Bolt will likely need 6.6

 

ALWAYS buy the biggest ANYTHING EVER!

Get the biggest Soda!

Buy the Biggest Beer!

Get a Big Dog!

Get the Biggest Engine.

If 1 is good, 2 is better, 3 is awesome!


Spend the money! Get the 40 amp!

 

Could you supersize that, and does it come with fries?

 

Hedge your bets. Run your wiring to support a higher capacity in the future but buy only as much charger as you need now.

 

That's the thing, I have 10 gauge wire installed already but easily upgraded. I believe I need 8 gauge for the 40 amp. Bigger isn't always better Elemental, not when it serves no purpose.

 

The answer, as always... It depends! Where mine is installed it's going to be pretty easy to upgrade the wire and outlet if that is ever required. So I went with the least expensive install I could get. The LCS-20 and a 20 amp breaker and wiring. I would only upgrade if that doesn't charge my new EV overnight. (not that I'm getting a new EV anytime soon).

Then again, that's what I had thought about the 110V charger until I started using the LCS-20...

 

Your wife, who you are happy with says "My friend (Female name here) and I have been talking. Shes always been into you, and thought about me. Lets invite her over this weekend for drinks and see what happens."


What are you going say?







Exactly! Get the bigger charger!

 

Elemental... Whahuh?

What you say sounds amusing, except I can't even figure out how to make it relate to the OP's question, whether or not to future proof. You are talking about charging two at a time, and that's a different topic for a different kind of forum.......

 

Im saying if one female is good, 2 is better.

If 20 amps are good, 40 is better.


See?

 

LOL Elemental.

If it were me, I would invest more in the wiring if I wanted to future proof, and get just the right EVSE for my Volt (like an LCS-20). Buying a very large EVSE today for some possible future usage does not make much sense to me (unless you are getting some kind of killer rebate or discount). EVSEs are going to get cheaper and better in future.

Also, whats the point of taking Viagra today when the meeting is this weekend? ;-)

 

$70 is a drop in the bucket if you actually need to make use of it in the future.

Unless you think you can resell your cheaper one in the future and get a deal on a higher powered one for that $70 difference, I'd say it's cheap convenience.
Considering it's warranted for 3 years, I would hope it lasts for double that. Let's round it out to 7 years, or $10/year
If you never use it to capacity, you're throwing that away.
But if you do use it,you're only paying $10 for double charge convenience.

 

$70 is a drop in the bucket if you actually need to make use of it in the future.

That's just the EVSE. There are other expenses. My current "easier to do" wiring job was double the cost of my EVSE. Had I gone 40 amp it would easily have been quadruple.

Only problem for me is it is a long run to my garage and 8 or 6 gauge wire isn't cheap.

We had a saying: Wire is cheap, labor isn't.

 

Really, it's all about driving habits and charging windows. All of the electric cars are within about 20% in overall efficiency, and most of the technologies are pretty mature so you aren't likely to see huge efficiency gains in the future.

That means that whatever EV you pick now or in the foreseeable future is going to need about the same amount of energy from the wall per mile.

If charging on 120V overnight is enough for you to drive all electric in a Volt with your driving habits and you don't want time of use, then it'd be enough with a fancy Tesla, or a Bolt, or whatever else - unless you start driving a lot more, you won't be filling much of the big battery most days anyway.

If you're in a situation where you're charging the car all of the convenient hours now, and still using gas, or have a time of use window that you can't quite fit everything in to, then certainly a faster charger for the future makes sense. For most drivers with the "typical" 40 mile per day driving habits, 3.3 kW is plenty for any EV.

I would suggest having an outlet run and getting a plug in charger if you're installing in a garage or similar - simpler to replace/upgrade in the future, and some of the cars come with high capacity chargers included anyway (the Tesla UMC included with every Model S can take a NEMA 14-50 and happily put 10 kW into the car.)

I'm kinda leaning towards getting a Juicebox at some point in the future for the fancy features, which would give me a lot more charging capacity (my garage outlet is a 14-30, giving a potential for ~5 kW charging) - but I certainly don't need more than 3.3 kW with my driving habits no matter what car I get.

 

I agree with saghost (Walter?), no need to buy much more than you need. My plans are all my future vehicles will be EV so I will probably go with a 7.x kW capable EVSE (about 20 to 25 miles range per hour) so I could recharge a 200 or 250 mile EV overnight (say I drive somewhere on Saturday and use most of range, and want to drive somewhere again on Sunday I can), but just a 3.5 or 4 kW capable EVSE would probably be fine for me.

Only problem for me is it is a long run to my garage and 8 or 6 gauge wire isn't cheap. I should look into if I can re-purpose my 20 amp 120 volt circuit to be 240? (have to check code and see if it is a dedicated circuit first), that would be fine for the Volt anyway.

Eric

 

I agree with saghost (Walter?)

Yes, Walter. I figured it was easier than typing it every time - and after all, they do call it a signature.

On reflection, I suppose it could look like I'm driving a car named Walter, but no, that's not the case.

 

I have 10 gauge wire in the wall already close to where the EVSE will be. As the government incentive will pay for 50% of the cost of the new EVSE and 50% of installation. I think I'm going to install larger wire and just get a 25 amp Clipper Creek (Sun Country Highway) unit.

The charger won't likely last forever but the wire sure should. I'll worry about a heavier EVSE when I need one.

Now to call the electrician.

 

10 AWG is plenty for an LCS-25. Your electrician will tell you that when he reads the manual.

http://www.clippercreek.com/store/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/LCS-User-Manual-141222v11-consecutive.pdf

 

Oh I realize it's plenty but the 10 gauge may well not be enough for the next charger I buy.

 

Future proofing is not confined to another Volt. Your preferred next car might be from an alternative manufacturer or a completely different type of car. Any BEV with a longer range will benefit greatly from increased charge capacity.

 

I've opted for the 40amp. I strongly believe that 6.6K charge ability is just around the corner.
That clippercreek 40 is a heavy duty beast.
When those relay/solenoid controlled contactors engage, you can hear them two rooms away. Larger wiring in the 25 foot lead also means less voltage drop and hopefully will have longer life.

 

Yeah the 25 amp is plenty for now and 8 gauge wire will last for several EVSE units into the future. Should be good for a while. Thanks everyone for your thoughts.

 

What car you get from what manufacturer doesn't determine what size EVSE you should have.
You could get a car capable of using 240 volt, 80 Amp and still be fine using the same EVSE IF your driving patterns stay the same.

That said, having the wiring in place to support a bigger EVSE makes since if you are going through the labor costs of wiring something now. That way it is easy to upgrade in the future should your driving patterns change.

 

Get the 40 Amp. You never know. My 30 Amp is overkill for my Volt, But now the Wife wants a pure EV.