Just got my 14-50 plug installed

[roblab]

You may also want to buy a holder (the mobile connector is not designed to hang off the plug with no support) and cable organizer for it.
Cable Organizer

Wellllllll, mine's been hanging from the outlet for about ten years, so I'd have to guess that the mobile connector was neither designed or not designed to hang from the plug. I did not buy any extraneous cable organizer or other fol de rah, and I'd say it's unnecessary. I lay the 20' of cable on the floor next to where I park and the charge plug on a shelf. That's my organizer. Works for me.

Stopcrazypp, are you a cable dealer?

 

[stopcrazypp]

Wellllllll, mine's been hanging from the outlet for about ten years, so I'd have to guess that the mobile connector was neither designed or not designed to hang from the plug. I did not buy any extraneous cable organizer or other fol de rah, and I'd say it's unnecessary. I lay the 20' of cable on the floor next to where I park and the charge plug on a shelf. That's my organizer. Works for me.

Stopcrazypp, are you a cable dealer?

No, I have no affiliation with any of the products I linked, nor with Tesla, so I gain nothing from people buying them. And as I pointed out, you can even just put two screws on the wall to give some support (does that make me a "screw dealer"?).

And given you say 10 years, you have gen 1 of the mobile connector which explicitly states in the manual (bold emphasis mine):
"Plug the Mobile Connector’s into the power outlet. Do not hang the weight of the adapter on the wall plug. The adapter should be flush against the wall plug."

Edit:
I take it you aren't talking about the Roadster UMC, where the wall end looks much beefier and looks to be twist lock with metal on the charger end (so much more robust). It's not the plastic friction fit like both gens of post-Roadster UMCs.

Roadster Universal Mobile Connector (UMC) w/NEMA 14-50 Plug

Selling my OE Roadster UMC with NEMA 14-50 pigtail adapter. It's in great working order and very good cosmetic condition apart from some paint stains (see photos). These are getting harder and harder to find; esp. function ones. $800 + Shipping Local pickup in Los Angeles County available.

teslamotorsclub.com

 

[Feathermerchan]

Use case for bringing your mobile connector with you:
We visited my son in Phila twice. He has 240V available but if you look at a map there are few charging options. Glad I brought my UMC. As of now he has an EGolf and a connector he leaves at home so I can use the Tesla adaptor and charge in his driveway no problem. Progress.

 

[techzelle]

Don’t let if hang like mine(I have since purchased a support).
View attachment 673998

how is that 240 volts with only 15 amps?

If you just use your dryer outlet, that would be 240 with 30 amps..

 

[stopcrazypp]

how is that 240 volts with only 15 amps?

If you just use your dryer outlet, that would be 240 with 30 amps..

A NEMA 6-15 is 240 volts and 15 amps.
Mobile Connector

 

[SMAlset]

This is especially correct if you have installed a cheap receptacle, like the $10 ones you get at home depot, which are also prone to fires due to heavy continuous charging load. But don't worry, most fires are limited to the receptacle and contained within the outlet box.

Hopefully you have installed an industrial quality outlet, like the Hubbell HBL9450A, which was on the Tesla recommendation list. Then you can plug and unplug as many times as you like.

Hubbell Wiring Device-Kellems 50 A, Industrial, Receptacle, Black, No Tamper Resistant HBL9450A - 1 Each: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

Hubbell Wiring Device-Kellems 50 A, Industrial, Receptacle, Black, No Tamper Resistant HBL9450A - 1 Each: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

www.amazon.com

After reading a thread on here regarding the 14-50 outlet receptacles and issues some people had with overheating, some with in-wall scorching, we had our electrician replace our Leviton receptacle with the Hubble one. Given how we would be charging our cars for hours on end and unattended, it probably getting more use than our 240v outlet for our double oven, we decided for safety sake to upgrade it. Seeing the comparison of manufacturer products, the quality of the Hubble stands out.

Here’s our corded 14-50 mobile connector. Opted for it back when we bought our MS in 2017. On a 50A circuit. Pretty much a permanent fixture on the wall since we wanted to keep our mobile connector kits in our cars full time. Had to move it to present location after we added our Tesla Solar PV and PWs equipment panels to that wall recently. Not much room for it but it works there in that space. The cable organizer was from 2017 as well and see they’ve modified it since then. I like this version as it reminds me of connecting at a supercharger and a nice look.

 

[Zinzan]

Hi, I don't buy or use any aftermarket or third party manufactured chargers or cords for any electronics. I don't think its safe and then of course if there is any issues with what you are charging you can bet that manufacturer will point to the charging accessories and void any possible warranties.

@Gulfcoaster, I’m pretty sure an aftermarket cable organizer won’t void any Tesla warranties.

 

[techzelle]

Hubbell 14-50, flush mount, 50Amp circuit, Tesla brand charge holder, velcro cable ties to hold excess cable that is not needed.

 

[ODWms]

I'd like to see some pictures of how people are hanging their mobile connectors.

Here is my setup, with no holders for the cable itself. I didn’t find it necessary.

https://imgur.com/a/eTbmW4y

 

[facedown]

The Tesla wall connector @$500 can charge up to 48 amps with a 60 amp breaker (40 amps in the OP's case with a 50 amp breaker) versus the included mobile connector which can only go up to 32 amps regardless of how large you make the breaker.

I have a 100 amp breaker but only the mobile connector. Sure enough, the car will only charge up to 32 amps. That works for me since I only drive ~40 miles/day. It is just a good thing to be aware of.

