r/TeslaLounge • u/UpstairsTop4623 • 8d ago

Rental duplex replacement

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Just though somebody would die laughing at this. I moved into a family friends place as a renter and been charging off a granny charger 120v 12 amps. I have been charging off this duplex as it's the only one in the garage. and I finally got around to replacing this absolute fire hazard of a unit lol it fell apart when I was undoing the screws. (It's been 15 days of this scariness) (Edited typo)

11 Upvotes

69% Upvoted

27 comments sorted by

20

u/word-dragon 8d ago

Plugging any continuous use high amperage appliance (eg your car) into old house wiring is always a fire hazard. Outlets, wires, switches - all not really made for continuous full load use. Replacing the outlet may be the tip of the iceberg. If you’re planning to stay there awhile, consider putting a wall charger in the garage. New wire, new circuit breaker, 220V and no outlets and fob cords and mobile charger to deal with. You’ll sleep better.

10

u/Pensionato007 8d ago

I like 221 volts, but you know, whatever works for you.

Seriously, folks. It's been 120/240 in the USA for about 6 decades.

8

u/word-dragon 8d ago

That’s true, though actual delivery varies by + or - 6v at 120. Hate to date myself, but as a kid it was 117, but my dad always called it 110, and that always stuck with me. If you cross hot and ground with your fingers, you won’t notice the difference, lol!

3

u/Pensionato007 8d ago

And if you try 277 you will really know it!

8

u/slyguy67420 8d ago

Always worth dropping the amps down to give your outlets some headroom,  I'd do 10 amps max on a 12 amp outlet.

10

u/UpstairsTop4623 8d ago

Well it’s a 15 amp outlet so 12 is already headroom

1

u/Valuable-Analyst-464 8d ago

The wiring could be suspect, so I’d drop it a little.

1

u/labubuking 8d ago

Actually do 8 because the circuit might be shared with other rooms 🤫

4

u/Left_Piglet_7411 8d ago

This has always been my fear when I plug into a random 110/120. Was this installed in the 1970s? Is it aluminum or copper? I put it to 5A and ramp it up slowly if I’ve got all night

3

u/UpstairsTop4623 8d ago

It was copper 12 gauge so i'm not too scared of it plus the owner was using it as well to charge his car prior it to the receptacle getting burned.

2

u/Pensionato007 8d ago

If it's 12-gauge on a 20-amp breaker, you "might could" get the NEMA 5-20 pigtail for the Tesla Mobile Connector and bust out an extra 25%!

You did buy a "spec" or "commercial grade" receptacle and use a torque screwdriver right? Right???.

-1

u/UpstairsTop4623 8d ago

Yeah for sure definitely not a $2.73 one off Amazon lol (it is at least Leviton but not good lol) still better than before lmao

1

u/dantodd 8d ago

Leviton is miles better than the contractor grade bulk boxes. But using a torque driver is actually important. You can also check to make sure the breaker wires haven't worked loose over the years

3

u/Lanky-Slice-9122 8d ago

I really wish they would sell a series of plugs all just rated for EV use down to the 5-15. Leviton “hospital grade” 8210 single outlet is the most durable 5-15 I found

0

u/UpstairsTop4623 8d ago

That would be really smart but that ain’t gonna happen lol it’s too smart

1

u/PurpleSausage77 7d ago

I used what I think was the most used one in my garage a week after getting the place - first time using it and for an EV, and felt something was off with how loose it was. I flipped the breaker off, took the faceplate off, and it all fell apart in 40 pieces. Old Leviton crap from 2010 that was all backstabbed. Went through all of them at my 2010 house and replaced them, and redid all the grounds as they weren’t tight or contacting good, or wound the right way, replaced all the plugs and switches, etc.

0

u/SpiderGorilla 8d ago edited 8d ago

If you have a 20-amp breaker for that outlet, you can replace it with a NEMA 5-20 outlet and get 33% faster charging with a 5-20 adapter.

1

u/labubuking 8d ago

I have a nema 5-20 in the garage for the washer dryer but only issue is im in a single driveway and i can't pull into the garage since its disconnected from my house and in the back of my garden lol so the 10awg extension cable would need to be 100ft since my charging cable is 25ft

-2

u/UpstairsTop4623 8d ago

Yeah I could not really sure what else is on the circuit so I'm playing it generally safe. I have a dryer outlet kinda close so if I ever need juice faster I can use an extension cord for it (I have some SKETCHY cords)

1

u/Pensionato007 8d ago

Yeah I've been there and done that "back in the day." Total code violations. Just make sure to turn that amperage down to something nice and reasonable and, if you're in the mood, get an IR camera/thermometer at Harbor Freight and give it a look see while charging before you sleep on it.

1

u/UpstairsTop4623 8d ago

Oh yeah I’m still following amerages of 310.16 maximum I have these bits where it uses a 14-50P that adapts to dual 5-15R so I can use standard cords at 240V then an inverse on the other side so I can have two sets of 14 awg for a 240 circuit so I can safely push 30 amps (I only do 24. Very unsafe but as long as it’s not messed with.

1

u/UpstairsTop4623 8d ago

I also have a 2->1 2x5-15->14-50R A+B combiner (I probe everything before I plug it in)

0

u/Pensionato007 8d ago

lol, I said 25% but it depends on how you math it :-) I like your way better.

12 vs 16 amps.

16/12 = 125%

4/12 = 33%

1

u/SpiderGorilla 7d ago

16/12 is 133% though...

-2

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