Worst Case Scenario

[FB49]

We live on an island off the coast of Washington and periodically we do have power outages caused by storms that can, and have, lasted up to 5 days. My current back-up generator puts out 3000 watts surge, and 2800 watts normal load power, but it only has 110v outlets. At only 3-4 miles per hour of charging at 110v, I'm thinking a generator that puts out 220v would be a better option for charging my Tesla in a worst case scenario with shore power down. What is the smallest wattage generator out there that will have a 220v outlet (providing closer to 30 miles per hour of charging)? Would my Model 3 LR Dual Motor have any problems being charged from a portable generator? Generator brand/type suggestions?

 

[JulienW]

To get 30mph you need a little over 8kW continuous.

 

[eprosenx]

We live on an island off the coast of Washington and periodically we do have power outages caused by storms that can, and have, lasted up to 5 days. My current back-up generator puts out 3000 watts surge, and 2800 watts normal load power, but it only has 110v outlets. At only 3-4 miles per hour of charging at 110v, I'm thinking a generator that puts out 220v would be a better option for charging my Tesla in a worst case scenario with shore power down. What is the smallest wattage generator out there that will have a 220v outlet (providing closer to 30 miles per hour of charging)? Would my Model 3 LR Dual Motor have any problems being charged from a portable generator? Generator brand/type suggestions?

What model is your current generator? I am guessing it is an inverter generator since it only does 120v? Can you post a picture of what kind of plugs it offers? One trick here is we need to figure out how to get all 2800 of those watts to the car should you choose to do so. It will require something better than a 5-20 adapter.

Technically Tesla does not support charging from generators, but I think lots of people do it.

One really key thing is that your generator (or you) need to bond neutral to ground for it to work. Some generators have this done internally, but many or most don’t. I built a shorting adapter for my EU2000i that is just a plug I can put in the generator that has the neutral and ground jumpered together.

A question: If you live on an island, how much driving do you really plan to do with the power being out? Are you thinking the roads would still be online and ferries running, so you want to be able to go to work off the island etc? Slow charging may be fine.

Living where you live, I might consider a more significant option. Like a hardwired standby generator for the house that runs off propane. They make air cooled models these days that are very low maintenance and cost effective. That would give you auto transfer ability, much longer runtimes, and a good amount of capacity, some of which could be used for car charging.

 

[Daniel in SD]

I'm picturing OP driving up and down Whidbey Island for 5 days straight.

 

[N5329K]

I'm picturing OP driving up and down Whidbey Island for 5 days straight.

Or to the bridge at Deception Pass on the way to Anacortes?
Robin

 

[FB49]

Or to the bridge at Deception Pass on the way to Anacortes?
Robin

I'm thinking if a storm is bad enough to knock out the power for 5 days like it did in 1991, getting off the Island through Deception Pass could be a real challenge!

 

[stonelance]

If you keep it plugged in all the time (or at least when weather reports show a storm is coming) then I bet a full charge is going to mostly get you by for 5 days.