[Caevlist] Extension cords

[billveley at alyrica.net]

I carry a 25 foot, 12 gauge extension cord in our Bolt. I’ve never had to
use it, but would in an emergency.

On Fri, 16 Aug 2019 05:45:13 +0000, "Trelstad, Brandon"
<brandon.trelstad at oregonstate.edu> wrote:
> Hi Bryon, 
> 
> I didn’t see anyone else chime in, and there is certainly deeper
> expertise on this list than me, but I have had no trouble charging my
> Tesla Model 3 with an extension cord. It’s not a best practice and
> there is energy loss, but in the kind of situation you describe I would
> not hesitate to use a good quality cord no longer than you really need.
> I’ve done it a handful of times when travelling. One time I had to use
> a 100’ cord and everything went fine; got 4 miles/hour of charge. I
> think it was only 16 gauge. (I can hear the cringing of other readers!) 

> 
> I’m not sure about the Bolt, but I believe the Tesla can drop the amps
> a little (below the standard 12 A at 120 V) if it sees too much voltage
> sag so it will only take what the supply can give it. I think the Bolt
> can be set for 8 or 12 amps so you might just want to start with 8 to be
> safe.  
> 
> Always make sure you have a good ground. Tesla won’t charge without it,
> I suspect Bolt too. Plus, when you have an overpriced Airbnb or
something
> along those lines, it feels good to get a little free charge! 
>  Brandon  
> 
> FROM: caevlist-bounces at rdrop.com  ON BEHALF OF Bryon Van Fleet
>  SENT: Thursday, August 15, 2019 10:10 AM
>  TO: caevlist at rdrop.com; gary at whitecape.org
>  SUBJECT: [Caevlist] Extension cords   
> 
> To My Fellow EV Car Owners, 
> 
>  I recently bought a Chevy Bolt that came with a standard 110v level one
> charging cord. 
> 
> I love our new car but unfortunately have hopelessly low skills in
> electrical engineering, and now I have a question about extension cords.

> 
>  In a couple of weeks I’m going to visit a friend down on the southern
> Coast of Oregon. I will have enough range to get there but not to get
> home unless I recharge (hopefully at his house.) I’m staying 3 days and
> will be parked so that is enough time to fully recharge but here is my
> issue: My standard level one is not quite long enough to plug in at his
> house so my obvious solution is to use an extension cord. 
> 
>  When we bought the car the salesmen who did the final walk around with
> us said it was OK to use an extension cord if it was heavy enough BUT
the
> ownership manual says _don’t use an extension cord_. ?? 
> 
>  Let me repeat, I know next to nothing about electrical issues but I am
> suspicious Chevy is afraid I might use some flimsy indoor extension cord
> and that could be dangerous. 
> 
>  How about if I use a heavy (lower gauge) cord? Is that acceptable? Are
> there any rules or guidelines I should follow about gauge of wire and
> length of cord, or should I just NEVER use an extension cord? 
> 
>  Any thoughts or comments would be most appreciate by this newbie EV
> owner. 
> 
>  Sincerely, 
> 
>  Bryon Van Fleet