Improving charge rate on EVSE at work?

[smashweights]

Hey all! First post, first Rivian, first EV! Just bought a 2022 R1T Launch Edition earlier this week and Trogdor the Drivenator has been a blast so far. Obligatory apology for asking maybe dumb questions or committing the cardinal sin of using the wrong terminology on a forum because yes I am dumb. Now that that is out of the way, a big part of what drove me to getting an R1T is starting a new job that has four Level 2 chargers at work and the hopes I can get the vast majority of my energy for free. Plus I was driving a Ram 1500 V8 and commuting 50 miles round trip getting about 18mpg so I could save $2000+/year swapping off gas especially if I'm getting free electricity.

I have been able to charge every day at work so far. I have the default charge rate set at 48A. When I plug into the Leviton J1772 charger at work, the energy tab shows the max rate now set at 32A, which seems consistent with what the EVSE label is rated for ("output 208VAC-240VAC... 32A continuous). However, the truck seems to be holding around 6.1kW while charging so about 25A. My coworker who has a Volvo EX40 reports he pretty consistently gets the 32A rate. Is there something else I need to tweak on the Rivian to pull the full charge rate? 25A is pretty decent and nets me about 31-34kWh per day at work, which is typically about a +30% SOC bump and reaches my limit of 80% SOC about an hour or two before I'm finished working. I work Wed/Th/Fri and use about 10-12% each way commuting so I'm just trying to be prepared for stretching my Sat-Tues usage to a lower SOC to avoid using my home L2 charger as much as I can so maximizing my work charge might help with that. May be a moot point altogether if the 25A rate will keep me up to 80% anyway by the time the weekend rolls around. If it matters, Trogdor is currently on the most recent software 2025.38.0 and underwent full reset this week to fix some connectivity issues.

Similar note, would it be reasonable on Fridays to push the SOC to 90% so I'm already at my goal of 80% when I get home to start my time away from work charging? It would probably only be a few hours tops at 90% before discharging on the way home.

Thanks in advance for helping a new EV convert get smarter!

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[VandalSibs]

It's possible that the circuit that the charger is on is 208 volts vs 220/240 volts. Lots of commerical structures are built that way. That can result in a lower charge rate than expected. Also, if someone parks next to you and the there are multiple chargers sharing a circuit, it the rate will go down. And finally, if you are using the same charger every day, try a different one (if possible) and see if the same issue happens.

In the end, if you are getting the amount of power that you need every day, it's not something that you need to worry too much about.

Finally, your truck has a GREAT name. Make sure it is has a beefy little arm sticking out of the side for Halloween next year!

 

[smashweights]

Appreciate the response! And yeah, might be a moot point if I can get all I need. I'd expect a full day at work would be nearly 40kWh since I usually hit my charge limit about 1-2 hours before I'm heading home so about 120kWh total over 3 days would seem plausible and leave a minimal amount of weekly charging for home. I just wasn't sure if there was something else to tweak as Rivian's interface isn't always the most intuitive to find all the settings and adjustments.

Just ensuring all my volts have CONSUMMATE V's. That is critical for proper charging!

 

[iansriv]

@smashweights, welcome to the family! Did you take the job because you had a Rivian or you got the Rivian because you had a job with free charging (j/k)? Like prior posts, I wouldn't put too much thought into this as long as you're getting enough charge to cover your daily use. I dont see huge issues with charging to 90% for weekend use as long as it's respectful to other users.

Between my solar at home and free charging and biking to work on good days, I'm living large with my R1. All the best mate.

 

[beatle]

Yes, the EVSE is probably fed with 208v. Rivian's charge stats are annoying since they never show the voltage or amperage, making it more difficult to troubleshoot things out of the ordinary. The app/truck reports energy going into the battery, not into the charger, so that's always less than the expected input since chargers are not 100% efficient. I have no idea why they won't show the volts/amps.

I charged my Model Ses to 90% daily, no problem. Charging to 100% isn't a problem either as long as you're not letting it sit there for days. Trogdor would approve.

 

[Time2Roll]

Yes probably 208 supply and in addition voltage could be sagging a bit due to how the Chargepoint was installed. 6100 watts /32 amps implies 190 volts to the vehicle. No actual harm in this, just a fraction less energy.

My work charging is about the same although we have 240v that seems to sag to about 200 due to limited wire available and running at the maximum circuit capacity. We have four sharing the same feeder. The wattage drops a little every time an additional EV connects. When the fourth connects they all drop to 25 amps as part of the load sharing. I feel your pain.

I would not charge to 90%+ unless needed to get through a normal weekend. Nothing better than coming in on Monday with 20 miles and returning home on Friday at 80%.

 

[Aardvark]

First of all having a question as a new EV owner doesn't make you "dumb." If that were the case, the combined IQ of this forum would be that of a doorstop.
So a couple things here...
- By code, the continuous output of the device can't exceed 80% of the breaker rating. That's why you see a 32 A output on your company's 40 A circuit. (A 50 A circuit would have 40 A output)
- As stated by others, most commercial EVSE use the 3-phase, 208 Volt setup. This is common if you charge at a hotel, for example. So 208 V x 32 A = 6.7 kW. This is in line with the 6.1 kW you are seeing.
- The truck also has protection features. If it senses an excessive drop in voltage, it will reduce the current draw. That's not the case here, but just a data point for future reference. I see this a lot at campgrounds with old sockets exposed to the elements.
- Based on your description and photo, I think everything is working as advertised.

Congratulations on your new R1, and welcome!

 

[smashweights]

Yes probably 208 supply and in addition voltage could be sagging a bit due to how the Chargepoint was installed. 6100 watts /32 amps implies 190 volts to the vehicle. No actual harm in this, just a fraction less energy.

My work charging is about the same although we have 240v that seems to sag to about 200 due to limited wire available and running at the maximum circuit capacity. We have four sharing the same feeder. The wattage drops a little every time an additional EV connects. When the fourth connects they all drop to 25 amps as part of the load sharing. I feel your pain.

I would not charge to 90%+ unless needed to get through a normal weekend. Nothing better than coming in on Monday with 20 miles and returning home on Friday at 80%.

I only work W/Th/F so I'd need the charge to last leaving work Friday evening to arriving Wednesday morning to avoid any home charging. Might be doable time will tell.

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