[codex57]

Which one did you guys install or would recommend?

[jad03060]

LOts of threads on this. The questions you need to ask are:
- plug in or hardwired
- how much capacity is there in the panel
- future needs, or just enough for this vehicle
- potential for multiple units at once
- how long is the cable
- if the unit is outside, is it waterproof
- do you want internet capability to monitor and maybe control it
- do you think you might want to charge a Tesla later

The X5 45e won't use more than 16A at 240vac, but for future proofing, you could go to whatever size you want that you can afford, or support with current wiring and panel.

[TCBavarian]

We had an i3 from 2015-2017, so I've got a primitive JuiceBox 40. It doesn't have fancy WiFi or things like that. I don't need them since the BMW Connected App tells me everything I need to know. The 45e only charges at a max 16A. The i3 had DCFast Charge. Future proof yourself and get a charger with high charging amps.

https://www.amazon.com/JuiceBox-40-N.../dp/B07ZL41687

[jad03060]

If you had a dedicated 20A, 120vac circuit, and a 16A EVSE that could plug into it, you could max out the X5's charging capacity, but 120-vac devices are less efficient in the vehicle when it tries to convert that to the high 300-vdc needed to charge the batteries. I have a Clipper Creek unit that has operated fine since 2014 that I use. Mine is hard-wired. I would have liked to go larger, but I was limited in my condo to what spare capacity there was in my panel. FOr my use, it has been fine for both my i3 (that I'll be selling) and the new X5.

[Foothills20]

I went with the Tesla Wall charger then bought the adaptor that allows me to charge the 45e. We have a Tesla already on another charger but this allows it to park on either side in the garage. With the adaptor I'm able to take it on the road and charge at Tesla Destination chargers if I want.

[codex57]

How do you figure capacity in a panel? Just add up the numbers on all the breakers? It should be some order of 100, right? Like a 100 amp panel, 200, 400, etc.

I'm hoping I have enough for a 20.

I figure I'll just do plug in in case I want to change it out to something stronger later. Who knows what tech will be like after I get rid of the 45e.

I already have a dedicated plug for a Tesla, but I'm just using the mobile charger on that. I'm thinking I'll need to run conduit or something to get the new wiring to the other side of the garage. Based on where the existing plug is, I don't think a 25 ft cord is gonna cut it. Otherwise, I was considering this one charge I saw that had two cords attached to it. I only have a Model 3 and the mobile charger only runs at 30A so you add in 16A for the 45e and it should all still be ok for a 50A circuit. Or is there some buffer you need to add in?

[jad03060]

You can't just add up the existing breakers to get the panel's capacity...the main breaker will indicate your current service. 100A service is fairly rare these days, but was a lot not that many years ago.

A device like an EVSE requires you to use the 80% rule, which means on a 40A circuit, the largest EVSE you could use would be a 32A device. This is code in the USA for a device that could be run continuously for a longer period of time.

There is a way to figure out how much 'spare' capacity you may have, but I'm not up on it. One thing you can do is to start to add up all of the electrical things like maybe a dryer, stove, water heater, a/c, a second EVSE, etc. that you may have and see how many amps they total...what you don't want is to have a situation where your 'normal' stuff that could all be on at the same time could trip the main breaker.

If you think you may want a larger EVSE later, since labor is often a big part of the install, you might wire it for a bigger one so that that part doesn't have to be redone if you decide to swap it out later. But, copper wire is not inexpensive these days, so you'd have to look at how far you need to run it to decide for sure. FWIW, the breaker in the panel is to protect the wiring, not the device plugged into it, so larger wire there isn't a problem.

[CaboM4]

Asking myself hte same question for the G05 45e we have on order. Looking to "future-proof" as well ... however i've been reading mixed reviews on all these 40A level 2 chargers and wonder if they will even last more than 3-5 years? ... If thats the case .. then I guess the cheapest charger that will match the vehicle's max charging capability should be what i go with.

Seeing tons of negative reviews on Juicebox 40 Next Gen & Chargepoint Home ... makes me hesitant to buy.

Kind of need to decide in the next week or so, as I want to run the 220 lines and conduit outside and have it ready for before the cold weather and the vehicle arrives in late December.

All other things taken out of the scenario (hardwire/plugin, panel capacity, actual limitations of G05 for charging, etc) ... what is the best OUTDOOR-rated 40A Level 2 charger with WiFi capability?

Assume I want to go with the hardwire version of any charger, so I can throw it on a 50A breaker and maximize the 40A capability of the charger if I in fact buy a 40A charger, plus It will be outdoor, so just seems to be the smarter choice for many other reasons too.

