Have any owners used a 110v outlet to charge your Model S?

[Ashkenaz]

I see you have visited tesla store to do trip planning. Check out this great tool, ev trip planner. EV Trip Planner

 

[AB4EJ]

Flexibility is one key. I carry my charging cable, all the adapters that came with the car, a Tesla chademo adapter, plus an adapter I built that goes between a typical dryer outlet and the 14-50. With all of this, you should be able to charge anywhere.

BTW, if you're going to try to get permission to charge at work, why not really be brassy and ask them to install a 220-v 14-50 outlet for you.

 

[Ashkenaz]

AB is onto something. Why not ask for that to encourage others to also go EV? After all, anyone could use it.

 

[valkeriefire]

^^^ This. The irony is the new stations at our dept have solar panels and special parking places labeled "EV only" but they never installed the chargers lol. Because of that there is always a firemans fat diesel truck in that space as a joke.

 

[ChrisMV]

Great site Askenaz! I have been looking for this forever!. Thank you.

I think it's best to avoid asking the department to incur extra costs for the EV switch. Long term, once adoption rates rise, I hope to see these installed everywhere. I would, however, be happy to pay for a 220v 14-50 outlet if I knew I would be allowed to use it.

Valkeriefire, you nailed it on the head. I am at a brand new (2014) station that was "built with a 60 year vision". The original plans had solar panels and it even has 2 "clean air" parking spots. The solar panels were scrapped because of immediate cost savings, the average vehicle in the department is a lifted diesel pickup. One hope that I have is our 2nd newest station (2013) has an EV charger in the employee parking lot. Not a single person in the department has use for it, but I would like to think that if it is there, it can be used by any employee. If, then, one employee can use this terminal, every employee should be allowed to charge, even at stations without specialized chargers.

 

[Jason S]

I am a Model 3 reservation holder, very excited to use this car as my commuter car. I commute 175 miles to work at a fire station for 48 hour shifts. My plan is to buy the longer range version, cruise to work at 65mph to maximize my range, arrive at work with 50+ miles range left over. My station is quite remote, no supercharger close by. It has plenty of 110v outdoor outlets that I plan to connect to, charging for 48 hours. Tesla removed the calculator, but when it was still on the website, it showed this will get me 150 miles of charge (3 an hour). There is also a 240 volt indoor outlet which I could use with an extension cord, but this would require unplugging appliances.

Does anyone have any tips or thoughts about flaws with this plan? does trickle charging like this have any detrimental effects to the battery life?

Thanks for the help.

The 240V is prolly 30A so I'd keep that as a backup -- if not enough after the first 36 hours, then charge the last 12 on that socket. I did change the S on 120V for the first months of ownership so I think the 3mi/hr is about right.

 

[linkster]

I did change the S on 120V for the first months of ownership so I think the 3mi/hr is about right.

Correct. One will achieve ~3 deploying the Tesla supplied UMC 5-15 adapter. However, ~5 will be achieved with the $45 Tesla UMC 5-20 adapter.

 

[TexasEV]

Owning a Tesla is an entirely different experience when you can plug into a 240V 14-50 outlet at home rather than a 120V outlet.

 

[48Riley]

I have made up several adapters for my Model S. I bought several Camco 14-50R's from Amazon, then went to Lowes and bought both the older and newer dryer cords, plus a 220v air conditioner cord, and then a TT-30P from an RV store. I assembled and tested them, then labeled each one with the necessary amperage to dial the car down to. With all these options, and the 25' 14-50 extension cord I bought through Amazon, I feel confident I can get a charge anywhere if in a pinch. Just used the air conditioning adapter at an over night stay at a friends house. He had a table saw receptacle in his garage that was identical. Dialed the car down to 16A and had a full charge next morning.

 

[Jeff N]

It's a bit of a kludge, but you said there were plenty of 120v outlets. It may be possible to find 2 adjacent 120v outlets that are each on separate phases and a 240 outlet is just an outlet which uses both of those wires instead of one of those wires and a neutral wire.

You can buy a box that does this for you. It has two 120v cords coming out of it and it checks that you plug them into outlets that are on different phases. It then provides a single 15A (or 20A) 240v outlet that you can plug your car into and charge twice as fast as charging on a regular 120v outlet

Quick 220 Systems: Quick 220 Systems15 Ampere Straight Blade Outlet

 

[linkster]

Good idea Jeff. And the S will actually charge more than twice as fast.

