Went to plug the welder in however the car charger has shorted itself to the 30 amp plug. Wasn’t sure who handles this I assume @Team_Infrastructure ? Clarification-this is the plug in the automotive bay that primarily powers the car chargers outside.
@Team_Logistics handles facilities items like this.
I beleive this is the plug I replaced a few months ago. Something is very wrong.
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Outlet likely needs replacing as well.
I don’t think it’s dimensioned properly. It shouldn’t be drawing that much current and if it is, the breaker should go
We need to look further into this. I seem to recall one of the chargers breakers to be 100 amps. I dont recall the others.
I replaced both the plug and outlet at the same time.
Perhaps something else is afoot.
Without question.
The charger itself is only 30 amp, so it shouldn’t be a sizing problem. Clearly a magic smoke containment issue, we should cover the whole thing in liquid electrical tape.
We probably should not have a 30 amp device on a 100 amp (if Tim is right) dedicated circuit. Code is what? 25% overage max?
It is fed by another breaker, 50 amp. It looks like maybe the 100 is the Supercharger possibly? Which on a side note, needs work. It’s missing the cover over the end of the plug.
In looking through the 30amp electric charger, which is a very simple device, there does not appear to have any glaring issues. All the internals look good, IE no discoloration of wiring or terminals. In the documentation for the charger, it specifies that the breaker should be 40amp. It’s also rated to be outdoors, & is now obsolete.
The fact that the 50amp connector is melting speaks to high current, and for some time.
The only other possibility I see is that these connectors are rated for a limited number of insertion cycles. I think it’s a few hundred, but I’d need to look it up. I don’t think we are cycling them that frequently though. It’s possible that the contacts have gone high resistance as a result of use. If that were the case I would expect to see one side with most of the heat damage - I wouldn’t expect them to fail as a matched pair.
It’s indeed a 30 amp for clarification, just updated post
And was last replaced in late August
https://talk.dallasmakerspace.org/t/resolved-car-charger-outlet-8-22/111505/4?u=ozindfw
I remembered 50A, but it turns out we’re both right. The connector on the cable can be configured to mate with either a 30 or 50A socket.
The wall socket is a 6-50R, which is rated at 50A.
Spitballing here, but as I recall that outlet is near the rollup doors, any possibility of moisture or detritus getting into the socket?
Could the outlet be arcing? Maybe when plugged/unplugged? People don’t weld in auto that often, but the charger frequently needs to be unplugged to reset.
Just working through the logic here, The charger itself is basically a contactor and a board that communicates with the EV. So it does its GFCI test, talks to the car, says hey pull 30 amps, and that’s what the car pulls. Which lines up with what my car reports when charging. That + no internal damage seems like overcurrent is pretty unlikely.
I think we need to go ahead and hard wire it then monitor it. It is going to be inconvenient for someone if the welding machine & powder coating oven are trying to operate at the same time. I really think it probably won’t will an issue. Especially with auto moving.
Should the charger move with Automotive?