Thanks for stopping by guys! Had to watch this edit from inside my tent in Buena Vista! Once we get the error message dealt with let's for for round two!
Wow, so first off, in the trade we call that a suicide cord. You NEVER want to be able to energize a male-pronged plug. They make actual generator inlets and cords that aren’t hard to find. Many people aren’t very electrical savvy, and if they unplug that “generator cord” while the truck (or any generator for that matter) is outputting 240V, they’re going to have a really bad time.
Agreed. Nobody should ever install a system that requires a double sided male cord. Even if you think you know how to get this to work, it’s not safe! What happens when you are not home and your family member decides to give it a try, then kills themselves? Bad idea. Instead wire the household inlet receptacle to be male pronged, and use a cord with a male and female end to power the house. same cost, just a smarter design. Get an electrician involved, even just to double check the work.
Yes they do those cords here and input the other end into the dryer outlet if they don't have a panel. It's a big no no, illegal and voids your house insurance if something happens. This guy has just a fair setup. Proper generator cords don't need to be fabricated no you buy them at the hardware store.
Yes, we call them suicide cords in Sweden to. They're kinda standard for builders who want to backfeed a group while building. Stupid and dangerous but it works.
I was generator mechanic and worked 8 years at company that repaired and built generator and transfer switch control boards. Proper way is to have transfer switch with second breaker panel with all the load you need to run on generator so your not back feeding main. It's not true that inverter generators are cleaner signwave. They produce bad harmonics. Best generators are older copper and iron generator.
Needs a floating neutral, the hot leads are interchangeable. With that type of generator plugin, the power company neutral is still connected, and the neutral line is a GROUNDED line (not to be confused with a GROUDING line, aka the green ground line). You need to decouple the ground from neutral, and disconnect the power company neutral. Usually the easiest way is with a transfer switch.
Absolutely correct. They should have a licensed residential electrician doing this. The Ford is always going to protect itself before trying to apply power that way 🤦♂️
Bingo, this has been discussed on F-150 forums and they recommend getting a transfer switch that can disconnect the ground on one end, or if using an interlock, remove the connection at the inlet. It isn’t difficult and you can still maintain safe operation.
"we'll have to figure it out and continue this video" you guys are doing a great job. you record the failures and over come them instead of hiding it. gotta hand it to your son also, when he blew the bead off the tire and lost his cool, he's a meme now.... and HAS TO BE A GOOD SPORT to let that be the default for 'stuff isn't going right'. great camera work, massive amounts of editing, narration, just a great job all the way around. thanks for putting so much effort into your channel !
Great video. No one else is actually showing how-to or trying to connect the F150 to a house like a generator is connected. All other channels just use single 110Vac plug connections.
@@Ornelas11B And it was the second Defender tire popped on a sharp rock, hence the extreme reaction. They had already dealt with one, and when the second one went, there was no spare. Had to leave the vehicle in the wild overnight.
The problem with powering from the truck is likely that the neutral and ground are bonded in the truck AS WELL as in the house. Neutral and ground should only be bonded once. His generator (which works with the house) is likely unbonded. The bonding of the neutral and ground in the truck is correct and proper for powering tools in the field but not good for powering the house which is already bonded. There needs to be a way to unbond the neutral and ground in the truck for it to power the house.
I think the truck is very smart that it detects the bonded (neutral and ground connection) house load. Most generators that do have a bonded connection just start up and power a house from a 30 amp receptacle although it would be unsafe to do so. I like that the truck figures out the unsafe situation and shuts itself down. Super smart truck! It seams that the 30 amp 240 colt receptacle on the truck is gfci.
Possibly stupid question, but given that the house neutral is bonded to ground (and a very good ground on the house side), if you are using interlocked breakers that pass through the house neutral, wouldn't it be easier to not connect the truck ground to the house ground? Then the truck would not "see" what it thinks is a ground fault. The truck's "ground" is only its own chassis anyway so not that great of a ground. Wouldn't it be better for users of the house circuits to rely on the house's earth ground? Then the truck is effectively acting as a floating neutral generator to the house, while still providing a ground to anything else that might be plugged into it. Unless the truck is standing in saltwater up to the metal bits there shouldn't be continuity between house and truck grounds, which it would then see as a ground fault.
@@Aaaaa69999 no, but close. The house main has to be bonded. He could do it at the house receptacle tho, disconnect the ground and jump it to the house copper ground rod, should be near by.
I am a master electrician and now I work as a professional electrical inspector. I could get this set up to work in about three minutes but it would not be code compliant. The current house outlet connection is not code compliant. I have thought about it and I believe the best way to fix it would be an Isolation transformer between the truck and the house. That way the house could stay grounded through the ground rods but yet get power from the truck without showing a ground fault. You could put in a switch that breaks the neutral but You would still have a grounding issue. Good luck guys I love your videos. I will probably show this video to some of my continuing education classes for electricians.
For working on electronic stuff years ago I used an isotap transformer. It isolates the equipment from the ground so if the equipment does not have a regular ground you can't get the feedback and get shocked. If a person were to make one to place between the truck and the house, I'm not sure, but that should work so the ground fault message goes away. Keep up with the great content guys. PS I'm not an electrician, just someone that had schooling on the old picture tube TVs.
Homeowner was on the right track. The house has the ground and neutrals bonded somewhere (either the panel or the meter, believe most are at the panel if that’s where your main breaker is) but the generator is probably also a bonded neutral. In effect the panel looks like a short between the neutral and ground to the truck. Maybe the manual indicates if the truck is a floating neutral or bonded neutral. Since it would be a standalone (job site) power it is probably bonded. You could also check with a meter is there is continuity between the neutral and ground at the plug. Not sure what is legal code to fix, but they do sell switched neutral transfer switches and many portable generators can be modified to floating neutral if only used to power a home. Maybe modifying the cable somehow?
