Lights in house flicker while charging new Model 3

[dougiegoindeep]

Hey, has anyone run into this issue before?

I have a new Model 3 and ever since getting it a couple weeks ago I have noticed that some of the lights in my house flicker while it is charging. They will continue to flicker while it charges and stop flickering if I stop charging and then start again when I start charging (and continue to flicker while it charges...not just when starting/stopping).

The Model 3 is plugged into a 14-50 outlet in the driver that was installed about a year and a half ago by a professional electrician. It charges using the UMC cable from my 2016 Model S (they share the same cable and alternate charging). The curious thing is that I have not noticed this behavior with the Model S charging in the previous year and half that I have lived here. They are both set to charge at 40 amps.

The lights in the house are all LED and all on dimmers (mostly GE zwave dimmers). Not all of them flicker. Maybe a bit less than 25% (and they are fortunately the less commonly used lights which is convenient otherwise this would be a bigger issue).

 

[mswlogo]

You should have someone check it out.

Things should not be flicking in the house.

It could be a sign that you have a poor connection upstream from the car that the whole house is seeing as well.

 

[dmurphy]

Obvious recommendation is obvious, but call an electrician ...
... could be a sign of a loose or burned neutral. Or something going on in your panel.

Either way, best to get a certified electrician to check it out for your safety.

 

[AlanSubie4Life]

Yeah, I would definitely dial back the charging current and charge during waking hours only, until you figure this out. There was another post about this but turned out to be nothing related to the house. Your situation seems more prolonged than that case.

Report back when you figure it out!

A helpful post:
Electrical Issue?

 

[destructure00]

Send it. YOLO.





J/K...get it checked by a pro, that's not right.

 

[eprosenx]

Hey, has anyone run into this issue before?

I have a new Model 3 and ever since getting it a couple weeks ago I have noticed that some of the lights in my house flicker while it is charging. They will continue to flicker while it charges and stop flickering if I stop charging and then start again when I start charging (and continue to flicker while it charges...not just when starting/stopping).

The Model 3 is plugged into a 14-50 outlet in the driver that was installed about a year and a half ago by a professional electrician. It charges using the UMC cable from my 2016 Model S (they share the same cable and alternate charging). The curious thing is that I have not noticed this behavior with the Model S charging in the previous year and half that I have lived here. They are both set to charge at 40 amps.

The lights in the house are all LED and all on dimmers (mostly GE zwave dimmers). Not all of them flicker. Maybe a bit less than 25% (and they are fortunately the less commonly used lights which is convenient otherwise this would be a bigger issue).

As others have said, this needs immediate attention. My guess would be a loose connection upstream from your panel, potentially on the utility side.

If it was me (since I have the skills, tools, and experience), I would remove the electrical panel cover and visually inspect for damage. I also have a flir camera that would let me see if anything was getting hot.

It could also be in the meter pan or out at the utility transformer.

One thing you could do is call your utility and ask them to check their side to make sure nothing was loose. They may not want to without first having you check your side, though they also don’t want liability (especially if it was something like a loose neutral) so they may be willing to come out. FWIW, I doubt this is a loose neutral since the Tesla does not put any load on the neutral at all (in fact it does not even use it).

P.S. I don’t think the S or 3 would do anything materially different. My guess is something hasn’t just worked it’s way loose.

Please do report back when you get it sorted so others will have your resolution when they google this in the future!

 

[eprosenx]

Also, what voltage does the Tesla report the instant you start charging and then also after it has been charging for a while?

I am wondering if the voltage sags a bunch after things heat up? (though if it sags too much the Tesla should throttle back charge speed or stop charging for safety)

Flickering is not right. Never run into that. The only other thing I could think of would be some odd interference or harmonics being caused by a wonky charger in the Model 3? They should be pretty high end rectifiers though... We have not heard of other issues here in the forums.

 

[dmurphy]

FWIW, I doubt this is a loose neutral since the Tesla does not put any load on the neutral at all (in fact it does not even use it).

While this is true, the increased load on the hot side may exacerbate an issue with the rest of the home's load. Just that this circuit isn't using the neutral doesn't mean it can't have an effect...

