Welcome to Tesla Motors Club
Discuss Tesla's Model S, Model 3, Model X, Model Y, Cybertruck, Roadster and More.
Register

wall charger $400 vs. NEMA installation

This site may earn commission on affiliate links.
I like having a plug available (and I have a ChargePoint Flex plugged into it) in case my EVSE dies or I need to use something else for some reason. It's just more flexible and I can reconfigure it easily without rewiring or hiring an electrician to do it. The only downside is that I'm capped at 40 amps, but that's more than fast enough for my home charging needs.
 
I put in a 14-30R outlet in my garage and charge with the mobile connector. If I had to do it again, I would probably buy the wall charger because:

1. The wall charger does not require a GFCI breaker. Code in your area probably requires a GFCI outlet for EV charging. This adds cost if it is even possible in your current electrical panel. Not every panel will offer a GFCI breaker for 240V
2. A quality receptacle (Bryant/Hubbell etc) is very expensive. The cost difference between a wall charger and an outlet is not as large as it may seem with everything factored in (install, wire, breaker, receptacle, etc)
3. The new car doesn't even come with either so you need to buy one or the other. May as well buy the wall connector
4. If you did get a mobile connector with your car it will only come with the 115V plug. You will also need to order the right adapter for your outlet (more cost)
5. Wall connector has somewhere to store the cord and hang the plug. You can add this to your wall for the mobile connector, but again, extra cost
6. Technically you can charge at up to 60 A with the wall connector but that's more than most people will ever need for home charging
 
Code in your area probably requires a GFCI outlet for EV charging. This adds cost if it is even possible in your current electrical panel. Not every panel will offer a GFCI breaker for 240V
This is a recent and very dumb change to the code when it comes to EV charging. All EVSE has built-in GFCI and GFCI at the panel will make it much more likely to trip the breaker for no reason.

There are plenty of EVSEs made by companies other than Tesla which mount to the wall, have cord storage, and don't require hard-wiring (though, I've also seen folks put a plug connector on Tesla wall chargers, but that's a high-risk DIY job).
 
I'm just curious what those of you out there prefer?
is the wall connector something you can take with you if you move?
what is the advantage of doing the wall connector vs. NEMA?

Here is a 9 page thread on this topic in the model Y subforum you can read through for a lot of responses on this topic:

 
Here is a 9 page thread on this topic in the model Y subforum you can read through for a lot of responses on this topic:

thanks i am mostly through the thread but don't see an answer to my question which is can you take the wall connector with you when you move. obviously you cannot take the NEMA so that may be a big advantage
 
thanks i am mostly through the thread but don't see an answer to my question which is can you take the wall connector with you when you move. obviously you cannot take the NEMA so that may be a big advantage
Sure you can take the wall connector with you. You turn off the breaker, then open up the wall connector, disconnect the wires, and dismount it from the wall. Cap off the exposed wires with wire nuts. Ideally, you would then tuck the wires inside a junction box, but if that isn't possible, you can also use some electrical tape to seal up and secure the capped off wires.

However, that's not a particular advantage of installing a wall connector as you can, of course, take any plug in EVSE with you as well. I think of it more as not being a disadvantage over a NEMA plug.
 
If I had to do it over again I would get the wall connector over having a 14-50 outlet installed and using a 3rd party charger. The plug and cord going to the EV charger I have gets VERY warm to the touch. The outlet and wall plate aren't as warm, but due to the plug itself being so warm I have dropped the amperage going to the car down to 24a during this heat wave we're having, and I'm waiting until 9pm to start charging. Even then the car says it's near or at 100 degrees inside my garage.

I got the 3rd party charger thinking in the future we'd eventually get a non-Tesla EV.
 
Since my M3 came with the mobile charger, I opted for a 14-50 outlet instead of also buying the wall charger. It does also mean that 1) it will be easy to take the mobile charger with me without leaving a hole, or an easier fix/replacement should the charger become faulty, etc, 2) the 14-50 outlet will like to have continued value (a perk) for any new owner of the house, who may or may not be a Tesla owner, but not unlikely would be an EV owner at some point.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ElectricNerd
2) the 14-50 outlet will like to have continued value (a perk) for any new owner of the house, who may or may not be a Tesla owner, but not unlikely would be an EV owner at some point.
I don't know why people so frequently overestimate the importance or value of that. 90% or more of the value is simply having the breaker and the wire run in place. That is there REGARDLESS of whether there is an outlet or nothing attached to the end of it. So if people were using a wall connector on there, and then they unhooked it and took it with them and just capped off the wires, that value is STILL THERE for the new owner of the house by having the wire run already done. If they want to hook an outlet onto the ends of those wires, that is very quick and easy to do.
 
