Indeed a wealth of information. Thanks all. I will get a 5-20 adaptor and 10 gauge extension. I also thought of getting a 14-50 extension. Do these exist?
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Charging on 110 outlet
- Thread starter steilkurve
- Start date
Yes, 14-50 extensions do exist. Many Tesla owners have found a really high quality one that you can order from Amazon at a pretty decent price. Search Amazon for Camco 50 amp RV extension, and it should be one of the most popular results. They have 50 foot, 30 foot, and I think 15 foot lengths.
Why not just use one extension? Get the 14-50 extension and use that with the 5-20 or 5-10 adapters
http://www.corddepot.com/shop/50a-straight-blade-cords/50-amp-rv-cord-ergo-grip/
http://www.corddepot.com/shop/power-adapter/5-15p-to-14-50r-ev-adapter/?add-to-cart=6173
http://www.corddepot.com/shop/power-adapter/l6-30p-to-14-50r-ev-adapter/
etc
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A reasonable question from @smilepak: "Why not just use one extension? Get the 14-50 extension and use that with the 5-20 or 5-10 adapters."
My personal answer to that would be "Because it's really heavy and bulky". It weighs almost a pound per foot of length, and it's got a diameter of two of your fingers side-by-side. I do like that idea of using one common extension for all of the 240V outlet types, but for a 120V outlet of a 15 or 20 amp circuit, it's just cumbersome when there are fairly cheap extension cords that are much easier to work with.
My personal answer to that would be "Because it's really heavy and bulky". It weighs almost a pound per foot of length, and it's got a diameter of two of your fingers side-by-side. I do like that idea of using one common extension for all of the 240V outlet types, but for a 120V outlet of a 15 or 20 amp circuit, it's just cumbersome when there are fairly cheap extension cords that are much easier to work with.
Yes, these OVERkill (for destination charging) huge 50A rated (remember our UMCs are only 40A rated) bulky extensions are available. However, I would recommend that you conduct a search on this forum for far more practical, safer (elimination of manual amp adjustments), lighter, and flexible solutions.
Canuck
Well-Known Member
Yes, the Amazon one is way too big and bulky. I made my own with these parts:
6 3 SOOW So Cord 25 ft HD USA Portable Outdoor Indoor 600 V Flexible Wire Cable | eBay
Camco Power Grip 55353 50amp Receptacle Fast Shipping | eBay
Camco 55255 50 Amp PowerGrip Replacement Plug New | eBay
More info here:
How to build a lightweight 50A extension cord
6 3 SOOW So Cord 25 ft HD USA Portable Outdoor Indoor 600 V Flexible Wire Cable | eBay
Camco Power Grip 55353 50amp Receptacle Fast Shipping | eBay
Camco 55255 50 Amp PowerGrip Replacement Plug New | eBay
More info here:
How to build a lightweight 50A extension cord
Now that I have dealt with the official Camco one, I do wish that I had built my own, just to save weight. I hadn't really thought about how the fourth wire in an official 14-50 cable is unused for Tesla charging, so it's just dead weight. I made my first adapter cable for a 6-15P to 14-50R, and it wasn't too hard.
Khatsalano
Member
Congratulations on your full charge, but I don't think you understand how serious using an improper cord can be. The awaken to a big problem I was referring to wasn't the lack of a full charge, it was an electrical fire. You may not be so lucky next time. Please check the cord gauge and if it's less than 12 gauge keep it in the garage for your weed eater and get a 12 or 10 gauge for your car.I woke up to a full charge.I have pictures posted on Plugshare.com.
- K
I just don't see a safety issue with a 14AWG at 12 amps. However, a 16AWG would need to be liquid cooled :biggrin: at 12 amps.
You're right, if the run is short enough, but I worry about the plugs at either end of a 14 gauge cord not being designed to carry that current continuously for the 10 hours or more, perhaps many more, that a Tesla is likely to be charging. Going to the next gauge gives some margin of safety.
Regardless, the OP was bragging about how his "garden cord" gave a full charge, meaning he didn't know to pay attention to what gauge it was, or he wouldn't have called it a garden cord. My garden cords are 16 gauge.
Khatsalano
Member
You know what? I can't fault anyone for safety around electricity. You're giving good advice and I support it. Thanks for saying something!
- K
Agreed. That's why I'm tempted to make my extension cord a 14-50. Yes heavier and bigger but much safer, no?
Whoops, I checked and was surprised. I have a 50 foot orange one, and then I have a 10 foot thicker heavier black one that I thought would be even bigger gauge. Nope, they are both 16 gauge. I think I’ll acquire a 12 gauge cord.
davewill
Active Member
Not unexpected. Most garden tools just don't pull heavy enough loads to require more than that. Most of the heavier extension cords are marketed to contractors who sometimes run several tools off one cord or run much heavier tools (like jack hammers or soil compactors).
I am now confused about the current ratings versus the wire gauges because I just looked up the NEC tables for it, and it doesn't seem to agree with what you guys are saying. For copper conductor, which I think these extension cords would be, they say 20A for 14 gauge. For the 16 and 18 gauge wires, the tables just have a dash, like an empty space. I don't see an explanation for those, but to me, that would seem to indicate that less than 20A would be fine with either 16 or 18 gauge. So why is there no current level defined for those wire gauges, and how do you all know that 12A would be bad for 16 gauge?
Edit: And then I found a table from Mike Holt, who I have heard of being pretty well known around here for interpreting NEC stuff. His chart shows for 1-17A continuous loads, 14 gauge wire minimum, but I see nothing like that in the actual NEC tables.
Edit: And then I found a table from Mike Holt, who I have heard of being pretty well known around here for interpreting NEC stuff. His chart shows for 1-17A continuous loads, 14 gauge wire minimum, but I see nothing like that in the actual NEC tables.
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A proper wire ampacity table will have amp ratings also based on insulation heat specifications. So it isn't just the wire gauge, but also insulation heat capabilities. Also bear in mind that NEC tables are meant for in building wiring, not extension cords. And then you have resistance per length of wire. So you could be drawing 16A from an extension cord, but at the other end of a 100' long cord, the breaker could be seeing a 20A draw. Fwiw, in building romex is normally 14 gauge for 15A circuits, and 12 gauge for 20A circuits.
Also, the US spec for voltage is 120v/240v single phase (and for 3-phase LV; 208v or 240v depending on wye/delta). There is a tolerance, which varies from location to location, but it's usually around +/- 5%. There has been no "110v" or "220v" specs for the better part of a century, so when you say 110v outlet, you're really showing your roots. =)
Forget Voltage, My grandfather (RIP) used to call it "Juice".
Forget Voltage, My grandfather (RIP) used to call it "Juice".
Cottonwood
Roadster#433, Model S#S37
Edison decided on 110/220 Volts as his DC standard; see War of Currents - Wikipedia.
When you use 110 or 220 Volts, you date yourself back to Edison and DC.
Almost all modern North American home systems and many small businesses use 120/240 Volts as the Voltage Standard. Most larger commercial systems in the U.S. are 3-phase, 120/208 Volts; some also use 277/480 Volts. In Canada larger systems are usually 346/600 Volts.
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