was tired of my garage door crushing my mobile charger cable so i designed and printed a simple relief channel

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My Tesla charging cable is going on year 5 ran under the garage door with no signs of wear.

Doesn't this prevent your door for closing all of the way?

I guess it depends on the garage door? Mine was pinning the cable against the concrete and if I didnt use something like a pool noodle, it would've eventually tore through

Right I don’t see how it doesn’t

why not just park in the garage

Yeah, but what’s a little dust and rodent problem matter?

Def a small gap at the bottom, but gap is the same with or without the relief bridge. I barely made it thicker than the cable itself

Mine also pins it against concrete, the rubber seal on the bottom of your garage door has some give + they are just very durable cables that are designed for the abuse.

Haha I try to, but just had a baby. the garage is just a dumping ground now :(

that's enough of a gap for a mouse to get in. My mission was to clean out my garage before my X arrived. I busted my butt, and cleaned/painted and got rid of so much stuff. Got some stuff given away, etc. Made every sacrifice I can to get this thing parked in the garage - to avoid this type of situation.

Rats gon get inside your house and most definitely eat up the charger, get ready

This will affect garage door, you can see the bend

[deleted]

You can adjust the position of your door...

All rodents are welcome!

Sure, if you like more bugs in your garage. The real solution would be to actually dig a channel into the concrete so the door can fully close.

Pretty sure your garage door has a rubber seal on the bottom that doesn’t put a lot of pressure on the cord and keeps it sealed.

This will cause more damage to your garage door. Unless you build a rectangular one that is even for the whole garage door.

been using my original charging cable pinned under my garage door since 2018. still working. seems like you’re trying to fix a non-issue that creates a bigger issue, that’s a huge gap, might actually damage your garage door mechanically down the road.

the thickness is barely thicker than the cable itself. So essentially the uneven distribution is the same whether I use the channel bridge or not. Before I was using a pool noodle and that had a bigger gap. Haven't had any issues

I've been using this for a few years. Works well. [https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BB3JR65W?ref\_=ppx\_hzsearch\_conn\_dt\_b\_fed\_asin\_title\_5](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BB3JR65W?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_5) Doesn't even leave a noticeable gap.

It was more the pressure of the garage door pushing the cable against the concrete that was damaging my cable

You know, a garage can be used as a garage! lol

I throw down a steel pipe thats barely thicker than the cable right next to it and it’s been working fine for over a year now.

they need to start including this as an option for new houses lol

Same here. And I also ran it through the corner. The rubber under the door would bend around it. Charger is still going fine and still looks new.

or cut a little hole through the wall at the side might be easier... or a raised threshold the full width of the door. I would probably just leave it. Well actually, I would park in the garage, and if you're not going to use the garage for the car, I'd move the charger outside.

I bet you never expected this many comments! Lol Everyone has a better idea, including me. Lol. But I’ll keep it to myself.

You can program your garage door to not close all the way. Mine stops 1 inch from the floor

The door not properly sealing down is the issue. The cable should not get damaged with the rubber sealing should bend enough to seal the door. The motor is going to stress trying to push down and the step you made is going to bend the frame slowly over time.

You know you can easily adjust how far down the garage door goes down? You see that flexible rubber on the garage door? Yea that should protect your cables while still creating a decent seal.

Hi OP, Your garage door opener most certainly has the ability to adjust the height at which the door closes. Mine used to close quite firmly to the concrete pad, so I programmed it to stop slightly higher. The rubber seal still touches the concrete but allows my cable to not be pinched. [HERE](https://support.chamberlaingroup.com/s/article/How-do-I-adjust-the-travel-and-force-limits-1484145519999) are instructions on how to do this with most Chamberlain openers.

...crushing?? I don't think you understand what that word means

Pretty sure a properly adjusted garage door only weighs like 2 pounds and stops exactly at a point where only the rubber bottom compresses slightly.

So you’d rather risk hundreds/thousands of dollars of damage to your cable and garage door instead of cleaning out your garage? Not to mention being able to park inside, out of the elements… I truly don’t understand some people. Even when I lived in an apartment, a parking garage space was a must.

