Ruby vs Fern (A Winter Storm Tale of Survival w/ Pro Power Onboard)

[RickLightning]

Looks like at the rate you are using power you could get by charging the truck with a small inverter generator on the 120 circuit mobile charger and be good. That is if the truck will charge at the same time as it’s using pro power onboard.

You want him to charge the truck with the truck?

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[Mal106]

No, obviously not. An inverter generator. Makes me want to try my 1500w generator. Realizing there will be losses DC to AC in the generator and AC to DC to charge the truck finally DC to AC to the house. I did charge my PHEV with the generator and it worked fine. I even calculated it got about 30 mpg.

 

[02Reaper]

You want him to charge the truck with the truck?

Nawl man. lol. Charge the truck with a smaller gasoline/propane/lpg generator with a 120 outlet while using the trucks ppob through the 30 amp bed outlet.

 

[chl]

The thing about my situation is a different the issue you have described.

The mobile EVSE would Fault immediately upon being plugged into the EV6 without being hooked to the truck.

The first time it happened it was plugged into to the charge port of the Lightning and when I energized the V2L on the EV6 it immediately tripped and that shutdown the PPOB.

So I disconnected it from the Lightning and tried to energize it again and again it immediately tripped.

I will put it back on the wall and reattach it to the home electrical and see if acts correctly again.

Oh. Interesting...

Are you referring to the Ford Mobile Power Cord?
There have been a lot of issues with those from the forum posts and on-line reviews.

So your V2L on the EV6 is it 240V or 120V?

These are the wiring of the two dongles that come with the FMPC:

If the Lightning PPOB or the EV6 are connected to the house panel when you try the V2L and the FMPC, I can imagine that it could set up a ground loop and trip the GFCI's.

So the solution may be to not have the EV6 connected to the house panel when using its V2L - to - FMPC - to - Lightning - to - PPOB - to - transfer switch?

 

[The Weatherman]

Oh. Interesting...

Are you referring to the Ford Mobile Power Cord?
There have been a lot of issues with those from the forum posts and on-line reviews.

So your V2L on the EV6 is it 240V or 120V?

These are the wiring of the two dongles that come with the FMPC:

If the Lightning PPOB or the EV6 are connected to the house panel when you try the V2L and the FMPC, I can imagine that it could set up a ground loop and trip the GFCI's.

So the solution may be to not have the EV6 connected to the house panel when using its V2L - to - FMPC - to - Lightning - to - PPOB - to - transfer switch?

It is only 120v and it was not connected to the house/charger.

I reviewed the components invoked this morning and I noticed the extension cord I had grabbed so it would reach the Lightning charge port was missing the ground pin on the male end. I plan on trying it again with a different extension cord when it warms up.

After finding that, I’m sure it was the issue.

I’ll see.

 

[chl]

It is only 120v and it was not connected to the house/charger.

I reviewed the components invoked this morning and I noticed the extension cord I had grabbed so it would reach the Lightning charge port was missing the ground pin on the male end. I plan on trying it again with a different extension cord when it warms up.

After finding that, I’m sure it was the issue.

I’ll see.

A missing ground connection...hmmm, not a 'traditional' ground fault, but could be what the system calls it...

The people who program such things are not apparently electrical engineers, lol.

 

[Tired Lizard]

I was watching a TV show yesterday where they plugged in the V2L Connector to the charge port on an Hyundai Ionic 5 and that caught my attention.
Looks like EV5/EV6 have the inside outlet and could also use the outdoor connector.
5 Days of Emergency Backup Power Using V2L Adapter

 

[jwrezz]

Final Entry (We hope.)
——————
Power just came back on 2:28pm cst.
Ruby had power to spare after 3 1/2 days of running things.

So based on my experience (for our use case) we could easily get 4-4 1/2 days of comfort on the PPOB with enough to left over to get the nearest DCFC if additional days were required.

Bottom line all is good and we are ready for the next big one.

————————————————————

That might sound a little too dramatic, but this is hopefully a once in a lifetime experience.

—————————————————————-

I am writing from Southern Kentucky on January 28th, 2026. We are currently in our fourth day without power following Winter Storm Fern, one of the worst snow and ice storms in the U.S. in over two decades.

Fortunately, we had ample warning and were well-prepared. I had both my F-150 Lightning and my wife’s Kia EV6 fully charged. I also managed to install an interlink and generator plug on the house just as the snow began to accumulate. When the power failed at 11:45 a.m. on January 25th, I successfully switched the house over to the Lightning.

To conserve energy, we have closed off unused upstairs areas and shut down the electric water heater. Since our furnace and range are gas-powered, they require very little electricity to operate, allowing our other appliances to function normally.

As of this morning, the truck is at a 50% state of charge. This should last until tomorrow or Friday. At that point, I will either drive 20 miles to a DC fast charger or use a borrowed generator to recharge. I am leaning toward the fast charger given how long it would take to recharge using the mobile EVSE.

I will provide further updates as the situation develops.



________________________________

Previous update from Sunday January 25, 2026 (copied from other thread)

Update:
It’s now 10:00am 1/26/2026 cst and we are approaching 24hrs without power. It’s 10 degrees outside and 70 degrees in the house thanks to my Lightning ER w/pro power.

With the current load we are pulling it looks like we will use about 15% every 24hrs. So we should be good for 5-51/2 days with enough left to go recharge and return if necessary.

————————————————————

Update:
Power dropped at 12:45pm cst 1/25/2026 today and has been out since.

Looking at the providers outage map it may be a while before we see it restored. 1-3 days would be my guess.

The truck is running everything we need and only drawing between 450-900w. Thank GOD we just replaced our aging package heating system with a new more modern and efficient unit last month.

——————————————————————

Well here we go. The snow came and went and the sleet and freezing rain has moved in.

power has fluctuated a few times this morning and my go at any time now.

Not to worry the Lightning is wired and ready to stand in.

Interlock, right? Not interlink

 

[The Weatherman]

Yes

Interlock, right? Not interlink

Thanks for catching that.

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