Physicslawyer
Member
I have a Juicebox that was installed, but the electrician also installed a box with the 14-50. I'm not talking about using the cable that came with the Tesla.
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Installing Wall Connector is better than NEMA 14-50
- Thread starter Magnet77
- Start date
Physicslawyer
Member
The Juicebox. I'm at the gym, but I can take a picture of it when I get home to post.
Does seem like a lot...I paid $500 and included all material (except the wall connector). Took him a couple of hours and I thought I was paying lot.
I agree seems a touch steep. I paid $750 to get mine installed and that included a requested inline disconnect. I used a smaller local electrician but he is Tesla certified instead of the big name company in the area that wanted $1800.
Physicslawyer
Member
Here is what we have. Parked next to this is our Challenger, because that makes sense
The box has the 14-50 outlet that the Juicebox is connected to.
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It did not. It was done by the big name electrician in Dallas so maybe that’s a part of why it was pricey. I don’t have an itemized receipt. I asked him why it cost so much and he just said that’s the price corporate decided on.
On the bright side, I love the charger so far. Very fast.
I have posted this before in much earlier threads. When I had my Tesla wall charger installed in my garage in 2020, I had wires pulled for a future Nema 14-50 at the same time from the box to the garage, since holes in ceiling/walls were already being made for the pull-throughs. It added very minimal cost to the job, and made adding the 14-50 a breeze later.
Agreed! And with the Wall Charger you would need to upgrade the main electrical panel to 200A. A 100A e-panel may not adequate for adding the wall charger. I have a NEMA 14-30 outlet installed and charge my M3LR at 24A overnight (9PM-6:30AM), its tank is filled up to 85% before 6:30. I thought the Tesla level 2 charger has a built-in GFCI therefore, a GFCI breaker is not needed. So far so good, no circuit breaker trip, the charging plug and connector are a little warmer than room temperature after serval hours.
GFCI is required because the charger is not hard wired and other things can be plugged into the outlet. Because its an outlet it needs its own GFCI protection to meet code. If the charger is hard wired the built-in GFCI negates the requirement for a GFCI breaker. The built-in GFCI of most chargers is one of the reasons its better to hard wire. If the charger has built-in GFCI and you need the GFCI for your 14-50 or 14-30 outlet then you have two GFCI on the same circuit which is a recipe for nuisance tripping.
You can set Wall Connector to any amperage you want. And it doesn’t cost a $40 adapter to flip it. I have my Wall Connector on a 100A service no problem. And when I upgrade the panel I just twist the switch to the the rating I want.
As OP states Wall Connector is the way to go.
Most folks that say no to Wall Connector never had one and don’t realize what a more elegant solution they are. Like the comment above requiring 200A. In fact I think Wall Connector has a wider range of options than the Mobile connector does. And you can change it later.
The GFCI built into the Mobile Connector (also the Wall Connector) is there to protect the user when plugging the Tesla charging connector into the Tesla vehicle's charge port. The GFCI circuit breaker (or GFCI receptacle where available) is there to protect the user when they plug or unplug the equipment from the power receptacle. If you were installing a new 14-30 receptacle today for EV charging the electrical code specifies that it would need to be protected by a GFCI. Some receptacles are available with built-in GFCI, else you would use a GFCI circuit breaker to be compliant with code.
It really is hard to believe that even with the mobile charger no longer being supplied free with the vehicle *and* the Wall Connector dropping 100 in price some people still seem to prefer the mobile connector. I have both and use both, and can't imagine why someone would prefer to use the mobile charger given the choice. One argument I hear frequently is that installing just an outlet is more flexible because then you can plug some other charger into it if you sell your Tesla or your house. But it is almost just as easy to replace the wall connector with an outlet if that ever happens. I love the wall connector. It's convenient, safe, stylish, and now even more affordable. The mobile charger works well too and I am glad to always have it in the trunk incase I need it somewhere.
Use case for 14-50 outlet:
You have two EV’s and one is not a Tesla. It would cost $3K to run a second circuit 100+ feet through the home and into the garage.
We use a “Y” splitter and have two chargers plugged into our 14-50 outlet and take turns charging. If I could wire a 14-50 cable into the back of the wall charger I would, but that is technically not allowed.
It has a purpose.
You have two EV’s and one is not a Tesla. It would cost $3K to run a second circuit 100+ feet through the home and into the garage.
We use a “Y” splitter and have two chargers plugged into our 14-50 outlet and take turns charging. If I could wire a 14-50 cable into the back of the wall charger I would, but that is technically not allowed.
It has a purpose.
While it works temporarily that is not a good solution especially using the Y cable. In your situation I would put a sub panel in the garage.
Not saying this about you C Bus but generally speaking I can’t understand why some folks choose to spend over 60k on an EV but try to cut costs with their home charging. Charging should be the number one consideration when purchasing an EV. A potential EV owner needs to figure that piece out before purchasing the EV. I can’t stress enough how important safety is with EV charging. This is NOT a place to try to cut costs or save money.
TomServo
Active Member
I have BOTH, a hard-wired Gen 3 WC in my garage, and a UMC with a bunch of adapters in my FRUNK. The NEMA 14-50 was installed when we built our home in 2018 when we had a CC with a 25' cord and cost about $200 to install during construction (the builder has since started including it) and I paid $334 a few months ago to hardwire a WC with 24' cord. I tried living with the UMC and 20' cord but it was too short by a couple of feet.
The 4 extra feet on the WC allows my wife to pull in on the right side of our garage and the 24' cord safely reaches the charge port. Else she'd need to back in on the left side. Lots can go wrong with that plan.
The 4 extra feet on the WC allows my wife to pull in on the right side of our garage and the 24' cord safely reaches the charge port. Else she'd need to back in on the left side. Lots can go wrong with that plan.
Thunder7ga
Member
This is exactly why I put in an HPWC a few months ago in prep for having a 2nd Tesla......
Thankfully mine came pre-installed with my house too and its right at the back corner so my wife can pull strait in. Otherwise it would've been a horrendously long run through the attic and I'm to old for that.I have BOTH, a hard-wired Gen 3 WC in my garage, and a UMC with a bunch of adapters in my FRUNK. The NEMA 14-50 was installed when we built our home in 2018 when we had a CC with a 25' cord and cost about $200 to install during construction (the builder has since started including it) and I paid $334 a few months ago to hardwire a WC with 24' cord. I tried living with the UMC and 20' cord but it was too short by a couple of feet.
The 4 extra feet on the WC allows my wife to pull in on the right side of our garage and the 24' cord safely reaches the charge port. Else she'd need to back in on the left side. Lots can go wrong with that plan.
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