100 or 200 amp home service?

[Bruno44]

Just wondering if I’ll need to upgrade to 200 amp service in my home to use the home mobile charger? I currently have 100 amp service.

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[Triggerhappy007]

Just wondering if I’ll need to upgrade to 200 amp service in my home to use the home mobile charger? I currently have 100 amp service.

You need to contact an electrician for this type of question.

 

[Bruno44]

You need to contact an electrician for this type of question.

Thanks ?

 

[MellowJohnny]

You need to contact an electrician for this type of question.

There's lot to consider - definitely find a good electrician to help you think about things like where the charger will go, how far from your panel it will be, inside vs. outside etc.

There are also electrical contractors who "specialise" in home EV charger installations.

Also, someone on this forum will eventually correct you - the charger is actually in the car.

 

[chrisGT]

I have a 200A service but my friend has an 100A and a 32A charger. His house had a electric oven that he converted to gas and that freed up electrical capacity.

In general it depends on the other electrical loads. Typically the following are considerable loads: electric dryer, electric over/range, electric heater, A/C, electric water tank. If you have several of these then 100A might not be enough for EV charging. A licensed electrician will be able to tell you.

Keep in mind that the mobile charger has also a regular 120V plug so you can still plug in a regular outlet (assuming it is grounded) but the charge speed will be slow. Still, overnight charging will be adequate for 30-40 miles of daily driving.

 

[Maquis]

As others have stated, an NEC (CEC in your case) load calculation will tell you for sure if you have enough capacity.
But I’d be willing to bet that you’ll be fine charging at night regardless. That’s normally minimum use time for a residence.

 

[joes723]

Not only an electrician to determine load, but if you need 200A service; you’ll also need to contact your utility provider to find out if they are even able to upgrade your service. Potential additional work on their end to run that from the nearest transformer and most likely a new meter. If the transformer doesn’t have the correct capabilities, that would need to be upgraded as well. Could be costly $$$.

 

[Mach-Lee]

What other 240V devices do you have? You are probably fine charging at 32A on 100A service unless you have electric heat or a huge air conditioner. Range and dryer loads usually cycle on and off so they aren't as bad as you think. You might only get into trouble if you have EV + oven + dryer + A/C at the same time. If you use some common sense about limiting 240V usage when charging you could probably make it work. If you think it will still be an issue, you can buy a lower amperage EVSE (such as 24A), so you can make it work without having to upgrade to 200A.

 

[mkhuffman]

The best way to judge if you will have an issue is by installing a power meter, like the one I use: https://www.emporiaenergy.com/

I put it in my circuit breaker box and have been monitoring my loads over the past couple years. I also installed the emporia 48 Amp charger, which does put quite a bit of a load on the service. But your use case is 32 Amps or 12 Amps, depending on if you use the 240V or 120V charger.

If your power meter indicates you are frequently getting close to 100 Amps without the car, you will have an issue and may want to consider upgrading your service. But if you find you run a very efficient house, and your loads are well below 100 Amps, you will be fine. The only way to know for sure is to measure what you are drawing.

The 240V charger will not give you much headroom for large load appliances like an oven or dryer. But if you are using natural gas for those, it may not be an issue.

 

[Cm12]

You’ll likely need a panel upgrade to charge at 240 volts. You can definitely use the level 1 charger, just not the level 2. The level 1 charger may be enough - it was for me. I only upgraded to an EVSE because it ended up being only a couple hundred dollars after rebates and I did all the work myself. Electricians charge a minimum of like $1000 to install even a NEMA 14-50 or hardwire an EVSE in Portland and usually much more if you live in a nicer neighborhood.

I assume you’ll also have to have an outlet installed. I would be extremely surprised if you already had a 40 amp outlet, the minimum necessary to run a continuous 32 amp load, on a 100 amp service. Some people do, yes, but it’s highly uncommon. If you try to use a dryer tap or something, it may be possible, but they can also be quite dangerous at times too. There is FAR too much to explain about this situation in single message board post considering we have absolutely no idea whatsoever what your current panel and loads are, as well as the structural integrity of the existing wiring in your house.

 

[AKgrampy]

First off, as others have stated, you need to follow code to have a safe installation. I doubt you have electric heat as I believe you would not have a 100 amp service. My 240V loads are a stove, dryer and a well. No electric hot water heater. I was able to fit in a 32 amp additional load. I would have most likely had to upgrade my service if I went with a 48 amp charger. Please do not try to scrimp here as overloaded electrical equipment is a safety issue! I worked at a utility for many years and you can not imagine how many people here would chose to use older used electrical equipment when they were building $200,000+ homes. You could also limit yourself to the mobile charger which has lower amp rating. Obviously you also have to have room in your electrical panel to fit a 240V breaker. I know some people go the DIY route but I hired an electrician and they did a great job. Unless you know what you are doing I recommend the same route.

 

[Bruno44]

First off, as others have stated, you need to follow code to have a safe installation. I doubt you have electric heat as I believe you would not have a 100 amp service. My 240V loads are a stove, dryer and a well. No electric hot water heater. I was able to fit in a 32 amp additional load. I would have most likely had to upgrade my service if I went with a 48 amp charger. Please do not try to scrimp here as overloaded electrical equipment is a safety issue! I worked at a utility for many years and you can not imagine how many people here would chose to use older used electrical equipment when they were building $200,000+ homes. You could also limit yourself to the mobile charger which has lower amp rating. Obviously you also have to have room in your electrical panel to fit a 240V breaker. I know some people go the DIY route but I hired an electrician and they did a great job. Unless you know what you are doing I recommend the same route.

Yes I do plan on using the mobile charger. My only 240V loads are my stove and dryer. I definitely plan on an electrician coming and doing the work. Thanks for the advise.

 

[woody]

Should you be thinking about going all electric, the 200A should be installed(heavier wiring, new ground, etc.).
We are all electric(solar) and we put in the 200A and a critical load panel in order to have the space and capacity.
You run out of space quickly with smaller capacity.
It might be a good idea even if you do not use up the breaker space on the 100A. Plan ahead.
Hire a good electrician who knows solar requirements (inverters for batteries, etc.). Most EV owners have, are thinking about, or are working on solar installs (never, ever consider leasing).

 

[Triggerhappy007]

The best way to judge if you will have an issue is by installing a power meter, like the one I use: https://www.emporiaenergy.com/

I put it in my circuit breaker box and have been monitoring my loads over the past couple years. I also installed the emporia 48 Amp charger, which does put quite a bit of a load on the service.

How many watts does it charge at when you plug in your Emporia EVSE? Is it plug in or hardwired?

 

[ocdxfv]

How many watts does it charge at when you plug in your Emporia EVSE? Is it plug in or hardwired?

My home has a 125A panel with the normal stuff (A/C, dryer, oven microwave). When we had our pool put in, they were able to add a 40A sub panel for the pool equipment. We charge our car on the 30A dryer outlet. One hot morning a few years ago, our A/C, pool pump, oven, microwave, car charger and coffee maker were all running for a total load of over 18kW (75A). I am not an electrician but i'm guessing you'll be ok, especially if you charge at night.

I would do my best to try to work with your existing panel. We are in the process of getting solar and our main panel upgrade is costing us $3000.

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