[marcusm]

Hi our electrician is coming out in a couple weeks to install the 240 line; he's asking which outlet type and amperage we should be putting in. He's suggesting to look at the manual, but I'm trying to go by perhaps future vehicles which might require more power than the Volt. Any recommendations? In particular he says he needs to know what outlet type to put in. He said he wants to go by what our manual says, but I'm not sure the manual talks about that? I'm planning to use the current 2016 charger with the 240 adapter set up that you guys have talked about. Thanks for any suggestions.


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[Neromanceres]

The manual doesn't cover using the existing OEM Gen II Volt EVSE with an adapter at 240V.

The existing OEM EVSE adapter is limited to 12A for the charge current. So technically a circuit as low as 15A would work. The Gen II Volt can draw up to 15A at 240V as a maximum with other EVSE's. So if you want to charge your Volt at the maximum 3.6KW charge rate (using another EVSE) than a 20A circuit would be required.

If you see a car like a Bolt EV in your future which can charge up to 30A at 240V than installing a 40A circuit would be a good thing. However the OEM EVSE used on the Volt's safety systems are not designed for fault currents that are possible on a 40A circuit. So if you go this route I would recommend adding 15A slow blow fuses to both the Live 1 and Live 2 leads of your adapter cord.

 

[marcusm]

Thanks, my gut tells me if I can do it that I should ask for the highest amps I can get away with, because who knows, in the future I might have something else that will take a lot more power. I wonder if that fellow on this board that builds the adapters for the Oem Esevs would be able to accommodate those kind of fuses? Or how would I do that? I certainly don't want to start a fire or blow the circuits in the charger or the car. Thanks a lot


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[marcusm]

FYI the manual says that "240 V/40 amp circuits provide flexibility for future vehicle charging needs" so that's what I'll tell him to put in. I'll just need to figure out what outlet type to tell him to put in. Then I'll have to figure out how to protect the OEM charger when I put the adapter cord on it....


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[drmx]

A very popular setup would be a 50 amp breaker (allowing 40 amp constant load) and a 14-50R outlet. That will let you do 120/240 through various adapters, charge the majority of EVs on the road today with their native or optional EVSEs.

 

[marcusm]

Thanks -- I'll do that and then I'll just have to get the proper adapter with fuses, as suggested, for the 2016 EVSE made.... is that guy that used to be on this board still doing those?


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[canehdian]

Minimum 20A recommended, maximum whatever your panel/service can support (for future-proofing).

 

[saltsman]

A very popular setup would be a 50 amp breaker (allowing 40 amp constant load) and a 14-50R outlet. That will let you do 120/240 through various adapters, charge the majority of EVs on the road today with their native or optional EVSEs.

This is the correct answer. The only reason to go less would be if the wire run was super long and thus, super expensive.

 

[marcusm]

Thanks that's what I'll tell the electrician to install. I'll just need to figure out what adapter to come up with for my 2016 OEM charger....


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[jbakerjonathan]

This link might be informative for you:
http://gm-volt.com/forum/showthread...nversion-to-L2-L1-combo-DONE!&highlight=chris

 

[ElectronDF]

I got my level 2 charger with a plug already put on it (so done professionally). I had to choose between 6-50 (range plug) and 14-30 (dryer). I have 3 family members with a a washer/dryer in their garage, so I got the dryer version. I have never regretted it. I would probably NEVER get a hardwired version. No reason to. Just get a plug put in that matches the charger. The circuit and wire pulling the hard part. Changing the wall plugin shouldn't be a big deal.

 

[BAZINGA]

A very popular setup would be a 50 amp breaker (allowing 40 amp constant load) and a 14-50R outlet. That will let you do 120/240 through various adapters, charge the majority of EVs on the road today with their native or optional EVSEs.

I have a CC LCS-25 on a 30 amp circuit but wish I had spent the extra bucks and upped it to 50 amps. You can easily feed a Tesla with that.

 

[voganni]

Your higher-powered evse's will come with a 6-50 plug, 2-pole 240v and ground. Common welder plug. However, if you are using the modified portable charger you need a neutral wire to feed the portable evse's 120v control circuitry. If this is your plan, you'd want the electrician to install a 14-50 receptacle so you have a neutral. Later if you decide to go with a larger evse, you can replace the receptacle with a 6-50 and not use the neutral wire.

 

[Neromanceres]

Your higher-powered evse's will come with a 6-50 plug, 2-pole 240v and ground. Common welder plug. However, if you are using the modified portable charger you need a neutral wire to feed the portable evse's 120v control circuitry. If this is your plan, you'd want the electrician to install a 14-50 receptacle so you have a neutral. Later if you decide to go with a larger evse, you can replace the receptacle with a 6-50 and not use the neutral wire.

He has a Gen II Volt which the OEM EVSE contains an auto switching power supply for the control circuitry. No neutral wire is required.

 

[marcusm]

That's right. It is a 2016. So should I get a 14-50 or a 6-50?


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[trm2]

With all of the future proofing talk, I have a question. First, I did do just that, but just using round numbers, the G2 volt on a 240 line can (at max) get you 50 miles of range in 4.5 hours. If you allow for a 40 amp charge, that is about 2.5 times faster, so you can get 125 miles in that same time. How much do you drive? At what point is it overkill?

 

[marcusm]

Oh for sure the internal 3.6 kw/hr charger on the Gen 2 volt only gets you max the 53 miles in 4.5 hours, no matter what 240 line setup you have. This is strictly a question of future capacity for other EVs in the future. I don't need more than 80 miles a day for commuting between the two cars, but with 2 volts, and the fact that I doubt I'd ever buy another ice car, I want the capacity in case.


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[Steverino]

That's right. It is a 2016. So should I get a 14-50 or a 6-50?


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My Siemens Versacharger EVSE has a 6-50 plug.

 

[marcusm]

Thanks, I'll be using the oem ESVE with the adapter but could also use a 6-50 to 14-50 adapter in the future for a different EV and charger, I suppose. I just wanted to err on the safe side if there was a "safer" receptacle choice here.


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[Qinsp]

Another vote for 50amp breaker feeding 14-50 socket. This is sort of a universal high amp setup since it's what most RV's come with.

It can handle a 40 amp EVSE whether it's 240v or 120v. It can be split into twin 120v EVSE's for 2 cars. It can use a Tesla portable cord, or HPWC. Adapters are easy to find at RV stores or you can make them.