How to extend Mobile connector for family visit

[neuralsandwich]

I'm visiting family over Christmas and where I will be parking is out of range for the mobile charger. My initial search has lead me to believe you can't extend the type 2 end so I've got a heavy duty extension cable and a dry box for putting the mobile connector in to keep it dry as it will end up outside.

Are there any fatal flaws or improvements on this? If possible I'd like to avoid spending £200+ on a 3rd party connector to get 10m cable I might only a few times a year when I have OEM connector in the car anyway.

 

[Fred2]

That's exactly what i've done for that past few years for precisely that type of scenario (the extension lead I have is from Tough Leads )

 

[Tonybvi]

Exactly as Fred2 says including buying from Tough Leads. Use it when we visit our daughter. No issues to date.

 

[dajw2793]

That's exactly what i've done for that past few years for precisely that type of scenario (the extension lead I have is from Tough Leads )

Please forgive my ignorance. Which "actual" lead did you get? A pic or link would be very much appreciated

 

[M1tch]

I bought a waterproof extention lead from B&Q. worked on the handful of occasions I’ve used it.

Another possibility but never tried. Could you connect the blue cable to the output of the 3-pin cable to extend the distance?

 

[Fred2]

Please forgive my ignorance. Which "actual" lead did you get? A pic or link would be very much appreciated

I have one of these EV granny charger 13A weatherproof extension lead with the inline RCD. Mine is a 10m but that’s just down to what you need

 

[Neilman]

One extra component you might find useful in conjunction with a toughleads extension (or any other make) would be a slim in-line cable coupler - small enough to allow the extension lead to be passed through a letterbox. Solving a problem where a 13A plug or waterproof socket clearly can't be pushed through a letterbox if that's your shortest route from the car/granny charger to a 13A wall socket in your home. So you can maintain house security without having to leave a window open for the cable.
Toughleads will fit one for you as part of the purchase or you could retro-fit one yourself.

 

[MrBadger]

Another + for ToughLeads. The quality and materials of this lead are second to none. I've been using their 15m extension + inline RCD for charging on a regular basis for 3 years. I had a minor issue early on caused by a twist (plug and UMC did not align straight so one or the other would not sit flat so would exert a twisting force on the plug/socket) in the rigid Tesla pigtail cable and no quibbles, Adrian of ToughLeads was right on it, modified the components that he was using (so anyone else with same twist problem would not suffer the same) and sorted the problem no quibble.

Easy to think its the same as any other cable, but its not. The H07RN-Fcable is so flexible yet robust that you would think you are trying to coil up a cable half the length.

One thing to watch though, is that the socket and electrics that you are plugging into are up to the job. It's not unheard of a UMC tripping the 'whole house' electrics due to no fault of the UMC - just too many 'noisy' devices plugged into a circuits RCD causing cumulative tripping of the 30mA earth leakage detector - the UMC has quite a large initial transient leakage which is sometimes the straw that breaks the camel's back. If this happens and puts you in a charging predicament (this won't get you out of the predicament with the householder whose electrics you have tripped), turn of a couple of circuits on the same RCD then start the car charging, then reinstate the other circuits once charging has started and is stable.

 

[WllXM]

I bought a waterproof extention lead from B&Q. worked on the handful of occasions I’ve used it.

Another possibility but never tried. Could you connect the blue cable to the output of the 3-pin cable to extend the distance?

You mean the Type 2 connector as an extension lead? No that wouldn't work. You can't daisy chain them.

 

[Jason71]

I used a 2.5mm2 30 meter cable last year to charge at a holiday home with no problems at all.
So long as the socket you plug it into is in good condition using an extension is no problem in reality

 

[M1tch]

You mean the Type 2 connector as an extension lead? No that wouldn't work. You can't daisy chain them.

That’s the one. Granny into type 2. Thanks for the info, I’ll not waste time trying it now

 

[thewishy]

I've got the toughlead modulev setup. It's worked very nicely in France. Also nice to be able to work in 10m sections of extensions without having to unwind the whole set. Adrian is pretty good at helping you build custom leads should you desire it (I've got a 16a IEC termination on mine, so that I can pull 13a off a european connection). My advice is to think about if you might want to charge in europe, and also go for longer than you think you need...

