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Just buying a model s and wondering about what is best option for home charging.
- Thread starter Cdl13
- Start date
I think you mean wall connector (“HPWC” in Tesla-speak) rather than ‘supercharger’. And no, if you have a good 240v outlet you don’t need one - plenty of people just use a 240v outlet and the mobile connector.
Extension cords are not recommended, AFAIK. But I have a heavy duty 25ft NEMA 14-50 extension cord in my frunk just in case. If I need to use it I’ll likely dial down the amperage a little.
Extension cords are not recommended, AFAIK. But I have a heavy duty 25ft NEMA 14-50 extension cord in my frunk just in case. If I need to use it I’ll likely dial down the amperage a little.
airborne spoon
Active Member
I daily charge off a 120v outlet with a 12awg extension cord for the last 3 years without issue.
If you already have a 240v outlet like a 14-50 then you're good to go and just charge off of that with the mobile connector that came with the car, because charging at 9kW (240v 40A) off that thing works great and is what i did for the first 2 years of having my car before i moved.
If you need an extension cord you can buy some RV ones off amazon or other sites. although compare prices before you buy, its often cheaper to buy the parts at home depot and DIY an extension cord than to buy one. Just ensure you get at least 8awg.
I installed a HPWC at my moms house for when I visit there, and the 19kW (240v 80A) of charging speed is insanely awesome compared to the 1kW (120v 10A) I get at home. The only reason to upgrade from a normal 40A outlet to a HPWC is for faster charging if you need it for any one of a number of reasons, i got it because it was a FB marketplace deal for $300 and it only cost me about $200 to install it and it is super convenient if i get there with a low SoC i can hit it for like 30 min and i got plenty of juice to go run all over town or wherever.
If you already have a 240v outlet like a 14-50 then you're good to go and just charge off of that with the mobile connector that came with the car, because charging at 9kW (240v 40A) off that thing works great and is what i did for the first 2 years of having my car before i moved.
If you need an extension cord you can buy some RV ones off amazon or other sites. although compare prices before you buy, its often cheaper to buy the parts at home depot and DIY an extension cord than to buy one. Just ensure you get at least 8awg.
I installed a HPWC at my moms house for when I visit there, and the 19kW (240v 80A) of charging speed is insanely awesome compared to the 1kW (120v 10A) I get at home. The only reason to upgrade from a normal 40A outlet to a HPWC is for faster charging if you need it for any one of a number of reasons, i got it because it was a FB marketplace deal for $300 and it only cost me about $200 to install it and it is super convenient if i get there with a low SoC i can hit it for like 30 min and i got plenty of juice to go run all over town or wherever.
There are a lot of different types of 240V outlets, so make sure to identify what it is. Tesla does sell adapter plugs for most of them on their site, but there are a few they don't, so we can help direct you if you tell us what it is. Here's a useful guide to identify most of them:
Or if you post a picture here, I'm sure we can tell what it is. And yeah, that's fine to just use that mobile charging cord. I've still just been using that for over 7 years.
beatle
Active Member
I've used a homemade 12awg extension cord to plug into a 6-20 receptacle. Just make sure you use an adequate awg cord.
Some people advise to not regularly unplug the UMC from the wall. Many 14-50 receptacles are not made for that many cycles and will fatigue the contacts leading to a melted connector. IMO unless you need more than 40A of charging speed,, a NEMA 14-50 receptacle and a dedicated gen1 UMC will do you well. And if there's any issue, just unplug it and plug in another.
Some people advise to not regularly unplug the UMC from the wall. Many 14-50 receptacles are not made for that many cycles and will fatigue the contacts leading to a melted connector. IMO unless you need more than 40A of charging speed,, a NEMA 14-50 receptacle and a dedicated gen1 UMC will do you well. And if there's any issue, just unplug it and plug in another.
You're not only limited to a tesla charger. In my case, installed an OpenEVSE 40A unit and use a J1772 adapter. Wanted something a little more robust than the mobile connector and also wanted to be able to use the full 9kw of charging installed on my S. The difference reduces my 20% to 90% charge time from about 1.5 to 2 hours shorter than the mobile connector did.
Silicon Desert
Well-Known Member
There are a bunch of other threads about this on here. Check out the search feature for home charging. Much good info available. And welcome.
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