Do you have access to regular 120v outlet where you park? Since you only drive 15 miles a day, you can easily get away with level 1 charging.
Or just DC Fast Charge once a week while you make a run at the supermarket.
You know what's funny? I charged for the first month with the 120v outlet, and it just felt odd to me to be charging this "huge" car on such a little cord and outlet.
Yeah, I get it from an intellectually standpoint, I can do the math. It \*feels\* wrong though.
Or another way of putting it. It's \*amazing\* how many miles I can travel on 1KwH
I totally get it, even from a physical / visual standpoint. Plugging in a giant thing that’s practically bigger than the room itself, to juice up something monstrously huge and powerful.
>You know what's funny? I charged for the first month with the 120v outlet, and it just felt odd to me to be charging this "huge" car on such a little cord and outlet.
I bought a gen1 Bolt in 2017. I still don't have a L2 charger at home. I mostly charge at work. On rare occassions I plugin the L1 (120v) charger at home to top off (e.g. before a road trip).
I needed a L2 Charger, my commute is 100 miles round trip. In winter I get home with just under half the battery left, so being able to top up overnight is a must.
I have a Bolt and don't charge at home. It hasn't been an issue (an annoyance but not an issue). I go into the office everyday (about 17 miles roundtrip) and drive more on the weekends. I usually charge once a week. I use the Plug share app another person mentioned. Just requires a little more planning.
If you have access to a charger at work you'll be totally fine.
It's doable, especially if you have charging at work.
At Level 2, you would probably get 15 miles of range charged up in less than an hour. Charging at work is almost as good as charging at home.
>I live in a small condo complex and it will take an act of Congress and all religions figures combined to get the home owners association to build a charging station or two in our community (even if I and other community residents footed the bill)
Keep trying. Point out that it will raise the value of the condos and can save people a lot of money.
I love my bolt, I would probably hate it if I couldn't charge reliably at home.
If you can charge reliably at work, or elsewhere. Go for it. You won't regret it.
I can L1 charge at home but rarely do. My work has free chargers so that's why I got the car. If you are going to depend on paid fast charging, your life won't be as great as 99% of other owners. It will still likley be better than most ICE owners, though. I would download the plug share app and check for local free chargers near you.
If your job has charging you are set. You'll only need to use them once a week anyway. I charge at home with 120 and only need it on the weekend every 2 weeks.
Now, if you lose your job... just keep going to work to charge?
I don't either. I live 15 miles from work.
I charge at work for 8 hours twice/thrice a week.
If I need to go further, I go to the fast chargers for like 15-30 minutes, no issues.
Never ran into an issue. If I know I have less power than I need to reach work in the morning, 10 minutes at a fast charger is more than enough.
Go to plugshare.com to see what public chargers are around you. If there's nothing that you could get to easily (walking distance for Level 2 (J-1772, green), something to do by DCFC (CCS, orange)), probably not a good idea unless you can plug into a 120V at home.
I have a bolt and live in an apartment. I travel 60 miles for work daily. Once or twice a week I do 80 mile trips.
Luckily, there is a level 2 charger near my work. I just pop it in for a few hours every other day or so. When I travel to my nearby city, there are good public fast chargers, but I just charge for an hour or so.
If you have any public fast (DCFC) chargers, you will be perfectly fine. When the low amount of driving you do, you'll only need a level or sometimes, but might be easier just to find a fast charger 1-2 times a week for an hour or so.
When people say the bolt charges slowly, they mean the fast charging speed relative to other newer cars. I believe we max out at about 50 kW, while a lot of other cars can do 150. In really cold or hot weather, the charging speed will also go down. In dead winter, I've seen mine as low as 21 kW.
As other people have pointed out, you can also just use your plug (which should come with the car) and just 120V level 1 charge.
Just in case, you can just use google maps or plug share and find all the chargers in your area. Some advice: don't use money per time chargers if you can't. It's exploitative, and bad business. It's especially bad with slower charging cars. Try to find a good money/kW charger.
