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I wonder how much work on the local power infrastructure is necessary to install a 400kw charger. Does that "just work" or do they have to idk replace some tran

I wonder how much work on the local power infrastructure is necessary to install a 400kw charger. Does that "just work" or do they have to idk replace some transformers somewhere?

webprofusion 2y ago
It absolutely does require capacity at the local power distribution, either they have it spare or it has to be added. Spare capacity will depend on the planning in place at the time of sizing the power distribution, e.g. if it was going to be a growing industrial area or not, otherwise they have to either fund the upgrade or wait for distribution kit to get old and be replaced.
trte9343r4 2y ago
Tesla uses local diesel generators to handle spikes. Getting permits and contracts for a few megawatts is not simple. It is basically a small factory!
- 10u152 2y ago
  Have you any evidence of this? Or is this just fud?
  - throwaway3306a 2y ago
    What fud? This is a standard way to deal with grid issues. Some people don't see electric cars / chargers as ideology that must remain absolutely pure of oil. Some are just pragmatic - it's a good car that runs cheaply, and supercharger is critical infrastructure that needs a reliable backup.
    - thebruce87m 2y ago
      > Some people don't see electric cars / chargers as ideology that must remain absolutely pure of oil. It’s normally the anti-EV people that seem to go for this angle as a kind of “gotcha”. They are normally the ones spreading the “all the chargers run on diesel generators” misinformation too. Can you run a charger on a generator? Probably. Is it standard practice or mildly common? Absolutely not.
      - throwaway3306a 2y ago
        Yeah, but reacting with the naive assumption that there is never any backup generator is just the other extreme.
        thebruce87m 2y ago
        I don’t think these are equivalent. You might get special cases such as a charging station in the outback of Australia where this is necessary but it’s not like it’s a standard option on any install.
        throwaway3306a 2y ago
        But did anybody claim that? The OP said "to handle spikes". That already tells it's an unusual solution for unusual problems by itself.
        thebruce87m 2y ago
        The original comment was: > Tesla uses local diesel generators to handle spikes. This suggests that it is a standard solution for a reasonably common problem for Tesla. Common enough that it is seen as the accepted solution by the company. The only instance I have ever seen of this was an attempt as anti-EV misinformation which was debunked. It is not a common solution at all. It would definitely be a viable solution in some places and I am not against it, but for some reason the anti-EV lot want to push a narrative that it is common when it is not.
        throwaway3306a 2y ago
        Spikes in grids are not common in any way. But if they are happening at a particular location then yes, a generator is a standard solution for everyone, not just Tesla. There are not many ways to handle it, it's basically either a battery (very expensive and probably too small capacity and output current), a generator or shutting down.
- thebruce87m 2y ago
  The only instance I’ve ever seen this claimed was swiftly proven false: https://www.harrisranch.com/news-info/harris-ranch-refutes-misinformation-on-property-use/ https://www.harrisranch.com/news-info/harris-ranch-refutes-m...
  - trte9343r4 2y ago
    Proven? The link basically says "we do not operate anything, Tesla is just leasing the space".
    - thebruce87m 2y ago
      > The building indicated is not, nor has it ever been a diesel plant.
      - fsckboy 2y ago
        but that building is not what Tesla leases; they are not coming out and saying that Tesla does not have diesel, they're saying "that's Tesla, not us"
        thebruce87m 2y ago
        I see no wiggle room in what was said. They are talking specifically about the building that was said to be a diesel plant and are saying it isn’t one. There is no diesel plant there regardless of how much people want there to be. It’s up to you to prove that there is a diesel plant. It’s just so weird that people want there to be one there, as some sort of climate change denying “gotcha” or something.
        fsckboy 2y ago
        >It’s up to you to prove no, it's not. I'm not interested in or taking a side on the diesel question, I don't care about it. I'm appointing myself judge of the English language employed, a topic I'm really good at and do care about, and I've made my ruling. They have not ruled out anything that Tesla is doing, they are simply ruling out what they are doing and ruling out Tesla's actions as not theirs. >I see no wiggle room in what was said. that's why I was appointed judge
- bilsbie 2y ago
  True or not, I wish people didn’t treat it as a scandal. It could be a great way to handle higher than usual charging volumes. Or provide power in a blackout.
deleted 2y ago
[deleted]
danans 2y ago
They definitely have to attach to the grid in a different way than a regular house or business does. If you look nearby any DC fast charger you will usually see a number of heavy duty electrical cabinets containing the electrical equipment (and increasingly batteries) that power the chargers.
ikekkdcjkfke 2y ago
Does the local power infra need work to support 350 toasters
- adrianN 2y ago
  I wouldn't be surprised tbh.
Gibbon1 2y ago
A medium voltage feeder lines could be 14.4kv or more depending. But at 14.4kv 400kw is 16 amps. I used to have space in a warehouse that at one time had 500 amp three phase service. Which is 207kw. I think the answer is it depends on the local power lines. But I don't think 400kw is unusual for industrial and commercial service.

