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Previous home owner had a Tesla Model S I think. Looking in garage already plug wired into the wall and to the box like this one but no writing on it. Circuit board has 50 amp breaker in it named Tesla. Which one would I need for myself if ordering a new Taycan 4 CT and wife's BMW X4 hybrid (to be purchased soon?). LMK. Thanks
The receptacle should have "NEMA 14-50" molded on the face - like the photo Dave posted. You can either buy an EVSE that plugs into it, such as the one that comes with the car, or remove the receptacle and hard wire one. Six of one, half dozen of the other. If you buy one that plugs in, a nice safety feature is if the plug has a thermal sensor, so the EVSE can detect poor connections.
Previous home owner had a Tesla Model S I think. Looking in garage already plug wired into the wall and to the box like this one but no writing on it. Circuit board has 50 amp breaker in it named Tesla. Which one would I need for myself if ordering a new Taycan 4 CT and wife's BMW X4 hybrid (to be purchased soon?). LMK. Thanks
If indeed you really do have a 14-50 outlet, get this Clipper Creek unit. You will be able to plug both vehicles in, and it will load share the two. It will know that it's on a 50A circuit and pull load accordingly.
Previous home owner had a Tesla Model S I think. Looking in garage already plug wired into the wall and to the box like this one but no writing on it. Circuit board has 50 amp breaker in it named Tesla. Which one would I need for myself if ordering a new Taycan 4 CT and wife's BMW X4 hybrid (to be purchased soon?). LMK. Thanks
if you have a plug like this in your garage - you’re good to go - any NEMA 14-50 EVSE J-1772 charger will do the trick - the Porsche one will work just fine - but there are other choices as well.
Reading this thread, the technical information provided here is very good. But having worked 30+ years and seeing the handiwork of many electricians - once EV home charging expands dramatically in the US, alot of Americans are going to end up with panel and/or house fires from it. People don't realize how potentially dangerous it is to run this much current through a wire/wall, for long duration periods of time, day after day after day, if the install work is marginal. I am sure you could surf some Tesla boards and see people posting the results of "bad EV charger stories" in people's homes.
Luckily mine will be in sealed conduit in a crawl space, with no need for any junction boxes, so it should be good. Going overboard on the wire gauge, good electrician, and city inspection.
I recently built a house and had them run a separate circuit for a 50 amp outlet for a charger for a future EV which I am about to order. I did not specify a plug and the photo below is what they put in. Is this adequate or should I get it changed out for a NEMA 14-50 plug?
I am doing similar planning and would want to know the quality of the outlet and cable they used. If the outlet isn't of comparable quality to the one in the posting #13 from Dave in this thread, I would have it changed out. There is a chance they used an outlet that was cheaper (i.e. inferior?) to maintain the margins desired. nyca's posting #37 above discusses.
Last edited by tomhartzell; 07-30-2021 at 09:38 AM.
Reason: addn content
I recently built a house and had them run a separate circuit for a 50 amp outlet for a charger for a future EV which I am about to order. I did not specify a plug and the photo below is what they put in. Is this adequate or should I get it changed out for a NEMA 14-50 plug?
that is a NEMA 14-50 plug - if you want to swap brands to a higher quality plug like the one mentioned in this thread it should be pretty cheap or even a DIY project (turn off the breaker please before working on it).
I’m not suggesting the plug you have is “low quality” - can’t tell from the pic - but that IS a NEMA 14-50 plug so you’re good to go with _ANY_ NEMA 14-50 EV Charger (EVSE) Porsche or otherwise (PMC+/PMCC) - although I think the ground pin (the circular hole) needs to be at 12 o’clock for the Porsche charger’s cable to “lay” correctly - again that’s an easy/quick fix.
If indeed you really do have a 14-50 outlet, get this Clipper Creek unit. You will be able to plug both vehicles in, and it will load share the two. It will know that it's on a 50A circuit and pull load accordingly.
Kudos to @Needsdecaf on this - he and I know each other off forum - but I’d like to emphasize this - this is perhaps the simplest and easier dual EV charging setup in the world and will meet 98% of multi-EV charging needs.
Honestly, simply, 100% - NEMA 14-50 plug + this charger and you’re good to go for 2 EV’s or 1 EV + PHEV for the next several years - it doesn’t get any easier or cost effective or simpler than this unit from ClipperCreek. Talk about one and done - this is it!
Reading this thread, the technical information provided here is very good. But having worked 30+ years and seeing the handiwork of many electricians - once EV home charging expands dramatically in the US, alot of Americans are going to end up with panel and/or house fires from it. People don't realize how potentially dangerous it is to run this much current through a wire/wall, for long duration periods of time, day after day after day, if the install work is marginal. I am sure you could surf some Tesla boards and see people posting the results of "bad EV charger stories" in people's homes.
Meh, I wouldn't say "a lot". But I do understand your concern
Meh, I wouldn't say "a lot". But I do understand your concern
"A lot" may be more accurate than you think. In my mind any home built before, say, the 1980s, should be looked at. Why? Central air conditioning started becoming popular in the 1960s/1970s and by the 1980s has been standard equipment in most of the country. Minimum service and panel sizes increased. Plus the National Electrical Code evolved quite a bit over those years.
My house was originally built in 1950, with additions in 1960 and 1972. When I bought it, I unscrewed and tested every switch and receptacle. Some literally crumbled in my hands. There were open grounds, reversed polarities, splices that weren't in j-boxes, etc. Of course no GFI receptacles anywhere. I fixed what I could - replaced almost every switch and some receptacles with new. Later we installed central A/C and I had a 200 amp service and new entrance panel installed. Finally about 12 years ago, we completely rebuilt/expanded our house and almost all the ancient wiring was replaced. I had a 14-50 for EV charging installed off a subpanel when we installed solar and use it mostly for our Volt. It all works great now. Though my garage/workshop is detached, and still has a subpanel and wiring from 1972. I still need to replace the 1972 subpanel and do some more work on the wiring out there. (My Tesla charges off that panel.) It never ends...
Buy a high quality plug and tighten it annually.
If trying to charge using a common 120V receptacle, beware! Electricians usually use el-cheapo "residential grade" receptacles that cost like $5 for a 10-pack. Then they often add insult to injury by wiring using the "back stabs", instead of the screw terminals, to save 30 seconds of installation time. This ok for running table lamps, and such, but a disaster in waiting for high power EV charging. Best to buy spec-grade receptacles rated for commercial or industrial use, and then use the screw terminals on the wires. Spec grade receptacles are available at your favorite orange box hardware store for about $5-6 each.
The 240V receptacles are all pretty heavy duty by design as they are expected to support high current draws on a regular basis. E.g., any 14-50 might be used for a kitchen range - where you and your spouse may be cooking and baking for hours on end for a typical holiday meal. Even so, you'll read on EV forums that some 14-50s are built better than others - e.g., Hubbell over Leviton, etc. (For the record, my 14-50 for EV charging is a Pass & Seymour and has been working fine for years.) It is important to make sure all the screw terminals are tight - though I'm not sure that it needs to be done annually.
07-21-2021, 10:02 AM
