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Purchasing Chargeing station for Volt

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9.1K views 38 replies 26 participants last post by  Dr. Manhattan  
#1 ·
Hello,

i want to purchase a level 2 charging station for my home. i will install it in my garage.
my question is which one should i take ?
i did some research on this and i want to get a 30 amp level 2 charger.

Which one do u guys recommend

1. Cliper Creek
2. AV Home EV Charging Stations
3. Charge point

i am inclined towards charge point as i can see the status via wirelessly. ( do u guys think its worth or go with some what cheaper solution )


Recommend me a good charger where i need it for future

In future i might buy tesla ( i know these all chargers might not work). Recommend me a good charger where i can charge tesla too in future

i am planning to keep a 50amp wire with 30amp breaker. when i buy tesla i can change the breaker to 50 amp
 
#2 ·
#12 ·
Ditto on using the one you have as an L2 EVSE by getting the adapter. Save the money to put against your future Tesla :)
 
#4 ·
I have never wished I had the active monitoring of a ChargePoint station. I plug it in and forget about it. When I need to drive, it's ready to go. That's all I need to know until the power bill shows up. Even then, I don't care how much power the car used vs the rest of the house. I'm going to pay it no matter what. I don't monitor my A/C power separately. I don't monitor my water heater separately. Why should I monitor my car separately?

If you install a big circuit to the garage for future-proofing, you might as well go ahead and have it go to a sub-panel. Then you can have a 20 amp circuit for the Volt now and a 50 or 60 amp circuit later for almost free for the Tesla charger. I don't think you really need anything bigger than the Clipper Creek unit that came with your new car, but if you like having something permanently hanging on the garage wall, the Clipper Creek L2 units have a fantastic reputation with the members here.

Of course, you could decide to go full-nerd like me and build your own L2 station with an OpenEVSE kit. It was a lot of fun for a nerd who loves building things. I also customized the software to my specific application, which only further reinforces my geek cred, but I am a software engineer for a living and software is kinda what I do...
 
#5 · (Edited)
Rinku2012,

You don't need to put a 30a breaker on a 50a circuit just because you install a 30a EVSE. You should size the breaker to limit current to the max capability of the wiring. A car capable of charging at a max of 15a won't take 30a if you plug it into a 30a EVSE, and a 30a EVSE will not advertise or try to supply 50a just because there is a 50a breaker on the circuit. It's the same as plugging a 5a phone charger into a 20a circuit without downgrading the breaker to 5a.
 
#8 ·
Clipper Creek is very reliable, made here and are great to deal with. The only gen 1 Volts to get Clipper Creek units were from 2013 and early 2014, from what I remember. They have torqz screws in the back of the case and can be modified to accept 240v. From what I've read here, the gen 2 can use 240v if you use a correct adapter on the supply side.
 
#10 ·
#11 ·
#13 ·
#15 · (Edited)
I went with the Chargepoint Home unit. I like it because it’s very compact and stylish, has a choice of cable length, is very quiet and has worked for me flawlessly for the last five months. I also like the ability to monitor my charging data and to set up charging schedules, etc. online and on my phone.
 
#16 ·
Have your 240v outlet put in, but use the $30 adapter with your portable EVSE that comes with your Volt. The Volt OnStar app lets you monitor your charging wirelessly. In the future, when you get your Tesla, you can get yourself a ClipperCreek or other L2 charger with wireless monitoring by then. They may be cheaper and have more options, so why not get it when you need it.
 
#18 ·
No mods needed for the 2016+ EVSE, just plug it directly into an adapter pigtail suited for your 240 outlet and you're there. It's the slickest thing going!

Only the earlier EVSEs needed to be open and worked on to be able to work for L2 charging.
 
#20 ·
I have no idea what they will do, but if they are checking the model number on your EVSE, I'd guess they would argue it's an L1 charger by the books. Maybe if you have to purchase an L2 EVSE (in order to be able to get the 50% off on installation of a 240V receptacle), you could get a plug-in type L2 from Home Depot, get a receipt, but then never open it and just return it once you're approved/cleared/paid.
 
#21 ·
I've had my Clipper Creek for over 2 years and 40,000 EV miles.
Still just like the day I bought it...and I've dropped it more times than I care to count :|
 
#22 ·
I was just looking into this question earlier this week with the same idea of Volt now, but Tesla in the future and I only want to do the wiring once. At this point, I plan on having a NEMA 14-50 outlet installed in the garage and then buying the Clipper Creek LCS-20P with the 14-50 plug. According to the Tesla website, they recommend either using their Wall Connector or a NEMA 14-50 outlet. Per Tesla, all Model S come with a mobile connector and a 14-50 adapter. Basically, if I change to a Tesla, I just unplug the Clipper Creek from the outlet and use the Tesla cord. As far as people's amp concerns, I don't think Clipper Creek would sell their 16amp charging station with a 14-50 plug if it weren't safe to plug into a 14-50 outlet.

I would post links to the Clipper Creek model and Tesla charger installation site, but I don't have permission to post links yet.
 
#24 ·
You don't say what year Volt this EVSE unit will be coming from, but I just posted this (repeated below) about the 2016+ models:


No mods needed for the 2016+ EVSE, just plug it directly into an adapter pigtail suited for your 240 outlet and you're there. It's the slickest thing going!

Only the earlier EVSEs needed to be open and worked on to be able to work for L2 charging.
 
#32 ·
Hello,

thanks everyone for pinching in. i am confused with so many replies and so many suggestions.

Please let me know if its yes or no

can i install 50 amp circuit breaker, run a 50 amp wire and install 30 amp 240 volts electric plug in my garage and charge my volt 2016 with the charger i got from Car ?

i am aware that i need to buy a converter. can someone please keep the links of the small $30 converter so that ic an get it
i am getting electrician this week. i want to finalize without any problems.
 
#38 ·
Please let me know if its yes or no

can i install 50 amp circuit breaker, run a 50 amp wire and install 30 amp 240 volts electric plug in my garage and charge my volt 2016 with the charger i got from Car ?

i am aware that i need to buy a converter. can someone please keep the links of the small $30 converter so that ic an get it
i am getting electrician this week. i want to finalize without any problems.
The answer to your question is yes. There are those telling you no because they think there is a safety concern. So my suggestion to you is to ask only those that have done the conversion to reply. Plenty have done it. I get your question. The ASK is CAN you do it. The answer is YES for the Gen 2.
 
#33 ·
Yes on the CB, wire size and then smaller 240V receptacle.

No to a "small $30 converter", if you are talking about running 240V to a 120V outlet so you can run your stock L1 EVSE on 240V.
If you mention this to the Electrician he'll turn around and walk away.

Open up you old bill fold a little bit more and buy a proper L2 EVSE. You can get a 16A model for not much and it is perfect for a Volt.