Just to reiterate, when I last ran my survey in September, I found that fully 1/4 of all people had used either a 10-30 or 14-30 dryer plug to charge their car in the last 12 months. They may have only used it once, but they did use it.
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More California centric thinking. The whole west coast, wow. Oregon and Washington too? This just proves my point. There is a lot more country than the west coast and most of it doesn't have near the EV infrastructure that you do. The rest of us need all the charging opportunities that we can get. Tesla engineers and marketing really need to get out more and stop believing their hype about supercharging being the answer to all long distance travel, at least until there are double or triple the number of supercharger locations outside of California than we have now.
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Of course the survey only included people on the forums, which is not the typical mainstream Tesla owner. Early adopters and EV enthusiasts would be more likely to be adventurous about charging than the typical buyer now. Even so, if the percentage dropped to 5 or 10% of all users that would still show significant need.
Mark Z
Active Member
All of this discussion makes me wonder what company will create a universal wired adapter. Separate red, black, white and green wires with protective insulated covers to insert into each of the socket holes individually.
It's a scary thought, and no company interested in safety would manufacture such a kit. But, in an emergency situation, it could be very handy.
if the verbal description can't be pictured in your mind, here is a link to a photo to different blade widths: Tesla Motors Club - Enthusiasts & Owners Forum
Now, imagine if each of the correctly sized blades had an excellently designed insulated miniature handle with finger stop. A graphic chart to carefully indicate the correct wiring would allow the user to insert the correct sized blade into any socket. A multimeter or other test equipment should be included to test the voltage levels. Molded plug guides could make the process safer by inserting the blades into a locking device to position all blades before inserting into the socket at the same time.
Dangerous? You bet! Recommended? Absolutely NOT. Don't even think of attempting this.
My suggestion is for Tesla Motors to keep manufacturing and selling one piece adapters for every socket type so no one attempts to break the rules and engineer such a flexible solution.
It's a scary thought, and no company interested in safety would manufacture such a kit. But, in an emergency situation, it could be very handy.
if the verbal description can't be pictured in your mind, here is a link to a photo to different blade widths: Tesla Motors Club - Enthusiasts & Owners Forum
Now, imagine if each of the correctly sized blades had an excellently designed insulated miniature handle with finger stop. A graphic chart to carefully indicate the correct wiring would allow the user to insert the correct sized blade into any socket. A multimeter or other test equipment should be included to test the voltage levels. Molded plug guides could make the process safer by inserting the blades into a locking device to position all blades before inserting into the socket at the same time.
Dangerous? You bet! Recommended? Absolutely NOT. Don't even think of attempting this.
My suggestion is for Tesla Motors to keep manufacturing and selling one piece adapters for every socket type so no one attempts to break the rules and engineer such a flexible solution.
Khatsalano
Member
It'll come.I agree with this sentiment, but disagree as well. The Bay Area has tons of EV charging options, and all along the interstates there's easy charging for EVs. But get off the interstates and you're charging on adapters. This is true on Hwy 101 north of the Bay Area all the way to the Oregon border. From Oregon up to Washington, there's nothing but a sparse sprinkling of ChaDeMo and J plugs here and there (which is nice), but head east over the Cascades and Sierras and you're looking for 50amp RV sites or running extension cords from your motel room.
Statistically, Eastern Oregon, Southern Idaho, and Northern Nevada have the least amount of *roads* per sq mile than anywhere else in the continental US! Forget EV infrastructure, I'm just talking INFRASTRUCTURE! To get from Bend to the Winnemucca Supercharger on I-80, its 352 miles and there are only 2 main ways to do it (and each way has 1 other side road option). To get to the Boise, ID supercharger on I-84, there's 2 ways to do it, and no other options. We've done these by spending the night at hot springs resorts with 50 amp RV plugs, or there's a free 240v 80 amp charger (an old Tesla branded Clipper Creek charger) in Burns on the way to Boise. Pretty much anywhere else we've driven, we've always been able to find a plug of some sort to charge from.
Once you hit the Interstates though, its a bomb run, no problem.
Really, charging the Tesla is actually pretty easy. We've never had issues finding enough charge somewhere, sometimes you just need to get creative (including running an extension cord through your motel room door just to keep the car warm overnight so you don't lose any range!
Petra
Member
Glad I got my 10-30 adapter last month, then... disappointed that I don't have a 14-30, as I could see some situations where that would be a useful thing to have. 240V dryer outlets are common and are how I charge when I visit relatives. I'm not going to drive out to a Supercharger when there are already 240V outlets at my destinations--it's a waste of time and power. One of the great things about EVs is versatility in charging and taking that away or limiting it is just plain stupid (making end users put together their own adapters which lack the built-in safety features of Tesla's adapters is also stupid).
Additionally, there are a lot of homes in the SF Bay Area (and elsewhere) that were built in the 60's & 70's, already have 240V dryer outlets, but only have 100A panels, 100A service, and are pretty much maxed out. If they can't utilize their 30A dryer circuits, then they're left with a very expensive panel and service upgrade to contend with in order to charge their EVs.
At home, I charge with a home built EVSE using parts from the OpenEVSE project plugged into an L6-30 outlet in my garage. I keep one Tesla J-Plug adapter in the garage for home charging and one Tesla J-Plug adapter in the car just in case we ever need it while we're out and about.
