charger manual does warn though that using scheduled Departure with multiple cars can be problematic for some reason ….. but not clear why. Subtle difference, I suppose, but must have to do with signals from car being different if car is determining for itself when to charge( in order to be ready for departure) rather than being told when to charge (via preset time set through the app or the car). I use Scheduled Charging with both cars often with no problems.

Here/s what the manual says ….
View attachment 939316

That actually makes a lot of sense. Scheduled departure turns on the EVSE when you plug in to see both the amperage and voltage so it can decide when to start charging in order to be done on time. With a dual head unit, what it sees when you plug in might not be what it sees when it comes time to actually charge, so you could end up early or late depending. It could be a little better with two Tesla Wall connectors, but in the end the car CAN'T know what will happen during the actual charge cycle when using power sharing.

 

[NeverGoingBack]

Yeah …. i just set them both to start charging at midnight. Works fine.