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Installing a Nema 14-50 on a 30 Amp Breaker
- Thread starter Whoster69
- Start date
davewill
Active Member
Yes. The breaker positions alternate between the two different 120v legs so that a double breaker is always on two legs for 240v and adjacent single breakers are on opposite legs so that if you fill the panel in from one end it keeps things balanced.
What's weird is I purchased a Level 2 charger for my 2012 Prius Plugin. It required a NEMA 6-50 plug, which the electrician vehemently assured me was the wrong plug As the charger was only going to draw 30a (24 in actual use) he should have put it on a 50a breaker and 50a capable cabling for it's 18" run. Nope, 30a breaker and orange coated (30a) wiring. But, my point in all this is I simply bought a second J1772 plug and it does, in fact, charge at a rate of 22 mph of charge. This way I don't have to forget to pack my Mobile Charge cables when I go anywhere as the J1772 will likely be the most frequently used. Level 2 chargers are really inexpensive now.
Usually they are never out of stock for more than a week or two. Prices on eBay tend to be higher as people sell them at a premium when Tesla is out of stock and eBay is the only available source.
eprosenx
Active Member
Your electrician was 100% correct. It is kind of silly for that unit to have a 6-50 plug, but 6-30 receptacles are super uncommon and 14-30 requires a wasted neutral wire. Installing that receptacle on 10 gauge copper wire and a 30a breaker was fully within code since the “load to be served” is/was 24a continuous which requires a 30a circuit.
Now if you plugged your Tesla Mobile Connector in with a 6-50 adapter then the load to be served would be 32a continuous which would require a 40a circuit. That configuration would not be code compliant.
Agreed, I wasn't challenging him on that. Where he was arguing the plug required was for a 50a (40a continuous) load he should have wired it from the subpanel that way. Then I could be charging at 40a rather than 24. It's largely academic as I am retired now but had I still been driving the 110 miles/day round trip at 24a charging I could replenish that 110 mile drive in 5 hrs, an easy partial night charge. I seriously toyed with a Tesla charger but simply could not justify the ~ $1,000 expense just to charge at 44 mph rather than 22. It cost me $19 for a spare J-1772 plug.
eprosenx
Active Member
Yeah, so 30a, 40a, or 50a breakers (with equal or better wire) would have all been acceptable solutions for your install.
Personally, I would have done 6awg on a 50a breaker for future proofing (such as for your UMC).
It is all good as long as what you have works for you!
I had posted some pics I took of the subpanel, specifically the wiring from the main panel. Somebody had suggested that to them the wire from the main looked like (forgot what he said) aluminum and when I looked it up it appeared capable of supporting 100a to the subpanel. Right now it's 50a. I clearly don't need 100a as the Model 3 can only charge at 48a max (60a circuit). So long as I wouldn't need to touch the feed from the main, that would be prohibitively expensive, I would entertain feeding it with 90a and running a 60a line to the other side of the garage and dropping in a wall charger. The old 2012 Prius Plugin had it's access plug on the passenger side so it was in the right bay, with the it's Level 2 charger. The M3 access plug is right side to so, especially in winter, the 20' run (it's what, an inch thick) from the wall to the driver side is a PITA as the line from the charger doesn't want to bend or flex. So there is some motivation to swap sides with my wife.Yeah, so 30a, 40a, or 50a breakers (with equal or better wire) would have all been acceptable solutions for your install.
Personally, I would have done 6awg on a 50a breaker for future proofing (such as for your UMC).
It is all good as long as what you have works for you!
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