The EV Charger Plug Into the Outlet Was Completely Melted, and I Could Have Had A Fire and Come Home To No House At all, Which Is the Scariest Thing In the World

Here at Torque News we make it no secret that we closely follow a few of the leading experts on electric vehicles and electric vehicle service equipment (EVSE). Tom Moloughney of State of Charge is the expert we feel is the most highly qualified to offer advice on home charging solutions. He’s just started a new series called Recharge Rescue that highlights problems and dangers with home EV charging. It’s frightening to us that there is even enough of a problem to be a series, but indeed, that is the case. Let’s look at this home EV charging failure closely because it shines a light on three common EV charger installation mistakes.

Here is a handy EV charger safety checklist. 

Jessica’s Home Almost Burned Down (Her Words) - Here's Why
In the video, Jessica is rescued by Tom. Her home EV charger setup “caught on fire” and nearly burned her home to the ground (Timestamp 14:30 in the video). In fact, the wiring was where the system failed, and it was inside her junction box that the fire happened. Jessica says:

I panicked. I could have just had a fire. I could have come home to no house at all, which is the scariest thing in the world.

Before we go any further, Torque News always recommended that homeowners hardwire their wall-mounted Level 2 EV chargers (we are not going to keep saying EVSE because real experts rarely use the term). The reason for opting to hardwire the charger is that it eliminates two potential failure areas, the junction box and the outlet socket itself. Jessica’s charger was installed by an electrician contracted by her ex-husband about three years ago. So, the unit presumably worked without issues for that amount of time before nearly causing a catastrophic fire that could have destroyed her home. 

In the story, Tom recommends hardwiring the unit, and his sponsorship partner sent licensed electricians to do so for her replacement charger unit. Tom also dives very deeply into the quality of the NEMA 14-50 socket (outlet) and how important it is to buy a high-quality, robust unit. The problem is, it’s hard to know what’s good and what’s not other than by price. Yikes. All the more reason to hardwire the unit and skip the outlet altogether. 

While watching the video, we noticed that there are many issues with the installation. First off, we noticed that the breaker is rated at 60 amps, and the outlet is a NEMPA 14-50. The 50 in that model code indicates “50 amps.” So, the circuit seems to have been incorrectly designed by the electrician. Secondly, at one point late in the video, Tom says he spotted the wrong gauge wiring. We don’t know the distance to the panel, so I cannot comment on the proper gauge selection, but Tom is confident that it was done wrong. Finally, the breaker is not GFCI protected, and that is an obvious code violation. Outlets in garages need GFCI protection because one never knows if the equipment that will be plugged in will have GFCI protection. All of these are life and safety hazards in addition to property protection hazards. 

In the end, Jessica got a new, hardwired unit, and she can now charge at home. Tom points out that during the nine days her home charger was out of service, she was “Wasting time charging at public DC chargers.” Well said by Tom. If you don’t have a home charger of your own, you are setting yourself up for an unpleasant and time-consuming green vehicle ownership experience. It can take 20X longer to charge an EV than to power up a hybrid. 

Tom’s video is outstanding, but one area we would have examined a bit further is was a permit from the local municipality pulled prior to installing that new circuit for the EV charger? Also, was there an electrical inspection? If not, that is the real problem here. No everyday EV owner can be expected to know the electrical code and best practices. However, they have at their disposal a local official who lives that life everyday and will know if the setup meets code and is safely completed. Missing the electrical inspection is the biggest mistake one can make, whether they hardwire or use an outlet with their home charger. The image above this section is our own home charger being inspected. Inspections are a tiny fraction of the cost of an EV installation. Yet, they will come in very handy if your house does burn down. The first question your insurer will ask is, “Was the installation inspected?” If the answer is “no,” good luck getting paid for your damage. 

We hope this highlight story helps illustrate the simple things you as a homeowner can do to ensure you have a safe home charging setup. Here’s a punch list of what was covered:

• Always start by contacting a licensed electrician.
• Be certain that your electrician pulls an electrical permit.
• Have your unit hardwired (you won’t need a GFCI circuit if you do so).
• Purchase a quality home charger that has UL or another safety certification.
• Have the setup inspected when completed and save your approved inspection report.

If you already have a home charger setup and are unsure if it was done properly, call an electrician to have it inspected and follow her lead on what steps you may want to take to make it safe.

Did you find this video helpful?

Have you had any difficulties with home charging? If so, your comments may help another EV owner. 
 

John Goreham is a credentialed New England Motor Press Association member and expert vehicle tester. John completed an engineering program with a focus on electric vehicles, followed by two decades of work in high-tech, biopharma, and the automotive supply chain before becoming a news contributor. He is a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE int). In addition to his eleven years of work at Torque News, John has published thousands of articles and reviews at American news outlets. He is known for offering unfiltered opinions on vehicle topics. You can connect with John on Linkedin and follow his work on his personal X channel or on our X channel. Please note that stories carrying John's by-line are never AI-generated, but he does employ grammar and punctuation software when proofreading and he also uses image generation tools.

Top of page image is a screenshot from the attached YouTube video created by Tom Moloughney of State of Charge.