Ya that's it. Most generators have a grounding post.... And one should drive a metal pipe into the dirt when working off grid. Where's the grounding post for the truck? The truck (frame) should connected the the house ground (and therefore actual earth ground) . So is the truck bonded or unboned? The way it's acting.... Seems that it's bonded but also tests for an external bond and throws an alarm if detects one. If there was a setting in the truck to unbond the ground, I assume it work just start working, and it would be safe as the truck and house ground would have a solid connection through the cable, and a solid connection to actual earth.
Not sufficient nor is it required. The subpanel still sees the bonding in the main panel unless you switch the neutral, and it is possible to switch the neutral without a subpanel.
Please keep us updated I’m planning on taking delivery of a powerboost lariat in the next cpl of weeks and plan on using it to run the house in an emergency situation. Great info so far
Disconnect the ground(earth) wire in your cable. It might not be the safest thing, but it will work for demonstration purposes. The truck doesn’t like the ground and neutral being connected together, so if you disconnect ground, it will just blindly send power into the panel. It would likely be safe enough since the outlets in your house are grounded.
No the house ground wouldn't do anything because it has absolutely no reference to the trucks ground so if a pipe became live it would stay that way for example. However the house was fine prior to plugging in so for a small demonstration I really can't see an issue just to try the setup out.
Love your channel. You guys always do real world testing. One of the most honest channel in RUclips when it comes to cars and trucks. Please keep up the good work.
I really enjoy when the homeowner is explaining at 17:10 about the panel. Then the camera pans over to Roman and implys do you have anything to add to this conversation? And then pans back to the homeowner. Comedic genius
Excellent video. I’m glad to see you partner with Justin. I watch his channel regularly doing the S&R videos. I’ll probably never own an electric truck, but the generator idea is great!! And his wiring advice was spot on too. Plus, it’s hard to beat a good wood stove to provide heat in winter. Go get him a load of firewood in that blue truck. 🤠
I’m sure the F150 has a GFCI protected outlet. “Some portable generators are intended for use on jobsites, and therefore are subject to OSHA regulations for GFCI protection on all receptacles. These "contractor grade" generators have their neutral wire bonded to the ground wire to pass OSHA inspection on job sites. Since home and building main load centers also have the neutral bonded to ground, a loop is created, comprised of the neutral wire and the ground wire. A small amount of current is induced in this loop by the running generator. and since the neutral wire passes through the ground fault sensor, the GFCI senses this induced current and trips the main circuit breaker in the generator.” So I’m sure that’s why the F150 sensed a ground fault, and also why transfer switches from Reliance and others say they can’t be used with generators with GCFI protected outlets. Although Honda and others have letters on how to separate the ground and neutrals on their generators with GFCI protected outlets to allow it to work in such occasions when you want to use as house back up, but it won’t be OSHA certified for job site use after you do that.
I think F150 senses current flow over the ground wire. You can rewire your house up to new code, or install a isolation transformer with proper grounding. Which one is cost effective, I dont know tough
Did you guys try putting one of the "neutral tricking" plugs into another outlet in the truck? I recall you had to do that with the generator to charge an EV in previous videos.
It’s because the neutral and ground are not bonded at the panel. They are grounded. Run it through a transfer switch with a switched neatest and you will have no issue.
*The two wires he swapped were L1 and L2 and didn't matter.* Neutral and Ground were already correct. That truck might have a really sensitive ground fault circuit. Maybe that cord was damp or just no longer perfect. The generator just don't care
suicide cord are a really bad deal. your house panel should have the neutrals and grounds bonded at that panel. If they arent its a problem. the principle behind GFCI is they check to see if the load is balanced from the hots to the neutral and makes sure they are the same. If not the GFCI sense that current is going somewhere else besides the source it came from. I suspect that the truck knows that the neutral its still connected to the utility and current could return on the utility neutral which is also bonded to the ground rod at the meter. Generators dont have GFCI protection on the 240v plug so it wont detect that. You may have to install a transfer switch that also disconnects the utility neutral making the truck a separately derived system. Other issue could be Ford having the ground and neutral bonded at the truck which Is a requirement of construction generators. Normal generators don't have this don't from the factory. If that's the case you would need to seperate the grounds and neutrals in the house and that's a big no no for that panel. You could add a sub panel in the house that is your emergency panel for the truck. A sub panels has to have the grounds and neutrals seperated.
That should be a sub panel unless meter is directly behind that panel. Ive never put lateral from a meter can directly into interior of home. I cant remember if there are knockouts in the back of a meter can. They are only on the bottom and sides if i remember correctly. Maybe they didnt take out the bonding screw from the inside panel. The outside panel also has a bonding screw that is to be used by NEC code, inside panel should be removed.
@@thomaslongoria439 pretty much every house service here in Oklahoma and Texas has the meter outside and panel inside with just the 2 hots and neutral between them. No disconnect outside. Panel has branch circuit grounds and neutrals bonded inside the panel. GEC bonded to the neutral in the meter and down to the rod. I'd bet $100 internet dollars that's how his is too.
For charging an EV you need a bonded neutral in the generator. (You found this out in your previous series and addressed with the dongle). To power the house you need an “un bonded” or floating neutral in the generator, which is how the Honda gen is setup from the factory. I wonder if you can do this on the Ford?
