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T8 wiring and required plug type for charging at home - a guide

141K views 306 replies 78 participants last post by  Gary-16-Xc90 
#1 · (Edited)
Several weeks ago we had the electricity ran in the garage in anticipation to getting the T8. We picked up our T8 one week ago, and realized that we had done a little overkill and the wrong type of plug. I tried to find out what type of plug the T8 charging cord takes, but could not find it written down - maybe I just overlooked it somewhere.

According to the manual, the T8 charges at 15 Amps. We had a 50Amp circuit and plug installed with a NIMA 14-50 type plug, which was overkill.

On Friday we changed out everything to meet the needs of the T8. Here is what you need:

Plug Type: Legrand 5851 http://www.legrand.us/passandseymour/receptacles/fed-spec-grade/heavy-duty-single/5851.aspx
Circuit breaker: 20 Amps

Of course you can remove the 120-240 adapter on the plug, and charge with 120, but it takes over 2 times as long.

Hope this helps others getting ready for the T8.
 
#3 · (Edited)
I intentionally went with the NEMA 14-50 plug and 50 amp breaker - using www.ClipperCreek.com 's charging station. This enables visitors who come with their RV's to plug-in for AC, et al (except when I am charging my T8. :cool:). It is a bit of overkill but my logic was to be future-proofed and to accommodate the "cousin Eddy's" of the world (Chevy Chase and National Lampoon's Vacation).
 
#4 ·
I intentionally went with the NEMA 14-50 plug and 50 amp breaker - using ClipperCreek's charging station. This enables visitors who come with their RV's to plug-in for AC, et al (except when I am charging my T8. :cool:). It is a bit of overkill but my logic was to be future-proofed and to accommodate the "cousin Eddy's" of the world (Chevy Chase and National Lapoom's Vacation).
Real nice, Clark.
 
#10 ·
So unless you want faster charging, there's really no need to install anything right? Or do you still need to have an electrician put a different size plug? Sorry it's little confusing lol We'll be ordering our T8 probably next month so just trying to understand this whole charging thing.
 
#11 ·
So unless you want faster charging, there's really no need to install anything right?
If you are parking your car in a garage and don't mind the +/- 7 hours for a full charge ... all you need is a standard NEMA 5-15 outlet (a regular plug).

You should only use the charging cable that comes with the vehicle: do not use an extension cord to extend its length.

Best though that the outlet you plug into is dedicated to charging the car. If that outlet is on a circuit for other things ... when the car is charging (say roughly 10 amps) if you were to draw another 5 amps on the same circuit you may pop a breaker.

One additional thing (that was confirmed today in the Volvo support forum): if you have your vehicle outside and plugged into a 120 VAC outlet and turn on pre-conditioning ... the 120 VAC outlet will not be able to supply enough current to charge and precondition the vehicle (at the same time). I found that it drains the battery a bit and Volvo confirmed that is expected behaviour. This is a non-issue when you use a 220 to 240 VAC connection.
 
#12 ·
To emphasize what rpmccormick said, the line should be dedicated. Volvo states that in the Know Your Volvo app, too. If you need to install a dedicated line, I would upgrade to the 220/240 and select the breaker based on the charger that you want to use.
 
#13 ·
Thanks guys! What if you park inside and plug into regular outlet, will the pre-conditioning still work?? My garage is not heated but never goes below 0°C (there's finished drywall on all sides except outside wall).
 
#14 · (Edited)
Preconditioning on 120v will work, but 240v definitely recommended



Yes, preconditioning with 120v will still work if you have sufficient battery charge. A 240v system is recommended, but you can still precondition with 120v with some hybrid battery drain.

If your car is fully charged, you can precondition with a regular 120v outlet. But, you should expect reduced reduced range and charge level as preconditioning is directly powered from the hybrid battery. The charger only "re-charges" the battery. The amount of drain will be more noticeable when you are heating your car particularly when OAT is cold (40F or lower). Cooling or air exchange may have a small or even negligible effect on the battery charge level as some have reported.

To be more specific, what I observe with my 240v EVSE is that charging and preconditioning draws 15.5 amps at 240v. Mathematically, the 12 amp, 120v charging cannot recharge the hybrid battery at a sufficient rate while preconditioning with heat.

You can adjust the climate settings (e.g., auto) and length of preconditioning to find the right balance. Manually starting the preconditioning and turning it off in a short period may help mitigate the amount of battery drain.

Note: If your OAT is 30F or colder and you use a 120v charger, you can expect up to a 25% decrease in your hybrid battery range if you precondition for 20 minutes or more. The impact will be less with a warmer OAT and/or a shorter preconditioning period.
 
#15 ·
You do want a dedicated circuit as per the instructions. Note: when using the Volvo power cord on either 110 or 220, it will get warm, but not to the point that it should cause concern.
 
