Hi All, Brand new owner of a Kona SEL and have a newbie question about level 1 charging cables. I also own a 2017 Prius Prime which i've been charging in my garage with the level 1 charging cable from Toyota that came with that car. Is it OK to use the same cable with the Kona? I'm assuming it is, but thought i'd ask around before using it. Thanks
Of course. They are both J1772 plugs. If you are plugging in to a 110v ac outlet it will take a long, long time to charge your Kona. I would consider having a 220vac plug installed from your circuit panel by and electrician to a central location between both and you can use a much faster charging rate for both. The J1772 plug is a standard. The 220vac would need a charge box such as a JuiceBox to regulate the charge. It would be compatible with both vehicles.
Thanks for the info. My ultimate plan is to have the 220vac installed in my garage but it's going to take some time due to HOA approval slowness. Currently I am only driving 20-30 miles a day at most so the 110 is OK. I also have DC fast charge near my house as a back up. I will look into the JuiceBox since it would be great to use the level 2 with both cars.
Congrats on the Kona.. I got the SEL as well but mine is a 2019 and I already have over 30k miles on it. I really don't understand why your HOA has to approve an 220 Volt outlet in your garage. Of course, you'll need a permit from your town/country but I have never heard about a requirement for an HOA to approve an outlet in the garage.. All you need for the 220 volt EVSE is a 14-50 outlet. I did mine myself in 30 minutes but my breaker panel is at the garage right where I'm charging my vehicle.
It's a townhouse and my panel is actually a sub panel located far from my garage. A line could be run from it but an electrician recommended using a DCC connected to the meter on the outside of my garage. Just a little complicated - run a line from a sub panel but deal with lots oh holes in the interior or get HOA approval and use the DCC.
It's a "Demand Charge Controller". Basically a box that is attached directly to a customer's meter and provides a dedicated circuit for level 2 chargers. It's a solution for EV owners who live in apartments/condos. https://electrek.co/2018/08/13/electric-charging-condo-appartment-rve-dcc/#:~:text=They%20developed%20the%20previously%20mentioned,to%20prevent%20exceeding%20its%20limit.
That's handy, so do I and that backup allows me to rely solely on the portable charger since that returns 80 km overnight, about twice what I need on a daily basis and I hover around 50-70% SoC. An hour's notice for a trip is enough to top off the battery on the FC.