I been a RAM girl forever can't believe I'm saying this BUT after watching YOUR informative video I'm thinking about getting this truck. Thank YOU for the video
From the owners manual Grounding Types HEV Neutral bonded: The neutral of the inverter generator is bonded to system ground. Connecting loads that also have neutral bonded to ground will cause the ground fault detection to trip. Note: If additional grounding measures are required, consult with a qualified electrician.
When he said 3600 watts for a small shop vac LOL. Thats how much a 220v electric stove pulls. The only thing I can think of that uses 120v and 30amps is an RV connection with 10AWG wire.
With all the violent storms that keep happening our power grids are all vulnerable. We should all have a backup plan!!! This video should be watched by everyone with a house. Thank you TFL. 🔦
Except for that double male-ended power cord, called a "suicide cord" by some other viewers here in the comments section. Makes for an extremely easy way to potentially deliver a serious (or worse) shock.
I'd keep the gas powered truck over the all electric if your in a situation where you will frequently rely on your truck as a generator/backup power. Sure a few days from a battery truck is great... But what if you need to both drive for supplies and power your home. Once the battery is dead, your pooched.at least you can top up the gas (and keep a couple Jerry cans on standby. Plus it's far cheaper to setup and own. Either way props to Ford for the whole idea. Tradesmen, remote home owners and rv'ers are probably thanking you. Hopefully other manufacturers start rolling out their own too.
Each end of the power cord should be the mirror image of each other. BUT the two hots of a 220V circuit are interchangeable, so they don't matter. You need a bonding plug to make the truck happy. A jury rigged plug that bonds the ground to the neutral. Didn't y'all do this once before?
Actually that setup is against the electrical code. A proper to code set up is to use a generator input with a plug and socket cord. A generator input has a plug, not a socket. It's what I have on my house, the inlet is in a waterproof box outside where I run the generator using a 25' factory made generator cord.
@@acdii He said that it was made 20 years ago, and at the time I'm going to guess it was up to code! (Definitely not safe with the exposed terminals on the end of the cable though)!
Aside from neutral bonding stuffs, I noticed that 30A extension cord is equipped with male connectors on both ends. That is very dangerous. Should be male to female to prevent expose live contacts. The wall receptacle for 220V should be a male for transfer power input.
at 11:48 I doubt swapping the two hots will fix that issue ... the ground the truck is expecting is internal but your ground is to earth. I am surprised stuff did not blow with the power on ... is that lockout working ... this is very odd
@@yeahdude1986 that’s it! Yeah got on a service call because somebody hooked up one of these at a memory loss clinic. And only made the cord long enough that the generator had to be ran inside the electrical room… it was bad
You need to disconnect the ground wire in the cable. The house has its own earth ground so it’s not necessary. Having both wires connected is pointless anyway because the neutral and ground are bonding inside the breaker panel. The truck is sensing a short between the neutral and ground which would be dangerous on an appliance, but not on a house with an earth ground. Your guy is on the right track though.
I used to have that same interlock backup system for my house when I built it. Great for what it was, but major pain in the ass to wheel out and setup for a 10min outage. I now have solar and Tesla Powerwall with its gateway. Waaay more convenient than the old generator hookup and so long as the sun is shining I’m powered indefinitely with no sound or emissions.
I'm glad you showed this. Companies act like it's as easy as buy a car and plug into your house. First you need a way TO plug in. Then make sure it actually works. Could be thousands over just buying a car. Always test! Would hate to think you are covered and when you need it .. it doesn't work
The video was great, I have this interlock transfer switch on my home panel and use a generator during black outs. I was really surprised the truck wouldn't power the home and great video!
The cables are available at Lowe’s, Home Depot, etc. They come in 30A or 50A models, depending on the output of your generator, fuse panel, house needs, etc.
My question is for the the Lightning which basically has the same setup battery wise. If you are out in the middle of nowhere and you're powering an RV with it, how much is it going to use and how much is left at the end of your camping trip? Are you going to have enough to get back home? Same thing for powering a home. If you're out of electric for 3 or 4 days or a week and you've been powering your home, what happens when you need to go get supplies and you're out of battery power?
I remember hearing that the Lightning can determine how much power you need to get home and will not allow you to draw more than that from the onboard outlets.
What if you're 400 miles from home? What if roads are closed and you have to reroute? What if the chargers it routes you too are not working, which seems to be the case a lot? Lots of unknowns it seems. Don't get me wrong, I like the idea of electric but where I am there are very few chargers. Only one public charger that's a slow one and according to the interwebs only one or two others at hotels. Where I live, you don't normally do 20 mille stints like most tend to make you believe. And chargers few and far between, it makes planning a trip a little much. But maybe one day...
I did want to address the suicide cable real quick. Yes...they are dangerous. The Honda parallel kits for their smaller generators are also suicide cables. You have to have some common sense in life, something that is missing, to use it. The interlock on the house prevents power from going down the cable at all, so you want to plug that into the house first. Then plug it into your generator and start it. Which we did exactly that in the video. Is it the 100% right way to do it? No. But a little common sense goes a long way in life.
While I am all for common sense, I suspect your insurance company isn’t! Everything else is done correctly, why not use the correct inlet and extension cord? Most suicide cords are made to use a dryer or range outlet as an inlet, with NO interlock or safety protection, in a pinch. Your system seems pretty well thought out, and perhaps even professionally installed, except for that one last minor, yet very important detail. Spend $50 and guarantee someone won’t accidentally electrocute themself man!
Is there a follow-on to this yet? The F150 manual says the truck is “bonded neutral”. The house is too. The problem is that the neutral and ground wires are in parallel, with current flowing in each. By definition that is a ground fault. I’m prepping my house and think I need a 3 pole transfer switch (General or Reliance). My F150 is to be built in November so I have nothing to test it with. Would be great if you can demonstrate the “code-compliant” solution.