Spend a weekend throwing away trash or invent a solution to a totally optional problem. Tough call.

Don’t forget snakes!

maybe I'll add one to the other side to even it out LOL. I do have 2 teslas haha

You know the rubber channel compresses and shuts nicely, right? Half the point of this part is that it compresses around a large circumference and you get a much better shut this way than with nothing. Just go to any garage door and jam your fingers under. Most will have no problem pushing up under the rubber. Obviously YMMV.

I want to park my car in the garage. just dont have the space atm. Just had a baby so my garage is used for storage right now unfortunately. Gotta make due. I will say though its been years using a pool noodle, no issues

Looks like something that mice, chipmunks, and snakes would love too. Maybe even small raccoons, skunks, bats, birds. I bet you've got quite a few fans of that design

Probably just distortion from the camera

I never thought about that. Might have to explore it this spring!

Fancy, I just put a piece of scrap wood next to the cable.

Same. Years under the garage door, no signs of wear. I must have a gentle garage door.

LOL! Right didnt think it would be that controversial. the cable itself is 1/2 inch thick. the max thickness of the release is like .65 inches thick....barely any thicker

Lots of inexpensive options online [https://www.amazon.com/s?k=garage+door+cable+pass+through](https://www.amazon.com/s?k=garage+door+cable+pass+through)

There’s a Canadian product called undor which I’ve been using for a couple years now. Requires a modification to the garage door seal, but works great. No issues with rodents etc.

well, based off the comments, if I did that the whole forest would be in my garage....

Thanks! good advice

Not to be pedantic, but that’s not a relief. A relief would be either a channel in the concrete or the door for the cable to rest in. This is more of a bump stop since it just prevents the door from going all the way down.

I had a nice car I had to park outside for years. Sap ruined my paint. All I ever wanted was a garage for it. So it's a pet peeve of mine to see spacious garages full of junk. I finally got a house with a small one car detached garage. I love that space and keep it clean and organized! My car lives there all the time and there's still room for my 12 other vehicles! (bikes, surfboards, etc).

I ran an extension around the metal part on the door and dock it outside

Mine is just barely thicker than the mobile cable (.5 inch) at just .65 inches. Also if you already have a 3d printer and some filament, its pennies

That should do the trick. I want to get another Tesla but for longer trips, charging times take a toll on trip length. Plus supercharger and gas milage on highway doesn’t make a big difference. So I’m keeping 1 ICE and 1 tessy.

You know you can just position your garage door to where it doesn't go all the way down? Look in your owners manual to see how to set it. For me, I just used a screwdriving to adjust a position knob so I can still moving my cable.

Can I ask what you’ve got for fun stuff?

That garage lift would be too much for my wife to accept for bugs and rodents getting in.

Congratulations on your baby! 🎉

Thanks!! She just turned 1 so we have even more crap in the garage now LOL

You saw visible wear on the cable?

That wood is gonna biodegrade, this plastic thing from OP will last forever in a landfill when they’re done with it.

Lol. The door gasket won’t crush your cable.

Lol. Right? I’ve had my garage door open set to be open just enough for a charging cable to run under since 2017 and haven’t had an issue. But I’ve lived in the middle of subdivisions, so I guess it depends if your house is close to some woods or not.

Yeah, from what other people on this thread is saying, I can adjust how far the garage door goes down. probably should do that

i just wrap a micro fiber towel around it so the seal is better. also absorbs water when it rains and doesn’t leave a puddle in the garage. or you can just use a pool noodle and cut it.

Rather than having a 1/4" gap across the entire sweep why not cut 1" off the rubber seal in the corner so the cable can run through and still be able to close the door? That's what I did, no issues at all.

I got one from Amazon as well.. I read how people having the cable damaged by the garage door so I don't wanna take a chance

Totally over engineered and unnecessary. You do you though

Not possible! I put up a sign that they're not allowed inside

This will introduce rats in your home!

It baffles me when folks with cars parked outside have a garage full of crap.

