Is your best friend a 3 pin plug?

[WannabeOwner]

Any tips on where to source good quality extension cables rated to handle EV charging in any weather conditions?

Mine came from Industrial Extension Leads. The important points are "tough impact resistant plug" and "industrial H07RN-F tough rubber cable" which will take plenty of abuse / scraping on tarmac and so on.

The cable is going to be running at max AMPs for hours on end, personally I wouldn't use anything undersized or the least bit damaged. Also check that the plug doesn't get warm (which may indicate that the house wiring isn't up to it ... old wiring in a garage etc. might well not be suitable for continuous running, flat out. You can dial-down the AMPs from the dashboard, so if plug gets more than lukewarm I would move the car / cable to a different socket, e.g. nearer the distribution unit in the house or reduce the AMPs.

If the cable is on a reel then FULLY unwind it first - and scatter about a bit, rather than coiling ti up neatly!

Important that the Socket is protected by RCD (or you piggy back an RCD adaptor), something else that dodgy old wiring at in the Relies Garage might be deficient on ...

There seems to be a general concensus not to run close to the limits on cable size vs length.

I bought "next diameter size up" on the grounds that the cable will be "longer" by virtue of the UMC length, and possibly it might get joined to something else in extremis.

How do I make use of the Blue industrial adapter 16A?

needs a Commando Socket. I have one, in addition to my Wallcharger, for Belt and Braces. its pretty flimsy pushing the UMC in/out, so I wouldn't want to be doing that often (or: if that is a requirement I wold get a more robust one). It should really have an interlock - i.e. when you turn the "switch" on it locks the plug in. You can get ones that you can pull the plug out whilst it is live ... if you are buying one anyway then best to get something better than that.

I thought this one looked good for £20:

Always staggers me that Companies don't put chapter and verse on their websites ... it would make a buying decision much more likely. No mention of the cable size, I could say "looks a bit skinny" but I'd only be guessing.

IP54 is "splash resistant" rather than "waterproof"

A same-length cable from Industrial Extension leads is a quid more, and I reckon more likely to be "bomb proof" ... but I've had plenty of other gear from Screwfix over the years, no complaints ... and the covered socket thingie will be handy.

We currently only have access to a 3 pin socket,

Just on a general point:

Losses from 13AMP will be greater than a 7kW wallcharger. Whether the numbers are significant I don't know (they appear to be in TeslaFi, but I dunno how it figures out what the Supply Power vs. Battery Gain is without a meter at the supply end!)

If you precondition the car on Shore Power it will make a significant dent in that 13 AMP supply ... so if you need to both Charge and Climate then charge rate will be significantly slower. Not a problem for most people, most of the time, mostly!

 

[TestPilot]

Hopefully I'll be able to answer this in a week's time when my car arrives. I bought a "Masterplug 2 socket 15 meter Waterproof Case Reel" from Argos.

I mentioned in the accessories thread, if it's anything like this one you won't be able to close the cover without ripping the rubber bit out that's meant to prevent water ingress around the cable....
Masterplug 1 socket 13A Orange Extension lead, 15m | DIY at B&Q

 

[Earthling Redd]

Getting 8 miles an hour on my 3 pin, seems to be working just fine, got a zappi 2 on order though, as I have solar, wondering if I actually need it though.

 

[Roy W.]

I mentioned in the accessories thread, if it's anything like this one you won't be able to close the cover without ripping the rubber bit out that's meant to prevent water ingress around the cable....
Masterplug 1 socket 13A Orange Extension lead, 15m | DIY at B&Q

With the orange weather shield I mentioned in post #15 I had the same problem. All I did was carefully use a craft knife to cut away a little of the rubber seal to make the hole the correct diameter for the larger cable.

 

[TestPilot]

With the orange weather shield I mentioned in post #15 I had the same problem. All I did was carefully use a craft knife to cut away a little of the rubber seal to make the hole the correct diameter for the larger cable.