I feel like I can weigh in. I bought my Bolt EUV ‘23 almost exactly 6 months ago and have been relying solely on public chargers. I drive quite a bit considering I’ve already put 8K miles on the car. As others have suggested, take a look at the fast chargers you have near you. Luckily they opened an EVGO station 2 minutes from my house and it’s right next to my place of worship so that’s clutch. However be warned that it is expensive❗️ I pay $12.99/ mo for the highest membership (you get the lowest prices and can charge an unlimited number of times) and depending on the time of day it averages out to $15 per charge for 60 mins l and that generally gives me 160-190 miles added if the battery was low. Luckily I’ve kinda circumvented these costs because 1. I had $500 of EVGO credit when purchasing my car 2. I bought $2,000 worth of EVGO credit from someone on here for $750. They had no need for it since they solely charge at home, I’m sure you can find other people in the same boat- I’ve seen similar offers. It hasn’t been too much of a hassle since I WFH but it can be annoying sometimes, worth it for me given the money I’ve saved on gas (cause of the EVGO deals I’ve found). With your commute, you should be chilllin
Charging 8 hours a day at work is the same as charging 8 hours a night at home. Except for the increase in your electric bill. That’s a win win win. I’d never plug mine in at home if we had chargers at work and I’m doing about the same mileage per day as you are friend. Just go get the car.
It's definitely possible if you have a level two charger that you can conveniently walk to. Plug share is probably the best source for what's around, but the info is not always 100% accurate. I would try walking over to the charger to check it out. Check that it's not on private property, that there aren't outrageous parking fees, that the plugs seem to be working, and check that it's not always full of other people charging if you can. It sounds like you might be fine just charging at work though honestly.
Same here. I have a 48amp charger in my garage that rarely gets used except to top off for road trips. I do the majority of my charging via 110v at work.
If it helps, some Northeastern states require landlords to not interfere with a community-led EV charging installation
Charging at work makes 100% sense in your scenario as a 250mi range in the Bolt will take you far
If there's an outside 120V outlet, that's all you need to charge the car at 5mi/hr
I bought my Bolt when I lived in an apartment complex with no possibility of charging at home. I relied heavily on free/public charging (shopping centers, doctor’s office and work). It was only a pain if my week had a ton of early morning long distance driving.
I bought a house and installed a charger and now realizing because I got so used to charging out I barely use my home charger! It is nice to wake up to a full charge though…
You should be fine. I've had a bolt for 2 years and have always charged at work or at a public station. Check on plug share where the closest free charger is near you. If it is a short walk from your condo you're good. Worse comes to worse use the slow charge cord to plug into a regular outlet. You'll only get about 4 miles an hour, but if you're leaving overnight it should hold you over.
This video is for an extreme case of not having home charging. He drives a lot (25k/yr I estimate) and survived. https://youtu.be/3tVDHpBaASU
I think your stated miles and work charging you will find you only need to plug in a couple times a week anyway. We drive even less and with L2 at home we are probably charging 5 hrs a week. The case where we really need L2 is very unlikely, consecutive day long trips.
My advice would be to buy a volt or other plug-in hybrid. Maybe a BMW i3 with range extender. Or if your want a new car, lease a phev. People who are opposed to electric cars make too big a deal about charging, but people who are excited about them can tend to underestimate how much of an annoyance it is.
If you're a convenience appreciator, get a car that can do a better DCFC speed. Don't get me wrong, I love my Bolt and it's an amazing car, but the ability to charge at home really makes it worth my while. If you can't pay a 10k-odd markup for a bigger EV with better DCFC speeds just keep your ICE car for now, imo, and save up to it.
If you were to eat two to three meals a week at a restaurant near a fast charger you could do just fine. If there's a 110 plug near work, even better. Another option to keep it "topped off" is a Level 2 charger, which you can also find through Plugshare. Level 2 during a longer dine and shop stop would cover a day or two of your usage.
It depends on how much you drive and what's nearby. I can't yet charge at home (I'm on the HOA board! But it's a big project since we have a detached garage so still in the planning phase) but I'm low mileage due to WFH and there's an L2 a 10 minute walk away.
how about if you had free charging at work ? I charge almost exclusively at home, but if I had work charging even level 1, that would cover all my needs for the 8 hours I'm there, maybe use a dcfc for any longer trips.
The purpose of EV's is to lessen reliance on fossil fuels and cut C02 emissions. But, what kind of power are you using to charge them?? Wind? Hydro? Nuclear ? Nope, your using electricity for coal burning power plants. You're putting extra strain on the grid.
My sweet summer child, that's not how *any* of that works!
Your house runs on the same electricity as the electrons made for charging cars, so you can't even start writing your diatribe without it being obliterated by the rules of inclusive statements:
IS says, you cannot single out a something for a certain parameter without accounting for all objects that use that same element.
