Paused charging from home 240 v 50amp

[r.ugarte]

I have a 2021 premium RWD that in the last 3 weeks or I started getting notices that charging had paused will before the set range which was usually 85-100. Last week I took a trip (Phoenix to San Diego) and able to charge at the Electrify America stations without trouble except that in Yuma the charging was slow but the chargers had a notice that they would be for maintenance. I was able to charge at my son's 240v/40amp outlet (he owns a Tesla) to 100% overnight w/o problems.
At home the last 2 days, I plugged in to my 240/50 outlet the cahrging stopped after 30-50 miles of added charge. I plugged in again this afternoon and got the same pause message after 5-10 minutes. in the garage, I could smell the telltale sign of a hot wire and immediately noticed smoke emitting out of the left outlet connector and the box was hot. turned off the circuit breaker and disconnected the charger from the car and the outlet box. Have not turned the breaker back on, car seems fine.
Any thoughts on what happen? My intent is to call the electrician and Ford dealership tomorrow.
Thanks
Ramon

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[AKgrampy]

Well it is pretty clear that your connection overheated and failed. Perhaps it got loose or was never installed correctly. No way to us know just based on your description. Hopefully your electrician will be able to identify the issue. Obviously they will be able to make the repairs but It would also be good to know, if possible, what caused the failure.

 

[mkhuffman]

Poor wiring connections in 240V outlets is a fairly common problem. Outlets should be checked regularly to see if they are hot during or after a charge. If the outlet feels more than just a little warm, stop using it immediately and have the wiring checked.

It is a good thing you noticed it before too much damage occurred.

 

[Maquis]

I have a 2021 premium RWD that in the last 3 weeks or I started getting notices that charging had paused will before the set range which was usually 85-100. Last week I took a trip (Phoenix to San Diego) and able to charge at the Electrify America stations without trouble except that in Yuma the charging was slow but the chargers had a notice that they would be for maintenance. I was able to charge at my son's 240v/40amp outlet (he owns a Tesla) to 100% overnight w/o problems.
At home the last 2 days, I plugged in to my 240/50 outlet the cahrging stopped after 30-50 miles of added charge. I plugged in again this afternoon and got the same pause message after 5-10 minutes. in the garage, I could smell the telltale sign of a hot wire and immediately noticed smoke emitting out of the left outlet connector and the box was hot. turned off the circuit breaker and disconnected the charger from the car and the outlet box. Have not turned the breaker back on, car seems fine.
Any thoughts on what happen? My intent is to call the electrician and Ford dealership tomorrow.
Thanks
Ramon

Are you using the Ford Mobile Charger? If so, you should have gotten some indication of the problem from the lights on the EVSE. It has a temp sensor in the plug.

 

[Scooby24]

Probably a junk leviton outlet installed.

 

[Humblest]

Poor wiring connections in 240V outlets is a fairly common problem. Outlets should be checked regularly to see if they are hot during or after a charge. If the outlet feels more than just a little warm, stop using it immediately and have the wiring checked.

It is a good thing you noticed it before too much damage occurred.

Good advice to check the outlets regularly. Had a similar situation a few months ago. 50A 240 V circuit, Grizzl-E with DIP switches set to 40A. No problems for 2+ years with my wife's Mini SE nor with my MME. Connected the Mini, heard a pop from the outlet and smoke was released from the outlet. Immediately switched off the breaker. Part of the NEMA 6-50R outlet was melted. Some minor disfigurement of the plug from the charger to the outlet. I couldn't tell if something had been loose, or shorted, or both, or one causing the other.

After replacement of the outlet, some wiring, and the connecting cable and plug from the Grizzl-E charger, all is good. (United Chargers didn't ask for any payment for the replacement cable/plug even though the device was 2 years old and was almost certainly NOT the root cause. Yay United Chargers customer service!) No problems since, no damage to the vehicle.