I wonder how much work on the local power infrastructure is necessary to install a 400kw charger. Does that "just work" or do they have to idk replace some transformers somewhere?

webprofusion 2y ago

It absolutely does require capacity at the local power distribution, either they have it spare or it has to be added. Spare capacity will depend on the planning in place at the time of sizing the power distribution, e.g. if it was going to be a growing industrial area or not, otherwise they have to either fund the upgrade or wait for distribution kit to get old and be replaced.

trte9343r4 2y ago

Tesla uses local diesel generators to handle spikes. Getting permits and contracts for a few megawatts is not simple. It is basically a small factory!

10u152 2y ago
Have you any evidence of this? Or is this just fud?
- throwaway3306a 2y ago
  What fud? This is a standard way to deal with grid issues. Some people don't see electric cars / chargers as ideology that must remain absolutely pure of oil. Some are just pragmatic - it's a good car that runs cheaply, and supercharger is critical infrastructure that needs a reliable backup.
  - thebruce87m 2y ago
    > Some people don't see electric cars / chargers as ideology that must remain absolutely pure of oil. It’s normally the anti-EV people that seem to go for this angle as a kind of “gotcha”. They are normally the ones spreading the “all the chargers run on diesel generators” misinformation too. Can you run a charger on a generator? Probably. Is it standard practice or mildly common? Absolutely not.
    - throwaway3306a 2y ago
      Yeah, but reacting with the naive assumption that there is never any backup generator is just the other extreme.
      - thebruce87m 2y ago
        I don’t think these are equivalent. You might get special cases such as a charging station in the outback of Australia where this is necessary but it’s not like it’s a standard option on any install.
        throwaway3306a 2y ago
        But did anybody claim that? The OP said "to handle spikes". That already tells it's an unusual solution for unusual problems by itself.
        thebruce87m 2y ago
        The original comment was: > Tesla uses local diesel generators to handle spikes. This suggests that it is a standard solution for a reasonably common problem for Tesla. Common enough that it is seen as the accepted solution by the company. The only instance I have ever seen of this was an attempt as anti-EV misinformation which was debunked. It is not a common solution at all. It would definitely be a viable solution in some places and I am not against it, but for some reason the anti-EV lot want to push a narrative that it is common when it is not.
        throwaway3306a 2y ago
        Spikes in grids are not common in any way. But if they are happening at a particular location then yes, a generator is a standard solution for everyone, not just Tesla. There are not many ways to handle it, it's basically either a battery (very expensive and probably too small capacity and output current), a generator or shutting down.
thebruce87m 2y ago
The only instance I’ve ever seen this claimed was swiftly proven false: https://www.harrisranch.com/news-info/harris-ranch-refutes-misinformation-on-property-use/ https://www.harrisranch.com/news-info/harris-ranch-refutes-m...
- trte9343r4 2y ago
  Proven? The link basically says "we do not operate anything, Tesla is just leasing the space".
  - thebruce87m 2y ago
    > The building indicated is not, nor has it ever been a diesel plant.
    - fsckboy 2y ago
      but that building is not what Tesla leases; they are not coming out and saying that Tesla does not have diesel, they're saying "that's Tesla, not us"
      - thebruce87m 2y ago
        I see no wiggle room in what was said. They are talking specifically about the building that was said to be a diesel plant and are saying it isn’t one. There is no diesel plant there regardless of how much people want there to be. It’s up to you to prove that there is a diesel plant. It’s just so weird that people want there to be one there, as some sort of climate change denying “gotcha” or something.
        fsckboy 2y ago
        >It’s up to you to prove no, it's not. I'm not interested in or taking a side on the diesel question, I don't care about it. I'm appointing myself judge of the English language employed, a topic I'm really good at and do care about, and I've made my ruling. They have not ruled out anything that Tesla is doing, they are simply ruling out what they are doing and ruling out Tesla's actions as not theirs. >I see no wiggle room in what was said. that's why I was appointed judge
bilsbie 2y ago
True or not, I wish people didn’t treat it as a scandal. It could be a great way to handle higher than usual charging volumes. Or provide power in a blackout.

deleted 2y ago

[deleted]

danans 2y ago

They definitely have to attach to the grid in a different way than a regular house or business does. If you look nearby any DC fast charger you will usually see a number of heavy duty electrical cabinets containing the electrical equipment (and increasingly batteries) that power the chargers.

ikekkdcjkfke 2y ago

Does the local power infra need work to support 350 toasters

adrianN 2y ago
I wouldn't be surprised tbh.

Gibbon1 2y ago

A medium voltage feeder lines could be 14.4kv or more depending. But at 14.4kv 400kw is 16 amps. I used to have space in a warehouse that at one time had 500 amp three phase service. Which is 207kw. I think the answer is it depends on the local power lines. But I don't think 400kw is unusual for industrial and commercial service.