Also, NEMA requirement is to have one location where ground and neutral are bonded. This can only be done at one location, usually at main breaker. Most portable generators are neutral bonded due to the assumption that the generator is the main source. Having two bonded locations may cause the ground to go live.
At 11:50 Don't need anything but the Powerboost hybrid. Think of it; a hybrid solution that can power the truck and house with unlimited power as long as you refill your tank. I like the hybrid option more than the full EV option until they can figure out the batteries and charging speed and availability.
Plot twist: The truck says "ground fault" but the truck was actually detecting "faulty ground" and the house is built on a giant sink hole and could collapse at any moment and the truck was warning them.
I have not heard Ford say that the powerboost could power a house, but I have heard them advertise the electric F150 can power a house with the correct charger installed. These guys have the wrong truck. The power boost can power tools at a work site or recreational appliances.
Cool watching this video, seeing how they have the house interrupt, then at 18:00 into it, I noticed that I have the same shirt as Roman that I just bought a few days ago.
Keep in mind, that if you Use a 50 AMP Plug, along with a 50 Amp Connection in the House (instead of a 30 Amp), it allows you to use Both legs of the Onboard Generator equally, allowing more efficient Power use.
I can see a lot of uses for the inverter in the truck, and it would work great in a pinch to power a house during an outage. But I can't say I'd rely on one to power the house during long outages. Having spent four days without power (along with 800,000 others here in the Mitten State about two weeks ago), I finally got a chance to run the inverter I bought back in 2019. I have no need to run the AC (two out of four days, yeah...we had hot/humid weather, but the other two were nice enough to have the windows open). But our needs were taken care of by a Honda EG2800i inverter. It ran fans, coffee maker, electric tea pot (a salute to Roman 😁), microwave, refrigerator, dishwasher, and in the winter it can run the blower in the furnace. It also ran all of our lamps in the evening (all LED), the TVs (same), numerous chargers, and my network shelf with router, switches, and cable modem. Since we ran it from extension cords (10 gauge to the house, 12 gauge to each room), we couldn't use the stove. (If we stay here, we'll get a transfer switch installed.) So, the EG2800i ran our necessities for four days straight. It is rated at 2,800 watts peak, 2,500 watts under constant load. Most appliances are not running continuously, so the inverter/generator runs at a lower speed most of the time. (The EG2800i and other Honda inverters use an Eco mode to run them at a lower speed until a load is detected.) Because of that, I could run the inverter for about 18 hours, filling up the inverter's tank with 2.2 gallons of gas. So that works out to 3 gallons per day. Meanwhile, my neighbors running their old generators were fueling up a lot more often, and making enough noise to drown out my inverter, since theirs have to run full bore 24/7. (With "dirty" power that is NOT safe for electronics!) Here are reasons I'd prefer to hang onto an inverter for long-term use in home emergencies: 1) Placement. I can roll the inverter anywhere around the house, and safely away from it to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning. I can't maneuver a truck or any vehicle into the backyard or alongside the house, where I would run power into the house. 2) I'd be without a vehicle while it's connected to the house. Many households have two adults and own two daily drivers--either someone has to stay home and lose a day at work (many can't work from home), or the home can only be powered when the truck is in the driveway (which risks losing anything stored in the refrigerator or freezer). And it leaves the home without an inverter if the truck were away on a road trip. 3) Refueling. I'm not particularly fond of carrying or storing large 5-gallon gas containers (not with arthritis, anyways--kinda takes the fun out of life). I can handle filling my inverter with a 2-gallon container once or twice a day. I'd prefer to drive the truck to refill it with gas. 4) For smaller homes, a smaller inverter might use less fuel. (One helpful test for TFLTruck might be to run only 100-200 watts off of the inverter for 24 hours and see how much fuel it uses.) 5) The inverter will be with me forever, and is a one-time cost; the truck will get replaced, and who's to say someone owning a truck today will want one next time, or buy a new truck but change to a model or brand that doesn't offer the inverter? (I'm speaking more of using the truck's inverter as a long-term solution for powering a home, not for all of its other uses such as job sites, RVs, etc., where it's a revolutionary idea.) Just some food for thought...
Not in FL, ground and neutral are only bonded at first disconnect point, which is the power meter, breaker panel inside the house have separate grounds and neutrals
The bonding occurring in the meter housing or in the distribution panel is irrelevant. They're bonded regardless, and apparently, the truck won't like it.
he is using what is known as a suicide cord with male prongs in both ends. Doing as you suggest would energize the bare prongs on the other end of the cord.. and be extremely dangerous.
@@stevewhitsett7744 Common sense would dictate not touching the end with your hand while it's plugged in, but I see your point. I have experience with it that they don't.
Watching this video was reminiscent of Geraldo Rivera opening Al Capones vault. It proved that a simple external generator does a better job than using a truck to power your house. It sounds good in theory, however… Stick with what works.
Most places won't go to hell on the sort of timescales we're talking(unless it's truly widespread, like a CME or cyber attack and it becomes obvious quickly it's widespread). I say this as a guy who thinks there's a general purpose use for something like a AR-15.
@@Swordsman52 in an extended power failure, like a few days or more, human scum start cruising around looking for unattended generators. Then they sell them at the home depot parking lot or Craigslist in a couple hours. I've been through multiple, multiple day power failures. The generator is kept behind the house, out of sight of the street, and is chained to the house for good measure.
