240 volt chargers at home for 2018 Prime?

Lets pretend you already have 240 where you can recharge. Look at the plug and match it to this list of NEMA standard Receptacles. (the R at the end, Plugs have a P at the end)






There are very few styles of 120V receptacles, but tons of 240V. Once you know what you have, you can find an ESVE with that Plug.

If you don't currently have a 240 volt receptacle near your car, choose one that ends -20 and does not start with L. (L stands for locking and if you forget and drive off, it will not come loose)

I installed a NEMA 6-20 for my daughter's Prime, but it is no better or worse than the others.

Many of these show you either the plug or the receptacle, some are just replacement cables.

www.amazon.com/gp/search/ref=sr_nr_p_36_3?rnid=386419011&keywords=Level+2&rh=n%3A15684181%2Cn%3A15706941%2Cn%3A15707701%2Cn%3A7427413011%2Cn%3A7427415011%2Ck%3ALevel+2&qid=1549159632&low-price=150&high-price=300

 

If you've already got a line then it's just a matter of matching what you have.

If you're running a new line, it is so incrementally small to put in wiring to support a full charger, you just should. We're wiring our garage with 2 separate 100A charger sub-panels, 1 on each side. The cost versus doing something like 30A breakers was barely noticeable.

 

congrats and welcome!
no problem at all. many have, and there are lots of good threads here.
all the best!

 

Most of 240V chargers can do 30A... the Prime use only 16A Max when charging on 240V , so you should be ok with a 20A circuit. As a measure of precaution , i strongly recommend to find a charger that is limited or can be limited to 16A to make sure the circuit will not be overloaded. I have myself installed a 40 A breaker with 8 gauge wire and a 30A charging station , even if my car pull only 16A , i know ill be future proof or if i recharge someone else's car.

 

No. The PP draws 3.6 KW on 240 charge, so with P = I x V, that's 3600 = I * 240. Solve for I = 15 amps. That can be done on a 20 amp line.

 

What exactly does the "brick" in the supplied 120V charging cord doing? I ASSUME it checks for ground or polarity errors. Does it do ANYTHING else besides that? If not, why couldn't one just remove the brick, and put a 240V plug on the end of the wire? This ASSUMES of course that you are using this cable to charge only at your home and have already guaranteed that the 240V outlet was installed correctly.

I see all the several to many hundreds of $$ level 2 chargers for sale but I don't think they do anything useful since the car has the actual charger and the ability to charge on a schedule. No need for that in the "charging station". Seems like a lot of expense for nothing.

 

"I don't think they do anything useful"

Safety sensing. There are 5 wires in the J1772 plug, 3 are for charging, and two for safety sensing. The power wires are longer, so they are fully plugged in before the ESVE senses the Prime.

I find the following protocols on Wikipedia keeping EVSEs safe:

supply equipment signals presence of AC input power
vehicle detects plug via proximity circuit (thus the vehicle can prevent driving away while connected) and can detect when latch is pressed in anticipation of plug removal.
control pilot functions begin
supply equipment detects plug-in electric vehicle (PEV)
1. supply equipment indicates to PEV readiness to supply energy
2. PEV ventilation requirements are determined
3. supply equipment current capacity provided to PEV
PEV commands energy flow
PEV and supply equipment continuously monitor continuity of safety ground
charge continues as determined by PEV
charge may be interrupted by disconnecting the plug from the vehicle - SAE J1772 - Wikipedia

So the EVSE (called supply equipment above) handshakes a lot with the vehicle being plugged in. (called PEV above)

Folks ask a lot about safety in Snow or Rain; the J1772 plug is safe, but if the normal household plug is outside, it is way less safe. No protocols like above.

 

OK, upon further reading and research, I see that the EVSE does have multiple and important functions as you listed.

However near as I can tell, at least in the Prime and I believe most other PHEV/BEV, the "features" other than those you listed, provided by the charging stations that cost many, many hundred of dollars, are already in the car and are redundant. I can schedule charging start time in the car, don't need that ability in an expensive charging station. A portable 240V L2 cord and EVSE costing $180 or so does all that someone with a Prime needs since it's charger maxes out at 16A. For instance:

You can buy something similar that charges at 32A for vehicles that can take higher amps (Amazon
Morec EV charger Level 2 32 Amp for $366, instead of a ChargePoint 32A charging station for $630.

 

That isn't possible. The car only draws what it is designed to accept.

Problems arise (not car related) when the charger itself (that external box) draws more than what the powerline is sized to deliver.

 

The amps will be limited by the car just like a light bulb only draws a half an amp or maybe one amp even when plugged into a 20 amp circuit. So a 32A EVSE will be loafing when feeding a 16A charger. I have a 16A EVSE, but my PiP only pulled about 9A. My Prime makes full use of that same EVSE. The one I have is just like the one shown by @bruceha_2000 in post #12 except the wall plug style.

 

What happened to the 16A L2 portable charger I linked? And why can't I edit the post to put it back in?

 

My links to Amazon all require a manual edit, I have never been sure why.

 

It's there. Is your ad blocker hiding it?

 

I was fortunate that my electric utility had a rebate on the cost of the ChargePoint 32A charger that essentially covered its entire cost. All I had to pay for was the installation of a 240V outlet by an electrician.