Home charger options

[Craig9080]

I just want to point out, for anyone casually looking into wireless charging, that one major downside is inefficiency. In a nutshell you wind up paying for a lot of electricity that never makes it into the battery pack. This isn't a big deal when you're talking about charging your cell phone, (and where I understand the losses are smaller because the phone can rest on the pad), but when you are talking about charging one of our cars' traction packs, the efficiency losses can really add up.

Just something to be aware of, and perhaps research a bit. That's all.

I would be interested to see that, with wireless charging, an EV may indeed be worse for the environment than a high-efficiency ICE. Considering that in states that use coal as a main producer of electricity EV's barely break even with regular hybrids on carbon emissions, this may be interesting.

 

[diamond.g]

Agree with the above, and will add 1 additional comment. Even though I do not unplug my UMC all that often to take it with me, I was concerned about the durability/longevity of my NEMA 14-50R receptacle with repeated removal/insertion cycles. I bought a 2nd UMC NEMA 14-50 adapter. I leave 1 in the receptacle and 1 in the black mesh bag. When I disconnect, I do so at the adapter. Quick and easy. If for some reason the adapter fails, easy to fix. The NEMA 14-50R would require my electrician to come out. YMMV.

is this an outdoor installation? I think permanent EVSE stations would be a better option for outdoor charging no?

 

[FlatSix911]

I have been using my Voltec charger from when I owned a Volt. It has a maximum of 15 Amp draw and a J1772 plug and I can charge my Model S at 10-11 miles per hour. I do have the duel chargers on my Tesla and have been looking at options to upgrade. Clearly the fastest option is the wall charger but I was trying to figure out what the charge rate would be with a 50amp upgrade using the mobile charger. I believe it maxes out at 40 amps and the website seems to imply that with duel chargers, this would be 58 mi/ hour charge rate. Can anyone confirm this?

Yes, the 29 mi/hr* rate is for 40 amps, and is the maximum the UMC is capable of.
The HPWC is capable of charging at 80 amps if the car has dual chargers, and you have 100 amp service available to the HPWC. This is what will get you 58 mi/hr.*
* both the 29 mi/hr and the 58 mi/hr rate are actually a little lower on some of the performance models. Those numbers were based on the original EPA estimates of the original Model S 85s, I believe.

 

[brucet999]

I think you'll find you won't need the wall charger. My advice is to wait until you're about to receive your Model 3 and then have an electrician install a 240 volt (50 amp) outlet. The 240 outlet doesn't charge as quickly as the Tesla wall charger but it charges fast enough. I've had my Model S for 3.5 years and have never needed a faster charging setup at home. Further, I set the amperage well below the maximum capable on the 240 to charge more slowly. Other Model S owners can weigh in here but I believe the majority of Model S owners have gone 240 rather than the Tesla wall charger. Save your cash for the fancy options!

Tesla wall charger is a 240V/208V device. It is faster than the UMC only if you have equipped your car with dual chargers to handle 80A charge rate. With the usual single on-board charger the Tesla Wall Charger runs at 40A, just like the UMC. The only advantage to the wall charger is that you can keep your UMC in the car all the time instead of unplugging it from the wall and packing it when going somewhere with destination charging.

 

[brucet999]

Can you even get tax credit for an EVSE without an electric vehicle? You didn't state whether you currently have one. From what I've read most people won't even qualify for that credit.

Yes you can get a tax credit for installing an EVSE without owning an electric vehicle. Consider the owner of a business who installs an EVSE for employee or customers' use or a homeowner who provides one for visitors. The tax form does not ask about EV ownership when taking the credit.

 

[Thomas Edison]

I thought the model x had like an 80amp single onboard charger.

Tesla wall charger is a 240V/208V device. It is faster than the UMC only if you have equipped your car with dual chargers to handle 80A charge rate. With the usual single on-board charger the Tesla Wall Charger runs at 40A, just like the UMC. The only advantage to the wall charger is that you can keep your UMC in the car all the time instead of unplugging it from the wall and packing it when going somewhere with destination charging.

 

[brucet999]

I thought the model x had like an 80amp single onboard charger.

Not 80A. There was some talk about a 72A option on the X, but this is a Model 3 forum and a 60kWh battery will not need more than the 40A charge rate of a NEMA 14-50.

 

[Thomas Edison]

Well I'm hoping there's a larger battery option than 60kw

Not 80A. There was some talk about a 72A option on the X, but this is a Model 3 forum and a 60kWh battery will not need more than the 40A charge rate of a NEMA 14-50.

 

[diamond.g]

Not 80A. There was some talk about a 72A option on the X, but this is a Model 3 forum and a 60kWh battery will not need more than the 40A charge rate of a NEMA 14-50.

It is likely that the base charger will be 48 amps like the X. They may give us an option to go to a 72A charger again like the X (and also probably hidden). So the UMC, unless they change it, will be shorting folks 8A which is like what 3 additional MPH of charge?

 

[SureValla]

Yes you can get a tax credit for installing an EVSE without owning an electric vehicle. Consider the owner of a business who installs an EVSE for employee or customers' use or a homeowner who provides one for visitors. The tax form does not ask about EV ownership when taking the credit.

I can confirm this. I went back into my turbotax return that I filed already for this year and played with the EVSE tax credit section. All it asked me was a) where did I install it and b) how much did I spend. I ended up getting back a portion of whatever # I put in for how much I spent. I do not own an EV currently.

 

[SureValla]

I should have added I am not subject to the AMT.