Mobile Charger Settings on 120V

[tomdfw1]

The mobile charger is semi-smart. When it is attached to a 50A circuit with the "dryer" plug/220V the charger automatically sets itself to charge at 40A.

Question 1: Why doesn't it default or all me to bump to 50A? I think it is so that it won't blow the 50A fuse and leaves 10A buffer. As I recall, you can not alter the Amps it is set at.

Now when you swap the braid out and plug it into a standard 3 prong 120V plug the Amp defaults to 6A...but you MUST bump it up to 8A or it can drain the auxiliary battery I am told.

Question 2: Why does it default to 6A if we must change it to 8A?
I have a '22 model. I was told that '22 model year's have extended software configurations and I noticed that I can actually up the Amps when plugged in a standard plug to 10 or 11A.
Question 3: Is it safe that I bump the mobile charger to 10 or 11 and not the 8 I was told in the past?

Thanks in advance.
Tom

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[Jhenson29]

Why doesn't it default or all me to bump to 50A?

50 amps is the circuit size.
40 amps is what the car will pull (because the EVSE is telling it that’s the limit).

The EVSE max is 9.6kW which is 40 amps @ 240VAC.

Circuits are sized for 125% when the load is continuous, which the EVSE is.

 

[tomdfw1]

50 amps is the circuit size.
40 amps is what the car will pull (because the EVSE is telling it that’s the limit).

The EVSE max is 9.6kW which is 40 amps @ 240VAC.

Circuits are sized for 125% when the load is continuous, which the EVSE is.

Thanks! Makes sense. What about answers for the 120V and the configuration from 6-10A? Why does it default to 6 when that is bad. And why change it to 8 when we can bump it to 10? I suspect pre '22 8 amp was highest setting and '22 models/chargers can output 10A but I want confirmation before I go from 8 to 10 on the charger.

Thanks again!

 

[Jhenson29]

Thanks! Makes sense. What about answers for the 120V and the configuration from 6-10A? Why does it default to 6 when that is bad. And why change it to 8 when we can bump it to 10? I suspect pre '22 8 amp was highest setting and '22 models/chargers can output 10A but I want confirmation before I go from 8 to 10 on the charger.

Thanks again!

I assume this is the PMCC if you have that kind of control since the PMC+ is just 50% or 100% settings.

I don’t know the answer to number 2.

For number 3, I was under the impression that 8A was the PMC+ max, but I don’t know about the PMCC or any possible changes for ‘22.

Regardless, if the device let’s you take it up to 10A, then whether you should depends on what breaker it’s on and what else is on that circuit. If it’s a 10A breaker, then no, 8A is max. If it’s a 15A or 20A breaker, then 10A is fine depending on other loads (if any) on the circuit.

You just need to follow the 125% circuit rating rule.

 

[raharris]

Has anyone run the charger at 10A? Any concerns or issues?

looks like I have a 20A breaker and I believe the standard 110v outlet is rated at 15A.

this will be the only item plugged into the circuit.

rented property and they denied my request for me to install an outlet to run at level 2

 

[tomdfw1]

Has anyone run the charger at 10A? Any concerns or issues?

looks like I have a 20A breaker and I believe the standard 110v outlet is rated at 15A.

this will be the only item plugged into the circuit.

rented property and they denied my request for me to install an outlet to run at level 2

I raised mine to 10A and worked great. I was getting .9kW at 8A and 1.1kW at 10A. Was same situation as yours.

 

[raharris]

I raised mine to 10A and worked great. I was getting .9kW at 8A and 1.1kW at 10A. Was same situation as yours.

Thank you. You running straight into an outlet or using an extension?

 

[tomdfw1]

Thank you. You running straight into an outlet or using an extension?

I am directly plugging my Porsche Mobile Connect charger that I took with me. I use the 240v connector at home and swap out the 120v braid when I take it on the road. I have the 25 foot cable on my Mobile Connector.

 

[daveo4EV]

the problem with using 120/110V to charge your EV is as follows in the US…

1. there are two breaker sizes typically used - 15 amps or 20 amps
   1. for 15 amp breakers the max AMPs you should pull is 12
   2. for 20 amp breakers the max AMPs you should pull is 16
2. quality of wiring varies widely - the breaker protects the wiring from overheating - it doesn’t not protect your EV or your EV charger
   1. homes have a wide variety of wire “quality” - some homes have insufficient wiring to pull “max” amps for hours on end
   2. pulling high amps on substandard wiring can lead to overheating, melting wire insulation and then a potential electrical fault followed by potential fire - yes this is true
3. home circuits tend to be shared by more than one device - a single breaker most often feeds multiple outlets - those outlight may have other high demand devices sharing that breaker (microwave, room heater, TV’s, halogen lights, gaming PC, etc…)
   1. adding an EV charger will _WILL_ pull maximum amps will leave no extra capacity for the other devices sharing the same circuit/breaker
   2. as anyone knows tracing which plugs/lights/appliances share a single breaker is tricky and varies widely across homes, and sometimes even in the same home…

