Realize every situation is different, but what are you paying for install of a 240V Level 2 charger (not including the cost of the charger)? Looking for info relative to people who have not needed to upgrade their electric service - so add new breaker ($100 for 50A GFCI), $200 wire (6/3), $25 receptacle. A few hundred in parts and my quotes are over $2500 (with no charger included). I’ll likely fish myself which is 3 hours and get someone to do the two connections but there must be an easier (and cheaper) way. In MA -so have an electrician - I got a job!
Ehh I’ve been quoted about 600-1200 for a NEMA 14-50 plug in CA.
I’ve found prices are better if you tell them you want a NEMA 14-50 plug vs “I want an electric car charging outlet.”
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Ive installed 3 of these in my houses over the years…if you are at all handy with electrical work it is far better to do it yourself. You will save a TON.
That said, if one is utterly and completely inexperienced with electrical work, do not risk doing it yourself as it can be dangerous.
Well, does your panel have space for a double breaker? If not, then panel has to be replaced. So add another 2k to costs…
Do you have 200 Amp service to your house already or just 100 Amp. If the latter, then add another 1k for the upgrade.
Don’t forget permit costs of around $200 and then electrician has to come back for an inspection. So add another $150.
See costs can add up and electrical upgrades can cost as much as a Bolt + Clarity + Ionic one pay. It’s enough to make you lease a Camaro instead!
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200amp, plenty of space, and I will forgo permit. So, I need a hackr solution for 240V for this EV stuff. No reason for cost to be over $2500 (2 quotes). Or, I have to buy another EV and park it an office park that has free charging. Once the current EV batt is low, will swap the car with the fully charged one at the office park. Cheaper this way than putting in a charger. Need a better solution from someone as can do 90% of work myself but final connects would feel better with an electrician. Or, I guess I can buy some new smoke detectors and wing it.
I believe this photo will demonstrate the easiest EVSE installation in the history of the universe😁
The ones I did in our other house before we moved were not as simple, but the premise was the same. There’s just actually conduit length between the panel in the EVSE, LOL
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Can you get by with just Level 1 at home? That is what we do. But we also have 2 ICE cars.
Keep shopping. I had room on my panel so i only needed the line (30-40ft) and outlet…you also have a fed credit for the install cost.
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SF Bay Area (expensive) here - $1150 labor + $550 permits + $600 charging station. External conduit run of ~10ft in total, panel (100A sub) and charger are both in the garage.
Thats like 2 hrs work including the trip to Home Depot for an average home project hacker.
No argument, I am certainly handy enough to figure it out myself, but I just didn’t have the time and desire to file the permit, learn the code requirements, or go multiple rounds with the city. Actual permit cost was ~$300 or so IIRC, plus the charger at $600+tax, plus ~$125-150 in materials (10ft of 4/4 or 6/4, conduit, junction boxes, etc). IOW, I paid them $250 to know how to file the permit, physically prepare and file the permit application, and get approval the first time, plus another $1000 to install the charger correctly (to code) and then meet with and answer the questions that the (very thorough) city inspector had when it came time to inspect the work a month later.
And before you say it, the permit was non-negotiable in my case - it’s a townhouse so my legal liability would be multiple millions of dollars if I made a mistake doing unpermitted work and burned the building down.
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If you dont use the same password for all of your logins …you can do it
You’re right, two hours of work for SF electrician. Same rate for a criminal defense attorney. So we get ourselves a cheap Bolt and now need a EVcharginghackr website? Yes, we can all connect wires but some states are now requiring GFCI breakers when there’s already a breaker in the Chargepoint charger - and nobody explains that it can all turn into a bad trip with GFCI (not an acid trip, but a breaker trip). kWh demands for Bolt are less than Tesla but don’t we all want to future proof with a full 50amp charger so we can power the electric F-150 we lease for $99/month? If only taskrabbit liked 240V.
You jokingly say that, but running my own 220 is something I’d read about and have been researching.
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Regarding 200 amp service, my house is 100 amp and I haven’t had any issues. Granted I’ve been charging at 32A on a 40A breaker rather than the 50A breaker. Ultimately the few extra miles you get per hour don’t really make a difference if it’s just going to charge overnight.
In terms of cost in Bay Area, CA: I paid about 700 for the outlet install. ran under the house and into the garage, roughly 40 feet or so. Also got the chargepoint home flex for another 700 so about 1400 all in. Definitely worth it.
In terms of electrical code. Make sure they use 6 gauge wire on a 50A breaker and install the outlet with the ground pointing up.
GFCI is now a requirement in CA if you use an outlet. If you hardwire its not. My electrician gave me the option of going either way, but said the GFCI breaker and outlet would add $100.