I suspect the ground from the car does not connect to the ground in the panel. Fault in the cord or the power inlet box. Also while they fix this they should replace the inlet box with a male connection and replace one end of the cord with a female end for safety. Get advice from an electrician too.
@@jnuechte he has the tools to do a simple continuity test which would tell him if the trucks neutral and ground are bonded. I’m sure a google search could tell too. If it is bonded at the truck you may be right since the other tools worked as they are not bonded in the tool like it should be bonded in the house panel. If not bonded at the truck, I suspect faulty ground from truck to panel somewhere.
Good video. Will be looking for the resolution video in the future. I have a 7500 watt diesel generator in my RV and had wondered about being able to power my house. Instead, I decided to get a 22kw automatic standby generator installed, with auto transfer switch, connected by wifi that does it's own self diagnostics and exercising . All for $9000 installed and connected to my 1000 gal propane tank. Much less expensive than the truck!(LOL) But I like the truck and may consider getting one in the future. I'll wait to see how Andre's truck does over time. Thanks.
Diodes should fix the issue if it thinks current is going back to the generator. Now this has brought up a very good point about solar powered homes still on the grid. How does the power company shut that power down when working on lines?
In the comments I think Jarad was on to the problem. If desperate, I would have tried grounding the truck to the house ground rod, use jumper cables if nothing else available. If the house is equipped with GFIs, trip them or use the breaker(s) to isolate the circuits they are on. Finally if the truck still doesn’t reset, turn off ALL the individual CBS, if truck then resets, turn them on one at a time to see if there is a culprit. I realize this was just a test and the home owner may not be interested in turning his home into some kind test lab! Good luck!
So I’m an electrician and this is my take on it. So his idea with the panel being bonded is most likely correct. So if In fact his house panel is bonded then it is installed incorrectly. Every meter at your house is bonded (first means of disconnect) . So what we have here is a double bond since the house panel and the meter are bonded. That is bad. Now saying that ,running his generator into his house hurts nothing. And running his house how it is right now more than likely will never become a problem , only if there is a unbalanced load will he ever experience a problem with the double bonding. As for him re wiring the plug that was pointless as he just changed positions of the hots which dosent matter.
meter is not considered the first disconnect. The neutral bar in his panel must be bonded to the grounds. any sub panel fed from the panel will have the grounds and neutral separated. You should know this if you are an electrician read your code book again. 23 year master here btw.
@@FosterFarmsOk every meter on a home has a ground rod that goes in the ground outside then hits the meter. That’s where it’s bonded neutral and ground. From that point you either have a main outside that feeds inside or both inside. You do not bond the main panel in the home because that would be double bonding. You should know that.
The patch cord between the homeowner's generator and the garage outlet should not be male-to-male... Could easily be fixed be replacing the female (receptacle) in the garage with a male (plug) device... Then the patch cord would be male to female... Just sayin'
Maybe try this same test with someone who has a separate generator panel, installed by an electrician. It has a disconnect so you can switch between panels, which is the proper setup and no chance of sending electricity to the lineman on the grid. Another type they use up here in Canada is a plug adapter into the meter itself which automatically disconnects from the grid. This guy sounds like he knows his stuff, but I dare say something is wonky with this setup. At my house I have a single disconnect circuit for my oil furnace, which is 110v and 600 watts or so. So not much load on the generator to heat my whole house continuously until my oil tank runs out. And much cheaper to do that switch than an entire generator panel which is thousands.
I don't think that would solve it since the main is still a bond point. A GFCI has a lead to ground so it can measure leakage between neutral and ground. It is sensing current via the neutral and ground through the cord, but it would be no different if there was a separate panel since the conduit connecting the panel is, if installed to code, part of the bond. All ground flows from the furthest panel through the conduit between panels to the main, which is where the bonding between earth ground and utility neutral/ground happens. Where you get a ground fault is when the actual bond is broken between neutral and ground. It is quite possible that main panel has a bad bond, or is not bonded per code. If you install a 220 sub panel with a 3 conductor line, two hots and a neutral, and do not have a 4th ground wire connected to the panel, you have a potential shock hazard. You essentially have isolated the ground of that panel and anything wired to it, and say it is a furnace connected to it, and you have a damp floor, you could potentially become the ground between the furnace and ground by placing your hand on it. So no, connecting to a sub panel or "transfer switch" panel wont solve the ground fault issue.
@@acdii Yes we use oil furnaces on the east coast and my garage is dry. Damp floor? Yes my panel has gfci for washrooms and outdoor plugs. It only disconnects the furnace circuit on the breaker panel. Difference is my setup is legal to code. This is a dryer plug, with a dryer cord that has been modified to have 2 male ends. Maybe the GFCI was the issue here actually. Most generators have GFCI protection built in, and also this transfer switch has an additional 15 amp breaker, along with my hard wired breaker for the furnace. You guys in the south know nothing about actual winter conditions and generator setups. This video is proof of that. Two male end modified plug lol. Don't let the insurance companies see that around here. www.amazon.ca/Reliance-Controls-Corporation-TF151W-Generators/dp/B000HRWG8U
@@acdii The transfer switch is GFI protected. Which is what you need to make this setup work. "The only time you'll need a GFI transfer switch to connect the generator to your home, is if your generator is fully GFCI protected. Meaning, its 120/240-volt outlets are GFCI protected and without a GFI switch, it will create a ground loop and trip the circuit. "
Instead of spending $40K + on a truck that can power part of my home circuits, I spent $9K and had a 22kW Generac installed. Runs the entire home, including 240v circuits. I can run my central heat / air, electric dryer, oven, etc. I don't have to be home either, the Generac will sense a power outage and come on automatically.