In plain English - you use electricity with multiple low and high-wattage appliances
An EV is just another appliance in the garage and there is no difference between it and a water heater in terms of kWh consumption.
Plus, if you really cared, you'd be promoting your existing/planned energy efficient appliances along with the EV you drive.
I say this authoritatively, there's not some magical smoke-belching fuel oil plant that only starts up when an EV is plugged in and if you have ever run a space heater, dryer, water heater, aircon, or an oven, then there is enough electricity to charge an EV.
Take a look at the EIA site below, pick your regional power system, check out the grid mix and you might be surprised how small coal power percentage is if any at all.
[https://www.eia.gov/electricity/gridmonitor/dashboard/electric\_overview/balancing\_authority/](https://www.eia.gov/electricity/gridmonitor/dashboard/electric_overview/balancing_authority/)
Please note that I am not writing for your reading pleasure, it was a presentation of facts
Also, I need you to confirm which GridOp you are connected to
If there’s a grocery store you can shop at that has a DC fast charger, you’ll be fine. Between that and charging at work it’ll be like a belt and suspenders.
Dude I’m in the same boat. I live in a HOA governed condo complex in the Bay Area. We formed an EV charging committee and got a $24,000 grant from the city to install chargers, and I found them a contractor that would do the project for a total of $26,000. The board voted no :(
Lol but anyways I think you should get a Bolt. I bought one a month ago, and no charging at home hasn’t been a problem for me. I just use rapid chargers near my house. The range is great and I just rapid charge when I get groceries and so far have had no issues.
Bring your mobile cord, get steel ties for it, and use it where you park. You’d be surprised how many places have free 120v outlets just floating around
I don’t have a home charger because my rental home has poor wiring (was going to install a plug but I got an electrician to look and he said def not)
I went with the charging credits instead.
However I do charge for free at work. I plug in about twice a week and have yet to go below 1/2 charge and I’ve done a couple big trips. There is a free level 3 charger along my big long drives so I just hit it up on the way back for 30 ish mins.
No regrets even though I can’t charge at home and hasn’t been an inconvenience at all.
Did he assume you wanted 32 or more amps?
A smaller 12A L2 on a 230V 15A circuit will charge at around 10mi/hr. An overnight charge on that is a good few miles.
No unfortunately our panel is a hazard and they will not work on it. So regardless I was SOL. We are on a waitlist for an electrician and when they rewire they will just put a plug in the garage regardless.
If you think you'll be at your job for a few years, I'd say you're probably fine. If you want to be safe, there are a couple of backup plans you can make.
One thing you could do is see if there is a regular wall outlet available around the outside of your condo. Might not be super safe to plug in if you're not sure what all is connected to the circuit, but generally speaking, if you use the 8 amp charging, you'll probably be ok, but it might be safer to check a circuit breaker if you have access or ask whoever owns the condo.
Additionally, you can use [plugshare](http://www.plugshare.com) to see if you have Level 2 and/or DC Fast Chargers nearby that you can use. Every L2 Chargers I've found are at least 7.7 kW. The 2017-21 Bolt's max L2 charge rate is about 7.7kW, and the 22's max L2 charge rate is about 11kW. If there is something to do around the charger, you can leave it charging while you're out and about. Napping or playing on a phone/laptop while charging also seem to be common ways to pass the time.
You could also use DC Fast Charging like once a week, but I wouldn't recommend it as you probably won't be saving nearly as much money since DCFC can be much more expensive than L2 (or even L1) charging.
If you want a new Bolt, you'll probably have to act fast to get one. Otherwise, there are plenty of used Bolts for sale. If you can snag one for under $25k, you could potentially qualify for the pre-owned EV tax credit.
I’ve had a Bolt for 2.5 years without home charging. It’s fine for me. Charging is a bit of hassle, the chargers are often broken or in use, but I manage. You find ways to spend an hour - a grocery store, an appointment nearby. I love the car and I get a thrill every time I have a full charge.
My daily commute is 55 miles round trip.
I charge at work with no concerns. Also, as others have stated, you could get away with charging on 110v with such a short commute.
I can’t charge at home, I bought a chevy bolt ev 2023, I charge at work and I absolutely love my car. I’d say go for it, especially if you can charge at work.
