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Trying to find a Tesla NEMA 14-30 adapter
- Thread starter Drumheller
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- Model S
CuriousG
Active Member
This would be a more usable product if it allowed for custom amperages from within the display.
I knew I had a big beefy 240V outlet in my garage since the previous owner had shop tools, so I assumed I was okay. But today I decided to check.
It's a NEMA 6-50, not a 14-50. Hm, that's weird. Well, if he ran a four-conductor wire, maybe that's good enough. Or maybe grounding to the conduit (it's exposed rigid metal).
Wait, the breaker for it is a 30A breaker, not a 50A breaker. That's going to be a bit of a job there. But maybe he used a wire that can carry 50A?
Nope. 10 AWG.
Looks like I have a week and change (judging from the most recent car to hit production being confirmed 7/3 and entering production 7/15) to sort this out. Guess I'll be calling some electricians.
It's a NEMA 6-50, not a 14-50. Hm, that's weird. Well, if he ran a four-conductor wire, maybe that's good enough. Or maybe grounding to the conduit (it's exposed rigid metal).
Wait, the breaker for it is a 30A breaker, not a 50A breaker. That's going to be a bit of a job there. But maybe he used a wire that can carry 50A?
Nope. 10 AWG.
Looks like I have a week and change (judging from the most recent car to hit production being confirmed 7/3 and entering production 7/15) to sort this out. Guess I'll be calling some electricians.
There is a 6-50 adapter from Tesla and I've used it with complete success several times. Now, your wiring and breaker issue do concern me a bit, but if you can confirm 50 amp wiring, you are in like Flynn after a new breaker.
MDMGSO47
Member
I did set it to 24 amps the first time I used it. When I returned home, I reset it to 40 amps for my 14-50 receptacle. Since that time, every time we go to the mountain house and use the 14-30 receptacle, I have not reset the car to 24 amps, yet it charges at 24 amps. When I return home, it charges to 40 amps. I have also had a firmware update.
Does the car know where we are by GPS and self adjust accordingly?
MDMGSO47
Member
I received the same warning. I reminded them, however, that if they made a converter available as Tesla had in the past, I would not be forced to go to 3rd party venders.
Yes that is how it works, but if the GPS is off a little it might charge at 40 A. Don't count on it for safety. Instead, it is better to make sure you have a properly configured UMC, HPWC, or third party EVSE that provides the correct pilot signal to tell the car maximum safe amps for the supply circuit.
GSP
Gizmotoy
Active Member
I have one on order, I'll let everyone know how it works out. Supposed to arrive this week. I did get the plus that allows you to manually switch the outlet back and forth rather than being a straight port replicator, though, since that seemed infinitely safer.
The only use case I can think of where custom amperages would be useful is charging two EVs from the one outlet. These are primarily meant for sharing between a dryer and an EV, and the dryer needs ~25A on high, so you really need the whole outlet for the dryer.
Generally, the device consuming the power controls the current. If you set the car to 24A and the splitter unit to 10A, what's the expected failure mode? Simpler is better, IMO.
mikeash
Active Member
Ouch. I guess this is a good example of why Tesla discontinued the 6-50 adapter.
If you could get your hands on a 10-30 or 14-30 adapter, then that would seem to be the ideal solution. Replace the outlet and done. Alternatively, you could install a Wall Connector and set it for a 30A circuit.
If it looks like it'll be a problem to get this resolved before your car gets there, don't underestimate the usefulness of 120V charging off a standard outlet. I wouldn't want to do that long term if there were alternatives, but if you average less than 40-50 miles of driving per day, it'll sustain you.
That's not a good reason at all. In fact, it's no different than doing a 14-50 with 30amp wiring. It's reasonable to assume that a 6-50 is capable of carrying 50amps. In OP's case, it looks like someone took a shortcut, which, in general, a licensed electrician would not have done.
Another option is to replace the 6-50 outlet/breaker with a 6-15 outlet and use the corresponding adapter. Or even better use the 5-20 adapter and wire the outlet for 240 on a 20 amp breaker as I have heard that works just fine since the adapter doesn't care about the voltage. (Just make sure to label it for Tesla use only.)
mikeash
Active Member
It's legal to install an outlet on a smaller circuit if it's appropriate for the load. Some ovens use a 14-50 plug on a 40A circuit and that's perfectly fine. 6-50 is commonly used for welders which can get away with much smaller circuits because they're intermittent. Most 14-50s that are accessible to a car will be on 50A circuits, but it's quite common (and perfectly reasonable, if installed for the right equipment) for a car-accessible 6-50 to be on a much smaller circuit.
The quick fix is to build or buy a NEMA 6-50 to 14-50 adapter, use Tesla 14-50 adapter and dial down the amps to 24. But I would only do that until you got a better solution since this is going to be your daily recharge.
If the panel isn't too far away, I would get the electrician to install a new 14-50 plug. Either re use the breaker space that the 30 amp breaker occupies, or put in the 50 amp breaker in a new slot. If you keep the 30 amp breaker, swap out the receptacle for a 6-30 receptacle so at least the receptacle and breaker rating match.
Another option is to buy an HPWC for your garage instead of installing a new 14-50 receptacle. You could do this without running any new wires. Just wire up the HPWC to the wires in that 6-50 receptacle directly and use the dip switches to set the HPWC for a 30A circuit (24 amp draw). This is probably the best and as cheap option as anything else. This has the advantage of allowing you to keep your UMC always in your car so you never forget it when going on long road trips.
To the layman it seems reasonable to assume that, I certainly did, but see some of FlasherZ's posts on this-- lots of 6-50 outlets installed for welders are on smaller circuits than 50A and it's allowed by code.
CmdrThor
Active Member
I picked up a NEMA 14-30 adapter for the mobile connector today. I am going to make a 10-30 to 14-30 adapter and a TT-30 to 14-30 adapter (30 amp 120V RV service). I won't have to worry about manually dialing down the current because for all those plugs the 14-30 adapter will adjust to 24 amp automatically.
I also picked up 25' of SOOW cable to make a 30 amp extension cord. I'm planning on removing the neutral plug so I can use it on either a 14-30 (or 10-30 or TT-30 with my adapters) or a 14-50. For the 14-50 it will still only charge at 24 amps because I'll be using my 14-30 adapter on the other end, but I figured the extension cord would be lighter and less expensive as a result. Of course I will mark the cord for Tesla charging only since it will be missing the neutral plug.
I also picked up 25' of SOOW cable to make a 30 amp extension cord. I'm planning on removing the neutral plug so I can use it on either a 14-30 (or 10-30 or TT-30 with my adapters) or a 14-50. For the 14-50 it will still only charge at 24 amps because I'll be using my 14-30 adapter on the other end, but I figured the extension cord would be lighter and less expensive as a result. Of course I will mark the cord for Tesla charging only since it will be missing the neutral plug.
mikeash
Active Member
Because the equipment you're planning to use has that plug and only requires that wiring, so why spend more than you have to?
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