Choosing A Tesla Home-charging Option

[Watts_Up]

With the continued influx of new Tesla (especially Models 3 and Y) owners,
questions continue about the best way to charge at home.

The simplest is to use the portable charger included with the car using a NEMA 15-30 (24 Amp) or NEMA 15-50 (32 Amp) adapter.

- However if you need often to travel and take the portable charger,
get a second one to avoid to unplug too often the socket, or use a wall charger.

- When using a portable charger, be careful to use a little shelf or small bracket to hold the weight of the charger,
otherwise there is a risk to have the plug not inserted correctly because of the weight of the charger.

- If you need to charge more than one car at the same time,
then install two or more wall chargers to share the load between each chargers.

 

[Rocky_H]

using a NEMA 15-30 (24 Amp) or NEMA 15-50 (32 Amp) adapter.

You mean 14-30 and 14-50.

If you need to charge more than one car at the same time,
then install two or more wall chargers to share the load between each chargers.

And that is still not available. The current Generation 3 wall connectors were released in an unfinished premature state and Tesla still has not released the software update for them that supposedly will allow circuit sharing at some unknown point in the future.

Yes, I am going to keep harping on Tesla for that, because it was such an idiotic thing to do.

 

[tps5352]

...And that is still not available. The current Generation 3 wall connectors were released in an unfinished premature state and Tesla still has not released the software update for them that supposedly will allow circuit sharing at some unknown point in the future...

Wow. That's interesting.

For those of us not up to speed on all Wall Connector features, the Tesla Installation Guides (for the USA) say this (emphasis added):

1. Gen 1 High Power

- Nothing I could see about multiple-car charging on a single circuit.

2. Gen 2 80A

• "...includes a feature whereby Wall Connector to Wall Connector communication allows you to split the maximum available load over a maximum of 4 Wall Connectors..."
  -- Appendix B, Page 29 (Tesla P/N: 1069742-00-A) and Appendix B, Page 30 and (Tesla P/N: 1069742-00-D)

3. Gen 3 48a

• "Power Sharing Overview
  
  "This feature will be available in a future over-the-air firmware update.
  
  "The firmware-based power sharing feature enables up to 16 Wall Connectors installed at the same site to intelligently share the site's total available power via unit-to-unit Wi-Fi..."
  -- Page 23 (Revision 1.0, January 15, 2020)

So you're saying that the over-the-air Gen 3 firmware update was never implemented? That's surprising (and disappointing). But the Gen 2 Wall Connectors can still do their hard-wired (non-Wi-Fi) daisy-chain thing, correct? Could this be why Tesla last year (temporarily) re-issued Gen 2 Wall Connectors--i.e., to satisfy a (justifiable) clamor from owners without a way (with the new Gen 3 Connectors) to simultaneously charge more than one car on a single circuit?

 

[Rocky_H]

So you're saying that the over-the-air Gen 3 firmware update was never implemented? That's surprising (and disappointing). But the Gen 2 Wall Connectors can still do their hard-wired (non-Wi-Fi) daisy-chain thing, correct? Could this be why Tesla last year (temporarily) re-issued Gen 2 Wall Connectors--i.e., to satisfy a (justifiable) clamor from owners without a way (with the new Gen 3 Connectors) to simultaneously charge more than one car on a single circuit?

Yessss. Now you're seeing why this was such a horrific business decision from them. The Gen1 didn't have that. It was a highly desirable feature that was introduced in the Gen2 and was available there for a few years. When they came out with the Gen3 that replaced the Gen2 for the same price, it was missing that feature that people had been using for years. And it is still not implemented.

This is one that frustrates me some with how in the Kool-Aid some Tesla fans are. I really do like Tesla, but we're seeing how bad things can get when people won't live in a reality-based world and understand that facts are facts. People are taking Tesla's wording of "will", which is actually a future tense, and it goes into their minds as present tense and already done, and they go around telling everyone that the Gen3 wall connector already has circuit sharing, which is just entirely false.

No.

It does not have that. It has not been done. It is not done until Tesla does it. And with Tesla's horrible track record of timeliness, I am not going to blow that off, expecting that any day now, it will be ready. Tesla does great things, but usually not meeting any of the schedules they announce, and with this thing, they haven't even announced any expected timeline.

 

[pb2000]

A couple of interns could write the code in an afternoon, so I'd hazard a guess the holdup is in UL certification or something along those lines.

Enough with the ranting.

 

[tps5352]

A couple of interns could write the code in an afternoon, so I'd hazard a guess the holdup is in UL certification or something along those lines.

Not to belabor this issue (and I have never handled or seen inside a Gen 3 Wall Connector) but could two or more Gen 3 Connectors go old-school and be hard-wired (like Gen 2 Connectors) to charge multiple cars on the same circuit? I assume not, since the Gen 3 Installation Manual seems to say that sharing is (only?) achieved wirelessly. But I am a little unclear on the language (see Pages 23-25), Regardless, seems like an important feature to just leave hanging, unimplemented out there. Owners of multiple cars are correct to be concerned since the Gen 2 Wall Connectors are once again not available from Tesla. Has the slack been picked up by aftermarket wall connector brands? What are the proportions of Tesla owners that have (a) only one Tesla (Models S, X, 3, or Y) versus those that have (b) more than one? Anyone know? (I'll check online.)

