240v Home Charger

davidahr,

You have to have the signalling handshake between the electronics in the charging cable and the car, before the car will charge. You can't just simply connect the voltage to the car and expect it to work. It won't happen until the proper handshake is done over the signalling connection first. The signalling handshake is done through the two smaller pins in the J1772 connector. The other three larger pins in the J1772 are two for the power and one for the ground for a total of five pins in the connector.

 

davidahr, if you want to buy a J1772, you can get one at TucsonEV.com. Their price for the J1772 has come down to $170 plus shipping. That's a little over half of what it cost a few months ago.

 

TucsonEV.com is developing an interface (J1772 Compatible EVSE) that when completed is expected to sell for $450. This device will do the proper handshake with the car.

 

Yep....

This has already been covered by My Nissan Leaf Forum • View topic - Can we avoid the EVSE altogether? and the last two links of http://priuschat.com/forums/toyota-prius-plug-in/100363-240v-home-charger-3.html#post1422292.

 

If you are looking for alternatives to the Leviton EVSE (Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment), PluginRecharge.com is a good place to start. This site has a good list of links to Vendors and Equipment Manufacturers.

 

If you are looking for a cable with a J1772 on one end that will connect into a 240 volt outlet evseUpgrade.com will convert a Leaf Level 1 cable (120v) to a Level 2 cable (240v) for $239. When the Plug-In Prius comes out, this company may do the same upgrade for PiP owners. That means you will have to send in your cable or buy another one to send in. Or you can just buy a new Leaf cable from them modified for 240v for $979. It will work with the PiP or the Volt.

 

Here's a neat do-it-yourself guide:

http://code.google.com/p/open-evse/

 

Thanks, Rebound. There's a lot of good info there. I like supporting open-source projects.

 

The owner/originator of open-evse is a Leaf owner. The project page links to My Nissan Leaf Forum • View topic - Weekend(s) Project - DIY EVSE.

 

For those who know this sort of stuff - a quick question. My dryer's 220V outlet is inside my house on the other side of my garage wall where my PIP will be. Can I parallel that outlet to a new 220V outlet in the garage and use that new garage outlet for my PIP when the dryer is not in use? This would avoid running a separate line from my electrical box which is about 40' away in the basement.

 

i don't see why not, although i don't have the specs for the 220-240, do they require an inspection before they install the evse?

 

Will it work? Yes. Will it pass code? It depends whether your local electric code allows that. Maybe the amperage used on the dryer circuit is big enough for both the dryer and the charger. Some electrical codes may require a dedicated circuit for the dryer, others may allow it.

 

^^ Wouldn't pass in Illinois. We need a dedicated circuit for a refrigerator here.

 

Is this the same requirement for 120VAC? or only peculiar to 220-240 VAC ? Admittedly 220 is twice as much voltage as 110 but not necessarily more dangerous.

 

I'm pretty sure it applies regardless of voltage.

I'm curious... why are people so hung up about wanting 240 volt charging at home for a PiP? The battery capacity isn't very large. 3 hours from empty at 120 volts is too slow?

If I end up getting a Leaf (long story as to why I don't have it yet), I will muddle along w/120 volt charging even though charging from empty can take 20+ hours...

 

I was thinking along those lines, but the 5 wire and signaling handshake threw me for a loop. The dryer voltage should work fine, just one more hot wire. But then, why would I need it? A three hour charge would suit me, plus once I am home for the day I usually stay home anyway.

 

Yes - and it can be modified via installing a switching power supply to run 240v
http://evseupgrade.com/?2

[edit] whoops ... I see evan already covered this in post #13
... and you can get one of these for 240v, so you may not even want/need to have an electrician pull a separate 240v line:

Voltage Converter: 220 Volt from 110 Volt Outlets

.

 

240 v charging will be nice if opportunistic, an hour at a restaurant or grocery store will just about fill the PiP (about 10 miles worth).

Its definitely not needed for home use, unless you run home for short periods of time like grabbing lunch or heading out again in the evening.

I do recommend though you think about a way to hang and store the 120V EVSE on the wall. The main benefit to my 240v over the portable 120V is just grabbing and plugging, no unloading, unwinding, re-winding, storing. Its super convenient to just have it hanging there ready to go.

The extra 3 to 5 mins a day end up meaning more to me than the couple of hours difference in charging time.

 

Here are some Level 2 Charging Stations I found today:

This one was found on Amazon under Automotivehttp://www.amazon.com/dp/product/B0069VTGPE?tag=priuschatcom-20 $1,099.00

Here's the same unit at Lowe's for $100 less
GE WattStation Wall Mount $999.00

This unit found on Amazon under Tools & Home Improvementhttp://www.amazon.com/dp/product/B004G6ZSZG?tag=priuschatcom-20 $999.75
The Leviton unit Requires this:http://www.amazon.com/dp/product/B004G6YGBI?tag=priuschatcom-20 $72.39

The Leviton unit is also found at Home Depot for
basically the same price:
Leviton Evr-Green 16-Amp Blue Level 2 Electric Car Charging Station $999.00

Leviton Evr-Green 20-Amp Electric Vehicle Level 2 Installation Kit $79.00

Two cheaper Charging Units were also found at Home Depot:

Legrand Electric Vehicle Level 2 Charging Station $749.00

Schneider Electric EVlink 30A Level 2 Electric Vehicle Charging Station $799.00

 

I thought about this while having some other electrical work done in my house recently. It turns out that garage wiring has two complications in my case, at least one of which applies to most of you. First off, garage and all outdoor circuits require GFI (Ground Fault Interrupt) protection. While I do not know if this is required on 240VAC circuits, one would certainly hope so. The danger is, after all, twice as great. This is a minor issue, but it does add a bit of cost if required.

Second, my garage is on a concrete slab. Getting a new circuit in there on a common wall above the basement is easy. Getting a circuit where it should be, somewhere in the middle of the two cars, was not. I opted not to install the circuit, hoping that standard 120 VAC charge times would be sufficient.