Thanks -- I think you hit to the heart of it. We all know Jim to have a refreshing -- dare I say outlandish? -- sense of humor, so until we have more info about what actually occurred, and what (if any) lessons there are for other owners, it seemed rational to put the post in moderation. Otherwise, unsubstantiated rumors about the safety of the Model S will undoubtedly swirl about, which doesn't help anybody.
My, it sounds like an apology is in order.
Dear Tesla friends, family, faithful-I am so, so sorry for posting and then running, but life circumstances related to this event took me away from my computer and I am just returning now. With my posting about the explosion, I simply meant to entice your interest, not incite fear. That said, we did have an event, and I am happy to share it.
Again, those of you who know me from posts over the past many months know that I would never leave you in danger-no! All is fine, and here is what happened.
1. This is not Tesla's fault. You are not in danger.
2. All is fine.
3. Here's what happened:
Late Monday evening, January 7-actually, it was early Tuesday morning, January 8 at 12:21 AM, I was having trouble sleeping. My eyes were just slightly open, I was exhausted from the usual long day at work. Aren't we all?
Suddenly I heard - and felt- an explosion immediately followed by a flash, coming from somewhere beyond my window shade: fireworks! That was my first thought. Some kid in neighborhood was lighting off fireworks. "How annoying" I thought. My eyes began to close again, but through the shade I could still see the flickering Of yellow and orange light.
Now, with increasing trepidation, I got up and looked out the window, pulling back the shade:
As I looked out the window, bleary-eyed, I could see yellow and orange flames running up the side of my neighbor's house. "Oh my God!", I thought-my neighbor is 87 years old. I've got to get her out of there.
As my eyes began to focus, I could see that the yellow and orange flames
were actually a reflection that I was seeing in my neighbors windows.
Good news! My neighbor's house was not burning. The flames were coming from
my house. How silly of me.
Within 12 seconds I was at the front door, looking up at the front corner of my house, where 2 to 3 foot flames were flowing up from the front corner. Within another 32 seconds I had called 911, And I had all three children and my wife out in the street, barefoot in pajamas. Little chilly here in the Boston area that evening, I should note.
As a two fire trucks, two police cars, a truck with a spotlight on it (I want that job), and soon 2 water and sewer trucks, and the local light plant truck and local light plant four-story crane all arrived, the fire burned itself out, and it became more obvious what was happening.
The actual house never burned. The fire was coming from the corner of the house, on the large wires that enter the house. The flames actual reached a few inches from the house, the actual house itself never actually caught fire. Small detail, but one worth noting.
The tree above the wires was singed, but never caught fire, there were ashes, soot, melted plastic all over the front yard. The fire burned out before anyone could even roast marshmallows.
There was also quite a bit of commotion, a lot of lights, and a lot of very dark neighbors' houses, as all the power was out on our street.
As fireman, policeman, water and sewer (don't even asking why there were there, I'm not sure) and light plant people began to assemble, along with several neighbors - among whom I was hereto forward not that popular - I had this rather uncomfortable feeling in the pit of my stomach that it was not a coincidence that my electrical service was just completed to charge my new electric car, and that all these nice people with well-lit trucks were visiting us at about 12:30 AM.
As I thought about exactly how this could happen, I was darting my way into the basement to turn off all electrical breakers...then, knowing everyone was safe, I then began to wonder-will the car still be in the garage in one piece, or is the car actually burning at this point? I slowly opened the door- pitch black but no smell of smoke. Tesla Model S visible under the dull light of the cell phone. That blue looks even darker in the dark.
All good.
I really wanted to stay right there, where it was quiet, dark, free of my rather frantic neighbors, and most of the people our town employs to keep us safe, all of whom were awaiting my return to the street.
But I pulled myself together and walked back outside. Soon, the fire department cleared the house as "safe", walking through the house with flashlights. As I explained that I had an electric car, they asked me what type, I told them it was a Tesla, and then, in the dark of the house, with my family standing in the driveway barefoot, freezing, they asked if it would be okay to "go see the car?".
I kid you not. An unusual showing of the car, but we do whatever is required for Tesla, right? I reminded them that my family was turning into ice cubes at this point, and after a brief flashlight-guided tour of the car ("wow, that is so beautiful, what a car"), we headed back outside together, and the family was allowed to reenter the house.
We had been outside for just about an hour.
Best line of the night: as my daughter turned to walk inside, just absolutely frozen, miserable, a little after 1:30 in the morning, she turned to me and with a wry smile she said, "Hey Dad-really great car."
So, then it became a major project to be sure we understood what happened. I have a special type of electric heat called electrothermal storage. It draws over 200 A at night in order to heat a big "refrigerator" of bricks, which is then used to heat the house during peak hours in the daytime. It's a quiet, carbon dioxide-free, inexpensive, and presumably safe way to heat a house. However, when the electric car was added to the same circuit, the wires (these are not wires, they are cables) that go from the telephone pole to the house were not adequate for this load.
By 330 or 4 AM our electricity was back on, that heat was working, and the car was charging. Amazing. That four-story crane reached across the 52 feet from the house to the street, three guys climbed up on ladders, replaced all the wires that night, in the dark. They also restored power to all the neighbors.
It was the next day, after the light plant held an emergency meeting, that they realized for sure that the wires were not prepared to carry the load that was given to them. They came back to the house and replaced all the wires up and down the street, with special attention to putting in special, heavy-duty cables from the telephone pole to the house, which will be carrying (and are now carrying, at the time that I write right now) the 200 amp service for heat, plus the 40 A for our Model S.
I have had the heat for a couple of years, and never had a problem. It was when the town added the car charging to the same circuit that this problem occurred. The plastic insulation on these very large cables simply melted, the two wires which touched each other, causing a large explosion, fire, and-ultimately, a posting on the Tesla form which I regret was not followed-up as it should have been-my fault, obviously.
The next day was spent getting the front yard/side of the house/plans for replacement of all the wires in the area all in place. In all truth, I played hockey at 6 o'clock that morning and worked a full day in till 7 PM as well, so a lot of this was done after I got home last night, and I simply did not have time and forgot to post. Whoops.
If there is a lesson that is meant to be shared more broadly with all, it would be to simply be absolutely sure not only that your electrician has provided the proper service for your house, but that the town has provided the proper wiring for the service.
That said, it seems unlikely that virtually anyone else would have both electrothermal storage and an electric car. Would love to hear from you if you do.
The reason these are both on the same circuit is because we have a special off-peak rate in town, 5.5 cents per kilowatt hour. I have service coming to the house specifically for off-peak usage, that splits into 2 meters-one for heat, and one for charging the Tesla.
So, now I have to ask-what will happen when I add a second electric car to the circuit? Perhaps I'll be roasting marshmallows on the front lawn with my neighbors. I'll be sure to keep you all posted.
Fully posted that is, with all the potential intrigue, and none of the potential incitement.
Onwards, With your forgiveness, please.