I would have done this + an extra thick trim gasket modified with a cutout for OP's little gaurd solution. Best chance of keeping rodents out of the garage, which is my primary concern with this.

everyone really tries everything but parking in the garage don't they?

Didnt realize I "over engineered" this

Im really shocked with how much people dislike this idea. Let OP do what they feel! Just tryin to show yall a thing they found helpful!

You probably need to replace the rubber threshold weatherproofing at the bottom. If it was more pliable it might still have sealed around the cable. I have to park outside the garage sometimes and have never had a problem with this.

I use a electrical cable conduit, those bendy ones but it is tough as nails. I cut a small piece, slit it down the middle so I could get it on the cable. It's very similar in size as the cable so only leaves a small gap and protects the cable.

Was thinking the same thing. This is a great way to let mice into your home.

I love reddit so much, but gosh can people be harsh :(

OP is Over-engineering

Tuck it around the door track?

Just move whatever crap you have and park car in the garage. Where it belongs.

Nice work, OP. I want one.

There’s literally an infinite number of reasons this happens. Some good reasons, some bad. But yeah people gotta work with what they got.

Why is the car out of the garage anyway? Is someone else's car in there and its 1 car only?

Holy shit thank you!! Buddy of mine has a 3D printer I bet he could print this out. I have one of those things for the garage door but it’s off Amazon and it moves around more freely. Yours looks like it secures the cable which is a little better.

Nice. Mice will love getting in your garage now.

The design is free to download in the original post. I could print it and ship it to you but at that point with cost to ship, its easier to just buy something like it on Amazon LOL

Awesome! This is for the mobile charger cable which is .5 inch thick. if you need the Tesla wall charger one let me know and I'll whip up the design for that too

Except you can see light under OP's door and that much of a gap is a problem.

Ha. I didn’t even know these were something you could buy. I’ll purchase from Amazon. Thanks, OP.

I trimmed a 1/2 inch in the corner of the gasket to provide path.

Hope you dont have a lot of mice where you live, they will love you

Our HOA has a restriction on mice and other critters. They're just not allowed in the neighborhood lol

Just watch out for rodents

It's stupid. Someone put effort into something that is stupid and is trying to convey it as a good idea

No it is not, been through it.

finally, an HOA I can support!

Spigen sells this on Amazon. And this doesn’t leave a large gap under your garage door Spigen DuraPro Cable Garage Door Pass Protector Designed for Tesla Mobile Charger and Tesla Gen 3 Wall Connector (Tesla Model 3/Y/X/S 2025/2024/2023/2022) https://a.co/d/0bHu5Qfx

I would adjust your garage up a smidge. I would also run the cable at the end where there is naturally a gap.

https://a.co/d/0aflOdLk If you don’t have a 3D printer. $10 will do the trick.

I guess if 3d printing is “hard”.. It may be stupid to you my friend but someone will search for something like this in 5 years and be happy OP posted this and included the free STL… you could also use this same print as a cable ramp, which can be useful for people with who don’t like tripping, or someone with a disability… Sometimes you gotta realize if it’s stupid to you, it’s probably not for you..

He’ll add nope ropes to the sign.

Why not just charge your car inside the garage? 🤔 You’ll get better efficiency doing it that way too.

For anyone curious about the state of my garage https://preview.redd.it/qqclmfh7loog1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=bdf5ab3715e999523a351e6ea6b3b14882ac7f83 Only 1 Tesla at a time :(

No. The REAL solution would be to clean out the garage and put the car inside where the charger is.

I'd redesign so that it's at the door edge, maybe knotch the woold infront of it and allow the garage door to fully closed. That said, I charge mine in my garage... I 3D printed a bunch of brackets to run a 10 gauge extension cord, to a post, where I 3D printed a bracket to hold my mobile charger. Yeah, lvl 1 charging is slow, but I'm planning on moving in < 1yr so, I'm not investing in a lvl 2 or NEMA 14-50 outlet linstall, when I'm getting by w/ lvl 1 w/o issue.

If critters want in, they are getting in, regardless of your garage door position.