#19 · (Edited)
I had my charging station installed yesterday (EVDuty 40, locally built for our very cold winters). It's manual states that it is incompatible with electric vehicles that require ventilation for indoor charging. I can find many charging station that talk about this but no vehicle that requires ventilation for indoor charging. Does anyone know if the XC90 requires ventilation for indoor charging (not recommended ventilation but required by signalling so on the SAE-J1772 connector, protocol states that if charger cannot start ventilation of the closed area it cannot charge the vehicle). I am assuming that because no one brought this up that ventilation is not required but many of us are new to this EV stuff...
 
#21 ·
I had my charging station installed yesterday (EVDuty 40, locally built for our very cold winters). It's manual states that it is incompatible with electric vehicles that require ventilation for indoor charging. I can find many charging station that talk about this but no vehicle that requires ventilation for indoor charging. Does anyone know if the XC90 requires ventilation for indoor charging (not recommended ventilation but required by signalling so on the SAE-J1772 connector, protocol states that if charger cannot start ventilation of the closed area it cannot charge the vehicle). I am summing that because no one brought this up that ventilation is not required but many of us are new to this EV stuff...
I am not sure of what you are referring to by "ventilation for indoor charging" but I can state that the T8 does have a fan that cycles off and on for cooling when it is being charged.
 
#22 · (Edited)
$729 cdn for the charger (30 amp charge / 40 amp breaker) and about $750 cdn for the installation (including materials ie breaker, wiring, power boxes) plus taxes. The provincial government will reimburse $650 (but wont give up their taxes). I live in the city and my driveway is right next to the house which made installation easy, house is left of car so cable does not have to go over car (or alternatively I do not have to back-in). Does anyone need pictures (no car yet though, latest date is feb 12th) ?
 
#28 ·
EV Duty installation
Merci pour les photos.

Does the EV Duty have a dock to plug the charging plug into when it is not connected to the car? If not - you may want to consider getting one (I don't know if Clipper Creek sells theirs separately). The dock usually keeps the end of the cable up and covered so the environment doesn't affect it.
 
#26 ·
Thanks for the pics! I just hope nobody takes advantage of your outdoor charger :D
 
#30 · (Edited)
**************************************** Update - This configuration does not work ************************************
* The EV charger in the picture is a dedecated 240v, the Dual voltage Turbo Cord that comes with the Volvo T8 does not fit in the box *
* It will fit in this box with a regular 110/120 volt outlet for an L1 charge. See my 27 june post for a 240v L2 installation *
***************************************************************************************************************

You may wish to install the exterior box aerovironment has for the T8 charger. Problem is they do not sell it without a charger and as a T8 owner you already have the charger and just need the box. This is what i have found (when the electrician puts it all toguether I wiill confirm if it is all ok). This is to build a 240v nema 6-20 outdoor plug and cover.

You are trying to build this:


From a supplier call Radwell I have ordered:


From Home depot I have ordered this (breaker will vary according to your electrical panel)


Your receptacle and box should look like this:


I have had discussion with supplier about ground fault breakers that would require a neutral wire which is not present in a NEMA 6-20. One would think that is required for an exterior plug.
All prices are in Canadian $. I have installed a fixed charger (EV Duty) at home and plan to install this at my cottage.

Envoyé de mon iPad en utilisant Tapatalk
 
#31 ·
I'd personally avoid using an external plug for a charging station - instead I'd hard wire it.

240 VAC chargers in North America would typically never have a neutral connection: that would only be used when you want to source 120 VAC between the neutral and one of the X or Y mains connections.

As for wire gauge - here's a chart for 240 VAC based on breaker amperage:



Depending on how far the outlet / connection is from your breaker panel - and what you think your future plans may be - you may want to consider running AWG 8 wire which would support a 40 amp breaker. While today the XC90 doesn't need to draw that much current - it would make your installation ready for the higher current Level 2 station if you ever needed it. (A 240 VAC 20 amp circuit supports 16 amp connectivity whilst the 240 VAC 40 amp circuit supports 32 amp connections.)

The above image comes from this web site page - which has wiring configs for just about every kind of North American connection:
http://waterheatertimer.org/How-to-wire-240-volt-outlets.html
 
#34 · (Edited)
I have hardwired my main residence with a 30Amp hard wired charger on a 40 Amp circuit and AWG 8 wiring (plan for second EV). But the T8 is delivered with a 15 amps charger with a nema 6-20 plug that requires a dedicated 240v 20 amp circuit. So I am thinking of a practical way to put the supplied charger to good use at the cottage. I will bookmark your wiring link it's a good one.
 
#32 ·
#36 ·
#37 ·
In the US - installation of a home charging station (retroactively in 2015 and in 2015) may qualify for an Alternative Fuel Infrastructure Tax Credit - see here:

http://www.afdc.energy.gov/laws/10513
 
#39 ·
Thanks for the info.
 
#41 ·
#47 ·
Thanks! The converter would only be to use the AeroVironment Dual Cord (240v) in a pinch when a 6-20 receptacle is not available, but a 14-50 is. I agree that it is probably not much in demand. I may check out the RV dealers and the website that you suggested. Thanks again.
 
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