EV Charging Station - Very Green

[jebatty]

Came across the Juice Box, advertised as the smartest EV charger on the market. As I edge closer to an EV decision (Chevy Bolt looks pretty good), charging station needs to come into focus also.

(broken link removed)

 

[begreen]

We have a Clipper Creek charger for our Volt which I got on sale 4 yrs ago. It's simple and its performance has been flawless. The car communicates with the charger and controls the charge rate. I have no need to manage this, but perhaps some do if they have different billing rates at night. The OnStar app provides me feedback if I want it. Many of the features mentioned for the JuiceNet seem a bit redundant and/or a bit geeky. Folks on the Volt forum report that at first it seems like cool tech, but after awhile they just ignore the bells and whistles. ClipperCreek warranty is 3yrs vs JuiceNet 1 yr..

The Bolt appears to have an extra cost option for accepting a fast DC charge rate plug (CCS) from chargers so equipped, but I don't think that is available in a home charger. Could be wrong though. I've also read that the JuiceNet charger is not UL rated/tested. That was several months ago, so it might be worth further investigation to see if they have it now. Some insurance companies and inspectors will balk at this.

It would be good to keep an eye on dealer or auto mfg. rebates. Sometimes that can save some bucks.

PS: I found the thread on the JuiceNet for the Bolt
http://www.chevybolt.org/forum/82-c...harger-what-one-do-you-own-considering-2.html

 

[woodgeek]

I got the Bosch like this one:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00FA44WX2/?tag=hearthamazon-20

But with a shorter cord, for ~$600 and installed DIY.

I would only get a smart EVSE if I had time of use rates.

 

[jebatty]

I'm going a bit off topic on this thread. An EV car probability entered my dreams last night, one of which was what wire size to run from my main panel to the garage. Looks like #6 on a 50A branch circuit would be the correct choice? The wire run will be about 80 feet from the main panel to the charge receptacle on the EV.

 

[woodgeek]

A four wire, 50A 240V circuit would be a nice choice, and cover all present L2 chargers. I don't expect L2's to increase in power much in the future.

A popular choice is just to put a NEMA 14-50 outlet, and get an EVSE that plugs into that. Then your L2 EVSE is 'portable' (handy to take on road-trips to campgrounds), or if a friend with a Tesla comes to visit, they can bypass your EVSE for faster charging. The extra outlet/cord will increase overall project cost by $100-150.

One issue: Only one EV?

Just joking...even with 2 EVs, one EVSE would probably be aok, you can swap. I suspect that in the future there will be 'two head' EVSEs that will charge two EVs with a limit on their sum of charging, so even then 50A would likely be aok.

 

[jebatty]

With two EVs, could use a relay on a timer or maybe a current transformer and a relay to switch between the two EVs. Good idea on the NEMA 14-50.

 

[begreen]

I see in the Sunday paper that the local Nissan dealer has several used 2013 Leaf's for as low as $7000. That includes a 7 yr / 100000 mi. warranty, but I didn't see any word about battery warranty in the ad. Seems like a nice entry point if one is waiting for the tech to mature and if the battery pack has plenty of life left.

 

[semipro]

I see in the Sunday paper that the local Nissan dealer has several used 2013 Leaf's for as low as $7000. That includes a 7 yr / 100000 mi. warranty, but I didn't see any word about battery warranty in the ad. Seems like a nice entry point if one is waiting for the tech to mature and if the battery pack has plenty of life left.

Agreed but I wouldn't recommend one for use in a hot climate. Apparently, Nissan's choice not to cool the battery pack was unwise and battery life isn't meeting expectations.

P.S.: I only know this because I'm looking at reclaimed Leaf batteries for solar PV storage.

 

[woodgeek]

I see in the Sunday paper that the local Nissan dealer has several used 2013 Leaf's for as low as $7000. That includes a 7 yr / 100000 mi. warranty, but I didn't see any word about battery warranty in the ad. Seems like a nice entry point if one is waiting for the tech to mature and if the battery pack has plenty of life left.

Indeed. But you can probably get 30 kWh 2017s for a lease for $200/mo with <$2k down. This is only a little bit more, and they will have 30-40% longer range.

In other news, I took my 2013 Leaf S for a road trip to Brooklyn last week, about 110 miles each way. Its been a couple years since I did that. Since then there have been a couple new DCFCs added to the route, by 'EVgo'. These are dual Chademo/CCS, and have max power of 50 kW. I was able to get to Brooklyn and back with one 30 min FC stop along the way (at a mall with a nice ice cream store for the kids), and one 30 min FC in Brooklyn itself.

Previously, I had to use 25 kW max chargers, stop two times (because of bad placement) for a total of 90 mins stopped each way, with no amenities.

And this between the two most populous cities on the east coast.

 

[semipro]

I'm taking our company's Tesla on a business trip tomorrow. Though I'm driving a relatively rural route I was lucky to find a supercharger in the town where my parents live. I plan to visit them while recharging.

 

[woodgeek]

Agreed but I wouldn't recommend one for use in a hot climate. Apparently, Nissan's choice not to cool the battery pack was unwise and battery life isn't meeting expectations.

P.S.: I only know this because I'm looking at reclaimed Leaf batteries for solar PV storage.

We have no problem with that. The story I heard is that the initial battery was 'rushed' to market at the same time as the Volt in 2010, engineering wanted another year or two for testing. Surprise, durability was not ok. They tweaked the chemistry in early 2013, and the new batteries are aok (outside of very hot states).

I've got the new chemistry, and I have <5% degradation in 4 years and 25,000 miles.

This is why the range/capacity was not increased from 2010 until 2015....normally you would have expected a bump of 20-30% every three years. Also, even though the nominal capacity was the same pre and post 2013...the latter has ~10% more usable capacity in addition to higher durability.

The first LEAFs really were 'beta'. They sold about 50k in the US before working out the kinks.

The lack of active cooling is only a problem for LONG roadtrips. Each FC stop ups the battery temp a peg, and it takes many hours to dissipate. Need 1-2 FC stops to get somewhere 100-200 miles away? No problem. Try to do it every 60 minutes all day....the thing will eventually shut down if its not freezing out.

 

[semipro]

The Bolt appears to have an extra cost option for accepting a fast DC charge rate plug (CCS) from chargers so equipped, but I don't think that is available in a home charger.

Its good to hear that they're thinking this way. I been thinking lately that PV and PEVs should be better integrated along with V2G. We really need the grid storage.