Installing Wall Connector is better than NEMA 14-50

[ATPMSD]

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[Ty__]

I went the NEMA 14-60 route for a wall receptacle and power cord so as not to hard wire the wall charger and still get 48a charging. Just had the electrician put in a 60a circuit with the NEMA 14-60 receptacle. A welder power cord rated to 60a that I clipped to install into the wall charger, and perfect 48a charging. The Tesla connector cord from wall charger to the car gets a little warm, but the power cord stays room temp. Full capacity with a bit of future flexibility.

 

[STS-134]

I went the NEMA 14-60 route for a wall receptacle and power cord so as not to hard wire the wall charger and still get 48a charging. Just had the electrician put in a 60a circuit with the NEMA 14-60 receptacle. A welder power cord rated to 60a that I clipped to install into the wall charger, and perfect 48a charging. The Tesla connector cord from wall charger to the car gets a little warm, but the power cord stays room temp. Full capacity with a bit of future flexibility.

Isn't a GFCI outlet required for that? Plus, it's another potential point of failure. Why not just hardwire?

 

[Ty__]

Isn't a GFCI outlet required for that? Plus, it's another potential point of failure. Why not just hardwire?

It is the only circuit on the breaker. I wanted future flexibility to be able to plug something else into it.

 

[STS-134]

It is the only circuit on the breaker.

Yeah but I think you need to have GFCI protection for all outlets in your garage.

I wanted future flexibility to be able to plug something else into it.

It's not too hard to pull the WC off the wall and connect the wires to something else. Outlets are for flexibility in case you want to connect to something else temporarily (like an RV) and then go back to the original thing (your EVSE). If the goal is to be able to use a different EVSE in the future, then it's better to just hardwire it and then connect the wires to something else when the time comes.

 

[k3rn3lkill3r]

If you plan to own a Tesla for a number of years then I suggest going for the wall connector. You can always install a 14-50 (or a 6-50) later, you can replace the Wall Connector with another hardwired solution, or you can simply get a Tesla to J1772 adapter.

I suggest you live in the now and not worry about the future.

Aye, if you have the wiring already in place to support the 60amp requirement of the wall charger, it would be very simple at that point to replace the wall charger with a 50 amp RV box like the Eaton CHU1S that has the 14-50 built in. You would just need to reduce the breaker size to 50 amps. Can always go with less amps on larger wire versus more amps on the smaller wire.

 

[Ty__]

Yeah but I think you need to have GFCI protection for all outlets in your garage.

It's not too hard to pull the WC off the wall and connect the wires to something else. Outlets are for flexibility in case you want to connect to something else temporarily (like an RV) and then go back to the original thing (your EVSE). If the goal is to be able to use a different EVSE in the future, then it's better to just hardwire it and then connect the wires to something else when the time comes.

The breaker is GFCI protected, and you nailed the flexibility reasoning.

 

[STS-134]

The breaker is GFCI protected, and you nailed the flexibility reasoning.

I have heard that connecting a WC to a GFCI breaker can cause nuisance tripping issues. Has this not been the case for you?

 

[Ty__]

The breaker is GFCI protected, and you nailed the flexibility reasoning.

The breaker is NOT GFCI protected (don't see an edit button, sorry). I let the electrician worry about code requirements. I'm not worried about it. It's not near any water exposure and the circuit is enclosed in conduit. Like I said, the only temp I get is from the Tesla cable, not the circuit wiring.

 

[gt2690b]

The breaker is NOT GFCI protected (don't see an edit button, sorry). I let the electrician worry about code requirements. I'm not worried about it. It's not near any water exposure and the circuit is enclosed in conduit. Like I said, the only temp I get is from the Tesla cable, not the circuit wiring.

