Any benefit of Tesla home charger vs 220 outlet?

[cmaster]

I understand the concerns of some people. I once were like the majority who was not comfortable with plumbing, electrical, etc...But, the DIY guide on Amazon.com highlights the things your should do such as getting a permit, check with your local ordinances, etc...

A 50$ work permit goes along way to get a free electrical inspection and garunteeing home owner insurance coverage if your house ever gets on fire because of your tinkering.

If you're not comfortable, don't do it. If you are, then, just be smart about it. We don't fit in the general category. This is what makes people anxious about life in general. The need to fit in.

As with most things, the reality is somewhere in between the two extremes. Electricity; 120V, 240V or whatever is dangerous and if you don't understand the codes, concepts and proper safety then you should rely upon a licensed electrician. Even if you're not doing the work yourself, it's valuable to understand what's actually required so you can avoid getting ripped off. If you do hire an electrician to do the work, they should be able to break down the costs into permitting (if required), materials and labor.

 

[cmaster]

Somehow everyone thinks we can all fix "Stupid" as bad as that sounds. I hate using this phrase because I once was stupid.

As with most things, the reality is somewhere in between the two extremes. Electricity; 120V, 240V or whatever is dangerous and if you don't understand the codes, concepts and proper safety then you should rely upon a licensed electrician. Even if you're not doing the work yourself, it's valuable to understand what's actually required so you can avoid getting ripped off. If you do hire an electrician to do the work, they should be able to break down the costs into permitting (if required), materials and labor.

 

[Krazaak]

Somehow everyone thinks we can all fix "Stupid" as bad as that sounds. I hate using this phrase because I once was stupid.

What's the saying... 'Ignorance is curable, stupid is forever.'

Personally, I recognize other people's limitations, both natural and self-imposed. I don't like to pay people to do work that I'm capable of doing, unless it's something I really don't want to do. I don't see anything wrong with trying to educate people who are interested, so long as you understand that some people can't understand something and others just don't want to.

 

[Racerx22b]

I recommend keeping your plug (I assume it's a NEMA 14/50) and adding a wall charger as pictured below in my garage. Grab yourself a standard range cord from Home Depot and wire it to your wall charger then just plug it into your outlet. That way you can always leave your UMC in your car. And if the wall charger takes a crap you have your UMC as a backup. Just unplug the wall charger and use the UMC until your wall charger gets fixed/replaced. I get 29mph on my Model S85 and 25mph on my Model X P100D.

Disclaimer - I am not an electrician but I did do this install myself and have been charging with no issue for over 2yrs. Always check with all local codes prior to any electrical work.

Jason

 

[Need]

I recommend keeping your plug (I assume it's a NEMA 14/50) and adding a wall charger as pictured below in my garage. Grab yourself a standard range cord from Home Depot and wire it to your wall charger then just plug it into your outlet. That way you can always leave your UMC in your car. And if the wall charger takes a crap you have your UMC as a backup. Just unplug the wall charger and use the UMC until your wall charger gets fixed/replaced. I get 29mph on my Model S85 and 25mph on my Model X P100D.

Oh wow, that is cool. I always like the WC look but don't need the extra charge rate. Now if I ever get to use my referral code, I could get a free black WC and plug it into our NEMA 14-50. But would the WC charges at 48A and that would come very close to the 50A breaker? Would it trips the breaker often?

 

[MorrisonHiker]

Oh wow, that is cool. I always like the WC look but don't need the extra charge rate. Now if I ever get to use my referral code, I could get a free black WC and plug it into our NEMA 14-50. But would the WC charges at 48A and that would come very close to the 50A breaker? Would it trips the breaker often?

Tesla actually made some WCs with 14-50 cables attached. They haven't ever offered them for sale officially, AFAIK:

They only charge at 40 amps max since that's all the 14-50 outlet is rated for with continuous use.

 

[brkaus]

Oh wow, that is cool. I always like the WC look but don't need the extra charge rate. Now if I ever get to use my referral code, I could get a free black WC and plug it into our NEMA 14-50. But would the WC charges at 48A and that would come very close to the 50A breaker? Would it trips the breaker often?

If you do this, you must set the WC to 50a breaker / 40a charging. The outlet is rated for 50a and would be the limiting factor. There is a dial inside to set the current limit.

Don’t design a system around breaker trips for protection.

 

[Need]

If you do this, you must set the WC to 50a breaker / 40a charging. The outlet is rated for 50a and would be the limiting factor. There is a dial inside to set the current limit.

Don’t design a system around breaker trips for protection.

Ah that makes sense. Thanks.

 

[Need]

Tesla actually made some WCs with 14-50 cables attached. They haven't ever offered them for sale officially, AFAIK:

They only charge at 40 amps max since that's all the 14-50 outlet is rated for with continuous use.

This is perfect! Plug and Play and with 24' cord. Maybe it will cheaper too if/when they come out. Many new M3/MS/MX buyer would want this as the Gen 2 UMC charges only at 32A.

 

[MorrisonHiker]

This is perfect! Plug and Play and with 24' cord. Maybe it will cheaper too if/when they come out. Many new M3/MS/MX buyer would want this as the Gen 2 UMC charges only at 32A.

I heard of at least one other person who received one with a 14-50 plug so they do exist out there. I wonder when/if they will be officially offered for sale on Tesla's website.

I think they would definitely cost less than a WC that needs to be hardwired. Also, installation would be a lot cheaper and easier for those who already have 14-50 outlets. I think the 14-50 version of the WC could easily replace the corded version of the MC that Tesla does sell on its website. We bought one of those last year but would've chosen the 14-50 WC had it been available instead.

