New home has plug: will this work?

[GoIrish]

Just moved to a new home. It has the attached plug in the garage. Is there some kind of adapter that will enable the car charger to work at higher speeds?

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[JeffGo]

Nope. That's a 30A outlet (NEMA 10-30R), probably for a dryer. The charger that comes with the car requires a NEMA 14-50R outlet wired with at a 40A or 50A circuit breaker with appropriate wiring. Other chargers are available that use a NEMA 6-50R but still require 40A or 50A.

 

[Tim_C]

There are adapters for sale that will convert NEMA 10-30 to NEMA 14-50. But it is definitely not recommended for various reasons. Clipper Creek has this explanation on their FAQ page:

If you have a 3 prong dryer outlet, called the NEMA 10-30 outlet, you will likely need some rewiring done as the older style dryer outlet does not utilize a ground wire. All of our models require an earth ground connection in order to operate properly. Additionally, when charging a vehicle the ground is passed through to the vehicle from the station for safety earth grounding during charging. If a neutral is used instead of a ground the neutral could generate a charge on the vehicle chassis, creating a potential safety hazard upon contact with the vehicle during or after charging.

 

[timbop]

You could hardwire a 24A clippercreek, but as others have said that is only a 30A outlet.

 

[machefan]

You can do basic L2 240 @ 16 amps which is about 3.6 kW.

The supplied Ford charger does not support this, but many others do.

Will need a NEMA 6-20R to NEMA 10-30R adapter.

 

[GoIrish]

Nope. That's a 30A outlet (NEMA 10-30R), probably for a dryer. The charger that comes with the car requires a NEMA 14-50R outlet wired with at a 40A or 50A circuit breaker with appropriate wiring. Other chargers are available that use a NEMA 6-50R but still require 40A or 50A.

Thank you! How about something like this?:
https://www.amazon.com/LECTRON-Leve...3&psc=1#aw-udpv3-customer-reviews_feature_div

 

[TJ-Mach-e]

Or spend $200 on the appropriate charger. https://www.amazon.com/LECTRON-Level-Charger-Extension-J1772/dp/B079NTNJ5C

 

[TJ-Mach-e]

Thank you! How about something like this?:
https://www.amazon.com/LECTRON-Leve...3&psc=1#aw-udpv3-customer-reviews_feature_div

Lol, I just posted a link to that.

 

[GoIrish]

Lol, I just posted a link to that.

Hahahaha, that’s pretty funny

 

[Mach-Lee]

Just moved to a new home. It has the attached plug in the garage. Is there some kind of adapter that will enable the car charger to work at higher speeds?

An electrician really needs to look at your panel and decide if the neutral/ground bonding is okay. That type of outlet (NEMA 10-30) does not officially have a ground so it's not legally safe to use for car charging with an EVSE. If the neutral isn't bonded where the wire terminates, you could potentially get electrocuted touching the car if you have a broken neutral.

An electrician should really evaluate the setup and replace the receptacle with a NEMA 6-30 type (which has a ground) to meet code for car charging use.

Just because somebody sells an adapter/EVSE on Amazon that will work doesn't mean it's safe, legal, or proper to use.

 

[JeffGo]

Thank you! How about something like this?:
https://www.amazon.com/LECTRON-Leve...3&psc=1#aw-udpv3-customer-reviews_feature_div

should work - but you may require a GFCI breaker (my local code does). Switching a breaker is not rocket science. Buying double pole GFCI breakers on the other hand might be harder than in the past.

 

[vinny2487]

Just moved to a new home. It has the attached plug in the garage. Is there some kind of adapter that will enable the car charger to work at higher speeds?

I wouldn't use it even with an adapter. Those outlets are not made for continuous loads and it's only maxed out at 24amps. The included Ford charger will not work and if you try, you'll trip the breaker or worse start a fire.

Don't waste your money buying a 24amp charger. Spend that money to hire an electrician to install a proper NEMA 14-50 outlet. Not only will you be able to charge your car faster and use the included Ford charger, it's also a lot safer. You don't want to burn down your new home.

 

[GoIrish]

I wouldn't use it even with an adapter. Those outlets are not made for continuous loads and it's only maxed out at 24amps. The included Ford charger will not work and if you try, you'll trip the breaker or worse start a fire.

Don't waste your money buying a 24amp charger. Spend that money to hire an electrician to install a proper NEMA 14-50 outlet. Not only will you be able to charge your car faster and use the included Ford charger, it's also a lot safer. You don't want to burn down your new home.

How about something like this?:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B...BCXXQ&linkId=337db6ea42490a457ae5cc86e87e16bf

 

[ARK]

This is a good response, OP @GoIrish.

IMO if your EVSE can downrate to 24A (80% on a 30A circuit) that would be sufficient...however as noted in the above reply the outlet you have does not have a ground. This could be a safety issue. As you would have to rewire to add a ground you might as well go up to the full 50A circuit (charging at 80%/40A) and drop in a NEMA 14-50 which is the most flexible outlet as it can support both 240V and 120V and contains a ground. I would look for an EVSE that can be set to different maximum charging rates.

Adaptors are fine if the specifications all match up: they are meant to adapt equivalent standards to equivalent standards, not meant to replace the intent of one with another, e.g. substituting a neutral for a ground. It might fit...it might even work...but is it safe?

TLDR: Electrician time.

I will +1 this. OP, there are plenty of places when it comes to home improvement where you can really save a few bucks without consequence. But you are dealing with significant amounts of electricity here and the car will be unsupervised for much of the time it is charging.

I personally would not role the dice on this. Electric vehicles seem to be the future of cars, I would get an electrician to get it right once now and therefore have it future proofed rather than trying to jury rig an old dryer outlet for this purpose.

Also, while most would agree that you don't really need a set up where you are L2 charging at 48amps (the Mach-Es max), I think 24amps is slow enough where you might wish it was faster, particularly since you got an extended range variant of the Mach-E. So if you are already OK with spending a few hundred on an adapter for the existing outlet, I don't see why you shouldn't spend a bit more to get an electrician to change it and have it done right, then you can use the included mobile charger on a permanent basis if you mount it in your garage and won't need the adapter at all.

 

[GoIrish]

I will +1 this. OP, there are plenty of places when it comes to home improvement where you can really save a few bucks without consequence. But you are dealing with significant amounts of electricity here and the car will be unsupervised for much of the time it is charging.

I personally would not role the dice on this. Electric vehicles seem to be the future of cars, I would get an electrician to get it right once now and therefore have it future proofed rather than trying to jury rig an old dryer outlet for this purpose.

Also, while most would agree that you don't really need a set up where you are L2 charging at 48amps (the Mach-Es max), I think 24amps is slow enough where you might wish it was faster, particularly since you got an extended range variant of the Mach-E. So if you are already OK with spending a few hundred on an adapter for the existing outlet, I don't see why you shouldn't spend a bit more to get an electrician to change it and have it done right, then you can use the included mobile charger on a permanent basis if you mount it in your garage and won't need the adapter at all.

Because I am in a rented house and the owner won't allow modifications...

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