Wallbox Pulsar Plus Best Amperage Setting for 56kw battery

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Jiffie
Posts: 17
Joined: Fri Jun 10, 2022 10:35 am

Post by Jiffie »

Hi, received my Family Pro last week and am very happy with it. I had a Wallbox Pulsar Plus installed about a month ago in anticipation of getting the car.

Last night I did the first overnight charge between 00:30 and 04:30am as we have just switched to Octopus Go. I set the schedule in the Wallbox and it worked no problem.

My question is this, the amperage setting in the Wallbox was set at 23 amps, tbh I didn't realise you could set the amperage manually and the 23 amps setting was obviously a default setting after installation. After a bit of googling I found that this setting can be set as high as 32 amps, obviously the higher this setting is the quicker the car is going to charge, or I will get more charge into the car in the 4 hours timeslot on Octopus Go. So I was thinking the next time I charge I would set the amperage setting to 32 amps.

Is there any down side to this? Is there any reason why charging at a lower amperage is preferable?

TIA
VW ID3 Family Pro, Steel Wheels, Stonewashed Blue. Registered 2022, Firmware Version 3.0. Wallbox Pulsar Plus charger.

OB1CCFC
Posts: 360
Joined: Wed Mar 02, 2022 10:38 am

Post by OB1CCFC »

My man maths says
Power = Current x Voltage
If AC voltage is 230v and current is 23amp means supplying 5.3kw. For 32amp it will be 7.4 kw.
So at 32amp it should be around 50% quicker charging.
* not counting losses
** the car can charge up to 11kw AC
Kia Niro EV3 in pearl white.
sidehaas
Posts: 1787
Joined: Fri Aug 27, 2021 7:04 am

Post by sidehaas »

Jiffie wrote: Fri Aug 05, 2022 3:49 pm Hi, received my Family Pro last week and am very happy with it. I had a Wallbox Pulsar Plus installed about a month ago in anticipation of getting the car.

Last night I did the first overnight charge between 00:30 and 04:30am as we have just switched to Octopus Go. I set the schedule in the Wallbox and it worked no problem.

My question is this, the amperage setting in the Wallbox was set at 23 amps, tbh I didn't realise you could set the amperage manually and the 23 amps setting was obviously a default setting after installation. After a bit of googling I found that this setting can be set as high as 32 amps, obviously the higher this setting is the quicker the car is going to charge, or I will get more charge into the car in the 4 hours timeslot on Octopus Go. So I was thinking the next time I charge I would set the amperage setting to 32 amps.

Is there any down side to this? Is there any reason why charging at a lower amperage is preferable?

TIA
No downside for the car. Just make sure your electrician has installed your charger and the associated wiring, breakers etc to a standard that is ok with the higher current.
ID.3 Family Pro Performance (Jan 22), Makena Turquoise / East Derry alloys. Ohme Home Pro charger.
Jiffie
Posts: 17
Joined: Fri Jun 10, 2022 10:35 am

Post by Jiffie »

Thanks guys, your answers are very helpful. The cabling/installation etc was done by a professional company, Smart Home Charge, and was done to a high standard, so I don't see any reason why it should not handle the higher amperage.

I'll give it a go for the next charging session and see how it goes. I'll update this thread on how I get on.
VW ID3 Family Pro, Steel Wheels, Stonewashed Blue. Registered 2022, Firmware Version 3.0. Wallbox Pulsar Plus charger.
OB1CCFC
Posts: 360
Joined: Wed Mar 02, 2022 10:38 am

Post by OB1CCFC »

Btw I have been using a Wallbox pulsar plus with my ID3 for 18 months now. At 32amps!
It’s been very reliable the only major issue is wifi access. That’s rather flakey. So I do any changes, updates etc via Bluetooth.
Kia Niro EV3 in pearl white.
Jiffie
Posts: 17
Joined: Fri Jun 10, 2022 10:35 am

Post by Jiffie »

OB1CCFC wrote: Fri Aug 05, 2022 6:06 pm Btw I have been using a Wallbox pulsar plus with my ID3 for 18 months now. At 32amps!
It’s been very reliable the only major issue is wifi access. That’s rather flakey. So I do any changes, updates etc via Bluetooth.
I've read of a few people having problems with the WiFi connection, so far this has not been a problem for me. I thought it might be as there are 3 brick walls between my router and the wallbox. I recently upgraded my router to a 1gb connection with Virgin and as part of the upgrade got a WiFi Pod extender which I put a bit closer to the Wallbox, only 2 brick walls to get through! It did the trick, I now get a decent WiFi signal at the Wallbox and have not had any problems connecting in through the App anywhere in the house.

Thanks for the update, I'm more confident now that charging at 32 amps is not going to be a problem.
VW ID3 Family Pro, Steel Wheels, Stonewashed Blue. Registered 2022, Firmware Version 3.0. Wallbox Pulsar Plus charger.
Jiffie
Posts: 17
Joined: Fri Jun 10, 2022 10:35 am

Post by Jiffie »

Update. Did a charge last night with the setting at 32 amps, no problems. It charged from 44% to 80% in 3 hours 12 minutes at a cost of £1.86 . Very happy with this charger.
VW ID3 Family Pro, Steel Wheels, Stonewashed Blue. Registered 2022, Firmware Version 3.0. Wallbox Pulsar Plus charger.
Gwyver
Posts: 92
Joined: Fri Aug 27, 2021 6:43 pm

Post by Gwyver »

Jiffie wrote: Tue Aug 09, 2022 10:56 am Update. Did a charge last night with the setting at 32 amps, no problems. It charged from 44% to 80% in 3 hours 12 minutes at a cost of £1.86 . Very happy with this charger.
You can change the Pulsar Plus charging rate using it's app by rotating the outer ring. In fact it is easy to do this unintentionally and end up with a lower than expected charge current.

If you want to charge at the maximum available current make sure you adjust the dot on the outer ring fully clockwise

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