Charging Cable Extension

So will a heavier gage extension cord. I would not use a 14 gage as an extension, but would use 12 gage or higher.

 

i've seen electricians use a nail in place of a fuse too. Some people's built-in/internal risk aversion alarm is not as sensitive as others. Good luck ... and hopefully someone will be around again, should that 14 gauge start warming up again.

There's a reason a manufacturer's wire diameter (the 2 hot's - not the ground or pilot) is similarly-sized to the diameter of the J1772 pins;

Again .... good luck w/ that.
.

 

The Toyota EVSE contains two 14AWG wires and one 12AWG wire and another 18AWG (see picture). I haven’t noticed the wire warm up. It only warms up around the plug. This is Toyota’s own EVSE.



iPhone ?

 

The cable by itself is fine (as opposed to adding extension cords). But you can lose an easy 25V (for example) via resistance on a 50' - 14 gauge extension cord. That results in heat .... a lot more than you are currently feeling at the handle, especially on a hot day.

 

Has anyone experienced a blinking on the charger brick?
The other night I looked to see if the charging was complrted and noticed the orange and green lights on the brick blinking and opened the dor on the car to see the charging completion time said 10 hrsand10 minutes. I oupluged the charger and repluged it in and the lights came on steady and the completion time now said 2 hrs 20 minutes. I have been using a short heavy duty extention cord to be able to reach the car outside of the garage and Ive done this for over a year now with no problems.

 

A guess is you had a bad electrical connection.

Take a serious look at ALL connection points & lightly sand anything that looks dull & dirty.

Extension cord = The shortest length that does the job, 12 AWG is your minimum, 10 AWG would be best.


Rob43

 

the o/m should describe that

 

I'm considering obtaining an extension cord to use for L1 EVSE charging of my 2020 Prius Prime, since the outdoor 120V GFI outlet is located some distance from where the car gets parked overnight. I measure that I'd need 35 feet of extension cord (in addition to the length of cable that the OEM L1 EVSE provides). In view of t recommendations in previous posts, to minimize both the length of extension cords and the number of couplings/plugs, my question is: which would be better/preferable:
a) one 50 foot extension cord, versus
b) two extension cords (one 25 foot and one 10 foot) connected in series?

Also, 50' and 25' 10/3 extension cords seem to be readily avaiilable, but I haven't found any 10/3 extension cords in 10 foot length. Might have to settle for a 10' 12/3 cord together with a 25' 10/3 cord. Any specific recommendations?

 

I was looking for 10 ft 10/3 extension cord myself. I did find cheaper Copper Clad Aluminum 10/3 extension cord in 10 ft, but could not find a quality built pure copper one in that length. Your best bet may be to ask @Rob43 to make one for you. If you go with 12/3, there are 40ft option available, but they it is expensive!
www.amazon.com/ProStyle-40ft-Conductor-Extension-Lighted/dp/B018A2OFQY

 

You can go to the hardware store & buy 10/3 cable & put your own fittings on the ends. That's what I did, useing locking plugs to assure the best contact. You have a choice of several vendors on Amazon

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I'm with @hill. The fewer connections, the better. And the shorter the better. So daisy chaining to get the right length isn't any better (maybe worse) than having extra length. If you make your own, make sure the plugs are good quality like Hubble or Legrand/Pass & Seymour. Also, go back and check the terminal tightness once a week for a while till you're satisfied they are staying tight. As the copper wires "relax" over time the connections will get a little loose. I always go back over all wire terminations after some time and almost always get another quarter turn or more on the screws. It takes a little effort, but it's the best solution short of a major electrical project.

 

Take a quick read if you haven't already:
https://priuschat.com/threads/warning-extension-cords.210570

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Is there any chance that you have a 240v outlet near your Prime, especially one that doesn't need an extension cord ?


Rob43

 

Yes, Rob43, I did read your previous posts on this topic, very helpful indeed.

Unfortunately, no, there are no 240v outlets anywhere outside my home, let alone near where my Prime gets parked.

 

Your easiest good choice would be a 50ft pure copper cord. I also sent you a PM.


Rob43

 

Based on your tip that 40' 12/3 extensions do exist, I searched further and found what appears to be equivalent (or possibly newer version) of what you pointed out, but at much lower price:

"ProStar 12 Gauge SJTW 3 Conductor 40 Foot Extension Cord With Lighted Ends - Yellow" by Century -- $30 on Amazon.com today

Thanks!

 

If it was copper, an SJTW [stranded wire, junior service (300v), thermoplastic (vs. other insulations), weather-resistant] 12 AWG cable should carry 25 amps. This one is only 15 amps. It leads me to think it's aluminum or ACC. And 15 amps is very close to the load the car will put on it. I would expect it to get pretty warm and eventually fail. Look for one rated at 25 amps and you'll have a safety factor so you're not potentially playing with fire.

Here's a glossary that explains all those cryptic letters on the cables and there's an ampacity chart at the end.
http://www.chem.cmu.edu/groups/bier/procedure_files/general/powercords.pdf

 

Is that always true for all extension cord? I don't claim to be an expert in this area, but many of the rating shown on label do not seem to agree with your explanation. From what I have seen on many of extension cord spec on-line, almost all of 12/3 extension cord even though they say is pure copper seem to have 15A/125V rating on label. Even the 10/3 gauge extension cord shown on #30 comment photo above has 15A/125V rating.

 

Amazon.com: 240 volt extension cord

 

Yeah, that's an extension cord for 240V plug. I can't use it for 120V L1 EVSE. As far as I can find, all of 120V L1 compatible extension cord seem to have 125V 15A rating printed on the spec.

 

Yep, maybe Rob43 has some tips.
Or you could blame it on NEMA standards, if that reduces some confusion.
And I think we all can agree there is plenty of that almost everywhere these days.