 

[Ford Motor Company]

I have a 2021 premium RWD that in the last 3 weeks or I started getting notices that charging had paused will before the set range which was usually 85-100. Last week I took a trip (Phoenix to San Diego) and able to charge at the Electrify America stations without trouble except that in Yuma the charging was slow but the chargers had a notice that they would be for maintenance. I was able to charge at my son's 240v/40amp outlet (he owns a Tesla) to 100% overnight w/o problems.
At home the last 2 days, I plugged in to my 240/50 outlet the cahrging stopped after 30-50 miles of added charge. I plugged in again this afternoon and got the same pause message after 5-10 minutes. in the garage, I could smell the telltale sign of a hot wire and immediately noticed smoke emitting out of the left outlet connector and the box was hot. turned off the circuit breaker and disconnected the charger from the car and the outlet box. Have not turned the breaker back on, car seems fine.
Any thoughts on what happen? My intent is to call the electrician and Ford dealership tomorrow.
Thanks
Ramon

Hi there, Ramon. This charge concern doesn’t sound like something we want you to experience with your Mach-E. Could you please send us a PM with your VIN and the name and location of your Ford dealer? I'd be happy to look into how I can assist you on my end.

 

[Wideguy]

I have a 2021 premium RWD that in the last 3 weeks or I started getting notices that charging had paused will before the set range which was usually 85-100. Last week I took a trip (Phoenix to San Diego) and able to charge at the Electrify America stations without trouble except that in Yuma the charging was slow but the chargers had a notice that they would be for maintenance. I was able to charge at my son's 240v/40amp outlet (he owns a Tesla) to 100% overnight w/o problems.
At home the last 2 days, I plugged in to my 240/50 outlet the cahrging stopped after 30-50 miles of added charge. I plugged in again this afternoon and got the same pause message after 5-10 minutes. in the garage, I could smell the telltale sign of a hot wire and immediately noticed smoke emitting out of the left outlet connector and the box was hot. turned off the circuit breaker and disconnected the charger from the car and the outlet box. Have not turned the breaker back on, car seems fine.
Any thoughts on what happen? My intent is to call the electrician and Ford dealership tomorrow.
Thanks
Ramon

My 240v 60amp Charge point has been pausing our charge since the last update the car received. Not sure if that is coincidence. We get a red ring on the car charge port but no other indicators. Changed the Charge Point charger to 30amp setting and the car charged to 100%. I am going to test the car on a friends 240v 50amp Charge Point tonight.

 

[Fremont Kid]

Two points:
First, be careful adjusting the amperage below the Ford Mobile Charger 240V 32A rating. Rule of thumb is to increase circuit 20% to account for highest current flow, which results in 48A. So my electrician in Illinois installed a 60A circuit, while the electrician here in Colorado installed a 50A circuit.
Second, ensure the wire size is appropriate for the circuit - including the 20% higher current. My electricians installed AWG 6. Most electricians probably will size appropriately, however your description could indicate a wire size too small for the load. Or, a cheaper plug as mentioned previously.

 

[generaltso]

So my electrician in Illinois installed a 60A circuit, while the electrician here in Colorado installed a 50A circuit.

You can't use a 14-50 outlet on a 60A circuit.

 

[Fremont Kid]

You can't use a 14-50 outlet on a 60A circuit.

Enlighten us. I did.

 

[generaltso]

Enlighten us. I did.

The breaker is supposed to protect all of the other components of the circuit. If you use an outlet that's rated for 50A (like a NEMA 14-50), it would have to pull more than its rated capacity before tripping the 60A breaker.

 

[ridgebackpilot]

If you're charging at home, install a dedicated EVSE Level 2 charger. Make sure an electrician installs it or if you do it yourself, the electrical connections are properly torqued.

 

[Fremont Kid]

That makes sense...all the other components of that specific circuit, correct? The charger is the only device on these circuits. I'm not a journeyman electrician, so I recommend getting the best advice from electricians installing the circuits.
I set the MME charging schedule for overnight to avoid most if not all conflicts by other electrical appliances.
I think we are in synch. Most important is to convey best practices to MME owners. If owners differ with my input, don't use it. Just describing the charging circuits at the two homes where I have charged our MME. All good.

 

[Maquis]

My 240v 60amp Charge point has been pausing our charge since the last update the car received. Not sure if that is coincidence. We get a red ring on the car charge port but no other indicators. Changed the Charge Point charger to 30amp setting and the car charged to 100%. I am going to test the car on a friends 240v 50amp Charge Point tonight.

Red charge port ring likely means that an overtemp condition has been detected at the charge port. Reducing the amperage = less heat, so that makes sense.
The overheat detection could be a true condition, or a problem with the sensor. The fix for either one is charge port replacement.

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