3 prong receptacle for our 4 prong plug. Please help!

[JMCH]

I’m dumbing this down to the number of plugs because we’re brand new to EVs, and I know almost nothing about electrical engineering. We had solar installed, including an EV plug. The receptacle is made for 3 prongs and the Mach E plug has 4. The solar company says the necessary cord is on back order… predicted delivery in March. Is there something we can buy now that will allow us to plug the car in there, or are we stuck with snail pace charging from a standard plug?

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[HFn!eSwMFilFX4mxbn&!P9T&G]

I’m dumbing this down to the number of plugs because we’re brand new to EVs, and I know almost nothing about electrical engineering. We had solar installed, including an EV plug. The receptacle is made for 3 prongs and the Mach E plug has 4. The solar company says the necessary cord is on back order… predicted delivery in March. Is there something we can buy now that will allow us to plug the car in there, or are we stuck with snail pace charging from a standard plug?

It would be helpful if you could post a picture and more details about your current outlet and amperage. You want to be very careful and ensure you are not exceeding the capability of the circuit you are plugged into and have a good understanding of what the car and the EVSE will draw.

 

[Kevin P]

You MUST find out how many amps (at 240V) the circuit is rated for. The Ford charger included with the car is non-adjustable and will pull 32Amps. If the circuit isn't at least 40Amps (you can only use 80% for any length of time) then it is not going to work, and potentially be dangerous.

You could get yourself an adjustable charger that can use fewer amps if that is what you need.

 

[Timelessblur]

Are you refering to NEMA 14-50 vs a NEMA 6-50? The 3 prong 240 votes are all nema 6-XX. 4 prong are NEMA 14-XX (XX being the amps)

 

[KZ6e1e]

I’m dumbing this down to the number of plugs because we’re brand new to EVs, and I know almost nothing about electrical engineering.

Pictures or google it. There are so many different 3 plug outlets & 4 plug outlets.

The cable that came with car is a 14-50 plug and needs a 240v/40am line.
If that doesnt work use the 3 plug 110v for now?

 

[RickMachE]

To dumb it down further.

There is no "cord" that fixes this. @JMCH needs to know the amperage of the breaker installed, as well as post a picture of the outlet.

 

[Timelessblur]

You MUST find out how many amps (at 240V) the circuit is rated for. The Ford charger included with the car is non-adjustable and will pull 32Amps. If the circuit isn't at least 40Amps (you can only use 80% for any length of time) then it is not going to work, and potentially be dangerous.

You could get yourself an adjustable charger that can use fewer amps if that is what you need.

Just FYI it is a code violation for a NEMA 14-50 plug not to be connected to a 50 amp breaker. That being said safety of the breaker is the big part like you said

 

[Mockstang]

There are adapters available. The outlet type for the included charger is the 14-50R. I got the adapter to be able to use the three pin dryer outlet (10-30P). This is the old dryer outlet type without ground and the adapter has a 10’ grounding wire that you plug into the ground of a standard 120VAC outlet. Mine was less than $10 on Amazon. Sometimes the pictures aren’t accurate so read the description and know exactly what outlet type you’re trying to adapt.

And Kevin is right, if your wiring is undersized, it is dangerous. I got the adapter to charge at my Mom’s house in Florida, not a full time solution.

 

[HuntingPudel]

Here is a quickie guide to some of the various NEMA outlets:

The type that most EVSEs will plug into is the 14-50R. Some will plug into the 6-50R. Those are the only two outlets I have seen that will properly support any plug-in EVSE, as they will support up to a 50A circuit. If your outlet is something other than one of those two, your circuit is likely under-rated for the amount of current required. ?‍?

 

[DYohn]

Call an electrician and get help.

 

[SpaceEVDriver]

Call an electrician and get help.

Very. Much. This.

You do not want to try to fix this yourself.

There is no adapter that will provide the proper neutral to your EV charger, and it's likely that the installers did not pull four wires through the conduit. This may even require a new conduit run because installers typically use the smallest diameter conduit they can. Or you can leave that run in and run a new circuit if you have the room on your breaker panel.

Because you don't have experience with electrical, this is not something that you can fix yourself. You need a licensed and bonded electrician to come out and fix this.

 

[JMCH]

This is what I’m working with

 

[Maquis]

Very. Much. This.

You do not want to try to fix this yourself.

There is no adapter that will provide the proper neutral to your EV charger, and it's likely that the installers did not pull four wires through the conduit. This may even require a new conduit run because installers typically use the smallest diameter conduit they can. Or you can leave that run in and run a new circuit if you have the room on your breaker panel.

Because you don't have experience with electrical, this is not something that you can fix yourself. You need a licensed and bonded electrician to come out and fix this.

Yes, use a licensed electrician.

But most EVSEs (they’re not chargers - the charger is in the car), do not use the neutral.

 

[JMCH]

Don‘t worry, I ain’t fixing nuthin‘ myself!

 

[OWG]

This is what I’m working with

That looks like new work, ask your electrician back to change the outlet.

If you look at the plug between the blades, you will see the writing NMEA 14-50 40A 250V~. The electrician needs to install a NMEA 14-50 outlet in place of the NMEA 6-50 that is there now.