What came first, your EV car or the L2 charger?

[Sweed269]

The home charger comes with a 14-50. So the extra cost would be mitigated by not having to buy a different adapter.
The only real debate is 14-50 or permanent IMO. I picked 14-50 as it was good enough and portable if needed.

 

[sleepydoc]

He didn't say it's all you should consider he just said you want 14-50 or an HPWC (which incidentally could be 30a)..

You can downgrade a connector on a 50A circuit but 14-50 is always 50A

 

[sleepydoc]

The home charger comes with a 14-50. So the extra cost would be mitigated by not having to buy a different adapter.
The only real debate is 14-50 or permanent IMO. I picked 14-50 as it was good enough and portable if needed.

I had to check because the 24-50 mobile connector used to be a completely separate device but you are correct, they now sell the mobile connector with a 14-50 and 5-15 adapter/plug.

The mobile connector is limited to 32A, though, so installing a 50A circuit to use with the mobile connector is a complete waste.

 

[ItsNotAboutTheMoney]

The home charger comes with a 14-50. So the extra cost would be mitigated by not having to buy a different adapter.
The only real debate is 14-50 or permanent IMO. I picked 14-50 as it was good enough and portable if needed.

The UMC is limited to 32A. (Gen 1 allowed 40A.)

It's a 14-50 adapter. 14-50R is used on both 40A and 50A circuits. So if you see a 6-50R or 14-50R it only implies max charging support of 32A (assuming it's a good circuit). If there is a 40A breaker it's recommended to label at the outlet so people don't mistakenly try to draw more than 40A or charge at 40A.

So if using UMC there is a question of whether to wire for higher amperage anyway in case you want to have a dedicated EVSE in the future.

 

[beatle]

I installed a 14-50 myself back in 2019 as the least expensive L2 option since all cars came with UMCs. Though the 14-50 was a popular choice 5 years ago, I think a lot of people are opting for hardwire installs these days. Not only does a 14-50 now require an expensive GFCI breaker, but it also requires an additional conductor, and wiring is a lot more expensive. In addition, since Tesla no longer includes a UMC, they've effectively obligated you to buy something to charge at home, so the fact that I had a UMC at my disposal back then is not the case for people buying now.

 

[sleepydoc]

I installed a 14-50 myself back in 2019 as the least expensive L2 option since all cars came with UMCs. Though the 14-50 was a popular choice 5 years ago, I think a lot of people are opting for hardwire installs these days. Not only does a 14-50 now require an expensive GFCI breaker, but it also requires an additional conductor, and wiring is a lot more expensive. In addition, since Tesla no longer includes a UMC, they've effectively obligated you to buy something to charge at home, so the fact that I had a UMC at my disposal back then is not the case for people buying now.

This.
Also, there have been many reports of failing NEMA plugs for the higher amperages. If you just leave it plugged in then it's probably not going to be an issue but the high power plugs are not really designed for repeated plugging/unplugging.

Since Tesla no longer includes anything with the car by default the wall connector is generally the better choice.

 

[traubgator]

Yea, I bought the portable charger -- need it regardless of home charging options for travel to a few vacation spots where supercharging is not an option.

I was also thinking of going with a 14-50 for home charging vs wall charger since i already had the mobile charger.
I have an older cutler hammer breaker box and a 50 amp gfi was going to be around $175. upgraded 14-50 outlet was $50 to $75 depending on the source for a hummel or byrant plug. also 6-3 romex vs 6-2 romex is $40 more for 35 feet of wire.

Would cost me ~$265 to install a 14-50 and It wasn't "guaranteed" the gfi breaker was the correct one.

went with wall charger instead, using 6-2 romex can only go with a 50 amp breaker, but felt it sufficient, especially given i will have a model 3 rwd

 

[hey8you]

I bought my 2023 M3 last year and I live in a condo. The only way I can charge at home is install a 2nd meter for L2 charging(HOA requirement) or using the portable charger with the dryer plug and probably a extension cord. The issue with option 2 is the HOA may not like me if I run the cable out from my bedroom window down to my car, lol. For now, im not going to worry about charging at home.

 

[beatle]

This.
Also, there have been many reports of failing NEMA plugs for the higher amperages. If you just leave it plugged in then it's probably not going to be an issue but the high power plugs are not really designed for repeated plugging/unplugging.

Since Tesla no longer includes anything with the car by default the wall connector is generally the better choice.

Even if you leave it plugged in all the time you can melt the plug and receptacle if you're using a connector that doesn't have a thermistor in the plug (like a gen1 UMC.) It took a little over 2 years of me charging my car at 40A, but my Leviton receptacle eventually melted.

 

[Midnightsun]

Bought our Y back in the summer of 2020. Wanted to install a wall connector however they were not available as everyone was buying them and putting them on eBay for 2 times the price back then. Finally was able to snag one at Tesla a couple of months later and now actually have 2 installed since we bought the S. Guess my case is I wanted one before reception however not available at the time.

 

[sleepydoc]

Even if you leave it plugged in all the time you can melt the plug and receptacle if you're using a connector that doesn't have a thermistor in the plug (like a gen1 UMC.) It took a little over 2 years of me charging my car at 40A, but my Leviton receptacle eventually melted.

View attachment 1025102

Leviton is one of the lower quality connectors that is not recommended, but your case is a good warning to people.

 

[wws]

Installed a 14-50 in anticipation of an EV when we did our solar install in 2013. Bought wife's Volt in 2015. Started using a Gen 1 UMC, modified with a J1772 plug, a month after buying the Volt. Recently upgraded the whole setup to a Universal Wall connector. Finally a member of the "48 Amp Club"! (And yes, going from 40 to 48 amps makes a noticeable difference when charging during the day - and trying to squeeze in a few more electrons before the off-peak power rate ends.)