 

[pb2000]

Each charger gets it own dedicated circuit from the (sub) panel and then you tell the group of chargers the max current they can collectively draw. Depending on your use case, that's either a huge pain (homeowner with 2 Teslas wanting to charge from a single circuit), or a good thing (large bank of destination chargers)

 

[Rocky_H]

but could two or more Gen 3 Connectors go old-school and be hard-wired (like Gen 2 Connectors) to charge multiple cars on the same circuit?

No. They did not include any method to do the communication wired, which was also something people were a little frustrated with, like if they already had one or two of the Gen2 ones, you would think backward compatibility would be nice to add a third wall connector that was Gen3 and be able to also wire it into the system people already had.

Regardless, seems like an important feature to just leave hanging, unimplemented out there. Owners of multiple cars are correct to be concerned since the Gen 2 Wall Connectors are once again not available from Tesla.

Yes, it is.

Has the slack been picked up by aftermarket wall connector brands?

Well, your phrasing of "picked up" makes it sounds like other brands would just be getting this idea for the very first time when discovering as a big surprise that Tesla had dropped the ball here in losing the ability for circuit sharing. It's not like that. There have already been other brands with circuit sharing units for several years.

And I'm not sure I've seen stats or know where to find them of what proportion of Tesla owners only have one or multiple.

 

[Rocky_H]

People are taking Tesla's wording of "will", which is actually a future tense, and it goes into their minds as present tense and already done, and they go around telling everyone that the Gen3 wall connector already has circuit sharing, which is just entirely false.

And right on cue, here is an example of why this is such a problem with Tesla and the owners talking about the Gen3 as if it has circuit sharing when it doesn't. This person bought two of them because of hearing people talk about it as if it already has that functionality and has now come to discover (after already buying them for this feature) that he was misinformed, and they don't have it.

Wall Connector v3 Firmware Update

 

[Curt Renz]

Expert advice would be much appreciated.

I soon will be buying a brand new home, for which construction has not yet begun.

1) For a Tesla car, how should I tell the builder to electrically wire the garage?

2) What type of electrical outlet should they install?

3) For how many amps should they set the circuit breaker?

4) Anything else I may have overlooked?

Great thanks in advance.

 

[Rocky_H]

Expert advice would be much appreciated.

I soon will be buying a brand new home, for which construction has not yet begun.

1) For a Tesla car, how should I tell the builder to electrically wire the garage?

2) What type of electrical outlet should they install?

3) For how many amps should they set the circuit breaker?

4) Anything else I may have overlooked?

Great thanks in advance.

Putting the wire in the wall is the expensive part to redo later, so up front, I would recommend go ahead and tell them to put in wire for a 60A circuit.

From that point, you still have options for whichever way you want to go. You could use it as a 60A circuit and buy a wall connector. The wall connector would be something you would need to buy if you want that.

Or, you could do it as a 50A circuit with an outlet on the other end--either a 14-50 or 6-50. Most people would probably recommend 14-50 because it is a little more versatile. The car comes with a charging cable to plug into outlets, but you would need to buy a $35 adapter for whichever type of outlet you decide to use.

 

[Curt Renz]

Putting the wire in the wall is the expensive part to redo later, so up front, I would recommend go ahead and tell them to put in wire for a 60A circuit.

From that point, you still have options for whichever way you want to go. You could use it as a 60A circuit and buy a wall connector. The wall connector would be something you would need to buy if you want that.

Or, you could do it as a 50A circuit with an outlet on the other end--either a 14-50 or 6-50. Most people would probably recommend 14-50 because it is a little more versatile. The car comes with a charging cable to plug into outlets, but you would need to buy a $35 adapter for whichever type of outlet you decide to use.

Thanks for the quick reply, Rocky.

I went through this 5 years ago when my current home was being built. Indeed, the builder agreed with you that the process was far easier while the home is being built rather than afterward. They did it at no extra charge.

They installed a NEMA 14-50R outlet for 220 volts and a 50 amp circuit breaker, as Tesla was recommending.

After 5 years, the best advice may have changed, hence my original question.

Is the wall connector superior? Cost is not a huge consideration.

If I go the wall connector route, and ask the builder to put in a 60 amp circuit, what type of outlet should be placed on the end? NEMA 14-50R? 220-240 volts?

 

[Rocky_H]

I'll answer this one first:

If I go the wall connector route, and ask the builder to put in a 60 amp circuit, what type of outlet should be placed on the end? NEMA 14-50R? 220-240 volts?

You don't. The wall connector is a hard-wired device, not a "plug into an outlet" kind of device. The wires just go right into it and clamp into terminals in it.

