[Crimson Volt]

I'm going to get a Level 2 charger for the garage. What's the best amp (30 or 50 amp) setting for a Level 2 Clipper Creek portable/hardwired EVSE for my Gen 1 Volt and future EVs?

 

[Loboc]

If wanting to plan ahead for your next car: check with an electrician and install the largest EVSE the electrical system will support.

If wanting to keep costs down: install an EVSE that supports your daily driving. Is it 50 or 100mi?

Volt only needs a 20-amp EVSE. If your daily driving is average, 20-amps will top off any EV overnight. Even a P100DL.

No need to worry about EVSE settings. The car will negotiate the charge rate with any SAE J1772 EVSE.

I installed a 40-amp unit since i already had a circuit in the garage.

 

[Norton]

I'm going to get a Level 2 charger for the garage. What's the best amp (30 or 50 amp) setting for a Level 2 Clipper Creek portable/hardwired EVSE for my Gen 1 Volt and future EVs?

The biggest your current wiring is rated for.

If you running a whole new circuit, go big.
You can still plug a 16A L2 into a big outlet.
When you get a bigger EV you can then get a bigger EVSE

 

[Crimson Volt]

If wanting to plan ahead for your next car: check with an electrician and install the largest EVSE the electrical system will support.

If wanting to keep costs down: install an EVSE that supports your daily driving. Is it 50 or 100mi?

Volt only needs a 20-amp EVSE. If your daily driving is average, 20-amps will top off any EV overnight. Even a P100DL.

Well I'm thinking of just 50 amp but not hardwired so I can switch future EVSEs without having an electrician. I debating on setting in the garage or outside. I may end up getting a Gen 2 (2020 Volt since in winter having turn on the ice to help heat the car without Range anxiety) or wait for a Gen 3. Thanks for the reply. I'm within 50 miles daily.

 

[BAZINGA]

I went with a 240V/30amp circuit for my hard wired CC LCS-25. It charges at about 11 MPH. That would handle a Tesla with routine daily driving.

But looking back I wish I had run a 50amp circuit with a NEMA 14-50 plug. That would feed a Tesla at about 27 MPH or anything else with ease.

 

[Crimson Volt]

I'm going to get a Level 2 charger for the garage. What's the best amp (30 or 50 amp) setting for a Level 2 Clipper Creek portable/hardwired EVSE for my Gen 1 Volt and future EVs?

The biggest your current wiring is rated for.

If you running a whole new circuit, go big.
You can still plug a 16A L2 into a big outlet.
When you get a bigger EV you can then get a bigger EVSE

I thinking of not going hardwired in the garage and setup a PlugShare for EVs in my local area emergency quick charge. Paint the area green for EV parking only with a $ donation box if you're feeling generous for the charge time.

 

[Crimson Volt]

I went with a 240V/30amp circuit for my hard wired CC LCS-25. It charges at about 11 MPH. That would handle a Tesla with routine daily driving.

But looking back I wish I had run a 50amp circuit with a NEMA 14-50 plug. That would feed a Tesla at about 27 MPH or anything else with ease.

I'm getting a great deal since I'm only paying for the parts and not labor. So whatever highest say 50 amp should be adequate. Thank for the replies guys. I'll keep posting on my current status.

 

[DonC]

You have three parts: the breakers, the wire, and the outlet (assuming you're using a plug in EVSE). The ends, the breaker and outlet, are trivial to change. The wire not so much. So if you're installing and want some future proof ability, install the largest wire you can and don't worry about the breakers or the outlet. You can swap those out anytime. Note you'll want the breaker to match whatever EVSE you get BTW, so you'll want to change those out when if you increase the charge power.

There is definitely some diminishing returns on charging rate. As Loboc has pointed out, for daily charging 120v would work. At 5 miles per hour, over the ten+ hours your car is sitting there that's 50 miles. The lowest 240v rate will get you 100 miles. Since the future is uncertain, and most likely this plug in EVSE stuff will go away and we'll move to wireless charging, I wouldn't spend a lot of money trying to get a higher charging rate.

 

[AZ EV Driver]

You have three parts: the breakers, the wire, and the outlet (assuming you're using a plug in EVSE). The ends, the breaker and outlet, are trivial to change. The wire not so much. So if you're installing and want some future proof ability, install the largest wire you can and don't worry about the breakers or the outlet. You can swap those out anytime. Note you'll want the breaker to match whatever EVSE you get BTW, so you'll want to change those out when if you increase the charge power.

Actually, the breaker can be sized to the wire (but not larger), with a lower rated plug being acceptable. The EVSE will only draw what it is rated for and not any more. The breaker is there to protect the circuit wiring.

VIN # B0985

 

[AZ EV Driver]

If you really want to future proof, then install a 100 amp sub-panel in the garage. You can then install two 50 amp EVSE's for the second EV. This assumes that your main panel can support it.

VIN # B0985

 

[srs5694]

If I'm not mistaken, the JuiceBox units start at 40 amps, meaning that they provide a maximum of 40 amps to the car and therefore require wiring, outlets, and circuit breakers rated for 50 amps. There's also a 75-amp model. Even though your Volt will draw a maximum of 16 amps, I'd say it's best to go with everything else rated for 50 amps (assuming you're getting a 40-amp JuiceBox) -- although as others have said, going for more-capable wiring will make it easier should you get some super-duper car that draws ridiculous (by today's standards) amperage in the future.

Also, keep in mind your home's total amperage capabilities. My impression is that most homes today are wired for a total of 100 amps at 240 volts input. If you do eventually get a super-high-draw vehicle in the future, you could end up tripping your main circuit breaker if you try to charge it while also running an electric dryer and cooking a big meal on a 50-amp electric range. You may not need to worry about that today with one Volt, but upgrading your house to support a 200 amp supply may be necessary if you add more or higher-amperage cars in the future. I did a little Googling on this myself recently and discovered that such upgrades usually cost in the low thousands of dollars.

 

[DonC]

Actually, the breaker can be sized to the wire (but not larger), with a lower rated plug being acceptable. The EVSE will only draw what it is rated for and not any more. The breaker is there to protect the circuit wiring.

Best practice would be to match the breaker to the appliance. Lots of people don't.

 

[wws]

Best practice would be to match the breaker to the appliance. Lots of people don't.

Generally, if there is a receptacle involved, the breaker should match the receptacle. The NEC does allow some exceptions. One very common example is placing multiple daisy chained 15 amp 120v receptacles on a 20 amp circuit. Another is placing a NEMA 14-50 on a 40 amp, instead of a 50 amp, circuit.

If the EVSE is hard-wired, then yes the breaker should match the EVSE.

 

[Crimson Volt]

Will have to postpone the Level 2 upgrade til next year or whenever my house gets fixed since I was in an earlier meeting at work when my house flooded due to a broken pipe from my master's bedroom sink. Working with the insurance to get everything back in order. Luckily everyone's safe and we're staying at my brother-in-law's house. My Azure Volt is driven mostly gas for the first time since I got her back in September. Full tank of gas of 93 octane today after mix driving. 4,988 miles driven to date from the original full tank.