Simply, calling in the pros is the right call... speculating on a serious electrical issue is just a precursor to calling the insurance company.

 

[AlanSubie4Life]

Hey, has anyone run into this issue before?

I have a new Model 3 and ever since getting it a couple weeks ago I have noticed that some of the lights in my house flicker while it is charging. They will continue to flicker while it charges and stop flickering if I stop charging and then start again when I start charging (and continue to flicker while it charges...not just when starting/stopping).

The Model 3 is plugged into a 14-50 outlet in the driver that was installed about a year and a half ago by a professional electrician. It charges using the UMC cable from my 2016 Model S (they share the same cable and alternate charging). The curious thing is that I have not noticed this behavior with the Model S charging in the previous year and half that I have lived here. They are both set to charge at 40 amps.

The lights in the house are all LED and all on dimmers (mostly GE zwave dimmers). Not all of them flicker. Maybe a bit less than 25% (and they are fortunately the less commonly used lights which is convenient otherwise this would be a bigger issue).

Does the degree of flickering depend on what the dim level of the dimmers is?

Is it a particular category of LED that flickers?

If you look at the charging screen in the car, is the charging current bouncing around?

I too, have a hard time understanding why this would not happen with the Model S, if the charging behavior is basically identical. To be clear, the Model S still does not cause flickering, right (I know it has been ok in the past...that has not changed)?

Did you change anything else about the charging setup when you added Model 3?

 

[mswlogo]

While this is true, the increased load on the hot side may exacerbate an issue with the rest of the home's load. Just that this circuit isn't using the neutral doesn't mean it can't have an effect...

Simply, calling in the pros is the right call... speculating on a serious electrical issue is just a precursor to calling the insurance company.

I agree with @eprosenx regarding it being anything to do with neutral. Since charging has zero influence on neutral.

There is nothing wrong with speculation as long as it’s looked into.

 

[dhanson865]

Pick an normal 5-15 or 5-20 electrical outlet in a room where the lights flicker. Test that outlet's voltage without charging the car, and again while charging.

Normal is in the range of -5% of 120v and +5% of 120v (114v to 126v). And you shouldn't expect voltage to drop significantly on the normal outlet while charging on a different circuit elsewhere in the house.

For example I see between 118v and 123v in my wall outlets and my 240v socket in the garage sees 237v to 243v. But no matter if I'm charging a car or not I don't see a drop at one of my 5-15/5-20 sockets (they'll read within 1v plus or minus each time I check them unrelated to the charging and vary based on the neighborhood use not my house use).

If you don't have a meter grab a https://www.amazon.com/P3-P4400-Electricity-Usage-Monitor/dp/B00009MDBU and get a feel for what you see at different times and days (when it's hot out, or cold, or raining) see if you notice a pattern.

Absolutely have a professional look at it, but look at it yourself as well so you have a base understanding and can be the one managing the issue if multiple parties get involved before it's fixed.

 

[TiggerTime]

Perhaps it is an extension of Romance Mode the car is lonely without you

 

[dougiegoindeep]

Thanks for the replies. I will call an electrician today and the utility and also do some more testing with a multi meter while charging the cars and report back the results.

Edit to add that I just plugged both cars in (one at a time) this morning and got no flickering. I will have to try again at night and see if there is a correlation between the time and the flickering. The voltage on the 3 started around 241 and then dropped to 237 once it got up to full power (40 amps). On the S, it started at 244V and then dipped to 233V before finally settling around 234V (seemed a little more volatile and the range is obviously wider).

 

[SSedan]

Maybe a neighbor recently added a big load too on the same transformer and this isn't 3 related atall? Hot tub EV????

Having a professional look is certainly prudent. The Flir thing is a great idea, my employer recently began having someone come in and do this preemptively. Easy way to spot a poor connection in a cluster of hundreds.

 

[Skipdd]

I doubt this is your issue, but the following points to value of having an electrician check it out.

