common charging adapter

[WReed82]

Hi Folks,

My wife got a Bolt - nice car, and I still prefer Maeve, except for longer trips.
We have a 40A EVSE and need to upgrade the 20A plug to something for higher amps.
Bolt is 32A max.
For portable use, what's the most common 240V connector you are seeing? 14-50?

Thanks and good health, Weogo

 

[JoeS]

RV parks typically have NEMA 14-50 so I would indeed fit a NEMA 14-50P onto the EVSE.

For longer trips I would also get a Tesla --> J1772 adapter as many places have installed Tesla HPWC (High Power Wall Connector) stations, so you won't even need your portable EVSE.

If you are going to upgrade your home wiring and panel circuit breaker, I would go with NEMA 14-50. Continuous current draw should be 80% of circuit breaker rating, which is 40A, and your 32A Bolt would be happy.

Unless your 40A EVSE is programmable so you can reduce its output current or the car (like a Tesla) can program a reduced current, you need to be careful NOT to use any adapters which can plug into a lower-current source (e.g., 30A dryer NEMA 14-30) and provide a 14-50 female socket. Sucking 32A with your Bolt out of a 30A circuit might not pop the 30A circuit breaker right away but may overstress the circuit wiring and connections. I don't think the Bolt can be programmed to reduce its J1772 input current.

 

[WReed82]

Hi Joe,

Thanks for the 14-50 confirmation, and Tesla > J1772 adapter suggestion.

At home the programmable EVSE is on a 30A breaker, short, 10ga wire, and set for 24a draw.
It can also be set for a number of killowatt/hrs to load in to the battery.
While travelling the EVSE can be programmed as needed:
https://store.openevse.com/products/advanced-bundle

Thanks and good health, Weogo

 

[JoeS]

Weogo, that's perfect! It's been years since I looked in on OpenEVSE and am impressed by their product line and implementation. Being able to program how many kWh to load into the battery sure works for our i-MiEV or any car which cannot preset the maximum charge level.

 

[jray3]

Finally, it’s about time for the “I’ll just take 10 kWh today.” instead of always “Fill’er up!” Now to combine that with a multi-headed, load-sharing feature like my MainPine EVSE prototype that nEVer made it to production! http://www.mainpine-ev.com

 

[pbui19]

for overnight charging when there's plenty of hours, even a 16A EVSE is sufficient. We have 2x Bolts and have been using the hacked (for 240vac, ~12A) EVSE that came with the vehicle for quite a while now.