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Unable to charge using NEMA 14-50 outlet in garage and Mobile Connector
- Thread starter pete_shaw
- Start date
Update - He couldn't make it today but says he will here tomorrow instead. At least he responded..staying positive...trying to!
And strangely enough, I just focused on the first part of your comment that said "that is normal"! Which was still correct so all good.
AlanSubie4Life
Efficiency Obsessed Member
I wish but no it isn't solved. Another excuse today and didn't show up. I reminded him that negative review will be posted over the weekend if he doesn't show up tomorrow. I hesitant to spend more money on this but will move on and just find someone else to fix it after this weekend.
AlanSubie4Life
Efficiency Obsessed Member
Update and Good news - The electrician showed up today and fixed the issue. The issue was that ground wasn't connected to anything on the panel side (floating). He said it was left as such because there is no ground bar in the panel but now connected the ground to the Neutral because of the issue.
I sincerely thank all of you for spot on guidance and help. The pictures tell a story. I included before and after of the panel as well as charging status on the dashboard. The black cable at the bottom of the panel is for the outlet. The voltage measurement between hot and ground is now 120v as well.
I also found out that I am getting a JuiceBox Pro 40 for my father's day gift. Will definitely put it to good use. Happy father's day to all the wonderful dads here!
Happy ending.
Thank you!
I sincerely thank all of you for spot on guidance and help. The pictures tell a story. I included before and after of the panel as well as charging status on the dashboard. The black cable at the bottom of the panel is for the outlet. The voltage measurement between hot and ground is now 120v as well.
I also found out that I am getting a JuiceBox Pro 40 for my father's day gift. Will definitely put it to good use. Happy father's day to all the wonderful dads here!
Happy ending.
Thank you!
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davewill
Active Member
So after all that bellyaching that his install couldn't possibly be the problem, he admits he KNEW he had left the ground disconnected? On purpose? Where did he get his license, out of a box of Cracker Jack? Is this a main panel or a subpanel? If a main panel, then the neutrals and grounds are supposed to be tied together, if a subpanel, then they should be separated.
You're lucky it wasn't just touching one of those other bare ground wires. It might have worked for a while, but been flaky as all hell.
You're lucky it wasn't just touching one of those other bare ground wires. It might have worked for a while, but been flaky as all hell.
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I'd still give a dispassionate, damning-with-faint-praise review, factually stating the electrician failed to connect the ground in a 14-50 outlet installation and then took a week and much prodding to come fix his mistake.
What the electrician did is totally wrong. This looks like a non-fused panel, but it does not have a neutral feed and does have an additional bare wire coming in which may means it is the main panel. If so, it would not have separate ground and neutral bus bars. All the bare aluminum wires are grounds from other circuits.
Is this a garage sub panel, or it there a disconnect at you meter? If a main, electrician was wrong. If a sub, panel and electrician are wrong.
I hate to say this, but I'm not sure those feed wires (hole through the back in the bottom left) can support your 50A charge circuit. Was any sort of load calc performed?
eprosenx
Active Member
Nice!
Though these pictures have brought up other questions. Is that the only panel in the house? Is there any other panel outside? A meter at least? Above ground or underground?
How old is the house / that panel?
It looks like nearly nothing in the house is grounded?
I am wanting to make sure neutral and ground are bonded together at the proper spot (they probably are).
But yeah, I really don’t love that panel. It is not one that I know is defective, but it is very very old.
It is a split bus style panel (no main breaker) and it is fed by wire probably only good for 100a (the good news is that you don’t have a ton of load in it).
I have serious issues with an electrician installing a 14-50 and leaving the ground wire flat out cut off. That is bordering on “I need to report that to the licensing board”. Grounding is not optional in 2019. I don’t know what the required procedure is when too come across an ungrounded panel and need to add a circuit. I have never experienced this. (though the panel is likely not ungrounded - that one bus is likely the neutral to ground bonding point).
Can you tell if you have a grounding rod near the panel with a heavy gauge wire from it to the main ground/neutral bus in the panel? You certainly should have one if this is the “main service entrance” (which it likely is). Also, if your water pipes are metal they need bonded to this as well.
I personally would likely be wanting to replace that panel due to age. There is nothing flat out wrong with it, but it is kind of a mess with so few remaining spots on the neutral / ground bus. I also would likely be considering an upgrade to 200a at the same time just because that is more the standard these days and because modern conveniences (A/C) may demand it.
Glad you are charging fast now!
I'm not an electrician but this person seems like an even worse electrician than me... I would still give a negative review. Who installs a grounded outlet and doesn't connect the ground? Let alone just leaves it loose in the panel.
It's an old house - there is no ground at all. I agree with you on the main panel vs sub-panel and the grounds being tied together, but I've no idea what code calls for when ground is nonexistent and you have a device that requires a ground. Seems to me you'd have to create a ground bus.
Yes, its an old house ..about 50+ years. This is the only and main panel in the garage.
Yes, it was awkward for him too when he opened the panel cover. I didn't have to say a word when we both saw the ground wire floating. His only excuse as I mentioned earlier was about not having ground bar but he knew that was a lame attempt to justify the unjustifiable. In terms of replacing the panel, unless it is urgent due to a hazard, I am hoping to do that for next upgrade to the house. Not sure how much would that cost etc but assuming it is not a small amount.
Yes, it was awkward for him too when he opened the panel cover. I didn't have to say a word when we both saw the ground wire floating. His only excuse as I mentioned earlier was about not having ground bar but he knew that was a lame attempt to justify the unjustifiable. In terms of replacing the panel, unless it is urgent due to a hazard, I am hoping to do that for next upgrade to the house. Not sure how much would that cost etc but assuming it is not a small amount.
In terms of load calc, he mentioned early on that with some 80% calculation thing, I would still be OK but in future I should consider upgrading to 200A service and panel if I add more load.
eprosenx
Active Member
Wait a second... No, this panel is grounded I suspect. That single bus is the combined neutral and ground bus.
Things were not making sense to me until I realized:
That is all aluminum wiring with aluminum ground wires!
So yeah, your electrician is still completely negligent for not connecting that ground. Seriously, he should have serious ramifications for that.
But that panel scares the *sugar* out of me and the wiring Aluminum wiring (of small gauges) has serious issues (oxidation, bad connections, etc...)
I am not at all an expert in this, but there are remediation steps that can be taken (without necessarily a full re-wire), but I don’t think they have been taken here.
As others have mentioned, a load calculation absolutely needs to be run too. You *might* be OK because you have minimal loads, but yeah, there is a good chance the 32a of continuous load of the Tesla is too much for that electrical service.
Things were not making sense to me until I realized:
That is all aluminum wiring with aluminum ground wires!
So yeah, your electrician is still completely negligent for not connecting that ground. Seriously, he should have serious ramifications for that.
But that panel scares the *sugar* out of me and the wiring Aluminum wiring (of small gauges) has serious issues (oxidation, bad connections, etc...)
I am not at all an expert in this, but there are remediation steps that can be taken (without necessarily a full re-wire), but I don’t think they have been taken here.
As others have mentioned, a load calculation absolutely needs to be run too. You *might* be OK because you have minimal loads, but yeah, there is a good chance the 32a of continuous load of the Tesla is too much for that electrical service.
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