 

[Need]

I heard of at least one other person who received one with a 14-50 plug so they do exist out there. I wonder when/if they will be officially offered for sale on Tesla's website.

I think they would definitely cost less than a WC that needs to be hardwired. Also, installation would be a lot cheaper and easier for those who already have 14-50 outlets. I think the 14-50 version of the WC could easily replace the corded version of the MC that Tesla does sell on its website. We bought one of those last year but would've chosen the 14-50 WC had it been available instead.

It is basically a Gen 1 UMC with a bigger box and longer cable with fixed NEMA 14-50 adapter. Right?

 

[Krazaak]

I heard of at least one other person who received one with a 14-50 plug so they do exist out there. I wonder when/if they will be officially offered for sale on Tesla's website.

I think they would definitely cost less than a WC that needs to be hardwired. Also, installation would be a lot cheaper and easier for those who already have 14-50 outlets. I think the 14-50 version of the WC could easily replace the corded version of the MC that Tesla does sell on its website. We bought one of those last year but would've chosen the 14-50 WC had it been available instead.

I can't imagine a WC with an attached 14-50 plug costing less than a WC without one, because they're presumably the exact same piece of equipment with the exception of the cord. It might end up being the more economical choice if you already have an outlet installed, but unless your installer is taking you for a ride, a hardwired HPWC will cost less installed than adding a plug/outlet into the mix.

If you don't need the added charging amperage and you're primarily concerned with the aesthetics and future flexibility then I don't see anything wrong with the solution. Of course, you could also just hardwire the HPWC in a position where you simply disconnect it in the future and put an outlet box in its place.

 

[Racerx22b]

As stated above, you must set the dip switches or whatever they have now so the WC is limited to 40amp charging if you add a range cord as I did. Apologies for leaving out that detail. My charging rates listed above are from 40amp charging on a 50amp circuit.

 

[MorrisonHiker]

I can't imagine a WC with an attached 14-50 plug costing less than a WC without one, because they're presumably the exact same piece of equipment with the exception of the cord. It might end up being the more economical choice if you already have an outlet installed, but unless your installer is taking you for a ride, a hardwired HPWC will cost less installed than adding a plug/outlet into the mix.

If you don't need the added charging amperage and you're primarily concerned with the aesthetics and future flexibility then I don't see anything wrong with the solution. Of course, you could also just hardwire the HPWC in a position where you simply disconnect it in the future and put an outlet box in its place.

The cable with the 14-50 WC is thinner and the same as the corded MC cable. It might not be significantly cheaper but it would still cost less than the 80 amp WC with the thicker cable.

 

[MorrisonHiker]

It is basically a Gen 1 UMC with a bigger box and longer cable with fixed NEMA 14-50 adapter. Right?

Pretty close. More robust so it would probably last longer than the MC.

 

[Krazaak]

The cable with the 14-50 WC is thinner and the same as the MC cable. It might not be significantly cheaper but it would still cost less than the 80 amp WC with the thicker cable.

You can wire up the WC with whatever cable you want, so long as you use the proper breaker and set the dip switches in the WC.

If you want to use a 50A breaker and 6-2 NM-B for the WC, that's fine if you set the switches right. No outlet required.

EDIT: My mistake, just watched the video. Didn't realize you meant the charge cable. In that case, possible it would be cheaper, especially if other internal components are scaled down.

 

[sub]

I have the gen 2 MC and installed a 14-50, our model X charges at 22mph. This gets the job done 99% of the time but there have been a couple instances where a little faster would have been good. I had planned to buy a WC and hard wire it into my 50amp circuit so I could charge at 40amp instead of 32, having seen the plug idea I will definitely go that route.

 

[lymex2018]

The wall connector comes with Model X 100D before Oct 2017 in China is the HPWC that allows 72A current max. This will give 85 Chinese rated km per hour (44mph EPA). However, I don't need that speed so I only installed a cheap single phase 220V-32A line that can charge the car at 35 rated km per hour (18mph EPA).

The car also comes with the UMC that consist of a 10A single-phase adapter which is a kind of slow so I modified it to 32A max (by adding a very small resistor).

 

[Rocky_H]

I recommend keeping your plug (I assume it's a NEMA 14/50) and adding a wall charger as pictured below in my garage. Grab yourself a standard range cord from Home Depot and wire it to your wall charger then just plug it into your outlet. That way you can always leave your UMC in your car. And if the wall charger takes a crap you have your UMC as a backup. Just unplug the wall charger and use the UMC until your wall charger gets fixed/replaced. I get 29mph on my Model S85 and 25mph on my Model X P100D.

Disclaimer - I am not an electrician but I did do this install myself and have been charging with no issue for over 2yrs. Always check with all local codes prior to any electrical work.

Jason



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And that's why you don't do that stuff yourself. Electric code is so huge and complex and changes every few years. That is an illegal install. Code requires that the 14-50 cord you have attached can be no more than 1 foot long.

 

[Racerx22b]

And that's why you don't do that stuff yourself. Electric code is so huge and complex and changes every few years. That is an illegal install. Code requires that the 14-50 cord you have attached can be no more than 1 foot long.

I am not disputing your knowledge but can you please explain why my double oven uses this exact same cord and is "legal"?

I would challenge your characterization of it being "illegal". I've never seen a law enforcement agency arrest someone for violating electrical code. Not per code, yes. Illegal? Not so much.

Jason