Question about the 7.2kw GE Wattstation, ventilation

[Jasper7821]

I'm getting the Focus and did a little research on charging stations.
The GE seems to be popular. I downloaded the manual and it says
"Wattstation is not suitable for vehicles that require ventilation. It will provide a fault indication if a vehicle requests ventilation.

Does that mean you cannot precondition the car with AC or heater before leaving for work in the morning.
If so, what would be a good station that can take advantage of the 6.6kw charger in the car?
Thanks

 

[WindPowered]

"Wattstation is not suitable for vehicles that require ventilation. It will provide a fault indication if a vehicle requests ventilation.

Does that mean you cannot precondition the car with AC or heater before leaving for work in the morning

You're misunderstanding the J1772 specification.

The J1772 specification is designed for charging batteries of any kind, and so they had to accommodate certain things that don't apply to our situation. Some batteries (e.g. Lead Acid) will off-gas potentially dangerous things like hydrogen during charging, and require ventilation for safety.

It works like this: Since only the car "knows" what it requires, it pulls down the EVSE pilot signal voltage to a certain level which indicates "ventilation required" and the EVSE would then close another relay attached to a garage fan circuit or the like, thus causing the fan to run.

The GE watt station documentation you cited is basically saying it doesn't have this capability, so in order to prevent a dangerous situation, if the car requests ventilation this way, the unit will fault in order to stop charging, and thus prevent any release of dangerous gas in the first place.

So the short answer to your question is, buy it if you like it, it should work fine for the FFE including preconditioning with Go Times.

WP

 

[Jasper7821]

Great, thank you very much. I think I'll buy the GEnone since its $849 on Amazon.

Another question.
My circuit breaker has a 60 amp breaker for the water heater and the water heater output is 18.75 amps. Can the electrician just tap into the wiring and run thenwires a few feet to the station that I'll hang on the wall.
If then water heater is just under 19 amps and the station is 30 amps and the breaker is 60 amps wouldn't it be ok to tap into it. I'm no electrician but it would seem om to me.

If not then the box is on the other side of the garage wall to where I want the station and the electrician would punch a hole in the wall and run the wires through the wall to the station on the other side.

 

[WattsUp]

The GE WattStation is a Level 2 EVSE capable of delivering a maximum 7.2kW:

240V * 30A = 7.2kW

So, when installing the GE WattStation, it should be correctly installed as a 30-amp device.

But, keep in mind that the charger (within your FFE) is a 6.6kW charger, and should only draw about 27.5 amps from whatever Level 2 EVSE it is plugged into:

6.6kW / 240V = 27.5A

(Or less, depending on the EVSE's maximum output.)

That said, the GE WattStation is good unit and its higher maximum output may come in handy if you get another car in the future whose charger can draw the full 7.2kW.

 

[WindPowered]

Great, thank you very much. I think I'll buy the GEnone since its $849 on Amazon.

Have a look at the Leviton Evr Green 300 too. I just bought one from Home Depot for the same price with free shipping and it came with a free mounting kit including the receptacle, electric box, safety cover, and mounting plate. Works great!

Another question.
My circuit breaker has a 60 amp breaker for the water heater and the water heater output is 18.75 amps. Can the electrician just tap into the wiring and run the wires a few feet to the station that I'll hang on the wall.
If the water heater is just under 19 amps and the station is 30 amps and the breaker is 60 amps wouldn't it be ok to tap into it? I'm no electrician but it would seem ok to me.

A couple things to consider:

1) You say the hot water heater output is 18.75 amps. Do you mean input? Because what it draws is what's important, and any device will always draw more than it puts out due to losses and inefficiencies. Check the label for max current.

2) The EVSE is rated for continuous use, which should be the same as the hot water heater. What this means is that to be compliant to the NEC you have to derate the circuit to 80% of its rated value (unless your breaker is 100% rated). So this means for your EVSE and your heater on the same circuit you'd need a breaker and wiring rated for 61 amps ((18.75+30)*1.25=60.9) over the distance from the breaker to the outlet. You're right at that limit, so I'm not sure that will fly with your electrician or inspector.

If your hot water heater actually draws more than what you've stated, you may be well over the limit.


WP

 

[Jasper7821]

Sorry, I meant the electric water heater input. It says lower watts is 3,375 and max is 4500. So I calculated it at 4500 and 220v and got the 18.75 amps.
But it also says somewhere that it runs 208v, so that would put me under 60amps at the 80% right?

I went to Home Depot and they don't carry charging stations, they said you have to buy from their online store.
I'll take a look at the Levitron Evr Green 300.

One reason I wanted high output is my commute is 70 miles and if needed I can charge at work but if not I'd get home close to empty.
I wanted to charge at 6.6 in case I had errands to run that evening and putting an hour charge could get me around town a bit.