I glued two 3/4” strips of scrap wood to an old license plate to get the same effect. It just felt like I needed to do more than just run the cable under the door. I like your printed solution.

What'd you name your Tesla?

This is going to destroy your garage door opening mechanism and the frame

Friend did something like this and thinks it's the reason they started having cockroach infestation. Not worth it.

pretty sure roaches and find there way inside regardless lol

Mine was deformed after a couple weeks.

They sell a rubber guard that fits snug on the cable for this exact purpose. The added benefit is that you just leave it attached when you hang up the cord.

This can definitely happen I closed my garage door on a chair once, bended badly. I would advise to listen to others and adjust the settings instead.

Yeah - my cars were always outside. My dad's car was the "inside" car when I was growing up. And even after I bought a house - we needed the space in the garage (by then my car was 10+ yrs old). But I literally started cleaning my garage out after I went on the test drive. I wouldn't let myself commit until I knew I can clean the space. It was chockful of stuff... took a while to adjust. Had to separate myself from some childhood stuff. But it was worth it. Now, my MX is 8yrs old, but is still a garage kept baby. Also - love the convenience of getting in without getting wet in the rain/snow, etc.

You can just adjust your garage door not to go as low. That’s better than putting an object, which will wear down and potentially damage your door over time.

A picture can be deceiving but I agree it looks like that gap is a bit more than I'd like. I've got a similar little channel thing from Amazon that I run my cord under, but it just presses up the rubber on the bottom of the door and there's no visible gap to the concrete when it's closed. OP you might want to bring the door just a bit lower so it seals the gap.

I use a 1 inch piece of pvc pipe cut in half length wise for similar non-3d printed cable cover. Yours is cooler though

I just use a rolled up car wash microfibers

Get a second charger and run it thru the wall as a "permanent" charger. Keep the second on in your trunk for trips

Nope, mobile is what I’m looking for. My buddy already said he’d print it lol.

NICE!

Same but I don’t have a 3d printer. Used a piece of wood.

Was gonna say this…

I just installed my charger on the outside. Easy access.

Your spring tensioner is gonna break sooner. Ask me how I know.

Doesn’t this just add a large gap now Under the entire garage door??

man I've thought about doing the same thing, thanks for this! printing it now!

Is your door really closing with enough force to crimp your cable? This seems worse than just raising the door level 1/4". Anyway, I also am always trying to solve weird problems with my 3d printer in rubegoldbergian ways, so kudos for the ingenuity.

SLPT: Set a wooden broom handle where the cord typically lays and slam the garage door down on it really hard so that it creates a dent. Then tape the cord in place. No more garage door crushing the cable and no indoor breeze! Garage door companies hate this one simple trick!

I mounted my charger outside the garage. Problem solved 🤪

lol… I designed and printed the same thing. I stuck mine to the floor with 3M double sided tape.

you'll still want this so you can charge your car when its inside the garage LOL!

They make a better version that doesn’t allow a gap like that. Spigen DuraPro Cable Garage Door... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BB3JR65W?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

I use an old pair of channel locks. 😂

Mine was under the weather strip too, but I have a storm drain in front of my house and roaches kept heading for my garage and squeezing through the gap. I cut a channel in the strip and placed sticky traps. Fingers crossed it will work out well.

And now all the ants and cockroaches will be entering your garage

You could have saved yourself the plastic and put the car inside the car garage?

Wanna hear something ironic? After finishing the garage nice, the only time I do park outside is when it's raining. Turns out there's a couple low spots on the far side of the garage and the polyurethane floor I put in is water tight so water pools under the benches back there if I pull the car in wet. It's detached though, so I'm getting wet either way anyway.

And pressure

nice solution, I just got a 3d printer a few months ago and it's great! blue team!

You must like having rats coming in

We used a pool noodle. Now there are lizards living in my garage.

I would have print a small piece of tube that you can put around the cable, with this relief you might get all kinds of critters and water in. You can get a full on stick on water barried and run the cable through it and call it, so it doesn't leak

You need to adjust your garage door opener or replace it. If you see signs of wear on your charging cable it's a serious hazard for children or pets.

