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UK standard 3 pin charging
- Thread starter mukund
- Start date
Also been charging using a 3 pin plug for the past 2 years and it's worked flawlessly. The plug I'm using was installed in the last 5 years when I modernised the garage so it will have modern wiring. It's going through a heavy gauge extension cable outdoors to a waterproof plug housing into which I plug the Tesla UMC. I just leave everything outside and it's been fine for 2 winters and still using the same original charger that came with the car. You only get 9 miles/hour of charge (charging at the full 10A) but that's been more than enough for my needs. Since I'm on Ecotricity and a flat rate, I don't need the more powerful chargers to take advantage of cheap tariff bands.
Yes, I meant the socket, the plug is fine. It was only a short term thing while living between houses during a move. The plug in question was old but not that old. Maybe 15 years or so. It's been working fine since but I'm not going to risk it again when I move in a couple of weeks into my new house that already has a dedicated Tesla charger installed.
DigbyChicken
Member
We're on Good Energy so also have a flat rate. Our Toughleads extension with RCD (see past posts) has been fine for 4 1/2 months so far, so your experience over two years is encouraging...!
Thank you for all the replies and suggestions. Based on this 3 pin charging could work for me but, I do get a lot of rain here and putting the charging box in another box may be annoying every single time.
I have arranged HyperVolt charger to be installed as a long term solution.
everything delivers on time and works out.
I have arranged HyperVolt charger to be installed as a long term solution.
everything delivers on time and works out.
Naturiol
Member
I've been using our external socket. Had a few teething issues - blew the fuse first time, but it wasn't a 13amp fuse for some reason. Put in a 13 amp fuse but then charging would cause the trip to go on our consumer unit. Limited the charge to 7amps in the car and now it works well, if slightly slower.
The fuse that wasn't 13amps surely wasn't in the UMC? In which case was it on an extension plug? Many are not rated for 13amps.
I'm guessing it would have been an RCD trip rather than an overcurrent trip (if it was overcurrent at 10amps then you've got a problem). I believe that if the RCD is covering the whole board then the tiny earth leakage issues from multiple items in the house can add up and then it can be one extra small thing can be the straw that breaks the camels back. Common culprits are switched mode power supplies that are often found in small USB chargers etc. If you unplug any unnecessary devices you may even find that you can charge at the rated 10amps.
Naturiol
Member
Yes that's right it was the extension plug. Thanks for the tips, I'll give that a go. Got a bit drive tomorrow and want to charge overnight!
Ah yes ... but don't depend on that extension that didn't have a 13amp fuse even if you have now put a 13amp in the plug. The reason they are downrated is because the cores of the actual cable are not capable of taking sustained high current (the lower rated fuse is there to protect the cable from going up in flames so it would be best to put an original same rated fuse back in.). This is why extension cables are not "supposed" to be used with the UMC ... you can do it safely but only with an extension that's up to the job. It must be 13amp rated and "heavy duty" (1.5mm cable cores or bigger) ... fully unwound and, ideally, no longer than you actually need for the job.
Drew57
Active ember
I used the Tesla 10A 3 pin UMC last night at my Fathers house.
Plugged in, set Schedule Start time to 00.30 on the Tesla app for his Octopus Go low rate slot & this morning it was charged to the desired SOC.
First time I've set an away-from-home charge this way without needing to use the car screen. This new feature is also far more useful than the randomness of the Departure Time setting.
Plugged in, set Schedule Start time to 00.30 on the Tesla app for his Octopus Go low rate slot & this morning it was charged to the desired SOC.
First time I've set an away-from-home charge this way without needing to use the car screen. This new feature is also far more useful than the randomness of the Departure Time setting.
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I charged using the Tesla UMC for about 3 months whilst the EV point was sorted out. I replaced the 25 year old socket in the garage with a new one, just in case.....
The plug was just about warm, as was the "box" in the UMC cable.
Had I not fitted an EV socket I was planning to fit a a commando socket in the garage and wire it into the consumer unit using 2,5mm cable and a 32A RCD, but after reading the regs felt doing the "right thing" made sense. Risking burning the house down to save £250.00 is just dumb.
The plug was just about warm, as was the "box" in the UMC cable.
Had I not fitted an EV socket I was planning to fit a a commando socket in the garage and wire it into the consumer unit using 2,5mm cable and a 32A RCD, but after reading the regs felt doing the "right thing" made sense. Risking burning the house down to save £250.00 is just dumb.
You can buy a dedicated EV charge socket from the likes of Screwfix for around £60. There designed for EV charging (labled for EV charging and rated for continuous use), it has a type A RCBO included, to protect against DC which normal RCDs don’t. I use one regularly. As long as it’s wired into the ring (or directly to the board) by a competent electrician, you can charge as long as you like.
Type A is not sufficient for EV charging. You need a type B to detect 6 mA DC (not just pulsating DC).
I've only ever used the granny charger at home for nearly the last two years, I did put an additional 13 amp socket in the garage wired directly to the consumer unit - so not as part of the ring main Soley for the granny charger and the charger is mounted to a wall holster - so i permanently leave it there.
The granny charger has thermistors built in - and in the cable which you can see as little bumps under the insulation - these monitor the temperature and will shut down the charger if any excess heat is generated - so you never run the risk of scorch marks or fires, The Granny is also able to operate up to 32 amp so is well within its capacity when used on a three pin plug.
UK sockets are very robust but if it's a well-used socket the pins inside do wear, and the bendy copper does loosen its connection over time - a loose connection will manifest as heat - hence i fitted a new socket and just leave the granny plugged in (but obviously switched off when not in use)
The granny charger has thermistors built in - and in the cable which you can see as little bumps under the insulation - these monitor the temperature and will shut down the charger if any excess heat is generated - so you never run the risk of scorch marks or fires, The Granny is also able to operate up to 32 amp so is well within its capacity when used on a three pin plug.
UK sockets are very robust but if it's a well-used socket the pins inside do wear, and the bendy copper does loosen its connection over time - a loose connection will manifest as heat - hence i fitted a new socket and just leave the granny plugged in (but obviously switched off when not in use)
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