 

[paulkva]

I would, however, be happy to pay for a 220v 14-50 outlet if I knew I would be allowed to use it.

I think this would be your best option by far if it works out -- just make the offer when you ask for permission.
And I'll add to the chorus of people who've charged successfully on 110V/120V, although in my case it's primarily at hotels. Also, the NEMA 5-20 adapter has been good to me. Many newer commercial/industrial buildings have NEMA 5-20 outlets on the outside, and that typically gives you a 30%+ speed improvement over the NEMA 5-15 adapter.

 

[cpa]

I think this would be your best option by far if it works out -- just make the offer when you ask for permission.
And I'll add to the chorus of people who've charged successfully on 110V/120V, although in my case it's primarily at hotels. Also, the NEMA 5-20 adapter has been good to me. Many newer commercial/industrial buildings have NEMA 5-20 outlets on the outside, and that typically gives you a 30%+ speed improvement over the NEMA 5-15 adapter.

Chris,

Regarding the use of taxpayer funds to pay for your electricity, whether on the 110 or an installed 240, could not the supervisor of your location submit a payroll deduction form to the payroll department to deduct a fixed amount from your net pay for each shift that you work? It does not have to be calculated down to the penny, but certainly a reasonable average of, say 50kWh times 20 cents, for $10 would seem to get irate taxpayers off your back(!) and your fellow fire fighters will see that you are paying your share.

From my experience, large employers like counties have real sophisticated payroll software. Pret'-near any sort of weird situation can be handled through their software, including "miscellaneous" deductions.

Besides, it is only a matter of time before other Kern County employees working in Bako or one of their outlying locations will be driving all sorts of BEVs, and demanding workplace charging. Might as well get this payroll deduction started sooner, rather than later!

(As an aside, I would hope that Congress will eventually expand the Section 125 cafeteria plans to include workplace charging as a deduction from gross pay so that this benefit avoids both income taxation and FICA taxes for the employees!)

 

[linkster]

If you can find a 5-20 that is the sole receptacle on that branch circuit, it can easily be converted for a few bucks to a NEMA 6-20 and deploy the Tesla UMC 6-15 adapter to achieve ~8mi/hr.

 

[ChrisMV]

Chris,

Regarding the use of taxpayer funds to pay for your electricity, whether on the 110 or an installed 240, could not the supervisor of your location submit a payroll deduction form to the payroll department to deduct a fixed amount from your net pay for each shift that you work? It does not have to be calculated down to the penny, but certainly a reasonable average of, say 50kWh times 20 cents, for $10 would seem to get irate taxpayers off your back(!) and your fellow fire fighters will see that you are paying your share.

From my experience, large employers like counties have real sophisticated payroll software. Pret'-near any sort of weird situation can be handled through their software, including "miscellaneous" deductions.

Besides, it is only a matter of time before other Kern County employees working in Bako or one of their outlying locations will be driving all sorts of BEVs, and demanding workplace charging. Might as well get this payroll deduction started sooner, rather than later!

(As an aside, I would hope that Congress will eventually expand the Section 125 cafeteria plans to include workplace charging as a deduction from gross pay so that this benefit avoids both income taxation and FICA taxes for the employees!)

I think that is a great idea. I was thinking keeping track of how much I charge and submit it to payroll, but a flat rate, one where I would be guaranteed not to go over would be much simpler and easier to defend to the public and co-workers. Another benefit of this, the dept can say they are gaining from this as it is much higher than is drawn, and once in place, could speed up the transition of adoption of EVs. I am writing a proposal to submit up the chain right now, I will include this as a viable alternative. As I said, my one fear is getting a straight "no", so as many solutions to present are helpful. Thanks for the suggestion.

Jeff N, great idea! Thanks.

 

[Mark Vallaster]

I have used dryer plugs at various houses. I carry 2 different dryer adapters and an 80amp extension cord. They work much better than plugging into the wall. It just takes too long.

I would look at getting an extension cord and plugging into a dryer outlet or stove outlet. Thats what I do when I go outside the supercharger range into the "frontier".

