HELP! Home Charging - 50amp breaker with NEMA 14-50 receptacle the way to go?

[Fordskeptic]

What shutterbug wrote.

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[jefro]

We don't know yet how efficient the motor(s) is/are.

On my Bolt EV I drive about 70 miles a day average or about 20K a year. I can replace that amount on 120V 12 amps every night. Might be able to replace it on 8 amps as weekends I use it less.

So, do you "need" 240VAC in any amount? Maybe. I have a time of use plan that allows me to use 40amp charger @ 32 amps to return 70 miles in about 2 1/2 hours for almost nothing. Pretty sure there is a greater loss in the onboard charger on 120VAC. The 240VAC is consistently using less power overall.

So, almost all the current charge rates published for various cars could be used to get you a close guess as to how much you need.

People seem to think some wild number of watts that the average user may not need.

You still have options of DC charging and they are installing them every day. Tesla may open theirs so even more options.

 

[rdr854]

My wife drives a Volvo XC60 Recharge (about 20 miles pure EV) and I plan to get the Lightning, obviously. I currently do NOT have a 240v outlet in my garage but want one for both cars. I'm having an electrician install a 240v NEMA 14-50 receptacle on its own dedicated 50amp breaker later this week so that I can plug in the include Ford 32Amp home charger. I can also use this 240v receptacle for the Volvo, which should take about an hour to get those 20 miles...

I know the Ford 32amp home charger is slow, but after having the Volvo now for a while, it's really no big deal to keep a car plugged in overnight. And since the Volvo won't take long, and I only drive about 30 miles a day, I shouldn't really need to be plugged in overnight, every night. So, I should be close to a full battery every day on a couple of hours of charge except for when I take a longer trip.

Is the 50amp breaker with NEMA 14-50 receptacle the way I need to go?

Does anyone with Mach-E experience / 32Amp home charger experience think this is sufficient?

Any advice from anyone is greatly appreciated!

Go Volvo!! Too bad there is not a V90 Recharge for MY2022.

 

[RonTCat]

Thanks for the reply!

1) I'm planning on the Standard Range. I've been working from home for the past 3+ years, and really only drive to my son's school, to the gym, and to Menards all within 7 miles from home. We typically take the Volvo on weekends. I maybe drive 300 miles every two weeks.

2)Yes, as with the Volvo charger currently, I have a hanger near the receptacle so it's not just dangling there. I do plug / un-plug it, but only because that receptacle is on the same breaker as my home water filtration system and everything else in the garage and one bathroom. Leaving everything plugged in and running has resulted in the breaker tripping and one fried GFCI so far... If The 14-50 will be on its own breaker, nothing else on it. If I keep it plugged in 24/7, will it continually draw power ($$)? Should I shut off the breaker when not in use?

3)Yes, the Lightning won't fit in my garage, but will be right outside. The 240v receptacle is going right next to the garage door, about 10 feet from where the Lightning's front fender will be. That 240V will also be in range of the Volvo so I can switch them around...


Bonus) You said the 14-50 is not rated for being outside, and it won't, but will it be ok that the Lightning is outside and that plug will be out there in the elements? I assume the plug area on the Lightning is similar to the Volvo, which appears to have a water-tight seal?? Am I right about that?

You can buy a 14-50 outlet that handles a high volume of plug/unplugs. A commercial grade outlet like one from Hubbell will work fine. These are not the $10 ones you find on Amazon... they would be closer to $50.

Charging in the rain should not be an issue... think RVs plugged in at a vacation spot, or any current electric vehicle at a commercial charging station during a rainstorm. As noted by others, just install a box/receptacle that is rated for outdoor use.

I unplug my Ford Mobile charger between uses, and never shut off my breaker.

 

[jefro]

I think every Lightning has power out. One could run some items usually just as if it were a generator.

The amount of power you need will be dependent on time at home and the amount of power you use each day on average. If this truck gets about 80 MPGe then you can start to get some number based on what drive. I have to warn everyone that Rivian is only getting 70 MPGe so the Ford Ev could show up at 55-70MPGe. 50 MPGe may be a make or break number.

" EVSE pulls a minimal amount of power when not plugged into a vehicle, on the order of a few cents worth per month "
EnergyStar has a number of listings for EVSE's. They all have some phantom current from 2W to 10W or so. Unless you put the EVSE behind a switch that will show up on bill each month.

One of the complaints on the Tesla was the amount of power it used to keep computers running. Tesla stated that owners wanted to get in and go so they had to keep the computers running. The car or truck will use some amount of power just sitting there.

 

[viennaxmas]

My suggestions are a bit different -
get a charging station and an adapter for the Volvo. Have everything hardwired, this eliminates the issues of changing charge cables. There are many non-Ford charge stations that are a lot cheaper than what Ford offers.

Second suggestion: Look for a charge station that can load balance on the same circuit.

Wallbox has an intelligent charger where you can connect two charge stations to one circuit and they distribute the load. This way you can plug in both cars and forget about it.

There was one thread here that said Wallbox has issues with charging the F150 but I am sure they will solve this soon.

 

[eRock77]

My NEMA 14-50 install with 50A breaker has worked fantastic for me. It's just inside the garage, and I can run the cord out the door or park inside.

I went with a 40A adjustable amperage EV charger from "Bokman". It's a chop suey amazon deal, $300, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CD1RM1NH?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details&th=1
It will take 220V or 120V and comes with the 120V dongle. It's $79 less than the Ford, can be adjusted to run on lower amp output 220V or 120V circuits, it displays detailed charging data, and it runs up to 40A. I just looked at the current loss, it's just under 7% comparing the charger display with FP. I'm not sure if that is normal. My setup charges at 8kw, full 100% recharge on my SR in 12 hours. Just some ideas on what worked for me.

 

[Jseis]

It’s what I do with a Chargepoint Home Flex after the Mach E charger went dead after 40K miles. Now the ER LT charges on the 240V w/50 amp breaker w/Home Flex, and the Mach E is idling along on 120V because the S.O. puts maybe 50 miles a week on it. Both charge to 80% with the LT 8 pm to 6 am. Mach E charges to 80% when plugged in.

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