Amping down for a wall outlet is capped at 14 Amps?

[PhatDaddy]

Whoa there pardner. You made a wrong turn at Albuquerque and just kept right on going. I didn't say or imply any of this. In particular the only thing I said about the Tesla charger is that you can buy additional adapter cables for it...

OK, thanks for correcting my 'wrong turn' - duly noted.
So to my comment, and based on feedback from others, is this statement accurate: "Tesla portable charger has additional intelligence/sensors built in that allow greater capabilities and safety features"? I.E. aside from having a larger choice of adapter cables (which is indeed an advantage), is 'upgrading' the Rivian portable charger to the Tesla portable charger a 'value add'? Is it worth it for the additional features? And I guess specifically, per @VSG "Whenever you introduce a source of human error like this, there WILL be human error at some point."... is there an advantage to the Tesla charger? If I "forget to lower the current draw from your Rivian screen", will Tesla detect and adjust whereas the Rivian charger will not? Thanks.

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[Lawrence-of-Blaine]

Yes, the Rivian charger and also the portable shockflo charger I have read the amperage limit +2 amps.

If you plug in something like the kill a watt you can see exactly what is being pulled. The ShockFlo portable unit shows me the voltage and allows me to adjust amperage right on the mobile charger itself. We love to use that unit at campgrounds. It's always good to see what the voltage drop is on the line and adjust amperage limits accordingly to avoid angry neighbors ?

Are you using the Shockflo Gmini?

 

[zfischer]

I believe it's @R.I.P. who has suggested that the Tesla Mobile Connector can adapt to a wide variety of power input situations (aside from which plug one is using). I cannot confirm or deny. Personally, I opted for that kit with the adapter bundle because I like a contained, reliable kit rather than a hodgepodge of adapters and hacks and because it's important to me to have the widest array of possible charge sources.

What I can say is that if you review the manuals for the Rivian portable vs. the Tesla mobile connector, the Rivian light display communicates in a pretty binary manner, ie, the lights say things are good or the lights say things are bad. The Tesla unit, on the other hand, communicates in pretty granular detail through it's blinking pattern. It may choose to reduce the current but still charge under a variety of conditions and if it has a fault, it may point you in the right direction to solving the fault.

I don't know if one unit is "smarter" than the other, but the Tesla unit appears to be able to operate under less than optimal, but still safe conditions, while the Rivian unit appears to be a go or no go unit with very limited troubleshooting tools. If you review the manuals for both, you'll see what I'm talking about.

 

[zenphx]

Portable chargers like the Rivian charger "know" which adapter accessory cable is being used, and automatically set the current accordingly. The Rivian portable charger comes with just two adapter cables - one with a NEMA 5-15 plug and one with a NEMA 14-50 plug.

If you are using the NEMA 5-15, the Rivian charger thinks you're on a 15A circuit and won't let you draw more than 80% of that - max 12A. (I'm not sure why, but the vehicle display always seems to read 2kW higher for some reason.)

So as it stands, the Rivian portable charger has no way of telling you're on a 20A circuit and won't let you draw 16A from what it thinks is a 15A circuit. If Rivian had additional adapter cables available like the Tesla kit does, you could use a NEMA 5-20 adapter to plug into your NEMA 5-20 outlet and the Rivian portable charger would know you're on a 20A circuit and would automatically set the rate to 16A (80% of 20A).

Can one just buy a NEMA 5-20 adapter to use with the Rivian portable charger cable?

 

[PhatDaddy]

I believe it's @R.I.P. who has suggested that the Tesla Mobile Connector can adapt to a wide variety of power input situations (aside from which plug one is using). I cannot confirm or deny. Personally, I opted for that kit with the adapter bundle because I like a contained, reliable kit rather than a hodgepodge of adapters and hacks and because it's important to me to have the widest array of possible charge sources.
...