Interesting that two firefighters have Tesla's - i guess after cutting people out of some the tin cans going down the road - you understand the value of a solid vehicle with great structural integrity.

 

[brec]

The UMC 5-20 adapter is a wonderful adapter that you should achieve ~5mph charge rate. ...

I am currently on an extended stay at a high-rise condo which has NEMA 5-20 outlets in its parking garage. With the UMC 5-20 adapter, VisibleTesla reports 16A, 112V, and 4.8 mph.

 

[mspohr]

I am a Model 3 reservation holder, very excited to use this car as my commuter car. I commute 175 miles to work at a fire station for 48 hour shifts. My plan is to buy the longer range version, cruise to work at 65mph to maximize my range, arrive at work with 50+ miles range left over. My station is quite remote, no supercharger close by. It has plenty of 110v outdoor outlets that I plan to connect to, charging for 48 hours. Tesla removed the calculator, but when it was still on the website, it showed this will get me 150 miles of charge (3 an hour). There is also a 240 volt indoor outlet which I could use with an extension cord, but this would require unplugging appliances.

Does anyone have any tips or thoughts about flaws with this plan? does trickle charging like this have any detrimental effects to the battery life?

Thanks for the help.

My son in-law is a fireman in the same situation and is planning on charging at the station. (With permission)
120v can give you up to 5 mph (probably more for a Model 3) so 48 hours can get you 200+miles; you'll be good to go.

 

[wjhepworth]

I am a Model 3 reservation holder, very excited to use this car as my commuter car. I commute 175 miles to work at a fire station for 48 hour shifts. My plan is to buy the longer range version, cruise to work at 65mph to maximize my range, arrive at work with 50+ miles range left over. My station is quite remote, no supercharger close by. It has plenty of 110v outdoor outlets that I plan to connect to, charging for 48 hours. Tesla removed the calculator, but when it was still on the website, it showed this will get me 150 miles of charge (3 an hour). There is also a 240 volt indoor outlet which I could use with an extension cord, but this would require unplugging appliances.

Does anyone have any tips or thoughts about flaws with this plan? does trickle charging like this have any detrimental effects to the battery life?

Thanks for the help.

It does work but if you travel more than 20-30 miles per day it doesn't work out well. In particular, during winter when your energy usage increases you will encounter issues with keeping up with energy alone. My workaround was intermittently using the Superchargers every once a week just to catch up. Strongly recommend NEMA 14-50 at a minimum though for the best experience. Everyday you start fully charged and they aren't that expensive to install.

 

[dsm363]

No, live in SB and commute to Kern county. Specifically Pine Mountain Club. On this route, the only Supercharger is in Oxnard, too close to be needed. Kern County is very large and we have 46 stations spread out throughout it. It is littered with Superchargers. If I am moved to a different station I will use Tejon or Mojave superchargers. I have been to a Tesla store and used the S software to calculate every route to every station with 200 miles of charge. There are only 8 stations that would require me to charge more than 10 minutes, and those are far enough off the path that I would be forced to charge at the station. Otherwise I can rely solely on the supercharger network.

Instead of replying individually to the other posts I'll clear things up here. I hope everyone here can believe that I am not trying to get additional benefits or free charging. Like Valkeriefire I believe in living as carbon free as possible and am proud to be able to use my money to effect change. There is Huge resistance to anything progressive in Kern County and I know I will create a storm when I begin charging at the station. Getting your opinions is my first step in figuring all this out. Of course I will go through the proper chain of command, and ideally get a policy written that addresses EV charging. My fear is getting shot down completely. Offering some solution like metering charge use and paying back the department every quarter would work. I see EVs becoming the standard, and my situation seems like such an obvious one for EV ownership if the hurdles of ignorance can be overcome.

Also, my station does have the 20amp outlets outside. the 240v outlets are about 40 feet away and in the apparatus bay. These would be an option if I was in a pinch and had to increase my charge rate for a 24 or 12 hour shift.

Super happy for all the feedback, thanks to all of you.

Is there any way they would allow you to pay to install something on a separate meter? You would then reimburse them the cost of the power. Or something like ChargePoint might work. That way they can charge you for the electricity and no one can accuse you of getting something for free.