L1 UMC charging question

[Eric33432]

The dryer unfortunately is not in the garage and is on the floor above. It would have been my first option otherwise. A coworker of mine also uses the splitter plug at the dryer for his Tesla.

Also, i just attached the 30ft 10/3 extension to the first outlet and now the voltage drop is within spec even at 12A. I will make sure to not power on any high wattage equipment while it’s charging and am also going to monitor the receptacle for heat. But this is just a temporary solution, need to figure out something which is more permanent.

Backstabbing is a newbie (or lazy pro) hack, IMHO. If I were writing the NEC, it would be banned.

Well, that temporary way of charging is probably somewhat safer electrically than plugging into the end of that long circuit with 7 or 8 old outlets that are possibly back stab connected. It might be even a little safer if you can replace that first outlet with a new commercial quality outlet that is wired to the screws.

Depending on how much you drive, that might be OK, and once in a while you could stop at a SuC if needed. Personally, I love driving our Tessies and would hate to be limited how much I drive. So if you need a little more power, another idea might be to plug a NEMA 5-20 extension cord into a kitchen outlet, or even the bathroom outlet as they are on 20 amp circuits, assuming they are convenient to run the cord to your garage.

If the kitchen or bathroom receptacle is not a 20 amp (NEMA 5-20) receptacle, you could replace one of those receptacles with a NEMA 5-20. You would need to buy the 5-20 adapter from Tesla, and extension cord set up for NEMA 5-20.

(Note that it is ok to wire a 5-15 to a 20 amp circuit, but it is not ok to wire a 5-20 to a 15 amp circuit.)

Amazon.com

If the outlet is near the panel, then simply adding a new 240V outlet near the panel with its own breaker would be an easy solution.

That would be even better if the panel is close to the garage, but with a rental situation no tenant should be working on the electrical system unless the landlord is involved. And you still have to run a cord from the panel to the garage, unless the panel is in the garage.

 

[rrolsbe]

Well, that temporary way of charging is probably somewhat safer electrically than plugging into the end of that long circuit with 7 or 8 old outlets that are possibly back stab connected. It might be even a little safer if you can replace that first outlet with a new commercial quality outlet that is wired to the screws.

Depending on how much you drive, that might be OK, and once in a while you could stop at a SuC if needed. Personally, I love driving our Tessies and would hate to be limited how much I drive. So if you need a little more power, another idea might be to plug a NEMA 5-20 extension cord into a kitchen outlet, or even the bathroom outlet as they are on 20 amp circuits, assuming they are convenient to run the cord to your garage.

If the kitchen or bathroom receptacle is not a 20 amp (NEMA 5-20) receptacle, you could replace one of those receptacles with a NEMA 5-20. You would need to buy the 5-20 adapter from Tesla, and extension cord set up for NEMA 5-20.

(Note that it is ok to wire a 5-15 to a 20 amp circuit, but it is not ok to wire a 5-20 to a 15 amp circuit.)

View attachment 1013290

Amazon.com

That would be even better if the panel is close to the garage, but with a rental situation no tenant should be working on the electrical system unless the landlord is involved. And you still have to run a cord from the panel to the garage, unless the panel is in the garage.

Since code allows 5-15 receptacles on a 20A circuit, could he replace that first receptacle with a 5-20 if that run is protected by a 20A breaker using 12/10 gauge wire? Can 5-20 receptacles be daisy chained on a 20A breaker protected circuit?

 

[Eric33432]

Since code allows 5-15 receptacles on a 20A circuit, could he replace that first receptacle with a 5-20 if that run is protected by a 20A breaker using 12/10 gauge wire? Can 5-20 receptacles be daisy chained on a 20A breaker protected circuit?

Yes, that is OK. The fact is, most 20 amp residential circuits have 5-15 type outlets on them. There is no issue having a mix of 5-15 and 5-20 on a 20 amp circuit (#12 wire).

But the circuit our OP is using now is a 5-15 outlet protected with a 15 amp breaker, and presumably wired with #14 wire. You cannot put a 5-20 on that type of circuit.

The NEMA outlet scheme is pretty clever. Any device that is equipped with a NEMA 5-15 plug is limited to 15 amps (1800 watts at 120 volts), 12 amps if the load is continuous. I have never seen a common household appliance that draws more than 1800 watts, but if one did it would be required by regulatory agencies to be equipped with a 5-20 plug. The 20 amp receptacles are downwardly compatible by allowing both 5-15 and 5-20 plugs to be inserted, but the 15 amp circuits are not upwardly compatible because the 5-15 receptacle only allows the insertion of the NEMA 5-15 plug. Usually NEMA 5-20 plugs are on 120 volt devices that draw more than 15 amps such as air compressors and other heavy power tools.

If you have a NEMA 5-15 outlet on a 20 amp circuit, you can use this adapter to convert it to NEMA 5-20. Even though the 5-15 outlet is for use on 15 amp devices (1800 watt limit), the receptacle is rated for use on 20 amp circuits and its internal parts are rated for 20 amps.

Amazon.com

But I would install a NEMA 5-20 outlet on such a circuit.