Ford Mobile Charger at Campsite 30amp

[JonS]

Hi all,
I’m currently camping for the first time with my F150 Lightning. I booked a campsite with power as I thought I’d test everything out and top the truck off before leaving.

Here’s my challenge. I purchased a Kohler 50 Amp to 30 RV Adapter (link below) from Amazon to be ready for the trip. When I try and use the adapter on a known working 30 amp socket at the camp site it doesn’t power up. Switching the Ford Mobile Charger attachment for the 15amp connector it powers up and charges my truck.

So the Ford Mobile Charger works, there’s power to all of the sockets at the campsite. At this point I think the adapter is defective but am I missing anything? Has anyone tried this kind of setup? Does the Ford Mobile charger get upset plugged into a 30amp socket with the 50amp accessory?

Kohree 50 Amp to 30 Amp RV Adapter 18 Inch, 50M/30F Heavy Duty RV Dogbone Electrical Power Adapter Plug with Grip Handle, 125V/3750W https://a.co/d/h2Hlyr4

Thanks
Jon

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[Pioneer74]

Is the 50 amps single phase?

 

[JonS]

Is the 50 amps single phase?

It’s 30amp 240v supply as far as I can tell.

Although it looks like it’s from the dark ages it does work - our neighbour is running their caravan off this successfully.

 

[Maquis]

The link is is for a 50P to 30R which won’t plug into that receptacle shown. 30A RV receptacles are 120V in the US - I‘d think Canada would be the same.

 

[Solar_EE]

It’s 30amp 240v supply as far as I can tell.

Although it looks like it’s from the dark ages it does work - our neighbour is running their caravan off this successfully.

You should never try to pull 50 amps from a 30amp socket! And especially this corroded socket!
To charge from a 30amp outlet you should buy the SplitVolt (or similar) 24 amp charger. I use that and it works nicely. Charges at about 5.5 kW so much faster than the 1.4kW you get with the 112A @ 120V charger.

 

[Maquis]

You should never try to pull 50 amps from a 30amp socket! And especially this corroded socket!
To charge from a 30amp outlet you should buy the SplitVolt (or similar) 24 amp charger. I use that and it works nicely. Charges at about 5.5 kW so much faster than the 1.4kW you get with the 112A @ 120V charger.

30A RV receptacles are 120V, not 240.

 

[Solar_EE]

30A RV receptacles are 120V, not 240.

Well that would certainly explain why his 50A, 240V rated Ford Mobile charger would not work at all! So really it saved him from melting that corroded old socket.

 

[GarageMahal]

Well that would certainly explain why his 50A, 240V rated Ford Mobile charger would not work at all! So really it saved him from melting that corroded old socket.

Ford mobile charger only draws 30 amps at 240 and 12 amps at 120.

 

[Solar_EE]

Yes, But the Ford Mobile charger has the 50 amp NEMA 14-50 plug. Continuous use is 80% of the rated current- Ford could have made a mobile charger with a NEMA 14-30 adapter that drew 24 amps and it would have been more useful. I use my Splitvolt 24A @ 240V charger when traveling- it is much easier to find a 30 amp dryer plug than a NEMA 14-50. And my SR truck charges fully overnight on the 24 amp charger. If the Ford Mobile charger was plugged into a 120V outlet while it was expecting 240V then it should not work and that's what the original poster reported.

 

[p52Ranch]

The Ford mobile charger does have a NEMA 14-50 plug but it only draws 30 amps maximum. So you don’t need to worry about it pulling 80% of the 50 amp rating.

It is puzzling to me why anyone would purchase a TT-30P to 14-50R adaptor. But they do sell them. It’s a Pretty pointless adaptor.

I don’t know if such an adaptor only puts 120 volts to one Leg on the 14-50 receptacle. Or if it provides the same 120 volts to both legs. Either way, you’re only getting 120 volts. The Mobile charger doesn’t recognize whatever electricity it is getting from such a setup so it won’t work. The mobile charger doesn’t utilize the neutral on a 14-50 plug. So if the aforementioned adapter provides the same 120 volts to both legs, there is no voltage potential to power the adaptor.

The Ford mobile charger will only draw 11 amps maximum from any 120 volt supply regardless if it comes from a 15, 20 or 30 amp source.

 

[Joneii]

The TT-30 to 14-50 adapters made for RVs will not work with most EVSE. They make adapters specifically for EVs and these work. I have used one for with the Ford and Tesla mobile chargers.

 

[Amps]

Does the Ford Mobile charger get upset plugged into a 30amp socket with the 50amp accessory?

Kohree 50 Amp to 30 Amp RV Adapter 18 Inch, 50M/30F Heavy Duty RV Dogbone Electrical Power Adapter Plug with Grip Handle, 125V/3750W https://a.co/d/h2Hlyr4

That is a 14-50P to TT-30R adapter. Pretty much useless for what you want to do.

If you really, really, really want to use that receptacle (in the absence of a working regular 120V receptacle), you would need a TT-30P to 6-15R adapter Then, use the 120V dongle that comes with the Ford Mobile. It will be very slow, with 12 Amp/1440 Watt charging, if you're going to be there for days. Also, a can of contact cleaner is a handy thing to have when you try something as nasty as that receptacle.

 

[astricklin]

It is puzzling to me why anyone would purchase a TT-30P to 14-50R adaptor. But they do sell them. It’s a Pretty pointless adaptor.

It's not pointless for someone who has a 50amp RV and camps somewhere with only 30 amp plugs. It will allow them to get power in their RV, and usually one out of two AC units, or the heat if needed.

 

[Heliian]

As everyone says, it's probably a 120v 30a RV outlet.

However, the Ford Mobil power cord draws 32a continuous at 240v and requires a minimum circuit of 40amps.

 

[vandy1981]

That is a 120v, 30 amp TT-30 plug. You need an EV specific TT-30 to 14-50 adapter to use it with the Ford mobile EVSE or it will not work. You're better off just using a TT-30 to 5-15 adapter because the Ford EVSE can only draw 12amps at 120V, whether it's provided through the 5-15 pigtail or 14-50 pigtail. Some EVSEs will allow higher amperage draw at 120V, but it's not common.

If you're interested in knowing why you need an EV-specific adapter (I'm not an electrician so take it with a grain of salt):

An RV-specific TT-30p to 14-50r adapter connects the TT-30 hot line to both of the 14-50 hot blades and the TT-30 neutral to the 14-50 neutral blade.

An EV-specific TT-30p to 14-50r adapter connects the TT-30 hot line to one of the two 14-50 hot blades and the TT-30 neutral to the other hot blade.

The EVSE does not use the neutral on the 14-50 plug--it only uses the ground and the two hot blades. The EVSE is not seeing any potential voltage if you're using an RV-specific adapter because the hot blades are jumped together.

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