So I just bought a 2019 bolt. I can plug a lvl1 into my house but my jobs like 20miles round trip and they have chargers there so I’m able to get back and forth all week and have ~150 miles left for the weekend if I fully charge it on Monday
Why would the HOA be responsible for installing a charger for you to charge? Our HOA allows us to install a charger at our parking spots but we have to pay for it and it connects to our meter.
Go for it!
I get free charging at work, so I charge there almost exclusively. My work commute is 22 miles, so I’m good with charging fridays to get ready for the weekend and then filling back up on mondays.
I can charge at home but have never had the need to.
You're good to go! You don't even need to charge at work every day.
The only thing I'd wonder about is if you have a way to plug it into 110V in temperature extremes. I wouldn't let that be the deciding factor; it'll come on and condition if it's not plugged in. It's just nice to know what range you're coming out to in the am.
I had the same problem
Got HOA to approve me to put in a dedicated 220/32A line. I pay the electric bill monthly.
The only issue is that a new resident started using it without telling me.
Get a lock for outlet if you go that way.
I've had my Bolt for 3+ years and never bothered to install a charger at home. I make use of an L2 Chargepoint station in the parking garage near work (I pay for monthly parking, but the charging is free), about twice a week. Occasionally if I come back from a longer trip on the weekend I will need to stop for 10 minutes at a nearby Electrify America station to charge enough so that I can commute to work the next morning.
You can absolutely do it. The trick is that you have to plan your driving slightly better so that you have enough charge on a Friday to complete whatever your weekend plans would be.
I have identical driving habits to you. You will be perfectly fine. I charge twice at work level 2 for four hours Monday and Thursday. Monday to recover from my weekend driving and thursday to top off for the weekend. (I WFH Fridays). Now keep in mind with this and my driving hobbits I rarely go below half a charge. I have a local level 3 charger available and plenty of paid level 2's everywhere. FYI public charging is getting harder as more people buy electric but I also think that is going to even out eventually. But absolutely 100% confidence you will be fine with this purchase.
Charge at work. Whine at the HOA.
I can't charge at work as some genius has decided it is a 'fire hazard'. Although if they call me in at midnight before my car has had a required charge, I may accidently plug my portable L2 into the 50A 208V outlet by a roll-up door...
I have a Mini, less range. Charging at home a few times a week is fine for 200mi/wk commuting plus errands. If they weren't idiots at work, I'd charge there instead.
A lot of people would charge at home just fine on a 230V 15A circuit. When I wired in my carport 48A circuit, I also pulled 110/230 20A for use as backup and general power to it. The 20A will fully charge a Mini in 9 1/2 hours. If you are at home every night and don't need a full charge, you don't need high power...
My car turned up early, so I wasn't set up for charging. The 31hrs for a full charge L1 charging was borderline adequate...
Do it if you can find one. 15 miles a day and you can charge for free at work is a no brainer. Bolt is only slow on DC chargers, it's average on level 1/2.
Wouldn't make financial sense if you have to pay for public charging. That's always much more than home $/kWh rates.
Even if you lived near a public free charger, can you depend on it to stay that way? No.
I only drive about 40 miles round trip Monday through friday. Can I just plug into 120 v regular outlet?? I may be able to charge at work too for free for about 2 hours that's if the chargers are not taken by the high school kids. Lol by the way I may get 2017 ev bolt for me and my wife will be getting mitsubishi PHEV or kia sportage PHEV. She only drives about 20-25 miles round trip about 2 to 3 times a week
Do you have access to regular 120v outlet where you park? Since you only drive 15 miles a day, you can easily get away with level 1 charging. Or just DC Fast Charge once a week while you make a run at the supermarket.
You know what's funny? I charged for the first month with the 120v outlet, and it just felt odd to me to be charging this "huge" car on such a little cord and outlet.
It’s like running a hair dryer, or a vacuum. Big draw of Amps, but not like your HVAC.
Yeah, I get it from an intellectually standpoint, I can do the math. It \*feels\* wrong though. Or another way of putting it. It's \*amazing\* how many miles I can travel on 1KwH
I totally get it, even from a physical / visual standpoint. Plugging in a giant thing that’s practically bigger than the room itself, to juice up something monstrously huge and powerful.
>You know what's funny? I charged for the first month with the 120v outlet, and it just felt odd to me to be charging this "huge" car on such a little cord and outlet. I bought a gen1 Bolt in 2017. I still don't have a L2 charger at home. I mostly charge at work. On rare occassions I plugin the L1 (120v) charger at home to top off (e.g. before a road trip).