That does seem like a much better way to deal with it than my Hulk Smash approach....

 

[WannabeOwner]

If you precondition the car on Shore Power it will make a significant dent in that 13 AMP supply

Here are two charges, at 7Kw rather than 13AMP, where in the final stage of reaching 100% Climate was turned on to condition the car. Clearly it uses quite a lot of the 7kW let alone what would be available at 13 AMPs. Sorry scale (in terms of when high SOC was reached and consumption started to decrease, is not aligned

 

[BogBeast]

I have installed a 16amp command socket in my garage, it's near my fuse panel so I ran a cable to the box.

We have an immersion heater that has never been used, it's on its own 16amp trip, so I tapped into that temporarily. I have space for another two trips so may well add another one just fo the commando, but for the moment will disable the immersion.

I now charge at 16amps / 13 miles an hour which is just fine for me; more or less fully charging overnight.



For the £15 it cost me in cable, clips and commando socket it was a bargain and was well worthwhile for the additional charge performance

The other major reason for doing going the above was the earth leakage trip was tripping out when I plugged the UMC in via the 13amp plug. The ring mains in my house are earth leakage protected, the cooker/heater side of the board is not. I have a fair amount of computer gear and most computer PSU leak a small amount to earth. The only way I could charge my car was to shut down half my gear as having it all plugged at the same time put it over the 30mA earth leak limit.....

I am not going to bother with a dedicated charger, I am in this house medium term and the additional cost of a dedicated charger is not worth it. My new place will have 3 phase and 40kw of solar panels. Will get a charger(s) then...

 

[chilli]

I’ll need to do standard plug charging when visiting my parents in Scotland or in laws in rural Normandy but will need an extension cable to reach the car. Or 2 cables as I’ll need a different one in France obviously.

Any tips on where to source good quality extension cables rated to handle EV charging in any weather conditions? For some reason I’m not convinced a standard extension cable from B&Q will suffice

Getting 9mph from the standard 3pin 13amp charge, B&Q do a 10m 13amp weatherproof yellow extension lead with box cover for the Tesla 3 pin connector

 

[curmudgeon]

The UMC meets my charging requirements better than expected. No wall charger installed at home because we are moving house next year and no worries that the UMC will cope.

Just check the amps setting in the car before charging. For some reason mine was set to 16 initially and blew the fuse in the extension.

 

[m-i-l]

I'm using the 13 pin in my garage, and as with others getting a fairly consistent 9 miles charge per hour, meaning overnight I can have around 100 miles added. This is fine for my use case, which is relatively infrequent longer journeys. Only potential issue is if I went on 2 long daytrips over a weekend and couldn't fully recharge overnight, but in that case I'd stop at a faster charger for a bit. Might still get a faster charger installed at some point, but not in a hurry.

 

[S777]

I bought one of these and can highly recommend:

13A extension lead BMW, Nissan & Jaguar compatible (RCD options)

The fully waterproof ip66 rated socket means I am confident leaving it out in the rain and the construction seems top notch.

 

[interbear]

I bought one of these and can highly recommend:

13A extension lead BMW, Nissan & Jaguar compatible (RCD options)

The fully waterproof ip66 rated socket means I am confident leaving it out in the rain and the construction seems top notch.

That looks a good option - thanks for sharing.

I will likely acquire one of those with inline RCD for charging when visiting folk in the UK ie. parents in Scotland. Looks ideal.

And it looks like I can connect the UK 3 pin cable to one of their European adaptors for when visiting family in France. Although for this I'm not really sure whether I need the standard one -
European Schuko/French CEE 7/7 plug to 13A socket adaptor
or a reverse polarity one -
Reverse polarity adaptor European Schuko/French 7/7 plug to 13A socket

Anyone got any idea on that? Think I will call them to explore.

 

[WannabeOwner]

Anyone got any idea on that?

