Home Charging (SF Bay Area)

[dondon]

I haven't purchased the Soul EV yet, but wanted to do some research on installing a home charger. Does anyone have recommendations for which model to install and how much it cost? And for those in the SF Bay Area, any recommendations for electricians with good experience installing EV chargers? Thanks!

 

[Ray]

Many companies in the Bay Area offer free EV charging. I'm fortunate in that I can charge my Kia at work, so no need to spend money on buying/installing a charger at home. If needed, I can always plug the car in a 110v plug and get a partial charge over night.

 

[dondon]

That's true, and both my company and my wife's company have chargers, though sometimes they are all taken. I'd like the convenience of being able to charge at home, and also for weekend trips. Seems like 110v charging is a little slow, unless you have a lot of time between trips.

 

[bryanw95119]

I personally installed my own Level 2 charger. Leviton and Siemens both make good chargers as does Clipper Creek. Be mindful of the charge rate. Some of the Level 2 chargers are capped at 25 AMPS. You wand a 30A charger.

When I worked at a solar company we offered installations with an array. But any reasonable electrician should be able to handle the job.

BTW, if you ever think that you may be upgrading the charger to a Tesla charger and want to replace the circuit already in use. Make sure the electrician installs a circuit suitable for a 50 or 90Amp service. Larger wire required. Just a heads up. Its what I did. Hoping to get a Tesla someday when my Honda FIT EV grows up.

 

[Avitt]

I use a Juicebox EVSE from Electric Motor Werks:

http://www.emotorwerks.com/products...5kw-ev-charging-station-kit-or-assembled-unit

They're in the Bay Area, and if you live in San Francisco, they have a basic installation option available for $250.

 

[iletric]

Aerovironment here - carryover from my Leaf. Don't know if it's 25 or 30 Amp, but it has never failed. Daily use (x 2 cars now for over a year) since 2011.

 

[cerroo]

Aerovironment here - carryover from my Leaf. Don't know if it's 25 or 30 Amp, but it has never failed. Daily use (x 2 cars now for over a year) since 2011.

AV unit from Leaf (actually all of them which has the round shape) are 30 Amp.

 

[Avitt]

I've noticed that the Soul EV's internal charger operates at about 87% efficiency. So at the maximum charge rate (for the shortest charge time) it will draw about 31-32A, at 240V.

 

[dantrader99]

I ended up not getting a 240V charger at home because the 120V drip-charger the car comes with was sufficient for my commute. I do about 47 miles a day (uses about 45% battery) and drip charge for 11 hours a night (44% charge) during the week. On the weekend I let it fully charge since I dont do much mileage.

We also have a 2nd gas powered car - so I have it as backup if needed. A 240V charger would be nice but not worth the $1000 expense in my case.

 

[jsongster]

We got one of the "EV Project" subsidized chargers... (they paid for charger, we paid installation beyond having existing service in garage.) I paid about 400 for an 1100 retail (now about 800) charger. I paid permits and cabling beyond back wall of garage. I had it installed near garage door so it could also be used in driveway or reach across garage. Plan carefully where you route the wire... your next EV may have an input on the side or the back... you also don't want cars driving over the cables. Replacement cables cost $$$.

Liking the Aerovironment but if I had to pay my own bux I probably would have either upgraded the 110 cable with EVSE Upgrade or gotten a 16 to 20 amp Leviton or a Clipper Creek that I could have hooked up to my former 240v 30A electric dryer hookup (we have a gas dryer that uses a nearby 20A 120v socket. The Clipper Creek come highly recommended and are made locally.

It is usually best to get the fastest connection with the highest amperage at home to charge as fast as the car can take it... but remember for older homes... that might require major electrical upgrades... can often spare 16A at 240v so... so a typical 20A appliance circuit might be enough. You might also consult an electrician about sharing a 20A that only has your garage door on it...since garage doors only operate for very short duration and usually have a dedicated 20A 110v circuit. Do have the electrical work done by electricians in older homes. You'd be surprised how loose the wire behind a panel or outlet can get over time... and you don't wanna be the next guy whose garage or carport burns because your EV charging warmed up a wall internally.

Another nice thing about the cars with the CHAdeMO quick chargers is you can always boost your car to 80% and then use the included 8A-12A 120v cord to easily finish to 100% overnight. If you don't often need a long trip this could work well. It is what I did when I first got my LEAF while waiting to get an electrician visit to install the Home EVSE.

The Aerovironment has performed flawlessly.

 

[grayhawk]

I bought the Electric Motorwerks Juicebox EVSE and installed it myself. I paid $479 for the EVSE and about $75 in parts to put in the 14-50R outlet in the garage. I upgraded my panel a few years ago to 200A, and I had two slots available in the panel for a 40A double pole breaker. If you don't have that, then installation could cost a lot more.

I saved $300 installing it myself, but I am comfortable working with electricity. If you are not, then most definitely hire an electrician.