[damngato]

I recently purchased a new home and a 2014 Volt. Love the car but want to be able to rapid charge. I have a plug in the garage by the dryer which I believe from my research is a NEMA 6-50 but I could be wrong. Please see the picture below, is that a NEMA 6-50 as I suspect? If so, what would you recommend for a level 2 charger? I see a few options but was unsure of the Amps I needed. Still pretty new and want to make sure I have all my bases covered. Thanks again all, lots of great information on here.

 

[hallcp]

Here's an outlet chart

I am attaching a chart I found on an EV website. Your configuration does appear to be a NEMA 6-50.

I also found these folks to be very helpful, although I did not need to buy a charger from them:

http://evseupgrade.com/

Hope this helps.

C. Hall
Raleigh, NC

 

[hallcp]

Oh, and 12 amps is all the Volt will use to charge, so any breaker rated 20 amp or above will be fine. (For continuous loads, you can only draw 80% of the breaker capacity.)

You should be in great shape for this car and your next EV down the road!

C. Hall

 

[Loboc]

Wow. Already wired for action! Just need a CC or other 20a EVSE with a 6-50 plug and you're gold.

 

[Fred_B]

Your Volt can use a maximum of 15 amps at 240V (or 12 amps at 120V). I installed a Clipper Creek LCS-20 hardwired version, been using it for the last 3 years and it has been 100% reliable. Never a problem.

Here is a model with the plug you need, for $395. This would give your Volt the maximum current that is is capable of using. Some will say to install a higher current EVSE for future vehicles, no real harm in that but the Volt won't be able to use any more current than 15 amps.

https://store.clippercreek.com/residential?product_id=77&sort=p.price&order=ASC

 

[2VoltFamily]

Opinions abound on which L2 EVSE to choose. You can pay as little as $175 or as much as $___ fill in the blank. All seem to do the job and there are many reviews on the forum.

 

[2VoltFamily]

I think the OP posted this twice. there are two threads on it

 

[llninja]

Congrats on the new house. Getting both a new house and car at the same time has got to hurt the pocketbook. But that isn't as bad as a coworker of mine. He changed jobs, wife quit her job, moved from DC to the Midwest, sold a house, bought a house, bought a new hybrid CUV, all with the wife 8 months preggers ready to pop at any moment. Any one of these were major stressors, they did all of them within a 90 day period. Baby came right on schedule and health insurance was a major PITA for them. New doctors, new hospitals, everything new.

 

[jbakerjonathan]

If you want to save yourself $$$ and can accept a slightly longer charge time, you probably can use the supplied EVSE together with a dongle that allows you to plug into it and the it plugs into the NEMA 6-50 outlet. You can contact Chris TX to find out what he would charge for the dongle or you could make it yourself if you are handy. Here is the link to the discovery that the new EVSEs can be used on 240 volt circuits:
http://gm-volt.com/forum/showthread.php?218442-Gen2-Volt-EVSE-conversion-to-L2-L1-combo-DONE!&highlight=chris

 

[llninja]

If you want to save yourself $$$ and can accept a slightly longer charge time, you probably can use the supplied EVSE together with a dongle that allows you to plug into it and the it plugs into the NEMA 6-50 outlet. You can contact Chris TX to find out what he would charge for the dongle or you could make it yourself if you are handy. Here is the link to the discovery that the new EVSEs can be used on 240 volt circuits:
http://gm-volt.com/forum/showthread.php?218442-Gen2-Volt-EVSE-conversion-to-L2-L1-combo-DONE!&highlight=chris

Not quite. The dongle only works with gen2 EVSEs. Some gen1 EVSEs can be upgraded, but that means opening it up, cutting things, and soldering - definitely not for the regular car owner. Since the OP bought a 2014, chances are the best bet is to buy a new L2 EVSE.

 

[jbakerjonathan]

Not quite. The dongle only works with gen2 EVSEs. Some gen1 EVSEs can be upgraded, but that means opening it up, cutting things, and soldering - definitely not for the regular car owner. Since the OP bought a 2014, chances are the best bet is to buy a new L2 EVSE.

My bad. I overlooked his buying a 2014. 8^(

 

[damngato]

Thanks guys. Yea, been a bit stressful but luckily had family close to live with while we sold our old home and close on the new one. Doing some renovation now and hope to be in our new home soon. I can't imagine doing all this with a child on the way (hard enough with a 5 year old running around) and changing jobs. Those are calmer people than I