Given all the factors above you need to carefully set the charging AMPs when charging off a normal North American Home circuit - 8 amps is the minimum for charging the Taycan - and 12 is the max on a 15 amp circuit (NEMA 5-15 plug that comes with the PMC+/PMCC) - depending on the age of the home, quality of wiring, and how many other items are sharing the circuit - 12 amps may be ill-advised for many home outlets…the EV charger pulls as much/more than a room heater and this will tax most home electrical circuits which were designed for lights and small appliances…

use home NEMA 5-15 charging with caution - particularly at someone elses home where the set of plugs sharing any given circuit is unknown…

if you have a “dedicated” 15 amp circuit - breaker with dedicated wire (rated for 15 or more amps) and a single plug-outlet - you can safely dial the charge rate up to max 12 amps because the EVSE will be the only device using that entire circuit…

but it will still be slow and could take more than 2 days to fully charge a mostly empty Taycan battery…

 

[raharris]

The breaker is only for the three garage outlets; currently just used for powering a ring camera. So the charger will be the only thing connected.

Sounds like I could go to 12, but will probably settle on 10 for some additional safety buffer.

not worried about charge time, knew this risk when I brought the car - and have four other cars to chose from when it’s charging

 

[raharris]

I am directly plugging my Porsche Mobile Connect charger that I took with me. I use the 240v connector at home and swap out the 120v braid when I take it on the road. I have the 25 foot cable on my Mobile Connector.

Thank you. I also opted for the 25ft cable (and dock) - just figuring out mounting options.

 

[daveo4EV]

The breaker is only for the three garage outlets; currently just used for powering a ring camera. So the charger will be the only thing connected.

Sounds like I could go to 12, but will probably settle on 10 for some additional safety buffer.

not worried about charge time, knew this risk when I brought the car - and have four other cars to chose from when it’s charging

if it’s a dedicated breaker (which it sounds like it is) you could check the wire gauge and see if you could swap to a 20 or 30 amp breaker

if you can swap to a 20 amp breaker - you can install a NEMA 5-20 plug and then charge at 16 amps (you’ll need some EV charger adapter/settings but it can work)
if you can swap to a 30 amp breaker - you can install a NEMA T–30 plug (24 amps @ 120V) and then charge at nearly twice the rate safely

any licenced/bonded/qualified electrician should be able to advise you on required wire gauge for a 20 or 30 amp breaker…

you may even be able to move to a NEMA 6-30 plug (240V @ 24 amps) if your wire gauge is sufficient

swapping a breaker and plug for existing wire that is of sufficient gauge (for safety) is very trivial and an easy way to upgrade your charging infrastructure…

 

[daveo4EV]

if it’s a dedicated breaker (which it sounds like it is) you could check the wire gauge and see if you could swap to a 20 or 30 amp breaker

if you can swap to a 20 amp breaker - you can install a NEMA 5-20 plug and then charge at 16 amps (you’ll need some EV charger adapter/settings but it can work)
if you can swap to a 30 amp breaker - you can install a NEMA T–30 plug (24 amps @ 120V) and then charge at nearly twice the rate safely

any licenced/bonded/qualified electrician should be able to advise you on required wire gauge for a 20 or 30 amp breaker…

you may even be able to move to a NEMA 6-30 plug (240V @ 24 amps) if your wire gauge is sufficient

swapping a breaker and plug for existing wire that is of sufficient gauge (for safety) is very trivial and an easy way to upgrade your charging infrastructure…

if you have 10 gauge wire you can most likely easily get a 240V/30 amp circuit installed for 24 amps of EV charging goodness…

https://homeinspectioninsider.com/what-gauge-wire-for-30-amp-breaker/

if it’s easy to pull wire - pull some 8 gauge wire - and swap the breaker for 30 amp - and install a NEMA 6-30 plug…

 

[raharris]

if it’s a dedicated breaker (which it sounds like it is) you could check the wire gauge and see if you could swap to a 20 or 30 amp breaker

if you can swap to a 20 amp breaker - you can install a NEMA 5-20 plug and then charge at 16 amps (you’ll need some EV charger adapter/settings but it can work)
if you can swap to a 30 amp breaker - you can install a NEMA T–30 plug (24 amps @ 120V) and then charge at nearly twice the rate safely

any licenced/bonded/qualified electrician should be able to advise you on required wire gauge for a 20 or 30 amp breaker…

you may even be able to move to a NEMA 6-30 plug (240V @ 24 amps) if your wire gauge is sufficient

swapping a breaker and plug for existing wire that is of sufficient gauge (for safety) is very trivial and an easy way to upgrade your charging infrastructure…

It’s a 20A breaker; would it be wrong to assume that the cable must be at least greater than the breaker right? Otherwise the wire could potentially fry before the break tripped.

Just double checked, there are other things connected:

LiftMaster : 6A
CTek trickle charger: .6Arms

So running at 10A would give me a 16.6 at peak which should see me safely under the 20A. In theory could go to 12A and be under the 18.6.

Thoughts?

 

[tomdfw1]

The breaker is only for the three garage outlets; currently just used for powering a ring camera. So the charger will be the only thing connected.

Sounds like I could go to 12, but will probably settle on 10 for some additional safety buffer.

not worried about charge time, knew this risk when I brought the car - and have four other cars to chose from when it’s charging

Why not just get a 240v outlet added? It charges 10 times faster!

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