Charging Lightning while powering an RV trailer

[vandy1981]

Won’t the range when towing be terrible? Even towing a 5k pound trailer, I would expect max range of 150k miles. Am I missing something?

150 miles is more than enough for my towing needs. This is not a long-haul towing vehicle unless you want to do it for "EV lifestyle reasons."

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[Easycamper]

In 25 years of RVing I’ve done one of those 400-mile-per-day epic road trips exactly once. We ended up with cranky kids and stressed parents. 150 miles per day is enough for 95% of my trips.

To install a fifth wheel hitch, the rails go ABOVE the bed and the brackets are bolted or (in some cases) welded onto the outside of the boxed frame rails. There is no need to remove the motor or battery or anything like that.

 

[LightningLover]

With a 10,000 pound towing capacity, one of the big attractions of the F150L is being able to tow a travel trailer or a 5th wheel trailer. Also, with a power output of 9.6 kW and a battery capacity of 131 kWh, the F150L can easily power most RV trailers overnight. But the question begs, can you charge the F150L at the same time the F150L is powering an RV?

At first glance this may seem like a pretty trivial question but I consider it to be rather important. If people do any amount of RVing with the F150L, they are probably going to be spending a considerable amount of time at RV camps. A lot of RV campsites have a 50 amp NEMA 14-50 outlets that can charge the F150L or power the RV trailer but not both at the same time.

People could rent two 50 amp campsites, one for powering the RV and one for charging the F150L, but is it possible to run both off of a single NEMA 14-50? People might think that they would not be able to charge the F150L if the RV was drawing power through the F150L power outlet but RV HVAC units cycle and wouldn't be operating more than half the time. I guess we will just have to wait until people start RVing with the F150L to find out if the F150L will provide power at the same time that it is charging.

I have had it confirmed by multiple Ford sources that any and all of the 110v/220v outlets are live while charging or while driving. They have also confirmed this means you can run a trailer off the outlets while charging.

I plan to do exactly that -- plug in the truck to charge and run the trailer off the truck in many single-feed campsites. If the 220 and 100v are on separate feeds, that is even better.

 

[hturnerfamily]

I already have several trips to campgrounds and travel plans, and will typically plug in the TRUCK to charge at the campground pedestal, and power the CAMPER from the truck. Now, if the campground is 30amp 120v power, I'll use my 30amp-50amp adapter for 'slow' 120v charging while I'm there. If the campground pedestal has 50amp 240 power, even better, allowing for faster charging, especially if only there for a single overnight, and the camper can plug into the 30amp outlet if you don't want to use the truck's outlet...
Most campground pedestals will also have the extra 20amp 120v 'household' GFCI outlet set, as well. You can make use of that outlet to aid in any additional needs you might have, using an extension cord.
We've traveled the U.S., even Alaska, and Canada extensively over the years in our former 50amp 240v motorhome, so getting to know all the power 'options' comes with experience along the way -
Needing to charge the truck while also providing power to the camper is a similar need.

 

[Zacster]

Has anyone had a chance to actually try charging truck and powering a travel trailer off 240v 30amp rear plug? So let's say campsite has one 30amp plug. Has anyone plugged Lightning in and then ran the camper off the rear pro power onboard with an adapter to drop one hot as most travel trailers are 120v 30amp?

 

[wighty]

Has anyone had a chance to actually try charging truck and powering a travel trailer off 240v 30amp rear plug? So let's say campsite has one 30amp plug. Has anyone plugged Lightning in and then ran the camper off the rear pro power onboard with an adapter to drop one hot as most travel trailers are 120v 30amp?

I'm planning on doing this next weekend. I'm not doing the towing though There are a few L2 chargers like 10 minutes away from the campground if it doesn't work, but that would be a last resort issue as I think we have the range to make it back home anyway. Bought an EV specific TT-30 to 14-50 adapter and a variable amp portable EVSE (splurged on the J+ booster2, though not sure I'm going to keep it as other options are cheaper) to run it at 24 amps.

 

[Zacster]

Yes. You can plug in the Lightning and run atleast a 30amp RV off the bed with a converter plug from the TT30 to the standard generator 30 amp plug.

I have seen videos of Hybrid F150 powering a trailer but I have not seen a Lightning plugged into shore power and then running 30amp trailer at the same time. I don't see why not just wanted to make sure someone has actually done it. Thank you!

 

[rolker]

Has anyone had a chance to actually try charging truck and powering a travel trailer off 240v 30amp rear plug? So let's say campsite has one 30amp plug. Has anyone plugged Lightning in and then ran the camper off the rear pro power onboard with an adapter to drop one hot as most travel trailers are 120v 30amp?

Yes I tested this at home while charging off of my 14-50 outlet and powering the camper from the bed using a 30 amp adapter. I ran the camper's AC for a while without a problem.

 

[Zacster]

Yes I tested this at home while charging off of my 14-50 outlet and powering the camper from the bed using a 30 amp adapter. I ran the camper's AC for a while without a problem.

That is great. Thank you for confirming what has seemed to be the case just wanted actual confirmation.

 

[Pswag115]

This will absolutly work. I have daisy chained my home charging in the past, Lightning plugged into the level 2 charger and the Mach E plugged into the bed Pro Power outlet. Once the E is charged the Lightning charges. Will do the same on the next camping trip. I use a Wallbox Pulse that I can limit from 16a to 40a with a combination of adapters for the camping charger, plan on 16-20a @220v to limit loads on the campground hookups with my 30a camper.

Waiting to be able to use Pro Power with truck off.
my 2c

 

[hturnerfamily]

yes, I've done this many times: powering the 30amp 120v camper with the LIGHTNING, WHILE simultaneously charging the LIGHTNING from the campground 50amp 240v outlet..

now, ultimately, it matters NOT whether you use the twist-lock 240v 30amp bed outlet with an adapter to your 120v camper, or you simply use one of the regular household outlets in the bed - they are ALSO 30amp max...

yes, they are. I've tested the output of the 'regular' outlets, and since they come from the SAME inverter as the 30amp 240v outlet, they are ALSO maxed out at 30amps.

so, in the end, you don't NEED to make use of the 240v outlet to power a 30amp camper, but you CAN have that option if you have a 50amp camper, since you will have the 240v outlet for THAT option...

to sum up:
The Truck DOESN'T CARE whether you are charging it, and also using it's ProPower outlets - it simply does what it does. Use the regular outlets, use the 240v outlet, take your pick.

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