 

[mbp11]

This is a followup to my prior message.... had to update the photo.
The portable chargers had adaptors that will connect to whatever kind of plug you have. I have a Nema 5-15, it is a 240 V, 15 amp socket that came with my house, and it gives me a slow but steady connect to charge the car... slowly. (It came with my divorce house and I did not feel the need to upgrade to something at a higher amperage, it was free! I think it was some kind of utility plug for a saw or something).

The adaptors wil tend to "pull out" of the main body if they are under tension, and could short out or disconnect you from charging. By adding a support at the bottom and taking the tension off, will minimize the chance that it will pull out unexpectedly. Granted, those adaptors are stuck there pretty well, but one of mine was starting to come out (I have one for home and one for the car). So, I vote for having a support. But in internet terms, your mileage my vary (YMMV).

 

[StellarRat]

Or you can save yourself a lot of money and just pound a couple nails into the 2x4s in the wall and hang your cord and charger from those. When my car isn't plugged in I just loop the end of the charger over the nail. Works perfectly.

 

[snikt]

Or you can save yourself a lot of money and just pound a couple nails into the 2x4s in the wall and hang your cord and charger from those. When my car isn't plugged in I just loop the end of the charger over the nail. Works perfectly.

It was like $20 on Amazon, I think that's worth having it look decent, not exactly a lot of money

 

[mrau]

Using a holder is a nice way to go. That way the UMC doesn't swing side to side. If you are able to install it in the right spot then there is no tension on the plug itself. The UMC just drops into the bracket and is easy to slide out when needed.

Many design available to 3D print, eBay, Amazon or wherever you shop. Attached are a couple examples.

 

[kaffine]

I'm going to use the mobile charger full time at home, but some people mention to bring it on road trips. Wouldn't any station you'd use already have a connector, likely the J1772 if it's not a Supercharger station?

What would be the use case of using your mobile charger on a normal road trip?

RV spots commonly have a 14-50 outlet, will be slower than a SC but if you are miles from a SC it can add help. The other thing is if staying at house somewhere they may have a 14-50 in their garage. Those that planned for an EV or have hobbies that require lots of power will install them. Although depending on what they installed the outlet for there are other ones you may run into. Less of a concern now but in years past when EV charging was less common people relied on other options and those traveling to remote areas still do.

 

[SMAlset]

I'm going to use the mobile charger full time at home, but some people mention to bring it on road trips. Wouldn't any station you'd use already have a connector, likely the J1772 if it's not a Supercharger station?

What would be the use case of using your mobile charger on a normal road trip?

L2 charging stations like ChargePoint for example require Tesla owners to add their own J1772 adapter to the station’s charging cable in order to connect to your car. Both my husband and I keep our mobile connector kits in our cars’ trunk for any occasion, but the J1772 adapter pretty much stays in easy access for a quick plug in. Glove box works well for it if room there so you don’t have to open your trunk/frunk whenever you need it. Just remember to uncouple the adapter after charging and take with you.

If visiting someone’s house and needing a charge there, most people might have either a garage with a 120v outlet or an outlet for a washing machine in the garage (something popular in some areas of the country). In that case, like at an RV park (with 14-50 outlet) you’d need to have both the mobile connector cable with you and the right adapter.

 

[stopcrazypp]

RV spots commonly have a 14-50 outlet, will be slower than a SC but if you are miles from a SC it can add help. The other thing is if staying at house somewhere they may have a 14-50 in their garage. Those that planned for an EV or have hobbies that require lots of power will install them. Although depending on what they installed the outlet for there are other ones you may run into. Less of a concern now but in years past when EV charging was less common people relied on other options and those traveling to remote areas still do.

As mentioned by others, when visiting, you are more likely to see a dryer outlet (14-30 or 10-30) in the garage than a 14-50 (I'm debating if I should get the dryer outlet adapter too for this reason). But even with the 120V connector, that's still useful to get a couple tens of miles of range in a couple hours charge, which may be all you need to get to a SC when visiting someone. Anyways, definitely agree with everyone here that it's good bring it along on longer trips.

 

[bobbyg123]

Someone mentioned earlier that if you want the charger to hang downward, the grounded (round) hole of the plug needs to be orientated at the top. Is that confirmed? If so, I'll need to reposition the plug.

Thanks!!

 

[snikt]

Someone mentioned earlier that if you want the charger to hang downward, the grounded (round) hole of the plug needs to be orientated at the top. Is that confirmed? If so, I'll need to reposition the plug.

Thanks!!

Yes, and regardless of Tesla the ground pin is supposed to be installed up anyway on a NEMA 14-50.

https://www.tesla.com/sites/default/files/pdfs/installation-guides/nema-14-50-installation-guide.pdf

 

[roblab]

No, I have no affiliation with any of the products I linked, nor with Tesla, so I gain nothing from people buying them. And as I pointed out, you can even just put two screws on the wall to give some support (does that make me a "screw dealer"?).

And given you say 10 years, you have gen 1 of the mobile connector which explicitly states in the manual (bold emphasis mine):
"Plug the Mobile Connector’s into the power outlet. Do not hang the weight of the adapter on the wall plug. The adapter should be flush against the wall plug."


ARE you a screw dealer?? All I'm saying is that a lot of "requirements" are really suggestions, the proof of which is in how I hang my mobile connector. My wall outlet is well able to support the wall connector, but maybe there are outlets out there that are not. Your suggestion of putting a couple screws in the wall to help support the connector might be a good idea if one were having trouble with the connector pulling out of the outlet -- but I don't have that trouble, and I doubt many do. It boils down to people using their brains, looking at the equipment and making intelligent decisions rather than following others for no reason.