You could have just adjusted how far your garage door opener closes the door if you don’t mind that gap. It would probably actually have less of a gap considering the rubber seal at the bottom.

This is so pointless... The solution is to simply leave the garage door open a quarter of an inch. People make 3d printers look so useless when printing pointless things like this

Align your door stop position properly.

I just park next to the charger in the garage. No door involvement that way.


Also, modern garage doors openers have a safety feature to prevent crushing a person. Too much resistance when closing, the sensor would send a signal to open back up. My garage door opener is 25 years old and it has capability. Shouldn’t be enough pressure to damage cable.

This isnt great for your garage door long term

This is the way. Angle grinder go brrt

I just put a out mate on top of it.

But the spiders. .

The convenience and extra speed of a 240V wall mount Charger can't be understated.

Relief channel is what I call my ex wife 

I mean... You can always stop the garage door before it closes all the way no? Or is that no longer possible?

https://preview.redd.it/h87tmndzpqog1.jpeg?width=4284&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6e87b955adf655ca0a775029c2d32afdb353f626

You found a different design?

Yeah it does look different, wasn’t sure if it was though. I sent him the link though so not sure.

Looks like it should work all the same. I like my design better though :P lol

Yeah I would’ve preferred it tbh. Maybe his printer wasn’t large enough for it? Not sure. I’d like a wider one to account for movement with the cord while the door is open.

No I have the same exact Bambu printer. I think he either designed his own or went with that one so he could print it on its side

Am I tweaking or is your cable skinny af

Hahah that is funny. I wonder if you can put those horse stall mats down in such a way to channel the water differently.

I get what OP means. If the cable is pinned against the floor it won’t be crushed, but it will rub against the concrete when you drive off (until it detaches from the car of course). Over time it might wear through.

Why were you “tired” of it? Also mice are gonna love your garage.

Here is my version: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1VKSHEvq7Pw61a6xHv09eBubsznTaKig_/view?usp=sharing Smaller gap so that vermin can't slip under the space in the garage.

Make sure there isn’t a gap! I bought the spigen (I think) spacer which is a little different design but left a gap that allowed tiny mice to squeeze into my garage. I had to exterminate like six mice over a couple days. Luckily I went outside and looked at the house and spotted the tiny amount of light coming through the hole and realized their point of entry.

I had installed new bottom seal on my garage door a few years ago and over period of time it shrunk a bit leaving like 2” gap at ends. This was a blessing in disguise. Now I use the gap to run my charger cable. 😍

You have a 2-car garage, but your house is so small that you have to keep toilet paper and diapers on the garage floor? The mice you’re letting in will love it for bedding, but the humans will be less thrilled.

Ok bro, you do what makes you happy then.

Dammit, I didn’t thin of that! Since Florida has no basements I will have a flying car before I am able to use a garage to park.

Double up the weather strip around it. Dust and rodent problem solved

I calibrated my garage door opener to stop closing right once the floor touches the gasket. The gasket flexes just enough not to damage or put significant pressure on my cable

I have ran over and parked on the charger cable multiple times. No issues. if anything wears out, it would be the plastic coating. i wouldn't worry about it. Your garage is no longer sealed. I would rather have a squished wire that slight seals around the wire vs it slightly ajar.

For those without a 3D printer, a piece of scrap 1x6 slid next to the cable stops the garage door safely while the cable is extended. Since a 1x6 is about 3/4 inch thick it keeps the cable from being squeezed. Any 1x board will do! When I am done I just kick the board into the corner of the garage and it is ready for the next charging.

No it wouldn’t have. We’re looking right at it. Your garage door has a rubber bottom seal and it would’ve been pressing it against a flat floor. It woulda been fine but the invention is cool for looks I guess

No he didn’t lol he’s just saying shit, we can look right at his cable and floor right there in the pics. The cable is fine and would have been fine lmao

Pointless

I wanted to do that but than worried about mice or rats

I ended up installing a outside 240v outlet