What did you pay for basic home charger installation?

[panthar]

$500 difference in price is kind of meaningless without knowing how much wire you were buying. Most installs won't use anywhere near $500 of wire, so how could the difference be that much?

It would make more sense to state the price difference as a percentage. I have a hard time believing a local electronic supply would sell the same product for a lot cheaper than Home Depot, maybe 10 or 15% less, at most.

I do know that Home Depot has limited selection of wire. I think they carry the slightly more expensive wire for wet locations because it's rated for dry locations too. The electrical supply store would probably have the slightly less expensive wire for dry locations, if that's what you need.

I needed 135 feet , I got for 300$ for 135 feet from Elliot Hardware

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[Speedr]

I needed 135 feet , I got for 300$ for 135 feet from Elliot Hardware

Yeah, wire has gotten crazy expensive!

 

[HaulingAss]

I needed 135 feet , I got for 300$ for 135 feet from Elliot Hardware

Are you saying the same wire would have been $800 from Home Depot? I don't understand the $500 cheaper.

 

[panthar]

Are you saying the same wire would have been $800 from Home Depot? I don't understand the $500 cheaper.

My friend I am giving you advice to help you, you don’t want to listen then buy from lowes and Home Depot , what else can I say.

 

[AlmostHuman]

Maybe the $500 difference was an example. I do think it is a good idea to look at a couple different places for wire. Can’t hurt and might save some money.

 

[Gogster2k]

I had a friend who is also a certified electrician who also installs Tesla destination chargers, perform the work which included all the required material using 75 feet of #6, 2 conductor with ground, conduit, hangers, connectors and circuit breakers for originally $800.00, but he ran into difficulty drilling the wiring access hole through the house framework to the garage so I gave him another $100.00 for the extra effort.

 

[Crissa]

I’ve seen 4 responses for under $1,000. I know one was a DYI solution. Were the others in that cost range likewise DYI?
thanks.

I ended up going with a DYI solution for about $200 of materials, I ran the line myself because it was 100' outside. Also chose a lower amperage because of length.

Quotes I got were mostly 'no' and 'over $3000'. Tho I am in an expensive part of the country.

-Crissa

 

[tmeyer3]

I had a friend who is also a certified electrician who also installs Tesla destination chargers, perform the work which included all the required material using 75 feet of #6, 2 conductor with ground, conduit, hangers, connectors and circuit breakers for originally $800.00, but he ran into difficulty drilling the wiring access hole through the house framework to the garage so I gave him another $100.00 for the extra effort.

I appreciate this! My childhood was provided for by honest electrician work.

 

[Mystery.Shadow]

I ended up going with a DYI solution for about $200 of materials, I ran the line myself because it was 100' outside. Also chose a lower amperage because of length.

Quotes I got were mostly 'no' and 'over $3000'. Tho I am in an expensive part of the country.

-Crissa

My usual electrician quoted me $2,000 for a 90' run with conduit thru two walls. Was wondering if I was being taken....

 

[seussiii]

I've had 4 quotes...
1.4k
1.8k
2x 2.3k

that included a ~30 ft run including a 120 and 60 amp line. I dug the 24" trench. Getting it done tomorrow while I wait for my NFS vin.

 

[HaulingAss]

I always recommend to people to install one gauge larger (yes you will use more four letter words installing it) than what is called for. If you are installing an EV charger that only needs two "hot" wires and a ground spend the extra money for a cable that has three wires and a ground. If you ever change your mind later and want something like a NEMA 14-50 you can use the same wire.

The number of people who will be converting an existing wall connector to a NEMA 14-50 will be so close to zero that it makes no sense to spend the money now.

That said, I did include an unnecessary conductor on my A-frame charging kiosk because I had the same wrong-headed thinking as you do, an irrational "future-proofing" mentality. The time value of money is such that you should invest the money for that extra copper conductor in something more likely to payoff. I know the actual cost is low, but everything is relative. You are not going to double your investment on an extra conductor over 10 years, but you certainly should with most reasonable investments. And investment gains can continue to compound over your investing lifetime, the copper will likely be replaced in a future rebuild/remodel.

As to up sizing the conductors, that is not necessarily a bad idea, but it's not a great idea either, except in cases where it's obvious, as in a long run. It's probably a reasonable idea on a short run too, not a great idea. On a short run, paying attention to proper torque, and forming the wire in a skillful manner at the terminal connections, and eliminating strain and reducing thermal cycling will pay bigger dividends than upsizing conductors. The only cost is your time and attention.

Regardless of whether the conductors are upsized, it's not a bad idea to upsize any conduit, especially if it has two or more elbows. Upsizing conduit costs almost nothing and really eases the pulling of wires and also allows larger conductors to be installed in the same conduit if needed for heavier (or more power sharing) EVs in the future.

 

[HaulingAss]

I had a friend who is also a certified electrician who also installs Tesla destination chargers, perform the work which included all the required material using 75 feet of #6, 2 conductor with ground, conduit, hangers, connectors and circuit breakers for originally $800.00, but he ran into difficulty drilling the wiring access hole through the house framework to the garage so I gave him another $100.00 for the extra effort.

And that is one reason so many electrical jobs are over bid, to account for unforseen difficulties. An electrician knows they might not get the job anyway, so they don't want to spend a lot of time fully exploring the job to give you a free bid.

This kind of work would be a lot cheaper if the politicians would reduce the burdens on small business owners, reduce regulation, and reduce taxation. We are regulated into the ground over ridiculous stuff. Things need to change for people to prosper more easily.

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