Knoxville supercharger - where

[dhanson865]

see new pics above.

Will they have to trench across the parking lot to the nearest light pole? Will they have to trench across the street to the nearest light pole? Will they have to trench across the intersection to the nearest transformer?

where are they connecting to when they add the new massive transformers in the middle of open space in this parking lot?

 

[brandonmbeard]

Intersting how far south of the city it is. Almost not useful if going toward the Carolina's.

 

[Father Bill]

Any Chance that this will be done by the end of May? I am planning a trip to Huntsville the first week of June and this would make the journey from London to Chattanooga much more comfortable. This will be my first SC roadtrip I hope to make it relatively care free.

 

[dhanson865]

Any Chance that this will be done by the end of May? I am planning a trip to Huntsville the first week of June and this would make the journey from London to Chattanooga much more comfortable. This will be my first SC roadtrip I hope to make it relatively care free.

I don't know, but I'll update the pictures several times between then and now. You should have a better idea after the next update or two.

 

[TNEVol]

This location is all about completing the Atlanta to Ohio I-75 route. It is on I-40 as well to enhance the I-40 build out later. It is consistent with I-40 travel to Asheville about 115 miles. Generally it is assumed that a SC will be in the Asheville area at some point. Dhansom and I agree that there will likely be another SC on the East side of Knoxville. I think it is likely that it will serve I-81 and I-40.

I would be very surprised if the one under construction were not complete by the end of the month, particularly with the current good weather.

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Any Chance that this will be done by the end of May? I am planning a trip to Huntsville the first week of June and this would make the journey from London to Chattanooga much more comfortable. This will be my first SC roadtrip I hope to make it relatively care free.

If you have an 85 you should have no trouble. Range charge at London and be conservative for first 50 miles (65-70) . It is overall downhill to Chatt. There is a LV II charger at Cracker Barrel in Cleveland TN for back up. Stop there for a bite and get an additional 15 miles if necessary. I have made several long trips even in winter (3K and several !.5 K) you should not have a problem making it from London to Chatt.

 

[ltowens]

London to Chattanooga

This location is all about completing the Atlanta to Ohio I-75 route. It is on I-40 as well to enhance the I-40 build out later. It is consistent with I-40 travel to Asheville about 115 miles. Generally it is assumed that a SC will be in the Asheville area at some point. Dhansom and I agree that there will likely be another SC on the East side of Knoxville. I think it is likely that it will serve I-81 and I-40.

I would be very surprised if the one under construction were not complete by the end of the month, particularly with the current good weather.

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If you have an 85 you should have no trouble. Range charge at London and be conservative for first 50 miles (65-70) . It is overall downhill to Chatt. There is a LV II charger at Cracker Barrel in Cleveland TN for back up. Stop there for a bite and get an additional 15 miles if necessary. I have made several long trips even in winter (3K and several !.5 K) you should not have a problem making it from London to Chatt.

I've made the run from London, KY to Chattanooga. Did it on a 90% charge (P85), had 20-25 mi left at the Chattanooga super charger. There's a big climb between London and Knoxville and your wH/mi will get pretty high, just take it easy because after the climb it's down hill all the way to Chattanooga. Easy to make on a full charge in an 85, but keep your speed down until you start heading down the mountain.

 

[Father Bill]

Many thanks for the tips, I love Cracker Barrel and getting a few extra miles might make me feel just a little more secure.

 

[arg]

Because the efficiency of the Tesla Chargers is about 90% for the AC to DC conversion, and the max DC output of a Supercharger Cabinet is 135 kW, the max AC input of a Supercharger Cabinet is 150 kW. 4 Supercharger Cabinets at maximum (8 cars drinking heartily!), need a maximum of 600 kW of AC in. Because the power factor of a Tesla Charger is very close to 1, that means a max draw of 600 kVA.

The way most utilities rate and install transformers, 500 kVA could probably work for a 4 Supercharger Cabinet site, but every 4-cabinet site that I have seen, has had a 750 kVA or larger transformer.

The Tesla spec sheet for Gen II superchargers that showed up in a UK planning application (permit) shows for various input voltages:

380V 126kVA in, 115kW out (305A max)
400V 133kVA in, 120kW out (310A max)
480V 160kVa in, 145kW out (335A max)
AC input current in all cases 192A per phase, 200A breaker specified.
99% power factor.

This was in connection with a European installation, but the fact that they quote ratings at the common EU voltages and at 480V (not seen here other than via a private transformer) suggests that the Superchargers are now universal. If so, 4 cabinets is a load of 640kVA under USA conditions.

The efficiency is specified as 91.5% across all voltages, although calculation from the other figures gives 91.3%/90.2%/90.6% respectively - near enough the same.

The max output currents are slightly odd, as the rated power could never be achieved at those currents when charging a Model S. I'm wondering if those specifications refer to the current at the connector, implying a 335A connector limit, and hence the full power rating can be achieved when two cars are connected (at lower voltages but a higher aggregate current).

 

[dhanson865]

 

[scottf200]

Great set of pictures. I was just in that area 2 weeks ago looking at possible retirement locations in/around Tellico Village.