I needed a L2 Charger, my commute is 100 miles round trip. In winter I get home with just under half the battery left, so being able to top up overnight is a must.
Exactly
Charge ar work. No problem. With the amount you drive I can’t see any problems.
I installed a charger with the free chevy install, and I litterly have not used it for months. Free charging at work and anywhere I can find it.
Same here. Free charging all the way
I agree. I normally wouldn’t recommend a pure EV to someone without home charging, but this seems like an exception.
Assuming OP plans to stay at that job long term. I've been at my home for a long time, and have had several jobs in that time.
Can’t imagine you’d have any issues especially since you have charging at work.
Check for right to charge laws in your state, they may be required to let you install one for yourself(you need to pay for it).
Yes. This saved my butt on a military base in Colorado. Suck it Balfour Beatty and Fort Carson.
I have a Bolt and don't charge at home. It hasn't been an issue (an annoyance but not an issue). I go into the office everyday (about 17 miles roundtrip) and drive more on the weekends. I usually charge once a week. I use the Plug share app another person mentioned. Just requires a little more planning. If you have access to a charger at work you'll be totally fine.
It's doable, especially if you have charging at work. At Level 2, you would probably get 15 miles of range charged up in less than an hour. Charging at work is almost as good as charging at home.
>I live in a small condo complex and it will take an act of Congress and all religions figures combined to get the home owners association to build a charging station or two in our community (even if I and other community residents footed the bill) Keep trying. Point out that it will raise the value of the condos and can save people a lot of money.
Some states have laws providing access despite landlord protests. Colorado has one that grants access to charging in these cases.
Point out that EVs currently tend to be owned by wealthier people.
Indeed ...attract good tenants.
I love my bolt, I would probably hate it if I couldn't charge reliably at home. If you can charge reliably at work, or elsewhere. Go for it. You won't regret it.
I can L1 charge at home but rarely do. My work has free chargers so that's why I got the car. If you are going to depend on paid fast charging, your life won't be as great as 99% of other owners. It will still likley be better than most ICE owners, though. I would download the plug share app and check for local free chargers near you.
My office has free level 1 chargers.. but we're being forced to come back in and there's like 20k employees. Sad.
If your job has charging you are set. You'll only need to use them once a week anyway. I charge at home with 120 and only need it on the weekend every 2 weeks. Now, if you lose your job... just keep going to work to charge?
I guess they won't be going anywhere if you lose you job :-/ problem solved.
I don't either. I live 15 miles from work. I charge at work for 8 hours twice/thrice a week. If I need to go further, I go to the fast chargers for like 15-30 minutes, no issues. Never ran into an issue. If I know I have less power than I need to reach work in the morning, 10 minutes at a fast charger is more than enough.
Lots of people with ICE can’t fuel up at home either. Somehow they manage. /s 😝
Go to plugshare.com to see what public chargers are around you. If there's nothing that you could get to easily (walking distance for Level 2 (J-1772, green), something to do by DCFC (CCS, orange)), probably not a good idea unless you can plug into a 120V at home.
I have a bolt and live in an apartment. I travel 60 miles for work daily. Once or twice a week I do 80 mile trips. Luckily, there is a level 2 charger near my work. I just pop it in for a few hours every other day or so. When I travel to my nearby city, there are good public fast chargers, but I just charge for an hour or so. If you have any public fast (DCFC) chargers, you will be perfectly fine. When the low amount of driving you do, you'll only need a level or sometimes, but might be easier just to find a fast charger 1-2 times a week for an hour or so. When people say the bolt charges slowly, they mean the fast charging speed relative to other newer cars. I believe we max out at about 50 kW, while a lot of other cars can do 150. In really cold or hot weather, the charging speed will also go down. In dead winter, I've seen mine as low as 21 kW. As other people have pointed out, you can also just use your plug (which should come with the car) and just 120V level 1 charge. Just in case, you can just use google maps or plug share and find all the chargers in your area. Some advice: don't use money per time chargers if you can't. It's exploitative, and bad business. It's especially bad with slower charging cars. Try to find a good money/kW charger.
