The new home I am purchasing has very old wiring (two-pronged) to the garage. I think I need to run a new line to charge my PiP. My electric panel (will upgrade also) is in the basement front of the house. The garage is behind the house with side driveway entry. A few scenarios: 120v or 240v? The existing garage opener should be 120v and my charger is the bundled 120v. I am thinking of running 240v for future upgrade to L2 charger (a big IF). I am also thinking of installing a plug at the side of the house so I can charge parked on the driveway. It is also the closest location to the panel. Again, 120v or 240v or both? How about 120v to garage and 240v to driveway?
i would plan out a path for wiring, you might have to do some search and destroy. once you know how to get there, delivering the wire is easy. put a 120v in each location and add a 240v if you ever decide to go that route. my 120v's are 14-2 w/g romex wire, 15 amp breaker. the 240v is 12-2 w/g and a double 20 amp breaker. the length of run is about 30'. all the best with the new digs!
I suggest you consider a 240 sub-panel in the garage back-fed from the main panel. You can feed you 110 volt loads from there, and have 240 available if you need it. As always, check your local codes.
Recommend you consult a licensed electrician and determine your options and cost. If you're thinking EV long term, definitely wire for 240v. Once you have a 240v source, adding a Level 2 charger will be easy.
I agree with the other guys. If you plan on being there a while you definitely can't go wrong having some 240's available.
I think you can run 12-2 wire to your outlets than you can either use the outlet for 110 or 220 as need. Check with local codes or your electrictian. Check and see. I am not a electrictian...and I did not stay at a Holiday Inn Express either!
On a related note, have you considered an option that would allow you to power some critical appliances in your home from your PiP in a blackout? The nice thing about plug-ins is that this can be done with burning very little fuel, and possibly none at all. I'm not sure what the PiP's DC-DC converter for 12V power is rated for though, or if this has been considered/done before. I've made kits for it on the Nissan Leaf and Chevy Volt though, so I would think a PiP would also handle this well.
The standard Prius has a 100 amp fuse in the DC-DC 12 volt circuit, which means you can run about a 1 kW inverter. Highly recommended to put a lower value fuse (say 80A) in the 12V line to the inverter.
I wonder if the PiP has a higher output? The Volt's DC to DC converter is capable of 175 amps which allows for a 1500W inverter to be used with sufficient margin. I think the Leaf's is 120 amps if I recall correctly. In the case of the 1000W kit that I make for both of those vehicles, an 80 amp inline fuse is exactly what I use, as you suggest. The PiP may be a good candidate for a kit like this, but unfortunately I haven't seen the 12V system on one up-close just yet. For example, the battery in the standard Prius wasn't the most accessible, which makes installation of a kit for would-be enthusiasts a bit cumbersome. Is the 12V battery in the PiP also in the back and in a tight space? It's not my intent to hi-jack this thread, so if people are interested in this discussion maybe I'll post a new topic somewhere.
There are lots of existing posts on house-power inverters, but if you have a kit it might be worth starting a thread to show the details. I have a C, which has the 12V battery under the rear passenger-side seat, and as far as I know all the Prius 12V batteries are similarly inacessible.
Okay thanks. I have a co-worker with a PiP so I may have a look at his sometime when the weather changes and start a thread on it. I'd love to offer a capability if people are interested. Owner interest is why I started offering the other kits for the Volt and LEAF. It's just too cool what you can do for "extra features" once your vehicle has a plug and high voltage battery.
Yes yes! I put a separate sub panel in my back shed. Extended all kinds of possibilities from there including powering another shed, outdoor electrical outlets for any electrical tool, pumps (for future pools, hot tubs, etc.), and lights. And all without repeatedly turning off the wrong breaker in the house and resetting numerous clocks,TVs, computers, etc.. iPad ? HD
I agree as well. The best thing to do if you're looking to upgrade is to have a sub-panel in the garage for 240V power that comes from your main panel in your home, via underground conduit. Size the panel and the wiring from the house to the garage sufficiently to account for future expansion plans electrically. Of course, always consult an electrician to make sure everything's done up to code!
Unless you run a three wire circuit, you will need to rewire it each time you change....and you can't have both at the same time.