Yeah, this is my focus as well. Thanks for the additional info regarding the indicator lights on the Tesla chargers. When my Tesla charger arrives I will dive into the manuals for both the Rivian and Tesla portable chargers. Had my R1T since 12/30/23... still waiting for local authority permitting for my wall charger, so I'm living on limited mileage and the portable charger so far...
@R.I.P., any feedback or knowledge on the Tesla details would be appreciated.

 

[zfischer]

Can one just buy a NEMA 5-20 adapter to use with the Rivian portable charger cable?

The Rivian plug connection is proprietary. So until Rivian releases one, or someone creates one, no joy.

 

[R.I.P.]

I believe it's @R.I.P. who has suggested that the Tesla Mobile Connector can adapt to a wide variety of power input situations (aside from which plug one is using). I cannot confirm or deny. Personally, I opted for that kit with the adapter bundle because I like a contained, reliable kit rather than a hodgepodge of adapters and hacks and because it's important to me to have the widest array of possible charge sources.

What I can say is that if you review the manuals for the Rivian portable vs. the Tesla mobile connector, the Rivian light display communicates in a pretty binary manner, ie, the lights say things are good or the lights say things are bad. The Tesla unit, on the other hand, communicates in pretty granular detail through it's blinking pattern. It may choose to reduce the current but still charge under a variety of conditions and if it has a fault, it may point you in the right direction to solving the fault.

I don't know if one unit is "smarter" than the other, but the Tesla unit appears to be able to operate under less than optimal, but still safe conditions, while the Rivian unit appears to be a go or no go unit with very limited troubleshooting tools. If you review the manuals for both, you'll see what I'm talking about.

Bingo. A nice description of the differences.

One is a quality piece of equipment with an incredibly solid track record, that has the ability to test and adapt to less than optimal conditions, while allowing you to plug into any and all of the different outlets you could possibly encounter.

The other is... Well... Not.

While we are on the topic, I will mention that Tesla does not ship a TT30 attachment with its NEMA kit. Tesla is not a fan of the TT30, and would rather people not use it. The problem with that thought process, is that the TT30 is ubiquitous, and in my opinion that dongle is needed. You can add it to your Tesla kit here:

AC WORKS EV Charging Adapter for Tesla Use (TT-30P RV/Trailer 30A Gen2) https://a.co/d/ciXTnTo

This dongle, combined with your Tesla mobile EVSE will charge at up to 24 amps. Two exemplify why the Tesla unit is so superior, it will often back it down to about 18 amps, because the old RV plugs just can't handle the higher pull. Many other EVSEs on the market (including Rivian) will just keep pulling until flames sever the contacts.
?

To those who keep recommending the use of RV style adapters with "dumb" mobile EVSEs; please stop. One by one, we are seeing campgrounds start to ban EVs, because we are destroying their outlets with the prolonged pulls. If we abuse this resource, we are going to lose this resource. The key to keeping this resource open for all is to be smart and respectful, and not damage their equipment.

Please stop!

 

[R.I.P.]

https://www.rvtravel.com/ev-charging-prohibited-50-amp-rv-campsite-pedestal-1133/

This problem is going to expand for us if people keep using inappropriate adapters with cheap mobile EVSEs, causing damage to the campground equipment.

I am not aware of a manufacturer other than Tesla that is making a smart EVSE that will protect the campground equipment, your equipment, and your EV. If someone is aware of another manufacturer building such a unit, this might be a good place to post it.

 

[PhatDaddy]

...
While we are on the topic, I will mention that Tesla does not ship a TT30 attachment with its NEMA kit. Tesla is not a fan of the TT30, and would rather people not use it. The problem with that thought process, is that the TT30 is ubiquitous, and in my opinion that dongle is needed. You can add it to your Tesla kit here:

AC WORKS EV Charging Adapter for Tesla Use (TT-30P RV/Trailer 30A Gen2) https://a.co/d/ciXTnTo
...

