The OpenEVSE controller continuously runs hardware safety checks — diode check, GFCI self-test, ground monitoring, stuck-relay detection, vent-required detection, and temperature monitoring. A failed check faults the charger immediately (red ring on the Dashboard, entry in History, counters on Monitoring → Safety).
The individual checks can be disabled on the Safety page for diagnostics only — a charger with a disabled safety check should never be left in service. The error claim outranks everything else in the priority system: nothing can command a faulted charger to charge.
When the EVSE temperature exceeds the throttle setpoint the charge current is reduced automatically, and charging shuts down entirely at the over-temperature shutdown threshold. Both thresholds are configurable on the Safety page.
- Boot lock keeps the charger disabled after power-up until the gateway is fully online — protecting against a stale controller state after outages.
- The heartbeat watchdog reverts the charger to a safe fallback current if the WiFi gateway stops responding to the controller (interval and fallback current configurable).