Additionally, there are a lot of homes in the SF Bay Area (and elsewhere) that were built in the 60's & 70's, already have 240V dryer outlets, but only have 100A panels, 100A service, and are pretty much maxed out. If they can't utilize their 30A dryer circuits, then they're left with a very expensive panel and service upgrade to contend with in order to charge their EVs.
At home, I charge with a home built EVSE using parts from the OpenEVSE project plugged into an L6-30 outlet in my garage. I keep one Tesla J-Plug adapter in the garage for home charging and one Tesla J-Plug adapter in the car just in case we ever need it while we're out and about.
I've had this same thought, particularly when I showed up at my conservative father-in-law's place in rural Utah and was presented with a 14-30 outlet and a 6-50 outlet with no way to plug into them.
One wish I've had was wishing the UMC wasn't so sensitive to bad grounds or switch poles. We've stayed at some older motels where every plug we tried came up with a bad grounding error on the UMC and we were unable to charge at all. Its really frustrating to have all this electricity around you in your room, but the car is too finicky to drink from it...
green1
Active Member
Thanks for the reminder! I've been meaning to add a plug tester to my kit, and possibly a polarity switcher for plugs wired wrong, and an adapter with ground lug and some wire to add a missing ground.
That said, I agree that it's stupid of Tesla to discontinue any adapters, the charging network just isn't there yet outside of California.
Mark Z
Active Member
Time to visit a nearby RV park for a quicker and more reliable charge! My early Model S road trips required RV park stops. Supercharging and destination charging fill the gap today. Encourage those motels to consider a functional EVSE for their guests or to hire an electrician for their grounding problem.
I like green1's suggestion. Could there be any safety issues if running an extra ground wire to a grounded water pipe or other ground would be necessary? Insulated gloves might be smart.
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I actually don't have any idea, lol.
I was getting some luggage out of storage for a trip a while back, and one of the suitcases had that tucked in to one of the little carry-on bags that came with it. As soon as I saw the elastic bands I had a light-bulb moment, and went and grabbed my adapters (which I had been keeping in a small nylon velco-close bag), and they all fit in there perfectly.
It's some no-name cheapy luggage brand. I'll see if I can get a name off it and post here.
green1
Active Member
It's not so much an "extra" ground as it is just a ground. the adapters are made to add a ground to old 2-prong outlets, but there's no reason you couldn't use one with a 3 prong outlet that doesn't have a proper working ground. You can find them all over the place, but here's an example: Amazon.com: AXIS 45086 3-Prong to 2-Prong Electrical Adapter - 2 Pack: Electronics the little tab is where a ground wire attaches.
pipe clamps to connect to a water pipe are easy to find, and will work if it's copper all the way back to the service entrance, I've also worked with calmps designed to clip on to the electrical meter box to provide a ground. Otherwise you'd need a ground rod which is much more of a challenge.
Mark Z
Active Member
After an new 8 foot ground rod has been hammered into the ground, it couldn't be removed for reuse elsewhere without great effort. If a new ground rod is necessary, IMHO, the owner of that electrical outlet needs to hire an electrician to permanently fix the grounding problem.
The disappearance of the Tesla dryer outlet adapters makes me wonder if Tesla Motors wants new dedicated Wall Connector, EVSE or NEMA 14-50 installs rather than connection to older existing circuits for permanent use at home.
ZBB
Emperor
let me share what I use then...
I bought one one of these: Snap-On 870116 21-Inch Trunk Organizer and Tool Carrier - Tool Bags - Amazon.com
its much larger, but has pockets on the back side that perfectly hold my umc adapters. I keep the tool box in the rear seat footwell (I don't have the 3rd row seats...) and keep some other stuff inside it like a tire pump, tire gauge, small toolkit, safety triangle, etc. the box has some velcro on the bottom, so kind of sticks to the carpet to not slide...
They're not usually used permanently at home, most use of these adapters has been with traveling.
green1
Active Member
Hence the "much more of a challenge" part, which was basically my way of saying you couldn't practically do it.
Yes, no matter what issue the vehicle detects that it refuses to charge, the correct answer is for the owner of the outlet to get an electrician to fix it. But if you aren't the owner of the outlet, you don't really have much control over that part, so the remaining question is what other options do you have to get enough electrons moved around to allow you to continue your trip. I'd definitely be willing to try a water pipe ground, a polarity switcher, or a meter box clamp if those would get me to the next charger.
Mark Z
Active Member
Absolutely! Those venturing far from civilization would be wise to plan ahead and have the extra supplies handy.
For those not as fortunate to have the technical skills, a visit to a nearby RV park would be an excellent option.
Depends on where you connect it. If just to the Tesla's ground prong, you should be fine. Don't connect it to anything else or you may create a path back to the transformer for existing current, which would subject you to a bit of current flow too.
thecloud
As rhythm raced inside, the ship came alive
It's already too late to get one now, at least from Tesla.
I stopped by the Sunnyvale service center on my way home tonight, and was told in no uncertain terms:
- the NEMA 14-30 adapter has been "discontinued" and is no longer available for sale
- any stock they have is strictly for warranty replacement
- they would not be able to sell one to me
- no other service center would be able to sell them
Hopefully they will take note of the fact that customers are still requesting these adapters. (I had to explain that this was not for charging at home, but for infrequent charging at a destination where I could not simply install a 14-50 outlet or HPWC.)
The good news is that third-party adapters will fill this void, even if they require manually dialing back the current for that site. More pessimistically, I think the Ontario pilot foreshadows the end of days for the 40A NEMA 14-50 adapter, which could also be "discontinued" in favor of a 32A variety without warning.
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