What else uses a 14-60? I guess you can get 14-50 adapters for RV

 

[jcanoe]

I went the NEMA 14-60 route for a wall receptacle and power cord so as not to hard wire the wall charger and still get 48a charging. Just had the electrician put in a 60a circuit with the NEMA 14-60 receptacle. A welder power cord rated to 60a that I clipped to install into the wall charger, and perfect 48a charging. The Tesla connector cord from wall charger to the car gets a little warm, but the power cord stays room temp. Full capacity with a bit of future flexibility.

It may work but that is not to code. You are not allowed to add a power plug to electrical equipment where the manufacturer has specified the equipment is to be hard wired into the circuit. The installation manual for the Tesla Gen Wall Connector does not include instructions for installing a power plug.

 

[ATPMSD]

I let the electrician worry about code requirements.

Since the electrician did not install a GFIC breaker, a code requirement, I would be very concerned about their knowledge. And how do you know if the wiring is in fact 60-amp? A lot of electricians do not understand that wiring for EV chargers must comply with the 80%, which means the wiring needs to rated at a full 60-amps, not 55-amps, which is an all too common wire selection that is used by a lot of electricians.

The other problem with an outlet to a wall connector is that a GFCI breaker is required by code, and the wall convector says not to use one. So you either violate code by not using one, or the Tesla manual. You really should change this to a hardwire solution and not worry about the “future.” And of course using a plug likely violates the units warranty.

But at the end of the day it is your house and your choice. Good luck!

 

[thatgeekinit]

My NEMA 14-50 connector started melting probably due to 2.5 years of strain from the mobile connector. The electrician let me know that the latest electric code which was adopted where I live shortly after I did the 14-50 install requires the equivalent of GFCI. Now that wall chargers are only $400, there isn't much point to the 14-50 like there was a few years ago when chargers were $1500.

 

[TeaslaTX]

this thread convinced me to get the fancy Tesla wall charger.

The only sticking point is that I might move in 2 years. Is it difficult to uninstall the Tesla wall charger and install it in my new home? I could use it as a selling point when I sell this house, but I’m not sure if the buyers will really care. Difficult as in, is it expensive to have an electrician do that?

 

[jcanoe]

this thread convinced me to get the fancy Tesla wall charger.

The only sticking point is that I might move in 2 years. Is it difficult to uninstall the Tesla wall charger and install it in my new home? I could use it as a selling point when I sell this house, but I’m not sure if the buyers will really care. Difficult as in, is it expensive to have an electrician do that?

Much easier and faster to remove than to install. Maybe you know someone who can help remove the Wall Connector when it is time to move. Turn off circuit breaker. The wires get capped off and a cover plate installed on the junction box.

 

[roblab]

It is not just about speed.

• 24' cable instead of 20'
• UMC can stay in the car so it is not forgotten
• Is water proof
• Built in power-sharing
• Firmware updates for new features (power sharing, restrictions on usage, so far)

OK, that's all well and good, but to some of us, myself included, it's not enough to sway me.
I do not care if I have another four feet of cable, as my charge port is fifteen and a half feet from my outlet, which sits at the front of my car.

 

[roblab]

OK, that's all well and good, but to some of us, myself included, it's not enough to sway me.
I do not care if I have another four feet of cable, as my charge port is fifteen and a half feet from my outlet, which sits at the front of my car.

It is not just about speed.

• 24' cable instead of 20'
• UMC can stay in the car so it is not forgotten
• Is water proof
• Built in power-sharing
• Firmware updates for new features (power sharing, restrictions on usage, so far)

So, my charge port is fifteen and a half feet from my outlet, nose in.
When I go on a trip, my hand is on the charge cord. It is, I would say, hard to forget.
It doesn't rain in my garage
I have two 220 volt outlets, so my car can charge at the same time
And as I don't have an expensive "Wall Connector", I have no need for firmware updates.

Sure, one could get excited about spending hundreds of dollars more, having to hire an electrician, etc., etc., but it is NOT NECESSARY. I've been charging off this same outlet ever since I bought my RAV4EV more than a dozen years ago. Still works fine, does the job.

