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New owner...home charging necessary?

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I'm taking delivery of my AWD Model 3 on Saturday, but I'm not getting the home charger right away (house needs some electrical work first). There are charging options at work, and around town, but I would really feel more comfortable if I could plug in at home.

I was wondering if anyone else did not get the home charging setup right away (or at all). What was your experience like? Was it a pain, or did you not even notice?
 
I'm taking delivery of my AWD Model 3 on Saturday, but I'm not getting the home charger right away (house needs some electrical work first). There are charging options at work, and around town, but I would really feel more comfortable if I could plug in at home.

I was wondering if anyone else did not get the home charging setup right away (or at all). What was your experience like? Was it a pain, or did you not even notice?


If you can charge as needed at work that should definitely solve your issue.

Alternatively, if the house can even provide a standard 110V wall charger that may be enough depending on your daily driving.

I would imagine overall no charge at home would be a pain. But if you drive daily to a workplace where you can charge then not so much.
 
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It really depends on your use. If you drive less than 60 miles a day regular outlet will give you sufficent charge overnight( as long as it’s decent temperatures), with the occasional top up from public stations.

I drove my 1st EV 45 miles round trip daily with only 120v 15 amp charging for over a year with zero issues.
 
Ask yourself this: What will you do with your time while you wait to charge away from home?

As someone with home charging, I can say that waking up to a charged battery ready to go every morning is really nice. When I go visit my parents in CT, not having a charger there means making a trip to the mall every other day. I'm not a people person and I don't like having to find something to do for the hourish it takes to charge at a supercharger. Destination chargers would be even slower.
 
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I'll have a standard 110V outlet available to charge from, so hopefully I can get my 'errand' distance from that. I'm hoping to get the Tesla charger installed later this summer, but in the meantime, I'm a little nervous.
You should get 3 miles per hour. Should be able to get at least 40 miles a day I imagine. Will that do it for you?
 
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Can you post pictures of your electrical panel, your outside meter and power feed, etc?

It is possible you could very temporarily do something like a 20a 240v circuit without major electrical work which could get you further down the road without too much annoyance?

I just throw it out there as it is possible you may not need as major an overhaul as you think to get something workable.

I highly recommend having a charging solution at home even if it is slow.

One of the things I love the most about my car is that on a daily basis I never have to worry about starting my day with a full tank. I only have to think about things when I am going on long trips.
 
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Yes, you want home charging.

I charged on 120V for about a month before I got my 240 setup installed. It's 3 or 4 MPH, but it's something.

Buy a heavy duty extension cord (i.e. one rated for at least 15A but preferably 20A) and connect the car to your outlet of choice. I had an extension cord hanging down from my attic window because none of my other outlets had a proper ground wire.
 
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For most people, installing a Tesla Wall Connector is more of a luxury than a necessity. Do you maybe already have an electric clothes dryer at home? Those usually plug into 30 amp plugs which is a nice middle ground from a standard wall outlet and a 50 or 60 amp wall connector. It's what I used before getting a wall connector (which I only got because it was free with referral reward).
 
I'm taking delivery of my AWD Model 3 on Saturday, but I'm not getting the home charger right away (house needs some electrical work first). There are charging options at work, and around town, but I would really feel more comfortable if I could plug in at home.

I was wondering if anyone else did not get the home charging setup right away (or at all). What was your experience like? Was it a pain, or did you not even notice?
So much better if you can charge at home.
It is one of the major advantages of EVs, you don't need to waste time fuelling/charging.
 
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Having some sort of home charging is going to greatly improve your quality of life, and waking up to a full (or whatever percentage you set) battery is one of the great things of owning an EV. Your driving needs will determine your requirements. It might be that you don't need to have a Tesla Wall Connector or even a NEMA 14-50. Maybe you'll be fine with a household 120V outlet (which you said you have available?) or NEMA 14-30 dryer outlet.

I had a NEMA 14-50 outlet installed just before taking delivery of my Model S almost four years ago. I literally don't think about range or charging unless on a road trip. And I've had one or two occasions where my wife borrowed my Tesla because she needed to run an errand somewhere and didn't have time to put gas in her ICE car. :)

Bruce.
 
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Home is good, but you can broaden that out to be a little more general:
Some place you are almost daily where you are doing something else for some hours. So workplace could also serve. I had been charging at home for the past few years, but my workplace finally got charging stations put in, and they are set for a pricing of 6 cents per kWh. I didn't use them for the first several months, because I thought, "I don't need to bother, and our residential rate is about 8-9 cents, so it's still cheap and convenient." But then I thought, "There are usually still empty spots, and it's like 25% off electricity all the time, so why not?" They let you have a 4 hour limit. I wait til my car gets a little low, like a third or half and charge a couple days a week. I go down at lunch time to move my car and then get a tray of food from the cafeteria. So yeah, if it's very easily available at work, that's almost as convenient as home.