Charging connectors and extension cords for the road?

[ALAN BORER]

Can anyone tell me what electrical connectors and extension cords I will need when making a road trip where there's no charging stations or your at a friends house ? Thank You Lightning Friends !

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[Heliian]

It depends on your evse.

The lightning uses j1772 or ccs connectors.

 

[RickLightning]

Can anyone tell me what electrical connectors and extension cords I will need when making a road trip where there's no charging stations or your at a friends house ? Thank You Lightning Friends !

A 12 gauge extension cord, 50 feet long, will work fine with your Ford Mobile Charger. HOWEVER, you will only gain about 1.2kW per hour at 120v. You can do the math based on your battery size and see how much you'll gain per hour.

Your Ford Mobile Charger can also charge at 240v, but it requires a 14-50 outlet and a 50amp breaker. Most dryer circuits don't have that plug, and are only 30amp, and cannot be used with the Ford Mobile Charger.

You can buy a 24amp EVSE, with the right plug, for use at friend's homes if you deem it necessary, which it probably isn't. Check PlugShare for local charging options.

 

[ALAN BORER]

I guess I have to buy the mobil charger , I have the pro charger mounted on the outside of my garage , for piece of mind I just wanted the right extension cord and adapter for the 110 outlet for someone's house !

 

[HaroldCal]

I guess I have to buy the mobil charger , I have the pro charger mounted on the outside of my garage , for piece of mind I just wanted the right extension cord and adapter for the 110 outlet for someone's house !

If you don't already have a mobile EVSE, don't buy the Ford one. It's got some limitations that make it less than ideal for away-from-home charging.

Get one that supports manually selectable amperage up to 40. That will cover most scenarios (campgrounds, dryer receptacles, etc).

I ordered a j+ Booster 2 for this purpose, but there are others.

 

[RickLightning]

I totally agree with not buying the Ford Mobile (not Mobil) Charger.

You should do some research for mobile chargers that do both 120v and 240v, again understanding that 120v is near useless. 1.2kW will yield at most 2.2 miles or so, in winter that will turn into around 1.3 miles. Make sure that any charger that is 240v supports you adjusting the amperage, because IF your friend has dryer outlet, you'll need to a) have the right plug and b) need to ratchet down the amperage to 80% of what the breaker says (i.e. 30amp circuit = 24amp max continuous load).

You can also buy a Tesla Tap, which allows you to use Tesla DESTINATION chargers, i.e. level 2, NOT Tesla SuperChargers. Given that you cannot regulate the truck's demand, you'll want to get the Tesla Tap Lightning version, designed to handle up to 80amps continuous. This allows you to charge at some hotels, grocery stores, and possibly a friend's house with a Tesla, etc. - but again it's level 2 so you're going to need OVERNIGHT charging.

If you have an ICE vehicle, then research each trip and location via PlugShare to see what local charging is available. If there is absolutely NOTHING, then consider taking the ICE vehicle.

 

[shutterbug]

You can also buy a Tesla Tap, which allows you to use Tesla DESTINATION chargers, i.e. level 2, NOT Tesla SuperChargers. Given that you cannot regulate the truck's demand, you'll want to get the Tesla Tap Lightning version, designed to handle up to 80amps continuous. This allows you to charge at some hotels, grocery stores, and possibly a friend's house with a Tesla, etc. - but again it's level 2 so you're going to need OVERNIGHT charging.

TeslaTap Lightning charges an extra $20 for "Lightning" scribble. Any 80A TeslaTap would do.

 

[Heliian]

I researched many evse for my truck.

I went with the Ford mobile power cord because it's a listed device. Many cheap evse aren't properly rated, be aware.

I have a pro charger at home and keep the mobile cord in the truck. I've used it a few times on 110v to bump up my range cushion while traveling. I have a 14-50 outlet at the shop and am installing a 14-50 at another family house for visiting without having to fast charge.

I don't go to RV parks or campsites that have power anyways so I'm not going to bother with the whole adapters and such.

All 120v evse will be limited by the truck, so it doesn't matter if it's a 16a 120v unit, it will still only draw 1200watts. Also, the truck won't precondition on 120v, only 240v.

The 240v 32a side of it works great.

 

[Jernat]

You could get an RV Extension cord. Use their dryer outlet for 240V charging.

 

[Toby57]

You could get an RV Extension cord. Use their dryer outlet for 240V charging.

Come now. How to PO your friends and family.
Harlow, come here help me move your dryer so's I can charge my pickup.

 

[ALAN BORER]

If you don't already have a mobile EVSE, don't buy the Ford one. It's got some limitations that make it less than ideal for away-from-home charging.

Get one that supports manually selectable amperage up to 40. That will cover most scenarios (campgrounds, dryer receptacles, etc).

I ordered a j+ Booster 2 for this purpose, but there are others.

thank you

 

[Jernat]

Come now. How to PO your friends and family.
Harlow, come here help me move your dryer so's I can charge my pickup.

The poster asked about charging at a friend’s house. I would assume a discussion was had before hand. They may have a 240v outlet in garage. My last three houses had one. Plus I can access my dryer outlet without moving my dryer.

 

[RickLightning]

Do NOT use a dryer outlet with the Ford Mobile Charger.

Most dryer outlets are 30amp circuits. The Ford Mobile Charger needs a 40amp circuit (most are 14-50 50amp).

If you are going to use a 30amp dryer circuit, you need an EVSE that you can set to 24amps max.

 

[dcp9142]

In my days with the Tesla S, there were about 20 total supercharger locations in the US. We used to use all kinds of adapters besides the many ones that Tesla included in our mobile charger kit.

To use an EVSE with clothes dryer outlets, you need 10-30 to 14-50 adapter for the older outlets, for newer ones you need to do 14-30 to 14-50. Be sure your EVSE is rated for 24 amps or less, as that’s the most you can continuously draw on a 30 amp circuit. If you buy an EVSE that can plug into a 20 amp 110 outlet, you’ll be good for a lot of garages that have those plugs.

A 15 amp rated 50 foot extension cord let me charge in hotel parking garages back in the day. If you want to do extension of a 220 volt, you can use a Camco 15 foot 50 amp RV extension cord. They are about $100.

 

[Zprime29]

I'll second what others have said about using a dryer outlet. I considered this myself while waiting on SunRun to get their thumbs out of their...well long story short my dryer is on a 30amp breaker so I chose not to use it. Definitely double check the breaker and choose a mobile charge that can use it safely (80% of breaker rating).

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