Only other thing is a reminder not to buy cheap extension cables, and also if you have a reel type cable you really, really need to unwind it.

I've taken out the power in a whole B&B before when the owner tried to charge btw. Likely a high impedance E/N fault. So basically even if the owner is willing, don't assume it will work. And don't assume owners are wiling "No, I don't want to let you charge as I'll need to put up my direct debit" was one bazar reason. Also apply common sense and don't expect to use a shower, hob, oven and charge your EV at the same time.

 

[Adopado]

My 2.5mm cores arctic cable can cope with 16amp commando if necessary. I have made adapters that can hook up to a commando socket or standard 13amp. (In conjunction with the appropriate UMC adapter.) I wind it onto a spare hozelock reel. All bases covered up to 30 metres!

 

[wadood]

I'm visiting family over Christmas and where I will be parking is out of range for the mobile charger. My initial search has lead me to believe you can't extend the type 2 end so I've got a heavy duty extension cable and a dry box for putting the mobile connector in to keep it dry as it will end up outside.

Are there any fatal flaws or improvements on this? If possible I'd like to avoid spending £200+ on a 3rd party connector to get 10m cable I might only a few times a year when I have OEM connector in the car anyway.

I had a similar problem but the places I visit have different types: 14-50, 14-30, and 5-15/20. I thought the best was to get Lectron Extension made for Tesla mobile connector. It extends your mobile connector and let you have any type of Tesla adapter at the other end.

Lectron Tesla EV Extension Cord | 20 ft

Lectron Tesla Charger Extension Cable Extra 20 Feet to Your Charger. Compatible with Tesla High Powered Wall Connectors, all generation of Destination Chargers.

ev-lectron.com

 

[Jason71]

I had a similar problem but the places I visit have different types: 14-50, 14-30, and 5-15/20. I thought the best was to get Lectron Extension made for Tesla mobile connector. It extends your mobile connector and let you have any type of Tesla adapter at the other end.

Lectron Tesla EV Extension Cord | 20 ft

Lectron Tesla Charger Extension Cable Extra 20 Feet to Your Charger. Compatible with Tesla High Powered Wall Connectors, all generation of Destination Chargers.

ev-lectron.com

Not terribly useful to those of us in the UK though is it?

 

[GRiLLA]

Dragging this conversation back from the dead as I saw an interesting video from Efixx

If you use an extension lead you are breaking BS7671, will this mean that by breaking building regulations an insurance claim may be rejected? Efixx is an electricians channel, and clearly meeting regulations is essential for electrical work, but I'm not really sure how they apply to consumers using an existing installation.

 

[neuralsandwich]

Since it is a building regulation I would presume it doesn’t apply. The mobile charger isn’t being installed on the house so wouldn’t fall under that I suspect.

That being said I have no idea

 

[Adopado]

Dragging this conversation back from the dead as I saw an interesting video from Efixx

If you use an extension lead you are breaking BS7671, will this mean that by breaking building regulations an insurance claim may be rejected? Efixx is an electricians channel, and clearly meeting regulations is essential for electrical work, but I'm not really sure how they apply to consumers using an existing installation.

Anyone requiring to use an extension with their UMC is almost certainly doing so because they are going to use a socket that hasn't been installed as a dedicated EV charging socket. If it was installed as an EV 13amp socket it would no doubt be in a location that didn't need an extra extension to reach the car. We are therefore most likely talking about a non-EV installed socket ... so by the regs quoted in the video you're already breaking the rules ... with the extension just add another contravention! Given that insurance companies are usually very good at doing a body swerve on payouts it wouldn't surprise me if this did become an issue in the event of a claim.

These regulations are clearly drafted to ensure the safest and most reliable charging arrangements. This protects users and electricians who are responsible for their own work. Those of us who use ordinary 13amp sockets or industrial non-EV commando sockets (and extensions) from time to time must accept responsibility for what we are doing. Fortunately nobody has burned their house down because you can bet that once that happens these kind of portable "granny chargers" like the Tesla UMC will be outlawed ... and from my own point of view that will be a shame.