Charging HELP. (somethina little different here)

[regis188]

Hello,

I bought my i3 for something a little different. Here int he states I am using it as a camera car to film feature films, commercials and television shows. Because it is so quiet, has no emissions and is very fast, it is an amazing platform to film from.

My charging question is.. I am trying to get a level 2 charger to work off of a generator, just to "top off" or give me just a bit more charge throughout the day because of the fear of completely running out of juice with a production relying on me. Now, I have purchased the Wallbox from BMW and hooked it up to my Honda EM 5000is - http://powerequipment.honda.com/generators/models/em5000is. It does not work. Even the regular charger that comes for 110v does not work with the generator. I have even improved the ground as I thought that may be the problem, to no help.

In reading and doing research, I have found that generators put out a "dirty" power, even the inverter model that I bought. The rpm's change and they do not offer a constant power that the charger likes.

Does anybody know of a way or a charger that will run off a generator? Or have any tips? I am looking into line conditioners and constant voltage transformers to maybe regulate the power coming out of the generator, but I am not an electrical engineer. Just a guy that has been reading and going in circles..... going mad!

If anybody has information or if this has maybe been discussed before, I would greatly appreciate any direction or advise.

Thank you.

 

[archieb]

I have never tried using a generator as a power source, but I have used a device to clean up a 120V power circuit. Emerson's Islatrol series of line filters may help. I used the Islatrol IC series to clean up and protect my 120V charging circuit. I have never had a fault on this circuit. Here is a link to Emerson:

http://www.emersonnetworkpower.com/en-US/Products/SurgeProtection/Point-of-Use/Pages/IslatrolICSeries.aspx

I purchased mine used on E-bay but any electrical supply company that carries Emerson should be able to get one for you.

Hope this helps.

 

[Blue20]

The ouc works with generator. http://www.autoblog.com/2014/09/13/how-to-charge-up-your-bmw-i3-with-a-honda/

For level 2, EM5000iS only provide 5kw but the Wall charger is 30A, which is 6.6kw.

 

[jadnashuanh]

An inverter style generator does produce very dirty power (closer to a square wave verses a sine wave). The EVSE puts out a signal that it generates internally that COULD be derived from the input frequency, and if that varied too much, could affect things. I'd read where someone from Europe had bought a unit from the states and never did get it to work...it does not have to be that way, but sometimes, the cheaper way to produce a signal is to multiply the input power verses make it yourself. That could be a source of the issues.

An EVSE also has an internal GFCI device, and if things are a bit messy, and the generator is a bit leaky, that may trip, but it should light up a fault light. Keep in mind, the power out of the wall is made by a generator...being a generator by itself has no direct correlation to why yours doesn't work...the quality of it could, though. The other thing I can think of is if the generator isn't capable of the power rating of the EVSE you are using, that would cause the EVSE to announce a certain power level available, the car would try to use up to that amount, and that might trip the generator's circuit breaker, or fry the internals of the EVSE (relay contacts, or other power switching device).

 

[FrancisJeffries]

An inverter style generator does produce very dirty power (closer to a square wave verses a sine wave)

It might be that problem, but if it's an alternator, the output should be pretty close to a sine wave. Generating AC directly is much easier and cheaper than having an intermediate DC stage and an inverter, so I'd be very surprised if your generator includes an inverter.
However, it might be that your wall box is trying to get more current from the generator than it's able to supply - and so shuts down.
You could try setting the charging rate in the car (from the settings menu, I think) to a lower level to see if that solves the problem.