Also, I did a real world test drive almost to work with the salesman and the range said 50 when we left and we went 40 miles and we got back and it was actually plus one mile so we had 11 miles left.
I drove with cruise control on at about 73mph and the AC on just about the entire time. We were short 8 miles but when we got off the freeway and back on the streets the braking regeneration made the 8 mile loss and added one more.
Also, I wonder if without the salesman at 200lbs if that makes any difference or not since I always drive to work alone.

 

[WindPowered]

Sorry, I meant the electric water heater input. It says lower watts is 3,375 and max is 4500. So I calculated it at 4500 and 220v and got the 18.75 amps.
But it also says somewhere that it runs 208v, so that would put me under 60amps at the 80% right?

208v is a three phase circuit. Residential homes are almost always split-phase (also called single phase) 240v. Unless you know you have 208v service (usually for a special reason like heavy motors or welders), this isn't an option for you.

If you do have 208v, make sure your EVSE supports it and be aware it will increase your charge time (i.e. worsen) vs 240v.

I went to Home Depot and they don't carry charging stations, they said you have to buy from their online store.
I'll take a look at the Levitron Evr Green 300.

That's how I got mine. Free shipping. My first one was actually DOA so I just dropped it off at the HD and ordered another one.

One reason I wanted high output is my commute is 70 miles and if needed I can charge at work but if not I'd get home close to empty.
I wanted to charge at 6.6 in case I had errands to run that evening and putting an hour charge could get me around town a bit.

Sure! Nothing beats a faster charge. But 70 miles is getting close to the max range. If the weather gets cold where you live, you'll find charging at work will become a necessity.

Also, I did a real world test drive almost to work with the salesman and the range said 50 when we left and we went 40 miles and we got back and it was actually plus one mile so we had 11 miles left.
I drove with cruise control on at about 73mph and the AC on just about the entire time. We were short 8 miles but when we got off the freeway and back on the streets the braking regeneration made the 8 mile loss and added one more.
Also, I wonder if without the salesman at 200lbs if that makes any difference or not since I always drive to work alone.

73 mph with the A/C on will likely not go 70 miles if your entire commute is like that.


WP

 

[Jasper7821]

Thanks.
I guess the electrician will have to determine what my house is bacuase I dont know how.
I'm guessing I'm 240v since my house is only 11yrs old.
Im in Tucson and it never really cold here. Actuall way too dang hot.
My commute is 70 miles and if needed I can charge at work for the day with an extension cord running out of my office.
But I think I'd make it based on thw test drive we did.
I'm 50 miles freeway and 20 miles streets.

one question I do have is with the car park out in the Sun all day long 110 degree temperature will that make the battery go down some?

.

 

[WindPowered]

Thanks.
one question I do have is with the car park out in the Sun all day long 110 degree temperature will that make the battery go down some?

I can't speak from experience here, but perhaps others can? If I had to guess, I would surmise the heat would have a small impact on range but maybe not in the way you'd initially suspect.

You see, the batteries are actively heated and cooled (unlike the Leaf) to keep them in an optimal temperature range for both performance and battery longevity, and like everything on the car that thermal mgmt system is run from a battery. When the car is sitting in the heat, the batteries aren't really any hotter then they are when they're discharging, so I doubt you'll see much if any battery SoC loss while the car is parked. Not to mention that a hot battery discharges less efficiently than a cold one. And from what I've observed the thermal mgmt system doesn't run unless the car is turned on or plugged in, in order to prevent the car from draining itself dead, although I could be wrong here.

But at soon as you start it and the batteries begin to discharge, you'll immediately start running the cooling system because the battery is "instantly" hot like it would be while discharging and would need immediate cooling. So it may cost you some extra range because you're running that cooling system for a longer time (vs. the time it might otherwise take to reach the "cooling required" temperature when you wouldn't be using that extra energy).

Overall, I would think it would be a very small amount of energy no matter what. The thermal mgmt system for the high voltage batteries is both small and efficient from what I've read, so you're probably only talking something on the order of a couple miles range for sitting in the sun all day. This is pure speculation on my part however. I'd love to hear from some users on real life experiences. Where I live in upstate NY, heat isn't an issue. I have the opposite problem.

If you're plugged in during the day, even with the 120v charger, this is all a moot issue and you'll have no problems. That, I'm sure of.


WP

 

[Jasper7821]

Great, thank you very much for the info I really appreciate it.

 

[kawter]

This is my first post.. Got a FFE last wed and I'm looking for a 240 6.6kw/h

Bottom line, it seems to come down to cord length, aesthetics? (between the GE & Leviton 30amp chargers)

 

[Jasper7821]

This is my first post.. Got a FFE last wed and I'm looking for a 240 6.6kw/h

Bottom line, it seems to come down to cord length, aesthetics? (between the GE & Leviton 30amp chargers)

I think I'm leaning towards the GE one only because I like the way it looks better and it's a bit cheaper.
But I know nothing about charging stations so I have nothing to go by.

I read reviews on Home Depot, Lowes, and Amazon and it seems most are pretty happy with it.
I saw a youtube review and it looks pretty cool and straightforward.