After 5 years, the best advice may have changed, hence my original question. Is the wall connector superior? Cost is not a huge consideration.

There is no "best" advice; this is just a preference decision. There are some considerations with various people's locations and scenarios that may weight toward one or the other, but that depends on your circumstances. This has been debated in MANY threads, so I'll not go into too much detail here.

Final Decision, 14-50 or Wall Connector?

Advantages of Wall Connector vs Mobile Connector?

Wall connector or 14-50 socket

Which charger is everyone going with? wall charger or portable plug in?

Best Method of Home Charging for SR+?

So there is some late night reading for you.

A couple of considerations:
If it's going to be an outdoor setup, I would recommend the wall connector, since those are intentionally built for that and are weather proof.
Some people do go fine with just the plug in cable and a 14-50 permanently. That's what I do, and it stays hanging on the wall in the garage. But that freaks some people out, who think they need a charging cable with them in the car ALL the time for that extreme emergency. But if there are some decent other amount of charging resources around your area that could be backups, then you probably don't need a cable in the car all the time.

If you do decide you want to buy an extra something for charging, I would not recommend a second mobile connector. The wall connector cost is similar and would offer slightly better charging speed if you can go on a little higher circuit.

 

[pb2000]

1) For a Tesla car, how should I tell the builder to electrically wire the garage?

If it's detached you'll probably want a sub panel.
Consider adding 6-20 plugs for each additional parking space (double/triple garage) and one on the exterior for guests.
Make sure you get at least 150A service (200A if you live in the south)

 

[Curt Renz]

Thanks for your replies, @Rocky_H & @pb2000

It will be an attached garage. I'm a single live-alone retiree owning only one car and do not drive much. A full charge will be rarely if ever required.

It seems that the setup in my current home would be the most reasonable one for my soon to be built new home.

That's 50 amp wiring with a NEMA 14-50R outlet for 220 volts and a 50 amp circuit breaker.

Is that how I should word my need to the builder?

 

[pb2000]

Yeah, just tell the builder to get a decent commercial grade 14-50 plug and make sure the electrical box gets put in the right spot and is braced.

 

[Rocky_H]

That's 50 amp wiring with a NEMA 14-50R outlet for 220 volts and a 50 amp circuit breaker.

Is that how I should word my need to the builder?

Mostly. 220V isn't correct. That hasn't been used in over 100 years in the U.S. It's 240V, but it seems the old "220" terminology keeps getting passed down through the generations.
But you can phrase it as "a 14-50 outlet on a 50A circuit", and that will specify it enough.

just tell the builder to get a decent commercial grade 14-50 plug

This is the key part. There are a few good solid commercial/industrial brands of receptacles, like Hubbel, Bryant, or Cooper. Any of those are fine. But by default, if you don't specify, they are probably going to grab the El Cheap-o $8 Leviton brand one that is absolute garbage. So you should just specify to use a receptacle that is NOT Leviton.

 

[Curt Renz]

Mostly. 220V isn't correct. That hasn't been used in over 100 years in the U.S. It's 240V, but it seems the old "220" terminology keeps getting passed down through the generations.
But you can phrase it as "a 14-50 outlet on a 50A circuit", and that will specify it enough.

This is the key part. There are a few good solid commercial/industrial brands of receptacles, like Hubbel, Bryant, or Cooper. Any of those are fine. But by default, if you don't specify, they are probably going to grab the El Cheap-o $8 Leviton brand one that is absolute garbage. So you should just specify to use a receptacle that is NOT Leviton.

Thanks, @Rocky_H

Should I specify the wire gauge? Perhaps #4 or #6?

 

[Rocky_H]

Should I specify the wire gauge? Perhaps #4 or #6?

You definitely don't need #4; that would be extremely oversized. I was going to say that you don't need to specify, because the fact of it being a 50A circuit dictates what wire gauge is required, so they will know that. But on thinking a little more, they might use 8 gauge, which is allowed but a little tight. #6 would be perfect.

 

[bmah]

With the continued influx of new Tesla (especially Models 3 and Y) owners, questions continue about the best way to charge at home. Here is a modest decision-making chart.

Nice graphic! Few thoughts:

There's more than 120V option. The one that comes with your car is a NEMA 5-15 (your car can draw at most 12A from a 15A circuit). There's also a NEMA 5-20 adapter...where your car draws 16A from a 20A circuit. That's 33% more power. Charging speed is still slower than all of the 240V options but if that's all you have available, every little bit helps. NEMA 5-20 outlets aren't real common in houses but there's one in my garage for a built-in vacuum system.

It might be good to mention that a common scenario for 240V options 1 and 2 is when there's an electric clothes dryer hookup in the garage.

The poll might be a teensy bit more complete if you added an option for non-Tesla charging equipment.

Confirming what you wrote, the UMC goes up to 40A (needs the NEMA 14-50 or 6-50 adapter plugged into an appropriate outlet/circuit).

Cheers,

Bruce.