G29 and F55 get the garage space ... so the G05 will spend its days outdoors

[TCBavarian]

Originally Posted by CaboM4

Asking myself hte same question for the G05 45e we have on order. Looking to "future-proof" as well ... however i've been reading mixed reviews on all these 40A level 2 chargers and wonder if they will even last more than 3-5 years? ... If thats the case .. then I guess the cheapest charger that will match the vehicle's max charging capability should be what i go with.

Seeing tons of negative reviews on Juicebox 40 Next Gen & Chargepoint Home ... makes me hesitant to buy.

Kind of need to decide in the next week or so, as I want to run the 220 lines and conduit outside and have it ready for before the cold weather and the vehicle arrives in late December.

All other things taken out of the scenario (hardwire/plugin, panel capacity, actual limitations of G05 for charging, etc) ... what is the best OUTDOOR-rated 40A Level 2 charger with WiFi capability?

Assume I want to go with the hardwire version of any charger, so I can throw it on a 50A breaker and maximize the 40A capability of the charger if I in fact buy a 40A charger, plus It will be outdoor, so just seems to be the smarter choice for many other reasons too.

G29 and F55 get the garage space ... so the G05 will spend its days outdoors

For the record, my juicebox 40 has been perfect for over 5 years. Zero problems at all. At the time it received great reviews. I would without a doubt buy them again. Best $400 I spent.

[amus3d]

I have the Siemens Versicharge for my 530e. Just picked up another one for the 45e.

[rawskyb]

I have a ChargePoint L2 charger at no cost (Chargepoint Home Flex Electric Vehicle (EV) Charger, 16 to 50 Amp, 240V, Level 2 WiFi Enabled EVSE), so that's what I am using. It is about $700 on Amazon and has a 4.6 star average rating from over 500 reviews.

I am quite happy with this charger so far. it worked well with my F15 40e and in the one day of use with my new 45e, I am thrilled with the performance. It fully charged my 45e in about 6 hours yesterday and I saw it running just over 15A most of that time.

I used my existing clothes dryer 30AMP 240 circuit with a Dryer Buddy electronic switch that disabled the charger when the dryer is being used. I was able to do all of the wiring myself, so this entire project ran me only a few hundred bucks for the wiring, plugs, and Dryer Buddy unit.

I've got app monitoring of the charging with wifi to the charger, historic metrics, and it ties in to other Chargepoint systems in public places so I can use those easily with my existing account.

Originally Posted by CaboM4

Seeing tons of negative reviews on Juicebox 40 Next Gen & Chargepoint Home ... makes me hesitant to buy.

Where are you seeing these negative reviews? The JB40 has a 4.3 average rating from over 1100 reviews on Amazon and the CP has a 4.6 star average review. Unless you are looking at other models??

[codex57]

That's good to hear about your units lasting. Like CaboM4, I was hearing reports of the units failing after 3-5 years so I kept asking myself how much do I really need to future proof if I'm just going to replace the unit in a few years. That's partially why I was leaning towards a plug in model. Maybe I'll wire up a larger gauge wire, but still go with plug in model.

[jad03060]

I had my Clipper Creek unit installed in July 2014...going strong with no issues. It's a no frills unit, just some idiot lights. in reality, unless you add WiFi or maybe some onboard monitoring readouts, it's basically a smart on/off switch...the charging is all done in the vehicle.

Some units are bigger than others, and not all are mountable outside, but many are. The units have built-in protection so you don't need or want GFCI feeding them unless it's a plug-in where something else could be plugged into that circuit.

[TCBavarian]

Here is my setup of 5yrs.

[Ramakay]

I am using a Homeflex from Chargepoint https://www.amazon.com/ChargePoint-H.../dp/B07WXZDHGV

Have done a few cycles and I am happy with it but with the upcoming recall its turning sour.

[TXSchnee]

Originally Posted by amu3ed

I have the Siemens Versicharge for my 530e. Just picked up another one for the 45e.

Second on the Siemens VersiCharge. Been happy with it and never felt as though I needed the wi-fi connection. Also, it can be a plug in or hardwired.

[jad03060]

Pretty much any of the EVSEs can be configured for plug-in or hardwired just by swapping the power cable to it.

The way I look at it, if I ever sell my place, having an EVSE installed will be a selling point, and I'd want to probably put a new one in my new place, so unless you really expect to maybe take it with you so you can plug in somewhere while away from home, just one more piece in the circuit is one more place that can present a problem.

I suppose if you had something like an electric arc welder, or something similar that could use that receptacle on occasion, a plug-in version might be useful, but I don't think that's anywhere near a common thing. Most places I visit wouldn't have a receptacle close enough to where I could park that would make it useful.

