Almost Burned my House Down... Thoughts / Theories?

[Willinak]

A SIDE NOTE: When the electrician installed my Tesla Wall Connector, he made a loop of extra wire coming from the panel before entering the wall connector. He stated that this was necessary for heat dissipation purposes. He said he had over 100 installations and does this with every one.

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[kpanda17]

A SIDE NOTE: When the electrician installed my Tesla Wall Connector, he made a loop of extra wire coming from the panel before entering the wall connector. He stated that this was necessary for heat dissipation purposes. He said he had over 100 installations and does this with every one.

Never seen that

copper, right gauge, torqued to spec
No issues
It’s called electrical code

 

[REM]

Holy crap, man. Glad you're ok and this didn't turn into a house fire. That could have been so much worse.

It's paranoia on my part, but I occasionally point a thermal camera at the high amperage wiring things in my house and look for hotspots. Breaker panel, too. I feel less paranoid now....

any suggestions for a thermal imager that doesn't cost an arm and a leg? I've been meaning to get one for quite a while.

 

[REM]

A SIDE NOTE: When the electrician installed my Tesla Wall Connector, he made a loop of extra wire coming from the panel before entering the wall connector. He stated that this was necessary for heat dissipation purposes. He said he had over 100 installations and does this with every one.

Doing it wrong 100 times then. Unless someone can correct me, I can't find a single engineering reason to do this. Coiling wire INCREASES the thermal mass load; not the other way around.

 

[Feederi]

1) don't allow that installer to return and inspect for any reason.

2) find out who your installer is insured/bonded under, and file a claim with them. insist that they send out a qualified investigator to document what happened.

3) follow through with a claim with the insurer to replace ALL damages.

I have seen shoddy electricians come back to "see what happened" only for them to try and erase evidence of wrongdoing or laziness. everyone makes mistakes, but this is probably a case of extreme negligence.

note: that looks like aluminum wire to me. Not sure why tf anyone in their right mind would would be using that for an EV charger. Prone to disasters just like this.

Aluminum wire does not have the same capacity as copper wire of the same size. Probably overheated, insulation melted, shorted to each other. I’m not an electrician, but I’ve done a lot of electrical work. Don’t blame the Tesla charger.

 

[Mini2nut]

Exactly why I installed 2 smoke detectors above both cars in my garage.

You were very lucky. Now go buy a lottery ticket

 

[Mal]

any suggestions for a thermal imager that doesn't cost an arm and a leg? I've been meaning to get one for quite a while.

I use this one. I got it during a remodel when we were replacing windows and siding. It was very helpful to find gaps in insulation and whatnot. Then I started pointing it at pretty much everything.

FLIR ONE Gen 3 - Thermal Imaging Camera for Android Smartphones (USB-C): Use for Home Inspection, HVAC, Automotive, Machine Industries and More

 

[getsometom]

Wow, glad you're okay. I had a similar event last month where the V3 Gateway had a short and melted the switch inside almost causing a fire. I then figured out the Tesla Energy team responsible for fixing the issue is difficult to get a hold of on the phone. They always recommend chatting first and then will escalate the issue if warranted.

 

[kpanda17]

Wow, glad you're okay. I had a similar event last month where the V3 Gateway had a short and melted the switch inside almost causing a fire. I then figured out the Tesla Energy team responsible for fixing the issue is difficult to get a hold of on the phone. They always recommend chatting first and then will escalate the issue if warranted.

What do you mean? RCA pointed to the WC?

 

[getsometom]

@kpanda17 I'm sure you don't mean an old brand of American electronics pointed to a water closet. But since I don't understand, I can't answer

 

[kpanda17]

@kpanda17 I'm sure you don't mean an old brand of American electronics pointed to a water closet. But since I don't understand, I can't answer

Sorry tech term
Root cause analysis RCA
Wall Connector WC

too many acronyms

 

[hemiarch]

WIBD (well I’ll be damned)

 

[getsometom]

Sorry tech term
Root cause analysis RCA
Wall Connector WC

too many acronyms

The techs that replaced the V3 Gateway with a new one said they've never seen this issue before and were not sure of the root cause. The assumption is a power surge but not sure. The wall connector was not affected. Either way, they replaced the entire gateway and verified everything is working properly before leaving.

 

[CyGo]

hire another electrician, certified, documenting what happened and the fix
could be the missing insultation short causing the arc
or screws not to the torque spec, causing an arc
wrong gauge wire, no sure why we see stranded vs solid
the certified electrician will provide the proof

you should not do a claim with your insurance as its not your fault, rate will go up
the claim should be against the original electrician company

Scary af.

Even good electricians make mistakes. When I had my Tesla charger installed, I watched as the electrician was torquing everything down. They left, and all was good, I thought. After a few months of charging, I kept noticing how hot the conduit and breaker were getting, but it seemed within specifications. Until one day, the 60-amp breaker tripped. I opened it up and noticed one of the wires had been slightly charred. Well, when I tugged on it to see how tight it was, it came right out. The wire was actually behind the terminal, meaning the electrician torqued the terminal with the wire not even in it. This could have ended much worse for me...

 

[kpanda17]

Scary af.

Even good electricians make mistakes. When I had my Tesla charger installed, I watched as the electrician was torquing everything down. They left, and all was good, I thought. After a few months of charging, I kept noticing how hot the conduit and breaker were getting, but it seemed within specifications. Until one day, the 60-amp breaker tripped. I opened it up and noticed one of the wires had been slightly charred. Well, when I tugged on it to see how tight it was, it came right out. The wire was actually behind the terminal, meaning the electrician torqued the terminal with the wire not even in it. This could have ended much worse for me...

I do this work
We use a torque measuring wrench
And check 3x call it a day once

the heat sensor idea is great

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