[FutureVoltDude]

Can I charge with a level 2 charger @ 16amps without installing a dedicated Line? Can I use a 110 volt line to charge at 16 amps?

 

[viking79]

No, the car only supports 12A at 120V, for outlet fire safety reasons, not every house has 20A wiring.

 

[marcusm]

With the Volt which I believe has the same charging infrastructure as the ELR, you can charge level 2 at 15 amps max as that is all the car will draw on 220-240V. You should have a dedicated (nothing else drawing current on it when charging) 20 amp 240 Line for that.


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[llninja]

The fact you asked.... get an electrician.

If I treat the 2 questions separately, yes, if you happen to have a dryer plug that is 240v, you can plug the level 2mevse into it assuming you have the right pigtail. So you wouldn't have to install a dedicated line, but you'd have to plug and unplug the dryer and EVSE every time you want to switch appliances. Over time that plug will fail from all the plugging and unplugging.

For the 2nd question, others have answered it.

When the two questions are taken together, it doesn't make sense at all. You can't plug most level 2 evses into a level 1 plug, unless it is a special dual voltage EVSE that gives you the convenience of plugging into either. But it won't ever give you 16 amps at 110v.

 

[Loboc]

From the pics in your other thread, I'd say you need an electrician. Consulting an Internet forum only may have disastrous results.

Taking the two threads together, it is obvious that the questions show a lack of basic electrical knowledge. Not trying insult anyone here, just be safe.

Please hire a professional electrician. Not a handyman or a friend: a pro.

 

[flyingsherpa]

Your questions don't really made sense... Level 2 means 240V charging, it doesn't necessarily mean a specific amount of current at that voltage, though. You can have level 2 at 12 amps, 15, 30, etc. (depending on your EVSE and the car's charger capacity). Level 1 is 120V charging, and for most cars it tops out at 12 amps (Tesla allows 16, I think, if you know you have a 20A circuit, but Volt will not).

The math is simple: power is current times voltage. So level 1 is 120V x 8A = 960 Watts (or 1400 Watts at 12A). A common level 2 setup is 240V x 14A = 3300 Watts. Higher wattage means faster charging, and that comes about by increasing voltage and current.

 

[CtOldman]

Always remember the dichotomy of electricity: the source determines the voltage, but the load determines the current. This is why we need breakers or fuses. You can plug your Volt into a 50 amp 240 volt outlet but it is still going to draw what it wants, about 16 amps. On the other hand, you can plug it into a 10 amp 240 volt outlet and it will still draw that 16 amps, oops.

 

[flyingsherpa]

Always remember the dichotomy of electricity: the source determines the voltage, but the load determines the current. This is why we need breakers or fuses. You can plug your Volt into a 50 amp 240 volt outlet but it is still going to draw what it wants, about 16 amps. On the other hand, you can plug it into a 10 amp 240 volt outlet and it will still draw that 16 amps, oops.

Well, that's not strictly true with EVs... the car and EVSE handshake and agree on the current. The right EVSE on your hypothetical 10A 240V outlet would work just fine (well, Volt will definitely do 12A on 240v, not sure it will handshake to 10A but it might ... somewhat depends on the car). You're right that you can't put a 40A 240V EVSE set for max power on that same outlet and expect it to work, of course. But a programmable EVSE or car (Tesla allows you to select the current) would work.