Charger installation tips and tricks?

[tesstuff]

Hi All,

Ordered the tesla charger, on advice of the forum.
For the install does anyone have any tips that I need to consider for placement?
E.g. most seem to have the charger on the side or front of their garage, I think I've seen some installed inside the garage but wonder if that is more of a hassle if you decide to then park the car on the drive instead of the garage. Or should I install it in the back of the property so that it's out of sight?

What about the cable - would it trip up my regular postman in the early hours of the morning?

Any tips on those who have done the install already would be appreciated.

 

[guicane]

Do you know if the charger is available to anyone that plugs into it or if it's locked to your VIN only?

 

[Burley]

Do you know if the charger is available to anyone that plugs into it or if it's locked to your VIN only?

You can set it to charge Tesla only using the DIP switches inside, but that would mean visitors who need to charge couldn't use it easily. If you linked to your VIN only, you'd be limiting yourself if you changed your car, or had use of a loan vehicle if yours was in service...

 

[WannabeOwner]

Tesla cars' charge port is rear-left. You may want to consider how you normally park the car in terms of placement of the charger.

I've had my Tesla charger for some years, they may well have cheapen'd up a bit ... or (from memory) they had separate long / short cable models. Anyways, my cable is so long I can reach the other side of the car (if wrong way round) and even if the car is parked there and I need to charge another EV then it will reach a second car parked nose-to-tail. So might be worth considering the reach of the cable (for the charger model you are buying) and where that would enable you to park, for example, a second car that needed charging (without having to shuffle the other). Given how long my cable is it lies on the ground, so isn't a trip hazard (that a stretched cable would be)

Mine is on the wall behind a planter so that it doesn't show, and I can be lazy about just looping the tethered cable's plug over it, rather than coiling it carefully. Its quite a heavy cable to properly sort out each time.

 

[Mrklaw]

same way you might put a big bit of cardboard on your wall to imagine how the new TV will look, dry run your charger placement.

where do you normally park? Charge port on rear left so if you have your tesla already or a donor car, park it up and work out if there is a natural place for the charger that will be a short run without blocking any paths. eg for me I park in front of the garage and so the charger on the front garage wall is normally one single unlooping of the charger cable, doesn't block anyone, and also doesn't drag on the ground.

you may find you need to change where you park to have a better placement - does that work? do you get blocked in by the wife's/kids car? Will the charger be convenient for the consumer unit to wire it up - where will you want to run cables if needed?

 

[WannabeOwner]

you may find you need to change where you park to have a better placement

That reminds me ... worth considering the cable length from "fuse board", and how difficult that cable run is. That will effect cost of installation.

 

[GRiLLA]

I have a charger in the garage as the other half didn't want it on the front of the house, and it's a pain as we never park in the garage and run the cable under the door. We now have a hanger for the cable when we aren't using it, so we may as well have put the charger on the outside.

If it's outside I would be careful to make sure the that's it's hung facing down, she also decided she couldn't be bothered with that and left it in a wet plant pot and then it stopped working.

Yes you should be careful if there is a risk to any pedestrians coming to your door, but mainly avoiding loops that would trip, as long as it's neat it should be no bother.

 

[SilverString]

I would put it in the garage if you can. Less wear and tear, less likely someone will mess with it and generally cheaper to do. Sort of depends on your situation and where your breaker box is located. Is it a big deal to put you car in the garage when you need to charge? If so then outside. Pretty much a subjective decision.

 

[Kansalis]

If it's outside I would be careful to make sure the that's it's hung facing down, she also decided she couldn't be bothered with that and left it in a wet plant pot and then it stopped working.

Not sure if the Tesla charge cable has a cap on it, but don't put the cap on if it does. I did that once with my PodPoint & the cap filled up with water in the rain, then froze solid overnight (it was hung over the charger, pointing down as @GRiLLA suggests). That was fun to deal with in the morning, I had to bring the cable inside for a day to thaw & properly dry out. I took the cap off completely in the end.

