Pretty excited with this HPWC install...

[jcaspar]

Nice installs but I will put in another +1 for doing this yourself. Not only is it cheaper but you can do it without all the ugly conduit that electricians seem to love to use. This is one of the two 14-50 outlets in addition to a 100A subpanel I installed.

 

[disillusioned]

Yeah, I mean this was by the main Tesla recommended shop and I'm pretty sure the breaker box works for DC.

 

[MrJones390]

You have got to be kidding, the breaker itself is less than a foot from the HPWC, I can't imagine how that wouldn't qualify as a disconnect!

Here's the rule

source: http://www.hydroquebec.com/transportation-electrification/pdf/technical-installation-guide.pdf

Anyway, your charger looks great and I wouldn't worry about it!

 

[Mark Z]

Here's the rule...

The key text is, "locked in the open position".

I asked my electrician and city inspector about this subject at the time of my HPWC install. The concern mentioned at the time was if work was being done on the EVSE, the electric must be powered off and verifiable. There are locking devices for circuit breakers that would have been allowed in my case. The issue is to prevent power from being applied remotely. If the EVSE was being worked on and the circuit breaker panel was elsewhere, then someone might switch the circuit breaker on during repair. That could be tragic. If the switch is nearby, the person working on the EVSE won't allow someone else to power up the circuit. In the same way, if a circuit breaker can be locked in the open position, then no one can apply power while the repair is being accomplished. In my case, we chose the cutoff switch, rather than a locking circuit breaker for the panel outside of the garage.

IMHO, in this situation, since an electrician did the work and the circuit breaker panel is next to the EVSE, this appears to be a perfect installation if the circuit breaker for the EVSE is located in that panel and properly labeled. One caution would be to double check that the circuit is off when returning from a break from working on the repair. Never assume that the circuit is off, check it again, especially since a cover on the circuit breaker panel is hiding the on/off position of the breaker.

 

[FlasherZ]

The disconnect is more important and appropriate for the commercial installations - where lock-out/tag-out rules should be applied.

In residential settings, this isn't too much of a concern. Whether HPWC circuit or a basic lighting circuit, it could be nasty if someone turned it back on, but it's unlikely to happen.

This is typically a topic that varies based on different inspectors. NEC 2014 (for those in the US) for EVSE (625.42) simply states "the disconnecting means shall be provided and installed in a readily accessible location". Unlike parts of the code that specifically demand "within sight of" or similar language, this seems to require only an accessible disconnect that can be locked per NEC 110.25 (the new consolidated lockable disconnect section). As a result, there are many inspectors who are fine considering the breaker in the panel as the "accessible disconnect" (provided that you add a locking mechanism). Yet others interpret the "readily accessible" to mean in the same room, or within sight of, the HPWC.

You have to check with your inspector to see what his interpretation would be.