Hey guys! I recently bought a Prius Prime and I am loving the car! The mileage is unbelievable! I currently live in an apartment complex so charging the prime is a little difficult! I did some research and decided to buy an extension cord to charge my prime. I bought a 10/3 extension cord () to be on the safe side since it would be left unattended. I found an outlet that I can plug, however, it is outside and also, there’s a Coke vending machine using one of the outlet. Would this still be ok? I provide the pictures of what the outlet looks like since I am a noob when it comes to these things! Thanks!
"Most soda vending machines run on 115 volts at about 10.5 amps. Most commercial grade three prong outlets will be acceptable to power a vending machine." Frequently Asked Questions | Vending Solutions Since it is most likely a 15 Amp Breaker, this will not leave you enough power to charge with. Too bad too, that was a nice looking Receptacle.
So it is safe but just not enough power to charge. Would it make a difference if I changed the charge to 8A?
There are 20A 120VAC circuits but those have a small, horizontal slot on one leg. I would first negotiate with the landlord to coordinate testing. Bob Wilson
I think the 10 gauge cord is over kill. I bought a 2 pack of US made 50' x 12 gauge cords at Costco for $50 bucks (of course they are probably gone from Costco now). I have been charging my Prime with the charging cord plugged into the extension cord for over 9 months with zero issues. About the Coke machine, just try it and see what happens. Worse case is you car is charging and a cooling cycle comes on for the cokes and the GFI breaks or the breaker breaks. Then you know. My bet is it goes along just fine.
If the breaker breaks, you just press the reset button on the outlet right? I just don’t want my landlord to complain to me if something goes wrong! Of course I asked for their permission already but I just wanted to be on the safe side!
Have you talked to your landlord about using the outlet? I would find out what size circuit breaker that circuit breaker is on. It could be on a 20 Amp breaker or a 15 Amp breaker but like someone mentioned the receptacle is a 15 amp. Or like others have said just try it. The worst case scenario is you trip the breaker when the coke machine turns on or the receptacle overheats. This is a 20 Amp Ground Fault Receptacle Leviton 20 Amp 125-Volt Duplex Self-Test Slim GFCI Outlet, White (3-Pack)-M22-GFNT2-03W - The Home Depot
And they said it is OK ?? Better get that in writing !!!! You need to select the lowest charging rate AND you need to find out where the breaker box IS that serves that outlet. It is NOT the red button; that is the GFI. Chances are good that you don't have access to the actual circuit breaker.
Yes a little confusing. The outside outlet is a GFI (Ground Fault Interrupter). This is for safety in wet environments (bathrooms, outdoors etc...) This can be a failure point and can be tripped by the motor in the coke machine or other events. You would reset it outside if this trips. The breaker, located in the teh breaker box can be tripped by overload or other conditions. If it fails it could be either - you will just have to check.
