New Hack for EV home charging - Lightning Mike

Why am I using two portable chargers? My original Ford portable charger broke so I had to buy a new portable charger. Now I am using both. I connect one charger to 110v and the other charger to he 240v outlet.
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[@paulrybarczyk5013]

I got sick of fighting with my '23 Ford Mobile Power Cord (black handle) ... the colder it gets, the more it faults, and this is a common failure. So now I just use my extra Tesla Mobile Charger. The Tesla always work, costs a lot less ($275), supports more wall plug types, and already has NACS which is the future. So for now, I just use my adapter to plug it into the Ford. 🙂

[@F150LightningMike]

That’s a good suggestion. I might get the Tesla one if this one goes out too. The first one lasted just over 2 years though.

[@Cowboy60Cowgirl62]

Hi Mike. I own a 2023 Lariat Lightning I went with the Chargepoint Home Flex 48 amp. I just upgraded my Panel from 100 amps to 150 Amps, so the Chargepoint is getting the full 48 amps and outputting 11.36kw an hour, I bought the Hardwired version, it's working great.

[@F150LightningMike]

That’s great to hear. How much did the charge point one cost?

[@OGParzoval]

If the circuit breaker is 40 amps you need to derate the charger to 32 amps 40*.8 because you should only use 80% of the rated load. In the springs folks J2D Electric has been good on pricing. I had a 100A sub panel with a 50A and 40A circuit to a Tesla and Chargepoint charger. I leave the ford travel charger in the truck. That setup cost me less than 2 grand not including the chargers. I could go up to 60A on the Chargepoint, but 50A is doing just fine. Just remember the ABC's esp when it's cold. Always be charging. At home it'll keep the battery warm at night and you'll have all your power and usually even when it was super cold that warm battery was still plenty warm when I left work later on.

[@F150LightningMike]

Great idea. I have a good electrician, but I’ll check out J2D electric. Always like getting competitive bids.

[@JimBronson]

The Ford Mobile Charger is only 32A max, he is fine with the 40A breaker.

[@williampieper2980]

Tesla mobile connector is $275 and has both plugs. Lectron has adaptor for about $125. I have Ford and Tesla versions (Model Y and Mach E and Lightning) and use both. Ford has faulted a few time, Tesla has not. I just reset breaker on ford and usually works for months. I would just buy Tesla and an adaptor for $400.

[@F150LightningMike]

Yeah that’s a good idea. Someone else suggested that Tesla option too, which would be a good idea if it happens again.

[@Scott-iw8yr]

Honestly if you leave you truck in the garage idk why you would need to be plugged in all the time. Plus the 120 is much less efficient but to each their own. Also cord management for your chargers. Find a buddy that has a 3d printer to make a charger wall mount.

[@F150LightningMike]

lol … yeah I need to get a cord wall mount for sure. Even though it’s in the garage I have noticed that the battery seems to be more efficient when it’s cold after it was plugged in vs just sitting there. I’m still testing that though.

[@JG-er5us]

Hi Mike. Question: is your extended range battery giving you enough milage to make long trips? Do you have to charge more often in winter? I have the standard range and I'm thinking of getting the extended range truck.

[@F150LightningMike]

The extended range is the one I recommend for sure. Yes that’s the one I have. I have done several range test videos including one when I got 353 miles in the summer. I’m working on a 100-0 percent winter test video right now doing the same route, and I can tell you it is mostly about temperature. The colder it is the more range you lose. When it was below zero I lost about 30%. After my test though However I did notice a .2 mi/kwh increase doing the same route with the same conditions. The only difference is that I had it charging. So the battery seems to perform better when it is charging all night. Until that video gets done though this video may give you the best answer for long trips: Snowstorms & Roadblocks - Ford Lightning - 2,700 mile - Tesla Supercharger Road Trip - Part 4 kzbin.info/www/bejne/f4umkKqLf5itfcU

[@F150LightningMike]

I also like to think about it this way. The bigger battery is better because of the percentage that you actually use, which is only about 80% since you charge max of 90%(unless you’re at a hotel you can go to 100% overnight) then you only let it go to 10%. The truck will average about 1.9-2.4 miles/kwh on a trip depending on conditions and speed. You will need to get a little over 2.4 to make the advertised 320 miles on a charge. That being said I usually plan on 2.0-2.1 driving 70mph, which means that I’m getting 275.1 max range. You then have to consider that you are only charging up to 80-90% & only letting it go down to 10%. So you are going to have 80% or 220 max miles between stops in the summer (I did go about 250 a couple of times). In the winter depending on temperatures with a 25% hit on range you’ll expect about 165 between stops.