@R.I.P. Based on your experience can you also suggest a (quality, well tested) J1772 adapter for use with my incoming Tesla portable charger? Thanks.

 

[R.I.P.]

@R.I.P. Based on your experience can you also suggest a (quality, well tested) J1772 adapter for use with my incoming Tesla portable charger? Thanks.

I have used the TeslaTap and the Lectron both with zero problems. The TeslaTap is the clearly higher quality unit.

 

[PhatDaddy]

I have used the TeslaTap and the Lectron both with zero problems. The TeslaTap is the clearly higher quality unit.

OK, thanks. So the 'Tesla Tap' looks to be available in 40, 50, & 80 amp variants, all at different price points. With the Tesla portable charger (still waiting for mine to arrive), and all the various adapters (also waiting to arrive), it appears 50 amp circuits are the highest the plug-in adapters allow. Given that, should I stick to the 40 amp rated Tesla Tap (since I assume it will downgrade the current - 80% x 50 = 40)? Or do some Tesla Destination chargers allow higher current, so 50 or 80 max would allow more charging options?
I see that the Lectron unit (same price as the TTap 40 amp) is rated at 48 amp., and also does not have the short flex cable that the Tesla Tap has, which might (or might not) be more convenient. Thanks again... EV charging is all new to me.

PS... and I guess I could always wait for Rivian to ship me an adapter for 'free'... but that may not be s00n...

 

[zenphx]

The Rivian plug connection is proprietary. So until Rivian releases one, or someone creates one, no joy.

Gotcha. Thanks. Now I see why people are buying the Tesla portable charger with all the adapters....

 

[VSG]

The Rivian plug connection is proprietary. So until Rivian releases one, or someone creates one, no joy.

Gotcha. Thanks. Now I see why people are buying the Tesla portable charger with all the adapters....

Um, the adapter cord on the Tesla portable charger is also proprietary. Or I guess it's better to characterize both as ad hoc - not a trade secret or a patented device or anything, just designed for the specific purpose and specific need. The main purpose of designing a weird connector is to prevent the end user from plugging in something that shouldn't be plugged in.

Every brand of portable charger I've ever seen has a different design for these adapter cables.

 

[R.I.P.]

OK, thanks. So the 'Tesla Tap' looks to be available in 40, 50, & 80 amp variants, all at different price points. With the Tesla portable charger (still waiting for mine to arrive), and all the various adapters (also waiting to arrive), it appears 50 amp circuits are the highest the plug-in adapters allow. Given that, should I stick to the 40 amp rated Tesla Tap (since I assume it will downgrade the current - 80% x 50 = 40)? Or do some Tesla Destination chargers allow higher current, so 50 or 80 max would allow more charging options?
I see that the Lectron unit (same price as the TTap 40 amp) is rated at 48 amp., and also does not have the short flex cable that the Tesla Tap has, which might (or might not) be more convenient. Thanks again... EV charging is all new to me.

PS... and I guess I could always wait for Rivian to ship me an adapter for 'free'... but that may not be s00n...

No, do not wait for the Rivian adapter, that is for DC charging; quite a different animal than what we are speaking about here.

When getting an adapter, always size it to your vehicle, not to the charger. In this case, your vehicle is capable of pulling up to 48 amps from an AC level 2 charger, so your adapter should be sized accordingly.

 

[HaveBlue]

The resistor values are part of the J1772 specification so Tesla, Rivian and everyone else use the same values to communicate a requested Amperage. Adapters are hardwired with a maximum value and a smart EVSE can add more resistance electronically to reduce the current.

There are NO RVs that have a smart controller to change the draw on an RV pedestal. If you get a bad plug, it will get hot. If you overload the outlet it will trip the breaker. Pedestals are overwired for any possible EV load but it could be that politics will lead to campers not being able to use them to charge despite paying for the electric site. I'm wondering how many incidents there have actually been. I can't find any via a google search. Pretty silly since I can leave the air conditioning on day and night while I'm there if I want.

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