 

[Electricfan]

Anybody have any guesses - will it be working by June 13? I'm hoping to drive from Houston to the Tri-Cities then but I need this one to make it all the way there.

 

[dhanson865]

I was hoping it would be a bit farther east, maybe closer to West Town Mall, but that's for selfish reasons as my in-laws are up in Jacksboro and anything is a detour. Great news and once Asheville is done will give me a supercharged path. I've done it twice and I'm tired of overnighting in Asheville.

So that wasn't you in the White P85D with Connecticut plates I saw in Asheville?

I was charging a Leaf on chademo and the whole time I was there (about 40 minutes, chademo session lasted 34) I didn't see the driver to ask if he was one of the posters from the Knoxville Supercharger thread.

Oh, and that makes the P85D officially the first Tesla I stood next to.

 

[JohnQ]

So that wasn't you in the White P85D with Connecticut plates I saw in Asheville?

I was charging a Leaf on chademo and the whole time I was there (about 40 minutes, chademo session lasted 34) I didn't see the driver to ask if he was one of the posters from the Knoxville Supercharger thread.

Oh, and that makes the P85D officially the first Tesla I stood next to.

Afraid not, I have a regular old 85. Love that there's another one that made the trip to Asheville, though. We charged in the municipal garage next to the Marriott Renaissance downtown.

 

[CSFTN]

Anybody have any guesses - will it be working by June 13? I'm hoping to drive from Houston to the Tri-Cities then but I need this one to make it all the way there.

Since no other answers I will ... All else equal Tesla can typically finish a SC station in 3-5 weeks. June 13 is still 4 weeks away, and the station is already partially built, so my WAG is yes, before 6/14; about 2 weeks from today.

PS big news in Memphis this past week that Kimbal Musk is opening 2 restaurants here, the first this summer. Maybe this will accelerate the planned deployment of SCs in central and western TN, so he can make it from Nashville (visiting the store) to Memphis without problem. Anyway, that's my hope.

 

[TNEVol]

Weather has been good. I would be very surprised if this SC weren't operational by the first week in June. I will feel much better about guessing if dhanson has pics of the electrical service in place.

 

[N4HHE]

PS big news in Memphis this past week that Kimbal Musk is opening 2 restaurants here, the first this summer. Maybe this will accelerate the planned deployment of SCs in central and western TN, so he can make it from Nashville (visiting the store) to Memphis without problem. Anyway, that's my hope.

Memphis appears to be the epicenter of Supercharger-deadness. The last place one would expect a Supercharger after studying the Supercharger maps.

 

[dhanson865]

Weather has been good. I would be very surprised if this SC weren't operational by the first week in June. I will feel much better about guessing if dhanson has pics of the electrical service in place.

Talked to someone there and he said it will be open next week. Maybe Tuesday if the storms allow.

Said about 10 Tesla owners have dropped by to check the place out.

Said he has no idea where they are going next, they had to rush on short notice to work on this site but they know there are back to back jobs waiting on them to complete this one. No shortage of work.

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Because the efficiency of the Tesla Chargers is about 90% for the AC to DC conversion, and the max DC output of a Supercharger Cabinet is 135 kW, the max AC input of a Supercharger Cabinet is 150 kW. 4 Supercharger Cabinets at maximum (8 cars drinking heartily!), need a maximum of 600 kW of AC in. Because the power factor of a Tesla Charger is very close to 1, that means a max draw of 600 kVA.

The way most utilities rate and install transformers, 500 kVA could probably work for a 4 Supercharger Cabinet site, but every 4-cabinet site that I have seen, has had a 750 kVA or larger transformer.

Heres's one with 500 kVA, 4 cabinets, 8 stalls for ya. I didn't see a powercube or any powerwalls in there. The cabinets didn't look large enough to add any significant battery storage.

I'll try to get better pics of the power cabinets after it opens.

 

[Cottonwood]

Talked to someone there and he said it will be open next week. Maybe Tuesday if the storms allow.

Said about 10 Tesla owners have dropped by to check the place out.

Said he has no idea where they are going next, they had to rush on short notice to work on this site but they know there are back to back jobs waiting on them to complete this one. No shortage of work.

Thanks for the pictures and the update!

Always a good sign to see the transformer in place

View attachment 81173

Heres's one with 500 kVA, 4 cabinets, 8 stalls for ya. Maybe a Powercube going in there?

Utilities play by different rules; they don't have to follow the NEC for example. 4x150kW (4x135 with inefficiency) or 600 kW is bigger than the 500 kW you could get from a 500 kVA transformer with a power factor of 1.0. OTOH, that 600 kW load will not happen often nor will it last long, so I am sure that this transformer sizing will work just fine.

Thanks for checking closely.

 

[wk057]

Looks like this could be online this week based on the photos, assuming utility and inspector cooperation.

 

[dhanson865]

Looks like this could be online this week based on the photos, assuming utility and inspector cooperation.

Not sure if you missed it but they said it will be on by Tuesday weather permitting.

Maybe it was my wording but when I posted on Saturday I still considered the Tuesday 3 days later as "next week"

So for clarity I'm saying it might be open on Tuesday the 19th but even if it is delayed a day or two it will be done before the weekend of the 22nd.