[@goukizx2]

One other point is if you have a level 2 charger and live in cold weather like Mike and me you can have the truck warm up the battery with wall electricity by setting the departure time on the truck. This will help with the range in the cold. Level 1 does help try to keep the battery warm(not as good as level 2)but I park my truck outside.

[@F150LightningMike]

Also, if you park yours outside I would probably only use the 240v Level 2 charger.

[@goukizx2]

@@F150LightningMike my Ford charge station pro will be finally installed tomorrow. I have had to DC fast charge for the last month to about 80% then come home and use the level 1 charger to get to 90%. It would add about 9-15 kWh a night so I didn’t have to fast charge as often.

[@olemissjim]

It’s 120v or 240v not 110/240 There used to be 110/220 but that’s out of spec, in NA it’s 120v/240v residential or 120v/208v on 3 phase (commercial and condos)

[@F150LightningMike]

You are correct. Since 1984 the 120v has been standard, but sometimes interchange them when I’m talking. Thank you.

[@leofarbman3148]

hi mike! i am constantly getting a really wide range on my "Accessories" in my trip reports from like 3% to 12%... do you know whats causing that or advise to keep that down?

[@F150LightningMike]

Mine is usually around 3-5%. How is your range overall? You could try turning off pro power onboard, but I’m not sure that will help.

[@koryleach9660]

My question is why you would buy the Ford mobile charger again? There are so many other better ones on the market like the Grizzl-e Minnie.

[@F150LightningMike]

You are not the only one to ask. I mainly did it because I heard that they changed manufacturers and the build is supposed to be better. But if this one goes out, I will be looking at a different brand, especially since future models of Fords are gonna have the NACS connection.

[@NewtTech]

Keep in mind 240v is generally more efficient than 120v due to loss.

[@F150LightningMike]

Agreed. I just like having the option to still keep my battery warm when the battery is at a higher percentage.

[@seamoras77]

@@F150LightningMike There is absolutely no benefit in doing this. The "charger' is just a set of contacts that provide AC power at either 120v or 240v to the vehicles on board charger. This isn't your old NiCad remote control car back when you were a kid where you will "trickle" charge overnight to keep the battery up and ready to go. Set a charge limit, set a charge amperage, plug in and let it be. Your truck will be using juice to stay awake, preheat, check for updates, whatever you need and when your SOC gets below your setpoint, your OBC will start charging the battery again. your HV battery will also periodically charge your LV 12v battery so there is drain there as well. Also, because you are driving a lightning where the heat is resistive and not a heat pump like newer models, when you preheat your truck on a cold day, the 120v @ 12 amps will not be able to provide enough power to preheat the cabin and battery. Cabin heat + battery heat is well over 6000 watts while on 120v you are limited to 1440 watts. Keep it on the 240 outlet, throw your spare 120v/240v with adapters in your frunk when you get somewhere that has just an outlet (campground, VRBO, workplace, etc...).

[@F150LightningMike]

Great idea on just using the 240v because of the cabin preconditioning. I’m actually testing it right now and may do a video comparison about it if the 120v even helps. Really it’s just that I didn’t want to through it out since it no longer works on the 240v outlet. I don’t trust it to take with me anywhere, so I can’t really follow that suggestion. I would rather take the new one camping and such since they have 240v on some sites.

[@NewtTech]

@@F150LightningMike might be under warranty still from Ford

[@F150LightningMike]

I thought that as well, but they said no :-(

[@dalececil7527]

Does your utility company have time of use pricing? What is your kWh rate?

