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Are electricians price gouging because you bought a tesla model 3?
- Thread starter Mymeatguy
- Start date
chronopc
Active Member
You know, I seriously did not realize that you need to be hiding the intended use for the electrician's job...jeez, this is screwed up.
Yes, max charge current is 80% of breaker size. This would give you 12A * 240V or roughly a 2.9kW charge rate (minus some for having the vehicle on). Over twice as fast as a standard 120V 15A outlet though.
20A circuit would be 3.8 kW
chronopc
Active Member
6AWG is definitely too small for a 100A subpanel.
2AWG THHN copper conductors pulled through buried conduit would be ideal. The ground conductor only needs to be 6AWG I think (double-check this) It gets you to a full 100A panel (100A breaker in your main panel). Aluminum #2 SER cable is common and pretty cheap, but can only carry 90A (90A breaker in your main panel).
Other considerations:
Run buried PVC conduit out to the garage for a clean look instead of overhead wires.
Drop in some extra 1" conduit runs with your power run so you can pull other lines out to the garage in the future. I installed 2 extra, empty conduit runs with pull strings. I'll probably run ethernet in one and a 3-way switch for garage exterior lights to the house in the other.
Tesla offers recommendations for electricians in my area. They were all well above $1000-$1200.
I found a private electrician that was going to charge me $400 (and that included the permit).
In the end I opted for my solar company to do it. They only charged me $500. And that included the permit.
Granted, my installation was nothing fancy. The place on the garage wall where I needed the 240V outlet was right on the other side of the wall from the electric panel.
I found a private electrician that was going to charge me $400 (and that included the permit).
In the end I opted for my solar company to do it. They only charged me $500. And that included the permit.
Granted, my installation was nothing fancy. The place on the garage wall where I needed the 240V outlet was right on the other side of the wall from the electric panel.
The wall charger and the mobile connector plugged into a 14-50 will give you the same charging speeds at the same amperage. However, you are able to use higher amperage with the wall connector to enable higher speeds.
Do Tesla approved electricians charge more? Probably yes. I have used 2 in different states, and they charged the same. They also use better grade receptacles and breakers designed for long term use at maximum draw. Also, Tesla does not void your battery warranty over damage from an improper install. As a Tesla employee said to me” isn’t it worth a few hundred to protect a $18,000 investment?”
dgpcolorado
high altitude member
Dryer outlets are fairly common in garages in the Sunbelt and quite uncommon in garages in snow country, where the laundry area has to be in the heated space of the house so pipes don't freeze.
Depends on where one lives.
I think some responses have hinted this, but let me come out and say it. Almost nobody needs a HPWC. A NEMA 14-50 outlet and free Tesla mobile charger will easily charge from empty to full overnight, and few drivers will ever need that much in one night. NEMA 14-50 is less expensive to have electrician install, and easier/less expensive to self install. Are Tesla recommended electricians gouging? Probably. Don’t accept that. Get quotes until you get something < $350 + $10 per foot between outlet and panel. That’s assuming you have capacity in panel.
PS you don’t want to be gouged. But you certainly want to be gauged
(correctly)!!!
PS you don’t want to be gouged. But you certainly want to be gauged
(correctly)!!!I think some responses have hinted this, but let me come out and say it. Almost nobody needs a HPWC. A NEMA 14-50 outlet and free Tesla mobile charger will easily charge from empty to full overnight, and few drivers will ever need that much in one night. NEMA 14-50 is less expensive to have electrician install, and easier/less expensive to self install. Are Tesla recommended electricians gouging? Probably. Don’t accept that. Get quotes until you get something < $350 + $10 per foot between outlet and panel. That’s assuming you have capacity in panel.
PS you don’t want to be gouged. But you certainly want to be gauged
For occasional use sure, but if you are setting up your high frequency use home charge station, and do not want to wear out your 14-50 socket taking the UMC with you, and do not currently have a 14-50 installed, the HPWC is not unreasonable.
HPWC $500
UMC $300 + 14-50 Socket
HPWC also allows for load splitting if you are a 2 Tesla garage. 8 foot version is less cluttery for single spot garages.
Wear out socket???? I’m almost 6 years into UMC and 14-50 setup for daily use, there’s no durability issue. You can buy second UMC for $300 and leave one in car if worried. Agree regarding load splitting and beauty, but I see/hear many new owners jumping to assumption they wil need HPWC, which is incremental $500 plus higher install costs. Most don’t need, and if you are $ sensitive, don’t bother!
I'm speaking of the 14-50 socket for the use case of people who take their UMC with themselves often. It may not be an issue, but I know many types of connectors have limited mating cycles. If it stays plug in, sure no issue.
I was recently quoted $290 to install a NEMA 14-50 outlet next to the panel in my garage. Already have 60A service, which mostly goes unused.
Who said anything about a Tesla??? Not me. This is Nissan Leaf country (the plant where they make them is just a few miles down the road - in my lifetime I've seen about 30 Leafs, and exactly 2 Teslas locally.) They probably just assume...
Who said anything about a Tesla??? Not me.
This is Nissan Leaf country (the plant where they make them is just a few miles down the road - in my lifetime I've seen about 30 Leafs, and exactly 2 Teslas locally.) They probably just assume...Similar threads