14:35....is it really true, that men will not check a map, or in this case the owners manual?? could we actually solve this issue with reading the manual?? lolol it is telling them to read the manual after all. Justin might be right, perhaps the truck is perceiving the bonded circuits on that panel as an appliance that draws too much. I'm not sure.
Thanks to Keeps for sponsoring this video! Head to www.keeps.com/TFLTruck to get 50% off your first order of Keeps hair loss treatment.
Did you guys ever figure out solving that issue about not able to power the house due to faulty error?
They made Tomy into a meme, all on their own. TFL for sure reads the comments 😂👍
i spit out my tea when it popped up
Lmao what video is that?
@@aaleexsaalaazaar bronco vs wrangler vs defender misadventure
Loved that!
Bronco forums did it first (that I saw)
Thanks for stopping by guys! Had to watch this edit from inside my tent in Buena Vista! Once we get the error message dealt with let's for for round two!
That is awesome you let the guys use your house.
Mad respect for the Power Wagon.
I too am a Bedrocker (if you know, you know).
The coolest thing about this video was the Power Wagon Alas, we don't get it here in Dubai.
you lost your house because of these guys?
You got rid of your F-150 and they still used your house? With a Keep and a Dodge😄
JEEP and a Dodge
Wow, so first off, in the trade we call that a suicide cord. You NEVER want to be able to energize a male-pronged plug. They make actual generator inlets and cords that aren’t hard to find. Many people aren’t very electrical savvy, and if they unplug that “generator cord” while the truck (or any generator for that matter) is outputting 240V, they’re going to have a really bad time.
Agreed. Nobody should ever install a system that requires a double sided male cord. Even if you think you know how to get this to work, it’s not safe! What happens when you are not home and your family member decides to give it a try, then kills themselves? Bad idea. Instead wire the household inlet receptacle to be male pronged, and use a cord with a male and female end to power the house. same cost, just a smarter design. Get an electrician involved, even just to double check the work.
It would be an electrifying experience. Lol.
Yes they do those cords here and input the other end into the dryer outlet if they don't have a panel. It's a big no no, illegal and voids your house insurance if something happens. This guy has just a fair setup. Proper generator cords don't need to be fabricated no you buy them at the hardware store.
Yes, we call them suicide cords in Sweden to. They're kinda standard for builders who want to backfeed a group while building. Stupid and dangerous but it works.
I was generator mechanic and worked 8 years at company that repaired and built generator and transfer switch control boards. Proper way is to have transfer switch with second breaker panel with all the load you need to run on generator so your not back feeding main. It's not true that inverter generators are cleaner signwave. They produce bad harmonics. Best generators are older copper and iron generator.
Needs a floating neutral, the hot leads are interchangeable. With that type of generator plugin, the power company neutral is still connected, and the neutral line is a GROUNDED line (not to be confused with a GROUDING line, aka the green ground line). You need to decouple the ground from neutral, and disconnect the power company neutral. Usually the easiest way is with a transfer switch.
I was surprised there wasn't a transfer switch. I thought that was code, but maybe it's not.
Absolutely correct. They should have a licensed residential electrician doing this. The Ford is always going to protect itself before trying to apply power that way 🤦♂️
I was shocked that this useful comment didn't get TFL's reply.
I suspect this is the right answer. The interlock usually meets code, but doesn't switch the neutral.
Bingo, this has been discussed on F-150 forums and they recommend getting a transfer switch that can disconnect the ground on one end, or if using an interlock, remove the connection at the inlet. It isn’t difficult and you can still maintain safe operation.
"I'm not an electrician" But I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night!
"we'll have to figure it out and continue this video" you guys are doing a great job. you record the failures and over come them instead of hiding it. gotta hand it to your son also, when he blew the bead off the tire and lost his cool, he's a meme now.... and HAS TO BE A GOOD SPORT to let that be the default for 'stuff isn't going right'. great camera work, massive amounts of editing, narration, just a great job all the way around. thanks for putting so much effort into your channel !
What video was it where tommy blew the tire?
@@adamada101 the Bronco vs Wrangler vs Defender video on tfl offroad
Great video. No one else is actually showing how-to or trying to connect the F150 to a house like a generator is connected.
All other channels just use single 110Vac plug connections.
Option was already available on the diesel.
@@houseofdiesel That's an inverter, right? Like most cars have today. Not an inverter generator.
The tommy meme freaking out when he popped a tire is gold! 😂🤣😆
What episode was that?
@@Ornelas11B couple weeks ago when they were off-roading the bronco , Land Rover, and wrangler 4xe
@@Ornelas11B And it was the second Defender tire popped on a sharp rock, hence the extreme reaction. They had already dealt with one, and when the second one went, there was no spare. Had to leave the vehicle in the wild overnight.
Nobody said it was on The Fast Lane Off Road channel. I didn’t know about the channel. Just found it. Thanks lol
The problem with powering from the truck is likely that the neutral and ground are bonded in the truck AS WELL as in the house. Neutral and ground should only be bonded once. His generator (which works with the house) is likely unbonded. The bonding of the neutral and ground in the truck is correct and proper for powering tools in the field but not good for powering the house which is already bonded. There needs to be a way to unbond the neutral and ground in the truck for it to power the house.
I think the truck is very smart that it detects the bonded (neutral and ground connection) house load. Most generators that do have a bonded connection just start up and power a house from a 30 amp receptacle although it would be unsafe to do so. I like that the truck figures out the unsafe situation and shuts itself down. Super smart truck! It seams that the 30 amp 240 colt receptacle on the truck is gfci.