[@F150LightningMike]

Yes supposedly, but I don’t see it on my bill. They just say “average rate”. Either way I looked it up and as long as I don’t charge it during the Peak times of 4-8pm Monday - Friday then it’s only .07/kwh. Peak time is .26/kwh. So I set the charge time on the truck to not charge during 4-8pm on weekdays.

[@Ryan-xw4qx]

It is kind of science actually…

[@F150LightningMike]

Yep :-)

[@henleygreen7599]

If you charge your ev like this you will be charged the regular rate. If he had the Pro charger he could get off peak charging rates.

[@F150LightningMike]

I am able to set the charge time on my truck to not charge during peak hours of 4 to 8 PM weekdays. So that works pretty well.

[@puertoricanhammer6987]

I just got my tesla adapter from ford

[@timnevitt2993]

me too got it today

[@timnevitt2993]

only five months late

[@MikeKlimek-jj6qt]

@@timnevitt2993still waiting for mine. Been since may

[@F150LightningMike]

@puertoricanhammer6987 I’m happy you finally got yours. Let me know how it works for you.

[@F150LightningMike]

@timnevitt2993 I’m so happy you finally got yours too. Yeah it felt like mine took forever too, but I’m glad I got to try it out. Let me know how well yours works for you too.

[@schmidtpost]

Why even buy another mobile charger? You said you had a FCSP new in box. You have what looks like a subpanel right next to your existing 240v nema 14-50 outlet... just hardware that FCSP instead of limiting yourself to 32a on that mobile charger. Secondly, using 110v is literally a last resort, it's less efficient than 240v even at 20a.. plus you cant even precondition your battery on 110v. I dont understand the logic here.

[@F150LightningMike]

Good question. Yes I have it sitting in a box and I thought the same thing you did. The price the electrician gave me was $1,000, so I will probably pay to get it set up at some point, but I needed a good portable charger for trips anyways so I decided to replace the old one. As far as the 110v I’m not saying it’s the best idea, but it works pretty well for me. It helped me the other day when I was above 70 percent and leaving plugged in overnight charged it up to 80%. Because it was so cold and charging the whole night the battery was happy and I got better range than just leaving it there starting from cold. .2 mi/kwh better range actually.

[@NSFWHarold]

It's worth noting that if you got the EVSE as part of the truck purchase, that it is also covered by the same warranty as the truck.

[@F150LightningMike]

Thanks for the suggestion. They told me the same thing at the dealership, but because my truck is past the 36k mileage the portable charger is out of warranty too :-(

[@NSFWHarold]

@@F150LightningMike did you get the extended warranty? I just recently got it, and it extends the warranty on the charger as well.

[@F150LightningMike]

I found out about the Ford extended warranty after the fact. It seems like the best option. I got the one offered through the dealer when I bought the truck, which is pretty much worthless. :-(

[@F150LightningMike]

I should do a video about that though.

[@timnevitt2993]

ur truck can only handle 48 amps so a 80 amp charger is worthless

[@F150LightningMike]

I could be wrong, but since I have the ER battery it should be able to take the 80A. From what I’ve read I think the SR batteries can only handle the 48A. I probably should’ve clarified that in the video, but thank you for mentioning it.

[@timnevitt2993]

@@F150LightningMike i just looked it up 22 23 er 80amps sr 48 amps the 24 sr and er 48 amps

[@F150LightningMike]

That stinks for the 24s. I didn’t know that. I’m glad I have a 23 then. I heard there were some random differences, that is definitely one. I wonder why they limited it?

[@timnevitt2993]

why did u not a different brand

[@F150LightningMike]

I thought about it. But decided to try the Ford one again since I that they changed manufacturers on the chargers that’s why they look different. If it happens again I’m switching to a different version.

[@NSFWHarold]

Resistive heating is way more efficient at higher voltage.

[@beschneider1]

I agree, I tried to heat up my battery using a 110 v charger. It could not keep up with the cold up here in the Northeast

[@beschneider1]

I use a #EVIQO. Super happy with it.

[@F150LightningMike]

Great idea. I guess mine works ok because I park in a heated garage that I keep at about 40°F