Cybertruck replaced portable generator during power outage

[CyberTally]

My son-in-law was getting ready to roll out a portable generator to power essentials (lights and refrigerator) at my daughter's home in Tallahassee when I offered a better solution. We plugged into the load bed outlets on my Cybertruck instead of the generator. Powering their home from the Cybertruck was silent and didn't require refueling the generator every few hours. While they used the Cybertruck, I got to drive my favorite car that I've ever owned, the 2018 Model 3 Performance that I gave my SOL when I got a Model Y.

Our next project will be to install a 50 Amp 240 Volt outlet we can quickly plug in to for the next power outage. Then they can enjoy all the comforts of home, including a/c.

See photos below:
From Outlets & Mods enable Keep On Cabin and Bed Outlets for 12 hours.
The Tesla app has a countdown timer to show how much time is remaining before the outlets turn off.

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[theoldguy]

Im glad you were able to make the 110v outlets work for a temporary outage . Thats funny that you paralleled the outlets.

Are you planning to install a transfer switch or Main breaker interlock?

I would love to see your setup when you get it finished.

 

[CyberTally]

Im glad you were able to make the 110v outlets work for a temporary outage . Thats funny that you paralleled the outlets.

Are you planning to install a transfer switch or Main breaker interlock?

I would love to see your setup when you get it finished.

I did NOT parallel the outlets as that would have caused a short circuit.

CAUTION - Damage to Cybertruck caused by an external device that is plugged in to an outlet is not covered by the warranty.

This setup was temporarily supplying power to my daughter's home during a power outage. The orange cable is a piece of #12 Romex (Type NM-B) that has three insulated conductors (black, red, white) and a bare ground conductor. This is what they used to connect to a portable generator during previous outages. We used the same cable to plug into the Cybertruck outlets.

The neutral (white) conductors are joined with a wire nut, as well as the equipment grounding (bare) conductors with another wire nut. The black wire is connected to the hot side of the top plug and the red wire is connected to the hot side of the bottom plug. See photo. The voltage across the black and red wires is 240 Volts AC. The black and red wires on the other end of the cable are connected to a 2 pole 20 Amp circuit breaker in the load center. The main breaker is turned off. This setup will typically supply power to lights, the refrigerator and a small kitchen appliance such as a small microwave.

Do NOT attempt this unless you are a trained professional. This posting is strictly informational, NOT instructional.

 

[CyberTally]

Im glad you were able to make the 110v outlets work for a temporary outage . Thats funny that you paralleled the outlets.

Are you planning to install a transfer switch or Main breaker interlock?

I would love to see your setup when you get it finished.

At my home, I have a permanently installed standby generator powered by natural gas and sized large enough to take care of my home and power a Tesla Wall Connector (11.5 kW) during an extended power outage. I also have solar panels to supply most of the energy for my home and a Net Meter. Soon we'll be installing Tesla's Powershare Home Backup hardware.

 

[Cybergirl]

I rejected the Powershare option. I'll use the $700 voucher to buy the $620 Universal Wall Connector with Magic Dock instead. Powershare doesn't offer me much utility since I already have solar with battery backup (SMA Solar Technology) which supplies power to a set of important house circuits when the grid fails (25 ms switchover). The backup battery will last overnight but not for a multi-day grid blackout with overcast skies (low solar production).

I added a generator circuit to my main breaker panel with manual interlock to be able to use the Cybertruck battery in prolonged grid outages. The interlock makes it impossible to accidentally connect the CT 14-50 outlet to the main panel without first turning off the main breaker. This one is for my Siemens 200A 40 circuit panel (pre-2020):

The use of a generator interface box and cord is the prefered way to connect the CT to the house panel. A male-male 14-50 extension cable is sometimes called a "suicide" or "widowmaker" cord because of the higher risk of electrocution.

One thing I'm not sure about is whether I can leave the CT connected to the house when solar power is being produced. I don't plan to, but if I did, is there anyway the CT inverter could be damaged, with or without CT's 14-50 outlet being powered? I assume my Sunny Boy DC to AC solar inverter will sync with the 60 Hz output of the CT as it does when grid power is present. I also assume that power cannot flow back into the CT battery via the 14-50 outlet. It's one way out. Battery charging must be done through the NACS charging port.

BTW, I learned recently that if a charger is plugged into the NACS charging port, the AC outlets on the truck cannot be turned on, even if no charging is being done. That's one advantage of Powershare, I believe, when grid power returns, Powershare will automatically charge CT's battery. In my setup, I have to plug the truck in first.

 

[bwwillett]

Great information from you all and please keep it coming. Still waiting on mine but when it does show up and will be much more prepared for whatever happens thanks to this information.

 

[cyberHoward]

For those that are interested, I had my Gateway installed and now I am just waiting on a firmware update to allow it power my home from my CT. Here is a photo. I did opt for 100 amp wiring to my universal charger in case technology changes.

 

[zeke]

For those that are interested, I had my Gateway installed and now I am just waiting on a firmware update to allow it power my home from my CT. Here is a photo. I did opt for 100 amp wiring to my universal charger in case technology changes.

This is cool. I've been working so hard to try and get information on the 3V gateway and NO ONE (Tesla, Qmerit, other certified installers) are willing to share information or they straight up don't know how this works.

I can see the mains connected but I also see a breaker in the middle left. Is that a solar load or is it the universal charger? I'm trying to figure out if my solar can be connected to the gateway like it would be on a normal Tesla solar installation. That would allow me to do lots of things down the line, but there are no specs online for that setup.

 

[cyberHoward]

No solar. The bottom device is my mechanical meter. One breaker is for the universal wall charger and the other is a breaker to the main feed from the meter.

https://www.tesla.com/support/energy/powerwall/installer-resources/powerwall-installation-documents

I think I have the service manual somewhere if I look.

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