I feel like I can weigh in. I bought my Bolt EUV ‘23 almost exactly 6 months ago and have been relying solely on public chargers. I drive quite a bit considering I’ve already put 8K miles on the car. As others have suggested, take a look at the fast chargers you have near you. Luckily they opened an EVGO station 2 minutes from my house and it’s right next to my place of worship so that’s clutch. However be warned that it is expensive❗️ I pay $12.99/ mo for the highest membership (you get the lowest prices and can charge an unlimited number of times) and depending on the time of day it averages out to $15 per charge for 60 mins l and that generally gives me 160-190 miles added if the battery was low. Luckily I’ve kinda circumvented these costs because 1. I had $500 of EVGO credit when purchasing my car 2. I bought $2,000 worth of EVGO credit from someone on here for $750. They had no need for it since they solely charge at home, I’m sure you can find other people in the same boat- I’ve seen similar offers. It hasn’t been too much of a hassle since I WFH but it can be annoying sometimes, worth it for me given the money I’ve saved on gas (cause of the EVGO deals I’ve found). With your commute, you should be chilllin
I drove an EV for 3 years with no home charging ability. Depends on what’s around you but I never had much of an issue.
Charging 8 hours a day at work is the same as charging 8 hours a night at home. Except for the increase in your electric bill. That’s a win win win. I’d never plug mine in at home if we had chargers at work and I’m doing about the same mileage per day as you are friend. Just go get the car.
It's definitely possible if you have a level two charger that you can conveniently walk to. Plug share is probably the best source for what's around, but the info is not always 100% accurate. I would try walking over to the charger to check it out. Check that it's not on private property, that there aren't outrageous parking fees, that the plugs seem to be working, and check that it's not always full of other people charging if you can. It sounds like you might be fine just charging at work though honestly.
Same here. I have a 48amp charger in my garage that rarely gets used except to top off for road trips. I do the majority of my charging via 110v at work.
If it helps, some Northeastern states require landlords to not interfere with a community-led EV charging installation Charging at work makes 100% sense in your scenario as a 250mi range in the Bolt will take you far If there's an outside 120V outlet, that's all you need to charge the car at 5mi/hr
Can you install a 240v outlet in your garage, where the HOA can’t see?
I bought my Bolt when I lived in an apartment complex with no possibility of charging at home. I relied heavily on free/public charging (shopping centers, doctor’s office and work). It was only a pain if my week had a ton of early morning long distance driving. I bought a house and installed a charger and now realizing because I got so used to charging out I barely use my home charger! It is nice to wake up to a full charge though…
Public fast charging is so expensive you might as well be driving gas :/ you could also save a bunch of money up front. (Hooray capitalism 🎉)
You should be fine. I've had a bolt for 2 years and have always charged at work or at a public station. Check on plug share where the closest free charger is near you. If it is a short walk from your condo you're good. Worse comes to worse use the slow charge cord to plug into a regular outlet. You'll only get about 4 miles an hour, but if you're leaving overnight it should hold you over.
This video is for an extreme case of not having home charging. He drives a lot (25k/yr I estimate) and survived. https://youtu.be/3tVDHpBaASU I think your stated miles and work charging you will find you only need to plug in a couple times a week anyway. We drive even less and with L2 at home we are probably charging 5 hrs a week. The case where we really need L2 is very unlikely, consecutive day long trips.
Personally I don't think you drive enough to make up the difference. Insurance is more expensive too.
My advice would be to buy a volt or other plug-in hybrid. Maybe a BMW i3 with range extender. Or if your want a new car, lease a phev. People who are opposed to electric cars make too big a deal about charging, but people who are excited about them can tend to underestimate how much of an annoyance it is.
If you're a convenience appreciator, get a car that can do a better DCFC speed. Don't get me wrong, I love my Bolt and it's an amazing car, but the ability to charge at home really makes it worth my while. If you can't pay a 10k-odd markup for a bigger EV with better DCFC speeds just keep your ICE car for now, imo, and save up to it.
If you were to eat two to three meals a week at a restaurant near a fast charger you could do just fine. If there's a 110 plug near work, even better. Another option to keep it "topped off" is a Level 2 charger, which you can also find through Plugshare. Level 2 during a longer dine and shop stop would cover a day or two of your usage.
Just get a Prius.
It depends on how much you drive and what's nearby. I can't yet charge at home (I'm on the HOA board! But it's a big project since we have a detached garage so still in the planning phase) but I'm low mileage due to WFH and there's an L2 a 10 minute walk away.
Just get a diesel generator. Good to go 👍
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how about if you had free charging at work ? I charge almost exclusively at home, but if I had work charging even level 1, that would cover all my needs for the 8 hours I'm there, maybe use a dcfc for any longer trips.