With current pricing and the lack of inclusion of the mobile connector with a car, an all-new installation is probably about $50 different between a hardwired wall connector and an outlet with mobile connector. In this case, the hardwired wall connector is mostly better, unless you want to occasionally take the mobile connector in the car for trips to RV campgrounds, vacation cabins, etc. where charging at such destinations is more convenient than finding SuperChargers.

However, if you already have either a suitable outlet that may exist for other purposes but is no longer used continuously or frequently for those other purposes, and/or a suitable plug-in EVSE (Tesla mobile connector or otherwise), the outlet with plug-in EVSE may be less expensive.

Note that the cost comparison is different now compared to some months ago, when the wall connector was more expensive than now, and the mobile connector was included with the car, meaning that, back then, the hardwired wall connector was a significantly more expensive solution than the outlet that you can use the included mobile connector with.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Rocky_H
If I were going for a new install, I would spring for the extra $ to have a 100A circuit run to the garage. Yes the wire will cost more but the labor should be the same.

While a Gen3 HPWC can't take advantage of 100A circuit like an older Gen2 can, having a 100A run to the garage gives the option of putting a subpanel and two 50A circuits for two 14-50 outlets, a single 14-50 outlet and a Gen3 HPWC, a Gen3 HPWC and a Clipper Creek or other J1772 charger, etc.

In the future, you might want to have two vehicles to be able to charge at 40A simultaneously and the 100A circuit gives you that option. That is assuming you have 100A available in your panel and electrical service.
 
I went with a 14-50 outlet and then bought a wall connector and a 50 amp electric oven whip from home depot so I could just plug it in. I set the charger to 40 amp max. Now I have the option of letting visitors charge if they have a non-Tesla, or using my mobile connector as a back up if something happens to my wall connector.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 3Volts2aTes
Chose a plug twice, well actually 3 times now. Once at the old house, which just made bringing the charger to the new house easy, and now a separate plug on each side of the garage with a charger for each vehicle. It opens up my choices of chargers, and easily and quickly replacing one if there is an issue.

Yes, I ended up intentionally avoiding the ability to push the highest amperage, but one car wouldn’t take it anyway and I have yet to have a case where I would need it to achieve a full charge overnight. Admittedly, I have the advantage of being 5 miles from a SuperCharger location if I ever just needed.

Personally I just find the plugs more aesthetically pleasing in the garage. Guess that is just as good a reason as any.
 
Personally I just find the plugs more aesthetically pleasing in the garage. Guess that is just as good a reason as any.

How you view the aesthetics is like one of the most important reasons, once you have enough charging speed to charge overnight. Aesthetics are personal, but super important. I have 2 wall connectors (one on each side of the garage) for the two cars, mostly because I like the aesthetics.
 
thanks i am mostly through the thread but don't see an answer to my question which is can you take the wall connector with you when you move. obviously you cannot take the NEMA so that may be a big advantage
Actually the advantage to the NEMA solution is you can unplug the mobile connector at any time and take it with you if you are going on longer trips where you might be a guest at another home that might not have a EVSE available. Buying the Tesla adapter for dryer outlets like 10-30 or 14-30 would allow you to charge relatively quickly in many houses in the US in a pinch (or even just using the included 5-15 albeit at slower speeds).

However, as others mentioned, as an advantage of taking it with you as you move, neither really is significantly worse than the other, given currently the prices of the two are largely the same. The NEMA has a slight advantage in fact in this case, given you just unplug and the next owner can just plug in their own EVSE. The wall connector you would have to turn off the breaker and disassemble it to remove the wires (then cap off).
 
Last edited:
In 2022 the cost is essentially identical to install an outlet and buy the UMC as it is to install the wall connector.
Probably more precisely, after around April 2022, when the prices changed:
  • Tesla wall connector price lowered from $495 -> $400.
  • Tesla mobile connector went from included with car to $200.
As of now, the price difference for a new installation is around $50 more for the wall connector solution versus outlet + mobile connector solution. (Or $95 more if you can get the mobile connector with the 14-50 plug at the same price.) But before the recent price changes described above, the price difference was more like $345 more for the wall connector solution. This may be relevant if you start looking in older threads from before the above price changes.