Melted 240V outlet (Major Disaster Avoided) -- PSA: only highly rated charging equipment

[67 Stang Convertible]

So, pulled up my Ford Pass App this morning expecting to see it at 80% SOC just like every time I home charge for the last 40 months of life; and yet I see “Charge Error” with a red banner or writing, can’t recall now.

So, I go look at my Juice Box and there are no lights on. Never seen that unless it was unplugged. I glance at the outlet & you can see what I see. What appears a melted crumbling outlet.

The 240 was installed by a licensed electrician but I did switch the receptacle to one that fit the Juice Box over 3 years ago (January 2020). The receptacle was from Home Depot & I’m assuming that is the weak link ?.

I’m fully aware this could have escalated into a serious house/EV fire ? in the middle of the night ( as the car is set to start charging at midnight).

I am posting this primarily as a warning since I’ve seen a lot of new avatars on the forum this year. Please use only highly rated charging equipment ( not the $15 Home Depot) outlet like I did let only Certified & experienced electricians install these Home EV chargers!!!

Now I’m in the market for a new charger. Watched Tim Malogahney’s 2024 review, but am open to suggestions on chargers. This one will be hard wired!!!!

For those newbies go to YouTube and search “State of Charge” for best and latest charger info.

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[eponey]

I had a level 1 charger char up it's plug, no tension, plugged in just fine. Hardwire or nothing for me.

 

[HuntingPudel]

Your EVSE might still be good. Replace the outlet with a good Industrial outlet such as the ones made by Hubbell or Bryant, then see if the EVSE is still good. ??

 

[ARK]

My ChargePoint Home Flex has been great for close to four years now.

 

[shutterbug]

I'd like to note that there are hardly any such disasters with hard-wired chargers.

 

[Scooby24]

I'd like to note that there are hardly any such disasters with hard-wired chargers.

Nor with industrial outlets utilized instead of the cheap commercial ones.

 

[4sallypat]

I'd like to note that there are hardly any such disasters with hard-wired chargers.

Same here - hardwired for 3 years and no issues at all.

 

[tbrumleve]

Hardwired ChargePoint Home Flex for a year and a half. No issues.

 

[dje4msu]

An industrial/commercial grade receptacle is key. Hubbell/Bryant NEMA 14-50r has held up in my garage for 2 years and it hardly gets warm. But you are spending $45 to $60 for this quality, not $15 as you did for the big box store standard.

 

[shutterbug]

Nor with industrial outlets utilized instead of the cheap commercial ones.

I guess. However, most of us can't tell the difference between "industrial" and "commercial". What we can tell is that there is no advantage to plugin connection. I'm sure someone will bring up the "what if I want to move and take my charger with me" argument. But that will be years from now and the cost difference will be minimal ($50-$100 on top of running a new connection) and may not even happen before you need a new charger.

 

[Dear_OP]

What amp were you charging at? Did the breaker kick out?

 

[Mach-Lee]

Cheap Leviton NEMA 14-50 outlet strikes again...

Everybody should check that they don't have one of these junk Leviton outlets. They're notorious for this. They've very common, and hundreds have melted this way during EV charging.

 

[zvez]

So, pulled up my Ford Pass App this morning expecting to see it at 80% SOC just like every time I home charge for the last 40 months of life; and yet I see “Charge Error” with a red banner or writing, can’t recall now.
So, I go look at my Juice Box and there are no lights on. Never seen that unless it was unplugged. I glance at the outlet & you can see what I see. What appears a melted crumbling outlet.
The 240 was installed by a licensed electrician but I did switch the receptacle to one that fit the Juice Box over 3 years ago (January 2020). The receptacle was from Home Depot & I’m assuming that is the weak link ?.
I’m fully aware this could have escalated into a serious house/EV fire ? in the middle of the night ( as the car is set to start charging at midnight).
I am posting this primarily as a warning since I’ve seen a lot of new avatars on the forum this year. Please use only highly rated charging equipment ( not the $15 Home Depot) outlet like I did let only Certified & experienced electricians install these Home EV chargers!!!
Now I’m in the market for a new charger. Watched Tim Malogahney’s 2024 review, but am open to suggestions on chargers. This one will be hard wired!!!!
For those newbies go to YouTube and search “State of Charge” for best and latest charger info.

I'm curious, did you frequently unplug the charger from the outlet?

 

[ipca204]

I'm curious, did you frequently unplug the charger from the outlet?

BINGO! that was the first thing I was thinking when he said " Never seen that unless it was unplugged. " I was reading up a ton on the outlets before having mine installed and the consensus SEEMS to be that the unplug it, plug it in will eventually wear on the contacts where arcing can (and did in this case) occur.

I had a level 1 charger char up it's plug, no tension, plugged in just fine. Hardwire or nothing for me.

Same scenario. Did you use your level one charger ina preexisting outlet that was frequently used? Arcing can and will occur in older outlets as well..

 

[Maquis]

The differences:

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