Using electrician that has never done an electric car wiring job. Bad idea?

[farbster]

Someone gave me the name of a licensed electrician. I spoke to him and he never heard of a Tesla. To be fair, I'm sure he's not dealing with the most affluent people and he wouldn't have much interaction with anyone that has a Tesla.

That being said, would it be a mistake to use him? I'm going to guess that he would be the cheapest. We've had two proposals from the Tesla recommended people for $425 and $800 (not including permit).

Right now, I'm not ordering the wall charger but would just plug the charger that comes with the car directly into the new wall socket. If I wanted to get a wall charger at a later date, should anything be done now to build in the compatibility with the Wall charger down the road?

Thanks for the input!!

 

[MorrisonHiker]

Just tell him you need a NEMA 14-50 outlet and provide the installation details that Tesla recommends: https://www.tesla.com/sites/default/files/downloads/US/universalmobileconnector_nema_14-50.pdf

 

[farbster]

I've printed that out and hopefully that will tell him all he needs to know!

 

[Alketi]

Yep, as MorrisonHiker said, all you want is a NEMA 14-50 outlet. Ground should be on top.

Just tell him where to put it, i.e. which side of the garage depending on whether you're going to back-in or not, and you're good.

 

[farbster]

Thanks. I just got a little nervous when an electrician say's he never heard of a Tesla!

 

[BrettS]

14-50 outlets are used for a number of different applications and it’s quite likely that the electrician has already installed several. But even if not it’s not really different than installing any other outlet... this is what the guy does day in and day out and I would be careful about trying to do too much hand holding as you’ll give him the impression that you don’t think he can do his job.

Just tell him you want a 14-50 outlet and tell him where you want it and let him do his job. It probably is worth mentioning that you’d like the ground on top so that the cord hangs the right way when it’s plugged in, but you shouldn’t really need to give him any more info than that.

 

[electracity]

Any competent electrician is fine, but use one of the 14-50 outlets specified by Tesla. Normally an outlet sits behind a machine or appliance and experiences no movement or torque. The more expensive outlets specified by Tesla will hold up well for years in an environment where the cord jostles the outlet daily.

 

[roblab]

In my experience I have never felt the need to use an 80 amp charger, which would need a 100 amp circuit breaker, heavier wiring, and direct connection. Use the 50 amp outlet and just plug in. My outlet has worked well for the 5 years of Tesla and the six years of RAV4EV before that.

 

[d21mike]

1. I don't think you would have a problem using a non-Tesla Electrician. 2. However, I got a quote from an Electrician I used before to put up for exterior lights expecting the quote to be reasonable and his quote was double the Tesla Electrician (and did not include the permit). I was in shock. Anyway, the Tesla Electrician originally quoted $800 for a short run (< 1/2 my other Electrician) from the circuit breaker. I ended up paying $1200 for a much longer run where I wanted it placed. Based on other people quotes I over paid. But I just did not want to get a bunch more quotes. The advantage of the Tesla Recommended Electrician is he is required to get a permit (by Tesla) and also was required to send pictures of the job to Tesla to stay on the Tesla Recommended list. I was very happy with the work that was done. I am in Southern California.

 

[Olle]

Since you're putting up a NEMA 14-50 it doesn't matter if he heard of Tesla, since 14-50s are ubiquitous and being an electrician he probably installed countless of these.
(Although it is honestly a bit strange that he hasn't heard about Tesla, thought by now there weren't many people, let alone electricians, left in the world who hadn't)

 

[Tam]

...never heard of a Tesla...

I don't see why that is a concern.

I wouldn't care whether he heard of Tesla if I need a 120V outlet, 240V dryer outlet... so I don't see why there's a difference for NEMA 14-50.

 

[farbster]

Maybe if I wanted to ask his opinion about just getting the wall plug versus getting the wall charging unit?

I don't see why that is a concern.

I wouldn't care whether he heard of Tesla if I need a 120V outlet, 240V dryer outlet... so I don't see why there's a difference for NEMA 14-50.

 

[jelloslug]

There is nothing particularly special about car charging equipment from a wiring standpoint. If you are having them wire an outlet, they really don't need to know anything about what is being plugged into it. If they are wiring hardware, the most they might need to do is set the DIP switches to match the circuit that they have it installed on (if the unit is configurable).

 

[Skipdd]

FWIW, the electrician I used had never wired an outlet for a Tesla, but had no issues, once I provided the info/specs. In my case, I knew the electrician and preferred working with someone I knew than hiring someone I didnt, especially since it was a long wire run, and I also wanted a nearby 110 outlet installed that was wired to the subpanel which is fed by the backup generator. Turned out fine.

Bonus for you - I live in Silver Spring, and the electrician is based in Dayton. Not too far from Baltimore. PM me if you'd like their contact info.

 

[Tam]

Maybe if I wanted to ask his opinion about just getting the wall plug versus getting the wall charging unit?

Let's see: NEMA 14-50 installation cost is cheaper than HPCW, so if he wants to make more money, which one should he honestly recommend? Would that be honest to himself if he recommends against his own interest?

It's fine to get an opinion from salespeople and the ones who sell you the service as long as you are aware of their levels of conflict of interest.