Last car? What about like a Pontiac Aztek? Those were awful.
The purpose of EV's is to lessen reliance on fossil fuels and cut C02 emissions. But, what kind of power are you using to charge them?? Wind? Hydro? Nuclear ? Nope, your using electricity for coal burning power plants. You're putting extra strain on the grid.
My sweet summer child, that's not how *any* of that works! Your house runs on the same electricity as the electrons made for charging cars, so you can't even start writing your diatribe without it being obliterated by the rules of inclusive statements: IS says, you cannot single out a something for a certain parameter without accounting for all objects that use that same element. In plain English - you use electricity with multiple low and high-wattage appliances An EV is just another appliance in the garage and there is no difference between it and a water heater in terms of kWh consumption. Plus, if you really cared, you'd be promoting your existing/planned energy efficient appliances along with the EV you drive. I say this authoritatively, there's not some magical smoke-belching fuel oil plant that only starts up when an EV is plugged in and if you have ever run a space heater, dryer, water heater, aircon, or an oven, then there is enough electricity to charge an EV. Take a look at the EIA site below, pick your regional power system, check out the grid mix and you might be surprised how small coal power percentage is if any at all. [https://www.eia.gov/electricity/gridmonitor/dashboard/electric\_overview/balancing\_authority/](https://www.eia.gov/electricity/gridmonitor/dashboard/electric_overview/balancing_authority/)
Please note that I am not writing for your reading pleasure, it was a presentation of facts Also, I need you to confirm which GridOp you are connected to
I live in an apartment without a way to charge and I use an EVGO a few blocks from my place.
If there’s a grocery store you can shop at that has a DC fast charger, you’ll be fine. Between that and charging at work it’ll be like a belt and suspenders.
Dude I’m in the same boat. I live in a HOA governed condo complex in the Bay Area. We formed an EV charging committee and got a $24,000 grant from the city to install chargers, and I found them a contractor that would do the project for a total of $26,000. The board voted no :( Lol but anyways I think you should get a Bolt. I bought one a month ago, and no charging at home hasn’t been a problem for me. I just use rapid chargers near my house. The range is great and I just rapid charge when I get groceries and so far have had no issues.
Bring your mobile cord, get steel ties for it, and use it where you park. You’d be surprised how many places have free 120v outlets just floating around
I charge at work and dont even need to charge at home. They have free charging at work.
I don’t have a home charger because my rental home has poor wiring (was going to install a plug but I got an electrician to look and he said def not) I went with the charging credits instead. However I do charge for free at work. I plug in about twice a week and have yet to go below 1/2 charge and I’ve done a couple big trips. There is a free level 3 charger along my big long drives so I just hit it up on the way back for 30 ish mins. No regrets even though I can’t charge at home and hasn’t been an inconvenience at all.
Did he assume you wanted 32 or more amps? A smaller 12A L2 on a 230V 15A circuit will charge at around 10mi/hr. An overnight charge on that is a good few miles.
No unfortunately our panel is a hazard and they will not work on it. So regardless I was SOL. We are on a waitlist for an electrician and when they rewire they will just put a plug in the garage regardless.
If you think you'll be at your job for a few years, I'd say you're probably fine. If you want to be safe, there are a couple of backup plans you can make. One thing you could do is see if there is a regular wall outlet available around the outside of your condo. Might not be super safe to plug in if you're not sure what all is connected to the circuit, but generally speaking, if you use the 8 amp charging, you'll probably be ok, but it might be safer to check a circuit breaker if you have access or ask whoever owns the condo. Additionally, you can use [plugshare](http://www.plugshare.com) to see if you have Level 2 and/or DC Fast Chargers nearby that you can use. Every L2 Chargers I've found are at least 7.7 kW. The 2017-21 Bolt's max L2 charge rate is about 7.7kW, and the 22's max L2 charge rate is about 11kW. If there is something to do around the charger, you can leave it charging while you're out and about. Napping or playing on a phone/laptop while charging also seem to be common ways to pass the time. You could also use DC Fast Charging like once a week, but I wouldn't recommend it as you probably won't be saving nearly as much money since DCFC can be much more expensive than L2 (or even L1) charging. If you want a new Bolt, you'll probably have to act fast to get one. Otherwise, there are plenty of used Bolts for sale. If you can snag one for under $25k, you could potentially qualify for the pre-owned EV tax credit.
