Thought exercise for using a generator connector to charge

[CKwik240]

So I just returned from a trip to Yosemite where I had rented a small cabin near the Supercharger at El Portal. Upon arriving to the cabin, I noticed an outdoor outlet cover. Upon inspection, it had a male L14-30 which I thought was odd. Asked the person at the front desk about charging and she said they are fine with charging the car there, but had no adapters that fit this connector. Upon closer inspection into the adjacent breaker panel, the only 30A breaker had a lockout that requires one to turn off the main breaker. I figured out it was for connecting a generator and the male L14-30 suddenly made sense.

Made me think though, what if one were to assemble an adapter cable with a female L14-30 to 14-30 outlet and simply remove the lockout temporarily. I'm not sure this facility would allow this, but I thought this may make for a bit of an interesting thought exercise for creative ways to charge. I don't see any technical issues other than making sure you don't exceed the load of the box. This one was 100A box and the cabin was attached directly to the office so who knows what they have running in there; the cabin had an in-wall AC unit and I'm sure they're was some kind of AC running in the office. None of the other breakers were more than 20A. Though, the office is open only from 1PM to 9PM so it's possible one could get 24A after hours.

I'm not sure if the detached cabins at this property have such a connector as this may have been installed to run the office if power goes out.

Attached photos of the connector and lockout. Also added one of Yosemite Valley just because.

 

[gt2690b]

It probably violates a code or two but I wouldn't hesitate in a bind

 

[Regaj]

Yes, the L14-30 is an inlet port for a generator.

But crikey. There's a reason that transfer switches and lockout switches exist. Hard to believe that anyone - much less a short-term rental - would contemplate tampering with a service panel on a property that they have no knowledge of just so they can juice their car. I can't think of a better, faster way to give EV's a bad name.

If you're needing an emergency backup, throw a mobile connector and extension cord in the trunk.

 

[CKwik240]

Again, this is for a thought exercise in terms of creative ways to charge. I'm not suggesting anyone go out and tamper with other people's panels.

As I think about this more, one could also use this to provide power to a home from an EV that had such capability, but that isn't really the intent of this post.

 

[CKwik240]

It probably violates a code or two but I wouldn't hesitate in a bind

Maybe. But seeing as I didn't even know such a thing existed until I saw it, what do I know? Electrically speaking, I see no reason not to. I certainly wouldn't hesitate if it were my home...

 

[Cosmacelf]

If you’re that desperate, a safer thing to do is open up the electrical panel and slam in your own 30A or even 50A breaker and charge that way. I did that once in a rented condo. Yes, for a while I carried around a 50A breaker wired to a long piece of SOOW cable. Back in the charging desert days of 2013. No need now.

 

[gt2690b]

...I didn't even know such a thing existed until I saw it, what do I know? ...

ignorance is no excuse for breaking the law... that said i'm the first one to usually break the law lol

 

[davewill]

Sure, it would work, but in my mind disabling the lockout is a bridge too far. I'd hate to be the one that forgot to reenable it, or goofed doing so and caused someone grief down the road.

 

[ucmndd]

The lockout exists such that there’s no way those exposed male 14-30 prongs can ever be energized. I would not be comfortable disabling such a critical safety feature no matter how temporary.

Yes, it would work.

 

[CKwik240]

The lockout exists such that there’s no way those exposed male 14-30 prongs can ever be energized. I would not be comfortable disabling such a critical safety feature no matter how temporary.

Yes, it would work.

That is a good point. I'm actually surprised they don't have a dedicated, more protected connector for both ends for this type of application.

 

[ucmndd]

That is a good point. I'm actually surprised they don't have a dedicated, more protected connector for both ends for this type of application.

Reverse your thinking.

The male prongs on the load side exist precisely so the energized connections coming from the generator side can be protected by a female receptacle.

And since the lockout guarantees the load side can never be energized when the house mains are, they’re perfectly safe.

 

[CKwik240]

Reverse your thinking.

The male prongs on the load side exist precisely so the energized connections coming from the generator side can be protected by a female receptacle.

And since the lockout guarantees the load side can never be energized when the house mains are, they’re perfectly safe.

I get that. But if the lockout somehow fails, it doesn't prevent charged prongs. The lockout I saw looks fairly easy to remove and someone who doesn't know what it is could unwittingly remove it...

 

[gt2690b]

I get that. But if the lockout somehow fails, it doesn't prevent charged prongs. The lockout I saw looks fairly easy to remove and someone who doesn't know what it is could unwittingly remove it...

I'm pretty sure the current setup meets code

 

[RayK]

I get that. But if the lockout somehow fails, it doesn't prevent charged prongs. The lockout I saw looks fairly easy to remove and someone who doesn't know what it is could unwittingly remove it...

My assumption is that the lockout plate is probably not that easily removable. At least not without having to remove the entire front panel of the breaker box in order to get at the nuts. To me, the bolts (possibly shoulder bolts) function appears only to allow the lockout plate to slide up and down. In other words, they are there as a guide and not to keep the plate physically tight up against the panel. And were it me to put something like that in place on my own service panel, I'd make damn sure that the nut on the back side never works loose. You know, something like red loctite.

 

[CKwik240]

I'm pretty sure the current setup meets code

Not saying it doesn't. I'm just saying I'm surprised the requirement is not more robust.

 

[CKwik240]

My assumption is that the lockout plate is probably not that easily removable. At least not without having to remove the entire front panel of the breaker box in order to get at the nuts. To me, the bolts (possibly shoulder bolts) function appears only to allow the lockout plate to slide up and down. In other words, they are there as a guide and not to keep the plate physically tight up against the panel. And were it me to put something like that in place on my own service panel, I'd make damn sure that the nut on the back side never works loose. You know, something like red loctite.

I looked a few up online and looks like the female side is what you see. It's collared and seats against the surface while the screw just passes through into the female threads. On one end of the spectrum, one would simply unscrew it. On the other, you remember the panel face so you can hold the screw. The latter scenario is not likely to be that difficult unless they actually lock that panel face. I don't recall ever seeing one that has a lock for only the panel face. And clearly they didn't lock the access door....

 

[M3P Heavy]

I have an interlock on my panel to feed my generator in when we lose power. Can't speak to all setups but mine are machine screws with a shouldered nut. They look like you would just unscrew them but per the install instructions you loctite them in.

I would not recommend bypassing the safety device since it's there to protect lineman as well as your equipment, but if I were to do it I would just unscrew the panel cover.