[Spencer518]

Originally Posted by jad03060

Pretty much any of the EVSEs can be configured for plug-in or hardwired just by swapping the power cable to it.

The way I look at it, if I ever sell my place, having an EVSE installed will be a selling point, and I'd want to probably put a new one in my new place, so unless you really expect to maybe take it with you so you can plug in somewhere while away from home, just one more piece in the circuit is one more place that can present a problem.

I suppose if you had something like an electric arc welder, or something similar that could use that receptacle on occasion, a plug-in version might be useful, but I don't think that's anywhere near a common thing. Most places I visit wouldn't have a receptacle close enough to where I could park that would make it useful.

You could also leave a plugged in one behind as a selling point. Another advantage to going with an outlet and plug is that even if you don't move, but something goes wrong with your charger, or technology changes and you want a new one, you can just plug the new one in. If it's hard wired, most people would have to have an electrician come out for this. I don't see the plug as a potential problem area. I've never had a plug go bad on anything.

[jad03060]

Yes, many people may have issues with undoing a hardwired connection, but it's only three wire nuts. I suppose some might use neutral, but I think that would be in the minority, so there might be a fourth. Basically, it's two hot leads and ground...not a big deal.

Receptacles, like used for your stove, dryer, and EVSE are generally setup for the device to be plugged in, and left there. If you frequently remove and replace the plug, then, over time, especially on a high current device, you may start to see issues. The high current can heat things a bit, and frequent insert/removal can eventually weaken the spring tension. But, the point that you could leave a plug-in one there, should you move, is entirely valid!

FWIW, the electrician that installed mine said that (I think it was) Connecticut now requires all new residences to be prewired to install an EVSE...as more and more places begin pushing to EVs, having an EVSE in the home will become a bigger and bigger deal, and a cherry on top for when you decide to sell.

[RocketGoBoom]

I installed the Tesla gen 3 wall connector in my garage specifically for the BMW X5 45e.

1) The Tesla unit is cheaper than all of the others at only $500. Juicebox and others are $600 to $700.

2) I was planning to get the adapter (Tesla to J1772) also so that I can use Tesla destination chargers that seem to be everywhere in Florida at malls and resort hotels.

3) It is all wifi enabled, and supposedly Tesla plans to make all of these items work together (solar, powerwalls, Tesla cars, Tesla wall connector) in their app.

4) I plan to get the Tesla CyberTruck in the future, so it made sense to already have Tesla charging infrastructure installed.

Also, most houses have 200 amp service now. As long as there is room on the panel, they can install a 50 amp breaker on the panel. The limitation is that all of your stuff in the house combined cannot pull more than 200 amps at the same time. Just adding up all of the individual breakers to 200 is not a limitation. It is not likely that everything will be on at the same time and at full power. Electricians regularly put more breakers in your panel that collectively add up to more than 200 amps. All that happens is that some breakers will trip into the off position if you exceed the max.

Here is my video on the BMW X5 45e working with Tesla hardware. I did this about a month ago.

[Finito84]

I went for the Juice 48 ($681 with taxes in NJ) as it was recommended by the electrician considering we are considering buying an electric car for my wife (she does not drive much).

Keep in mind that you can get a 30% tax credit for the installation (up to $1,000) and the ranges for ev chargers that I considered was from $500 to $700

[codex57]

Originally Posted by RocketGoBoom

I installed the Tesla gen 3 wall connector in my garage specifically for the BMW X5 45e.

1) The Tesla unit is cheaper than all of the others at only $500. Juicebox and others are $600 to $700.

2) I was planning to get the adapter (Tesla to J1772) also so that I can use Tesla destination chargers that seem to be everywhere in Florida at malls and resort hotels.

3) It is all wifi enabled, and supposedly Tesla plans to make all of these items work together (solar, powerwalls, Tesla cars, Tesla wall connector) in their app.

4) I plan to get the Tesla CyberTruck in the future, so it made sense to already have Tesla charging infrastructure installed.

Also, most houses have 200 amp service now. As long as there is room on the panel, they can install a 50 amp breaker on the panel. The limitation is that all of your stuff in the house combined cannot pull more than 200 amps at the same time. Just adding up all of the individual breakers to 200 is not a limitation. It is not likely that everything will be on at the same time and at full power. Electricians regularly put more breakers in your panel that collectively add up to more than 200 amps. All that happens is that some breakers will trip into the off position if you exceed the max.

Here is my video on the BMW X5 45e working with Tesla hardware. I did this about a month ago.

Hmm, I'll have to think about the Tesla charger. I do have Tesla Solar, PowerWalls, and a Model 3 already. The integration is just ok though and I honestly doubt I'll get 2 Teslas in the future unless their ride and sound deadening increase 1000x.