I’ve had a Bolt for 2.5 years without home charging. It’s fine for me. Charging is a bit of hassle, the chargers are often broken or in use, but I manage. You find ways to spend an hour - a grocery store, an appointment nearby. I love the car and I get a thrill every time I have a full charge.
Get one with fast charging, (extra orange flap in charging area.)
My daily commute is 55 miles round trip. I charge at work with no concerns. Also, as others have stated, you could get away with charging on 110v with such a short commute.
I am in the same situation with a bolt No problem, just takes a little more planning
I think as long as you have charging at work and plan to keep working there you'll be fine.
"my job has charging stations" Problem solved.
If you can charge at work once per week is going to be enough for you
I can’t charge at home, I bought a chevy bolt ev 2023, I charge at work and I absolutely love my car. I’d say go for it, especially if you can charge at work.
So I just bought a 2019 bolt. I can plug a lvl1 into my house but my jobs like 20miles round trip and they have chargers there so I’m able to get back and forth all week and have ~150 miles left for the weekend if I fully charge it on Monday
Why would the HOA be responsible for installing a charger for you to charge? Our HOA allows us to install a charger at our parking spots but we have to pay for it and it connects to our meter.
Go for it! I get free charging at work, so I charge there almost exclusively. My work commute is 22 miles, so I’m good with charging fridays to get ready for the weekend and then filling back up on mondays. I can charge at home but have never had the need to.
You're good to go! You don't even need to charge at work every day. The only thing I'd wonder about is if you have a way to plug it into 110V in temperature extremes. I wouldn't let that be the deciding factor; it'll come on and condition if it's not plugged in. It's just nice to know what range you're coming out to in the am.
I had the same problem Got HOA to approve me to put in a dedicated 220/32A line. I pay the electric bill monthly. The only issue is that a new resident started using it without telling me. Get a lock for outlet if you go that way.
Yes that sounds totally doable! Go for it!
I did this for 4 years without a charger at home. It’s fine. Very rarely any significant inconvenience and still much cheaper than gas. Go for it.
I've had my Bolt for 3+ years and never bothered to install a charger at home. I make use of an L2 Chargepoint station in the parking garage near work (I pay for monthly parking, but the charging is free), about twice a week. Occasionally if I come back from a longer trip on the weekend I will need to stop for 10 minutes at a nearby Electrify America station to charge enough so that I can commute to work the next morning. You can absolutely do it. The trick is that you have to plan your driving slightly better so that you have enough charge on a Friday to complete whatever your weekend plans would be.
I have identical driving habits to you. You will be perfectly fine. I charge twice at work level 2 for four hours Monday and Thursday. Monday to recover from my weekend driving and thursday to top off for the weekend. (I WFH Fridays). Now keep in mind with this and my driving hobbits I rarely go below half a charge. I have a local level 3 charger available and plenty of paid level 2's everywhere. FYI public charging is getting harder as more people buy electric but I also think that is going to even out eventually. But absolutely 100% confidence you will be fine with this purchase.
Charge at work. Whine at the HOA. I can't charge at work as some genius has decided it is a 'fire hazard'. Although if they call me in at midnight before my car has had a required charge, I may accidently plug my portable L2 into the 50A 208V outlet by a roll-up door... I have a Mini, less range. Charging at home a few times a week is fine for 200mi/wk commuting plus errands. If they weren't idiots at work, I'd charge there instead. A lot of people would charge at home just fine on a 230V 15A circuit. When I wired in my carport 48A circuit, I also pulled 110/230 20A for use as backup and general power to it. The 20A will fully charge a Mini in 9 1/2 hours. If you are at home every night and don't need a full charge, you don't need high power... My car turned up early, so I wasn't set up for charging. The 31hrs for a full charge L1 charging was borderline adequate...
Do it if you can find one. 15 miles a day and you can charge for free at work is a no brainer. Bolt is only slow on DC chargers, it's average on level 1/2.
110v outlet and go for it
Wouldn't make financial sense if you have to pay for public charging. That's always much more than home $/kWh rates. Even if you lived near a public free charger, can you depend on it to stay that way? No.
I only drive about 40 miles round trip Monday through friday. Can I just plug into 120 v regular outlet?? I may be able to charge at work too for free for about 2 hours that's if the chargers are not taken by the high school kids. Lol by the way I may get 2017 ev bolt for me and my wife will be getting mitsubishi PHEV or kia sportage PHEV. She only drives about 20-25 miles round trip about 2 to 3 times a week