3 months ago I started noticing that my S would only charge at 30a. I will give the short version. There were many possibilities - nearby utlility work, bad UMC, issue w car, other issue in the house. I had spare UMC, determined it wasn’t that. Called electrician. He noticed flipped breaker in panel - outside HVAC compressor. He flipped it back and had me force the electric heater on, while measuring the voltage. It dropped 4 volts. I don’t know the tolerance range for the S, but it turned out, my outside compressor was bad, and, the inside unit was 23 yrs old, and I replaced both. No more issues.

 

[eprosenx]

Thanks for the replies. I will call an electrician today and the utility and also do some more testing with a multi meter while charging the cars and report back the results.

Edit to add that I just plugged both cars in (one at a time) this morning and got no flickering. I will have to try again at night and see if there is a correlation between the time and the flickering. The voltage on the 3 started around 241 and then dropped to 237 once it got up to full power (40 amps). On the S, it started at 244V and then dipped to 233V before finally settling around 234V (seemed a little more volatile and the range is obviously wider).

I find it somewhat odd that you only saw four volts of drop with the Model 3, but you saw 10+ volts with the S. That does not make any sense. All I can think is that you tested the S after the 3 and the 3 had pre-heated something in the electrical system and so it got worse as the S charged? Or something else (inside your house or at the neighbors) was running during the model S test. 10 volts of drop is likely more than I would want to see (though within tolerances). Mine probably only drops a couple/few volts (I have not paid close attention in quite a while)

You may have hit the nail on the head with the comment about the "time of day" aspect to the issue. If the issue is with your transformer or the electrical feed from the transformer to your house (more likely) it absolutely could be dependent on what your neighbors are doing. Depending on where you live and the time of year and the weather, often times evening peak (during dinner time) is when the system is under the greatest load.

Some questions for you:

• Is your electrical service overhead (aerial drop to your house) or underground?
• If you go look at your transformer (generally either a green box on the ground, or a tan colored canister up on one of the closest poles) - it will generally have a big number on it like "15, 25, 50, 75". That is its KVA rating. What is that number?
• How many houses are fed from that one transformer? (easier to tell if overhead, but often times you can kind of figure it out even if ground mounted).

Basically voltage drop is going to be a function of the distance from your charger (car) back to the transformer, along with the wire size and type (copper/aluminum), and the load placed on that wire.

If we presume the issue with your flickering lights is due to voltage drop, then the issue has to be either at the main lugs to you panel, or somewhere upstream of there. Depending on the layout of your power system, we area really only talking about a couple of possible connections that need looked at. Beyond that, it is all in the power companies domain.

 

[Rocky_H]

You do need to isolate some variables, but LED bulbs on dimmers are notorious for not working right and having flickering problems. We have two rows of three can lights in the ceiling of our TV room, and we replaced those floodlight-style incandescent bulbs with those LED versions several years ago. They go into flickering phases for a couple minutes here and there at all kinds of random times around the clock, regardless of anything, and it's when our car isn't plugged in, dimmers toward high or low, etc. It looks like a strobe light, and we just say, "It's a rave! WHOOOO!" and wave our hands around like we are partying.

 

[eprosenx]

You do need to isolate some variables, but LED bulbs on dimmers are notorious for not working right and having flickering problems. We have two rows of three can lights in the ceiling of our TV room, and we replaced those floodlight-style incandescent bulbs with those LED versions several years ago. They go into flickering phases for a couple minutes here and there at all kinds of random times around the clock, regardless of anything, and it's when our car isn't plugged in, dimmers toward high or low, etc. It looks like a strobe light, and we just say, "It's a rave! WHOOOO!" and wave our hands around like we are partying.

I have had somewhat similar issues with an overheating dimmer (in a wall box with a couple other dimmers that were also hot). Replacing the dimmer fixed it.

Though the Tesla really should not be causing power fluctuations that would trigger such behavior, so yeah, as Rocky mentions, it still needs checked out.

 

[NathanielHrnblwr]

Flicker like when a fluorescent tube is going out or pulsate?

 

[TJKR]

This sounds like a transformer issue outside your home. I'd contact your utility if you can't resolve it. Did you ever check your voltage at your panel?