But if it makes you feel good to spend the money, or somehow feel that your charger does more than mine, well, go right ahead. But I like to point out that people who spend small amounts unnecessarily will often spend more without reason. So, you're right. It's not just about speed, but necessity. A lot of people buy things they don't need. And a lot of people have things they don't need. I hope I'm not one of them. But far be it from me to say that a "wall connector" is not needed by some folk. Just not me.

 

[STS-134]

So, my charge port is fifteen and a half feet from my outlet, nose in.
When I go on a trip, my hand is on the charge cord. It is, I would say, hard to forget.
It doesn't rain in my garage
I have two 220 volt outlets, so my car can charge at the same time
And as I don't have an expensive "Wall Connector", I have no need for firmware updates.

Sure, one could get excited about spending hundreds of dollars more, having to hire an electrician, etc., etc., but it is NOT NECESSARY. I've been charging off this same outlet ever since I bought my RAV4EV more than a dozen years ago. Still works fine, does the job.

But if it makes you feel good to spend the money, or somehow feel that your charger does more than mine, well, go right ahead. But I like to point out that people who spend small amounts unnecessarily will often spend more without reason. So, you're right. It's not just about speed, but necessity. A lot of people buy things they don't need. And a lot of people have things they don't need. I hope I'm not one of them. But far be it from me to say that a "wall connector" is not needed by some folk. Just not me.

You were among the extremely early adopters of EV technology. If I already had an outlet in place, I'd have considered using it. But I didn't, so it wasn't that unreasonable to purchase and install the WC. And I did all of that for a small fraction of the cost of the car. Now the service upgrade, that was a considerable amount of money, but had to be done, because the old panel was already full and furthermore, I had connections to old breakers that were starting to go and overheat, so it was a fire hazard. If I was going to spend any money on a new panel, it was better to just do the full service upgrade instead of half assing it and then figuring out later on that it wasn't enough and having to redo all of the work at even greater expense.

 

[Rocky_H]

Sure, one could get excited about spending hundreds of dollars more, having to hire an electrician, etc., etc., but it is NOT NECESSARY. I've been charging off this same outlet ever since I bought my RAV4EV more than a dozen years ago. Still works fine, does the job.

But if it makes you feel good to spend the money, or somehow feel that your charger does more than mine, well, go right ahead. But I like to point out that people who spend small amounts unnecessarily will often spend more without reason. So, you're right. It's not just about speed, but necessity. A lot of people buy things they don't need. And a lot of people have things they don't need. I hope I'm not one of them. But far be it from me to say that a "wall connector" is not needed by some folk. Just not me.

We have been over and over and over this with you, specifically, for several months now, and you don't seem willing to receive the information. Because of several kinds of price changes and code changes, the situation now is WAY different. It really doesn't cost any more at all to just do the wall connector now than it would be to do an outlet and mobile charging cord now. They are the same out of pocket cost for someone ordering now. (Or actually, it seems just barely cheaper outright to do the wall connector.)

So this doesn't have to do with whether it rains in your garage or anything else. It's simply not more expensive to do the wall connector for new buyers, so that is why the sensible advice is different now than what you are telling people.

 

[gt2690b]

We have been over and over and over this with you, specifically, for several months now, and you don't seem willing to receive the information. Because of several kinds of price changes and code changes, the situation now is WAY different. It really doesn't cost any more at all to just do the wall connector now than it would be to do an outlet and mobile charging cord now. They are the same out of pocket cost for someone ordering now. (Or actually, it seems just barely cheaper outright to do the wall connector.)

So this doesn't have to do with whether it rains in your garage or anything else. It's simply not more expensive to do the wall connector for new buyers, so that is why the sensible advice is different now than what you are telling people.

I dunno a GFCI is only 100 bucks more.. Tesla is starting to ship with the mobile charger again.. plus even if you bought a WC wouldn't you still buy a mobile charger for traveling? So either way you're spending $400 more for the WC

Also with the WC your feeder has to be capable of 60a vs 50a with derating so that alone could cost quite a bit more depending on your run...