The French don't care which way round they connect Live / Neutral to each house, but the Car (well, Tesla at least) does care, so if the socket you are using is wrong-way-around you need a reversed-polarity adaptor.

Assuming I'm answering the right question?

 

[interbear]

The French don't care which way round they connect Live / Neutral to each house, but the Car (well, Tesla at least) does care, so if the socket you are using is wrong-way-around you need a reversed-polarity adaptor.

Assuming I'm answering the right question?

Yes you’re answering the right question, thanks. I’m still not sure which adapter I need though, I assume I need to find a way of checking which sockets are in the in-laws house before I travel there. Or I’ll just buy both and throw them in the frunk!

If I used the wrong adaptor would it just not charge or is their a risk of damaging the Tesla? or the socket, although to be honest I’m more concerned about the Tesla

 

[LukeT]

I bought one of these and can highly recommend:

13A extension lead BMW, Nissan & Jaguar compatible (RCD options)

The fully waterproof ip66 rated socket means I am confident leaving it out in the rain and the construction seems top notch.

That trailing socket looks ideal. Have we confirmed that the gen 2 UMC can be left outside?

I can't find a true trailing socket like that but perhaps one designed for wall mount could be neatly Jerry-rigged for the purpose.

 

[Roy W.]

If I used the wrong adaptor would it just not charge or is their a risk of damaging the Tesla? or the socket, although to be honest I’m more concerned about the Tesla

I’m sure it’ll only be one or the other that bursts into flames, not both We could perhaps hold a sweepstake...
Trust the French. Here we need Type EV RCDs and all that, there they can’t even be bothered to differentiate between live and neutral!

 

[interbear]

I’m sure it’ll only be one or the other that bursts into flames, not both We could perhaps hold a seeepstake...
Trust the French. Here we need Type EV RCDs and all that, there they can’t even be bothered to differentiate between live and neutral!

Plug in and wait for the bang or the flames is a strategy I’d rather avoid

 

[interbear]

Have we confirmed that the gen 2 UMC can be left outside?

That’s a good question. I’d assumed, perhaps naively, that it was waterproof or showerproof to a degree at least as it will typically be used outside.

 

[LukeT]

That’s a good question. I’d assumed, perhaps naively, that it was waterproof or showerproof to a degree at least as it will typically be used outside.

On closer inspection, mine is IP65 rated. Therefore "protected against water jets from any angle" and I think alongside a properly rated socket/plug combo it should be OK so long as can't be submerged. I think I can lose the box if I use a properly rated trailing socket.

(N.B. I am not an electrician)

 

[enoTalseT]

I’ll need to do standard plug charging when visiting my parents in Scotland or in laws in rural Normandy but will need an extension cable to reach the car. Or 2 cables as I’ll need a different one in France obviously.

Any tips on where to source good quality extension cables rated to handle EV charging in any weather conditions? For some reason I’m not convinced a standard extension cable from B&Q will suffice

I have just returned from a short holiday in central France away from any superchargers in my P85D. I was hoping to trickle charge with an extension lead, UK Tesla charging cable and european adaptor. The model S wouldn't charge and indicated a charging fault and to seek advice from service centre.. I was staying at a holiday home and tried backing the car right up to the house so that I could connect the Tesla 13A UK lead and adapter straight into the wall socket but still no joy.
Colleagues have suggested that the available voltage from the domestic supply for the holiday home may have been too low to satisfy the requirements of the Tesla charging circuit. I didn't have a multimeter with me so couldn't check the supply voltage. Does anyone know if there is a minimum charging voltage requirement for a UK model S?
I believe they can charge at 110V in USA. Incidentally the extension leads which I had initially connected were 2.5mm squared cables, which should be good for 20 plus amps without diversity. I had set charge rate set down to 10A so that shouldn't have been a problem. But even without the extension leads no charging was possible. Perhaps someone can verify what the issue could have been but it would seem from my experience that you can't assume trickle charging is going to work in France from a domestic supply.