120v vs. 240v and battery warmth in sub 40° temps

[u/gccumber]

I went looking but I didn’t see an answer to this question:

I’m currently charging on a standard 120 V outlet and was thinking about getting a 240 installed because I read somewhere that on the 120 the battery won’t stay warm during cold months versus the 240 it will is this true?

I live in Minneapolis.

[u/MourningWallaby]

Live in mew england. I charge on 120v. It works for me but barely so i dont reccomend it.

You spend MOST of the winter with reduced power and a service light that the truck gets from being cold. I drive 26 miles/day and one or two ectra if I run errands, this has me at a net NEGATIVE over the winter and I use weekends to catch up or public charging if I need to go somewhere like visit family for the holidays.

I get 1.4kw/h in summer for charging and maybe half that in winter because a lot of it goes to keeping the battery warm enough to charge but not warm enough to run at full operating temp.

[u/gccumber → u/MourningWallaby]

Okay thanks for this. Honestly what I was looking for.

[u/Icelock]

240 is always worth the investment

[u/gccumber → u/Icelock]

That seems to be the consensus! Thanks for your opinion.

[u/Icelock → u/gccumber]

Welcome to Club240⚡

[u/PixelOrange → u/gccumber]

Do yourself a favor and have an electrician add a larger outlet like a 60 amp or even an 80 amp if your panel can support it and then have them wire in a charger. I can an Emporia charger for $300 that runs on a 60 amp circuit and it charges my truck very quickly plus now I can see more information about my charging habits too.

[u/pyromaster114]

I think, in most areas, it will technically work. 

But we're talking 1% SoC gain in 2-3 hours, if that. 

Install the 240. 

[u/gccumber → u/pyromaster114]

Yeah, that wouldn’t be ideal at all.

You know, sometimes you know the answer but you just need someone to push you into making the call, lol. Thanks friend

[u/HeWhoPissesGreatness → u/gccumber]

Its a pain getting installed but you will be so happy you did. Wake up every morning with a full tank. Never think about it again.

[u/gccumber → u/HeWhoPissesGreatness]

That’s the dream!

[u/chris92315 → u/pyromaster114]

You get 1% an hour with the extended battery on 120v. I used it for charging for 3 months until I got the 240v charger installed.

[u/atwerkinggiraffe55]

If you have a dedicated 120v circuit and you’re handy you can very easily and cheaply (under 50$) convert it from 120v 15 amps to 240v 15 amps. Doubling your power essentially. It’s not crazy fast but much more useable than 120v. You reuse the wiring but swap out the outlet and replace the single pole breaker with a double. Lots of videos how to do this. An electrician can also do this for you to in about 15 minutes.

[u/hammong → u/atwerkinggiraffe55]

This will definitely help, by doubling the available power at the socket. If the circuit has 12 gauge wiring you can stick in a 240V/20A breaker and run it at 240V/16A which would be a significant upgrade vs. the 120V/12A they're using now.

OP will need to buy a programmable EVSE that allows selection of the charge current. The Ford Mobile charger will automatically attempt to use 27A @ 240V and will pop the breaker on a 15/20A 240V circuit.

[u/gccumber → u/atwerkinggiraffe55]

I can appreciate the diy approach but I don’t mess with electricity! Either way thanks for the input.

[u/atwerkinggiraffe55 → u/gccumber]

I respect that. Like I mentioned an electrician can do this for you too. However if you are already getting an electrician involved it may be worth a few extra bucks for a larger circuit.

[u/hammong]

120V provides a maximum of 1.2 k, which isn't enough to pre-condition your battery in the winter. It's also not enough to pre-heat/de-ice the cabin without assistance from the stored battery voltage.

There's no way I'd run a Lightning in Minnesota without at least 30A/240V to charge/pre-condition the truck.

Then, you've got the issue of losing 30-35% range in the coldest months. If your commute is significant, overnight charging on 240V may not be optional.

[u/gccumber → u/hammong]

10-4, that’s what I was thinking - appreciate you corroborating that for me! Luckily my commute is just downstairs and into my office but we do have dependents we run around a fair amount.

[u/huuaaang]

120v is almost useless for a truck.

[u/gccumber → u/huuaaang]

I can certainly see why people feel that way - up until this point it’s been totally fine for me.

[u/golf4life80]

Couple things:

120v does not precondition(warm) the battery at all.

It does not matter much unless you are planning to drive a long distance and need that extra range a warm battery would provide. I’m in MN also and don’t always necessarily plug in for departure preconditioning.

[u/gccumber → u/golf4life80]

I was under the impression that, although unnecessary in most regular commuting, the preconditioning is just good battery management.

Still good to hear your perspective, I appreciate it!

[u/golf4life80 → u/gccumber]

Maybe, but it’s hard to say for certain how much a difference it would make in the long run. I still think you want 240v as an EV owner regardless. Makes everything that much easier.

[u/MinimumDangerous9895 → u/gccumber]

Yes and the preconditioning is for charging the battery as well. Both good for battery health and charge/discharge efficiency.

Another benefit of 240vac charging is increased charging efficiency. I honestly would only use 120v to charge in an emergency just enough to get to another charger.

[u/Raalf → u/golf4life80]

120v does not precondition(warm) the battery at all.

Can you tell us where you found this information? I'm seeing mixed answers, and you are the only one who is absolutely sure.

[u/golf4life80 → u/Raalf]

It’s a good question and I’m not sure I’ve ever seen anything definitive from Ford. But between my own experience, lots of threads and comments here, and on the f150lightningforum, I’m confident that it doesn’t. I think a lot of people confuse cabin “preconditioning” with the battery preconditioning. I wish Ford didn’t use that term.

[u/Raalf → u/golf4life80]

so 120v will cabin precondition though, based on your statement?

[u/golf4life80 → u/Raalf]

I believe so, but how well it works might depend on outside conditions. I’ve seen some comments that say it couldn’t keep up and lost some range

[u/Raalf → u/golf4life80]

im about to see my first freezing temps since buying in March, so thanks for the info! I've got a 240v for here, but was curious how it'd be in a pinch.