Looking to Install a Tesla Charger? Call the Pros at TCA!
Between safety risks, malfunctions, and potential damage to your home, a licensed and qualified electrician is the only one you should trust to install a Tesla or other EV charger in your home. There are some electrical upgrades that can be carried out by a handy homeowner. However, more involved projects—particularly those that involve working directly with your electrical panel—should only be carried out by a professional electrician.
Along with providing top-quality electrical services, one of our main priorities here at TCA Electric is to educate and empower our customers. We recommend hiring a professional for most electrical projects, but we understand that some folks will always want to use their skills to improve their own home. This is never a good idea in the case of a Tesla charger install, however! Here’s why.
Personal Safety
The number-one reason to never DIY for a Tesla or EV charger install? The risk to your personal safety is far too great to justify the money you may save. Above all else, electricians are trained to be complete experts in electrical safety. Electricity is extremely dangerous, and a licensed and qualified electrician will be well-versed in how to eliminate risks to avoid personal injury.
All electrical work is dangerous to some degree, but this is particularly true when you need to work with your electrical panel or breaker. This is where all the electricity in your house comes from—meaning it carries the largest amount of electricity and presents the greatest danger to you. An electrician will understand how to appropriately and safely cut off or divert power while working with this critical electrical component due to years of on-the-job experience.
Potential Damage to Your Home
Even if you avoid injuring yourself, there are many ways that an electrical installation can go wrong and result in damage to your home. Overloading portions of your electrical system can result in fires, for instance, which may not be covered by insurance if they’re a result of DIY electrical work.
In addition, the cables or conduit running from your panel to your EV charger will need to be attached somewhere. At TCA Electric, we pride ourselves on expertly concealing these electrical components so that they blend in with the space we’re working in and fit with the existing aesthetic. This can be difficult to do and requires a large amount of skill and attention to detail.
Charging Issues and Malfunctions
EV chargers need to be properly installed in order to charge your EV effectively. Any issues or mishaps during installation could result in potential charging malfunctions. In extreme cases, this could damage your EV. More likely, though, it will lead to your electric vehicle not charging at the rate you expect or wasting electricity during charging. Both of these are highly inconvenient issues that can be costly or time-consuming to resolve.
Will You Really Save Money?
One of the main reasons some folks want to install their own Tesla or EV charger is to save money compared to the cost of hiring an electrician. However, depending on your level of skill, cost savings may be extremely marginal or even nonexistent.
For one thing, completing the installation DIY will still cost time. Everyone’s time is valuable, and if you aren’t well-versed in these types of advanced electrical projects, it’s likely to take several times longer than it would for a seasoned electrician who’s installed dozens (or hundreds!) of EV chargers.
And of course, there’s also the costs that may be incurred by all the above risks. Any kind of electrical fire, malfunction, or damage to your home caused by a DIY project is unlikely to be covered by insurance. This means your project will cost money not just for the charger and the time it takes to install your Tesla charger, but also for any additional repairs needed.
Hire TCA Electric to Install Your Tesla or Other EV Charger!
TCA Electric is Vancouver’s leading expert when it comes to EV charging solutions. We’ve installed hundreds of chargers for homeowners throughout the area, providing our customers with complete freedom from gas pumps without interfering with the look of their home.
As licensed, qualified, and experienced electrical contractors, we have the expertise to ensure your Tesla charger installation goes off without a hitch, maximizing safety while minimizing the risk to your home. If you’re interested in a Tesla or other EV charger, don’t install it yourself—instead, contact the experts at TCA!