 

[WannabeOwner]

Is it a big deal to put you car in the garage when you need to charge?

I think it might be a bigger deal if next EV has charger port in different position, and then have to squeeze around the car to plug in.

That said, I've seen some creative uses of ceiling-mounted cable routing which has the cable hooked to a catenary and the plug on an elasticated cord, so just drag the plug, overhead, to whenever most suits the car's charge port (and presumably leave it there until you get a different EV) and then just reach up, grab, pull down and plug in.

But I've converted the garage that came with my house into an extension ... so in my case the car is outside. I have an in-and-out drive, so for left-side charge I can come in at one end, and for right-side-charge then the other end.

 

[WannabeOwner]

Not sure if the Tesla charge cable has a cap on it

No cap on mine (Tesla brand), but the brand at work has caps - but they have a drainage hole in them. I blow hard on the plug, every time just before plugging in, to dislodge any dust etc. in there - sometimes a few water droplets too.

 

[tesstuff]

Thanks for all the info, had to measure from the charger to the car and the cable just reaches the rear left.

 

[Avendit]

I have a charger in the garage as the other half didn't want it on the front of the house, and it's a pain as we never park in the garage and run the cable under the door. We now have a hanger for the cable when we aren't using it, so we may as well have put the charger on the outside.

If it's outside I would be careful to make sure the that's it's hung facing down, she also decided she couldn't be bothered with that and left it in a wet plant pot and then it stopped working.

Yes you should be careful if there is a risk to any pedestrians coming to your door, but mainly avoiding loops that would trip, as long as it's neat it should be no bother.

I printed this holster and used it with the UMC for a good while if that might help?

Type 2 connector holster by avendit

Simple holster, customised with a Tesla T and made to print on my 12cm printer.

www.thingiverse.com

 

[greenbottle123]

I printed this holster and used it with the UMC for a good while if that might help?

Type 2 connector holster by avendit

Simple holster, customised with a Tesla T and made to print on my 12cm printer.

www.thingiverse.com

is it possible to get a 3D printed design for a normal type 2 charger ,in order to make a plastic moulded cap?

 

[Avendit]

is it possible to get a 3D printed design for a normal type 2 charger ,in order to make a plastic moulded cap?

I'd go for a search on that site? Might be better getting a 'spare' from somewhere that sends caps with their chargers. My Andersen A2 does eg.

 

[Durzel]

Andersen is the solution to all of these problems (SWMBO fretting over aesthetics, and charger cable cap filling up with water, etc).

You do pay a pretty penny for the privilege, but for something you could conceivably use every day that extra cost soon becomes an afterthought, especially in the context of marital harmony.

 

[WannabeOwner]

I'd go for a search on that site?

Make sure you don't accidentally set "ADULT" on that site. Assuming you accidentally registered of course ...

Andersen is the solution to all of these problems (SWMBO fretting over aesthetics

Mine is bolted to the front of house, but behind a planter. You'd be hard pressed to see that they are there (there are two chargers on the front of the house)

 

[WannabeOwner]

Found a photo from a thread back in Jan 2017 ... I feel old!

Normally I park the other way round which makes plugging in easier ...

That Rolec charger burnt through (as they were inclined to do) and I now have a Tesla Charger instead

 

[greenbottle123]

Found a photo from a thread back in Jan 2017 ... I feel old!

Normally I park the other way round which makes plugging in easier ...

That Rolec charger burnt through (as they were inclined to do) and I now have a Tesla Charger instead

Rolec were rubbish (but cheapest) right? Where are they now? I have seen excess stock listed up on ebay..

 

[WannabeOwner]

Rolec were rubbish (but cheapest) right?

At the time Tesla Charger was not approved for the grant, I just took whatever the installer recommended. Had one at work too, that burnt through the fuse, but that one was at least repairable with an improved fuse. Mine has a big burn-hole in the side ... by comparison the Tesla charger has a much longer cable, and it is far more robust too. Dunno if that is still the case.