The first person to get it right! Congratulations!
its simple you remove the bonding jumper in the house panel
Possibly stupid question, but given that the house neutral is bonded to ground (and a very good ground on the house side), if you are using interlocked breakers that pass through the house neutral, wouldn't it be easier to not connect the truck ground to the house ground? Then the truck would not "see" what it thinks is a ground fault. The truck's "ground" is only its own chassis anyway so not that great of a ground. Wouldn't it be better for users of the house circuits to rely on the house's earth ground? Then the truck is effectively acting as a floating neutral generator to the house, while still providing a ground to anything else that might be plugged into it. Unless the truck is standing in saltwater up to the metal bits there shouldn't be continuity between house and truck grounds, which it would then see as a ground fault.
@@Aaaaa69999 no, but close. The house main has to be bonded. He could do it at the house receptacle tho, disconnect the ground and jump it to the house copper ground rod, should be near by.
I am a master electrician and now I work as a professional electrical inspector. I could get this set up to work in about three minutes but it would not be code compliant. The current house outlet connection is not code compliant. I have thought about it and I believe the best way to fix it would be an Isolation transformer between the truck and the house. That way the house could stay grounded through the ground rods but yet get power from the truck without showing a ground fault. You could put in a switch that breaks the neutral but You would still have a grounding issue. Good luck guys I love your videos. I will probably show this video to some of my continuing education classes for electricians.
Great video. Someone mentioned hiring an electrician. I'd recommend interviewing one. Thanks for doing this guys. It's very interesting.
For working on electronic stuff years ago I used an isotap transformer. It isolates the equipment from the ground so if the equipment does not have a regular ground you can't get the feedback and get shocked. If a person were to make one to place between the truck and the house, I'm not sure, but that should work so the ground fault message goes away. Keep up with the great content guys.
PS
I'm not an electrician, just someone that had schooling on the old picture tube TVs.
Homeowner was on the right track. The house has the ground and neutrals bonded somewhere (either the panel or the meter, believe most are at the panel if that’s where your main breaker is) but the generator is probably also a bonded neutral. In effect the panel looks like a short between the neutral and ground to the truck. Maybe the manual indicates if the truck is a floating neutral or bonded neutral. Since it would be a standalone (job site) power it is probably bonded. You could also check with a meter is there is continuity between the neutral and ground at the plug. Not sure what is legal code to fix, but they do sell switched neutral transfer switches and many portable generators can be modified to floating neutral if only used to power a home. Maybe modifying the cable somehow?
You should be able to float the ground and maybe bond it to a clean ground rod
Ya that's it. Most generators have a grounding post.... And one should drive a metal pipe into the dirt when working off grid. Where's the grounding post for the truck? The truck (frame) should connected the the house ground (and therefore actual earth ground) . So is the truck bonded or unboned? The way it's acting.... Seems that it's bonded but also tests for an external bond and throws an alarm if detects one. If there was a setting in the truck to unbond the ground, I assume it work just start working, and it would be safe as the truck and house ground would have a solid connection through the cable, and a solid connection to actual earth.
Real world testing! 👍👍
Tommy really stole the spot there. 😄😄😄😄
You have to install a sub panel right off main panel in which the ground and neutral are not bonded in sub panels.
Not sufficient nor is it required. The subpanel still sees the bonding in the main panel unless you switch the neutral, and it is possible to switch the neutral without a subpanel.
I was getting the same error on my 2.7 kw version.
They had to replace the big module in the bed wall (where the outlets are)
Now it works.
Was this change out done by a Ford authorised dealer or after market?
How was this done?
That outtake of Tommy saying F*cking Eh! Had me busting up! 🤣😂
It's Fukking "A". Not a Canadian thing at all.
The ability of the F150 to detect faults is great. On my F-150 it can detect when a marker light is out on my trailer and even which side it is.
This is why TFL is the best. You guys don’t just read off the press release, you guys really go out and do it.
Thank you
Please keep us updated I’m planning on taking delivery of a powerboost lariat in the next cpl of weeks and plan on using it to run the house in an emergency situation. Great info so far
Disconnect the ground(earth) wire in your cable. It might not be the safest thing, but it will work for demonstration purposes. The truck doesn’t like the ground and neutral being connected together, so if you disconnect ground, it will just blindly send power into the panel. It would likely be safe enough since the outlets in your house are grounded.
No the house ground wouldn't do anything because it has absolutely no reference to the trucks ground so if a pipe became live it would stay that way for example. However the house was fine prior to plugging in so for a small demonstration I really can't see an issue just to try the setup out.
I guess the moral of the story is to test everything out before you need to use the power, so things go smoothly when an emergency occurs.
Love your channel. You guys always do real world testing. One of the most honest channel in RUclips when it comes to cars and trucks. Please keep up the good work.
I think I need Tommy's outtake as a ringtone for my phone when certain relatives call me.
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
I really enjoy when the homeowner is explaining at 17:10 about the panel. Then the camera pans over to Roman and implys do you have anything to add to this conversation? And then pans back to the homeowner. Comedic genius
“F***in A!” -Tommy 😂😂
Excellent video. I’m glad to see you partner with Justin. I watch his channel regularly doing the S&R videos.
I’ll probably never own an electric truck, but the generator idea is great!! And his wiring advice was spot on too. Plus, it’s hard to beat a good wood stove to provide heat in winter.
Go get him a load of firewood in that blue truck. 🤠
I’m sure the F150 has a GFCI protected outlet. “Some portable generators are intended for use on jobsites, and therefore are subject to OSHA regulations for GFCI protection on all receptacles. These "contractor grade" generators have their neutral wire bonded to the ground wire to pass OSHA inspection on job sites. Since home and building main load centers also have the neutral bonded to ground, a loop is created, comprised of the neutral wire and the ground wire. A small amount of current is induced in this loop by the running generator. and since the neutral wire passes through the ground fault sensor, the GFCI senses this induced current and trips the main circuit breaker in the generator.” So I’m sure that’s why the F150 sensed a ground fault, and also why transfer switches from Reliance and others say they can’t be used with generators with GCFI protected outlets. Although Honda and others have letters on how to separate the ground and neutrals on their generators with GFCI protected outlets to allow it to work in such occasions when you want to use as house back up, but it won’t be OSHA certified for job site use after you do that.
I think F150 senses current flow over the ground wire. You can rewire your house up to new code, or install a isolation transformer with proper grounding. Which one is cost effective, I dont know tough
Did you guys try putting one of the "neutral tricking" plugs into another outlet in the truck? I recall you had to do that with the generator to charge an EV in previous videos.
They forgot to bring the younger kid who understands this stuff.
Nice Tommy meme. LOL. It was meme worthy.
I just recently rented a 2020 superduty with the 6.7.... I must say that I was really impressed. Ford has gained a customer back!
It’s because the neutral and ground are not bonded at the panel. They are grounded. Run it through a transfer switch with a switched neatest and you will have no issue.
Yes, natural with ground wire from electricity
Can you expound on how to do this. I bought a transfer switch and still get a ground fault error
*The two wires he swapped were L1 and L2 and didn't matter.*
Neutral and Ground were already correct.
That truck might have a really sensitive ground fault circuit. Maybe that cord was damp or just no longer perfect.
The generator just don't care
Maybe try a GFCI line crd, a GFI cord, or maybe a solar battery as a buffer between the house and truck.
“F**ckin A”😳🤣🤣………..that was funny shit when Tommy caught that second flat in the discovery! 👌🏽
suicide cord are a really bad deal. your house panel should have the neutrals and grounds bonded at that panel. If they arent its a problem. the principle behind GFCI is they check to see if the load is balanced from the hots to the neutral and makes sure they are the same. If not the GFCI sense that current is going somewhere else besides the source it came from. I suspect that the truck knows that the neutral its still connected to the utility and current could return on the utility neutral which is also bonded to the ground rod at the meter. Generators dont have GFCI protection on the 240v plug so it wont detect that. You may have to install a transfer switch that also disconnects the utility neutral making the truck a separately derived system. Other issue could be Ford having the ground and neutral bonded at the truck which Is a requirement of construction generators. Normal generators don't have this don't from the factory. If that's the case you would need to seperate the grounds and neutrals in the house and that's a big no no for that panel. You could add a sub panel in the house that is your emergency panel for the truck. A sub panels has to have the grounds and neutrals seperated.
That should be a sub panel unless meter is directly behind that panel. Ive never put lateral from a meter can directly into interior of home. I cant remember if there are knockouts in the back of a meter can. They are only on the bottom and sides if i remember correctly. Maybe they didnt take out the bonding screw from the inside panel. The outside panel also has a bonding screw that is to be used by NEC code, inside panel should be removed.
@@thomaslongoria439 pretty much every house service here in Oklahoma and Texas has the meter outside and panel inside with just the 2 hots and neutral between them. No disconnect outside. Panel has branch circuit grounds and neutrals bonded inside the panel. GEC bonded to the neutral in the meter and down to the rod. I'd bet $100 internet dollars that's how his is too.
Can't wait to see part 2.
Tommy screaming F**&%ng A is hilarious. I felt his pain watching that episode when the defender blew the second tire.
For charging an EV you need a bonded neutral in the generator. (You found this out in your previous series and addressed with the dongle). To power the house you need an “un bonded” or floating neutral in the generator, which is how the Honda gen is setup from the factory. I wonder if you can do this on the Ford?
I been a RAM girl forever can't believe I'm saying this BUT after watching YOUR informative video I'm thinking about getting this truck. Thank YOU for the video
From the owners manual
Grounding Types
HEV Neutral bonded: The neutral of the inverter generator is bonded to system ground. Connecting loads that also have neutral bonded to ground will cause the ground fault detection to trip.
Note: If additional grounding measures are required, consult with a qualified electrician.
For a mobile detailer this truck just makes sense
When he said 3600 watts for a small shop vac LOL. Thats how much a 220v electric stove pulls. The only thing I can think of that uses 120v and 30amps is an RV connection with 10AWG wire.
Lol disconnect the ground on the cable I bet it would work
Hire an electrician. Best advice.
A heavy gage 100ft-extension cord to power the essentials in a home is the work around, until the home owner fixes the ground issues. Great video TFL!
With all the violent storms that keep happening our power grids are all vulnerable. We should all have a backup plan!!! This video should be watched by everyone with a house. Thank you TFL. 🔦
This guy has done his homework. Not an electrician but knows enough to fool me.
Except for that double male-ended power cord, called a "suicide cord" by some other viewers here in the comments section. Makes for an extremely easy way to potentially deliver a serious (or worse) shock.
I'd keep the gas powered truck over the all electric if your in a situation where you will frequently rely on your truck as a generator/backup power. Sure a few days from a battery truck is great... But what if you need to both drive for supplies and power your home. Once the battery is dead, your pooched.at least you can top up the gas (and keep a couple Jerry cans on standby. Plus it's far cheaper to setup and own. Either way props to Ford for the whole idea. Tradesmen, remote home owners and rv'ers are probably thanking you. Hopefully other manufacturers start rolling out their own too.
Each end of the power cord should be the mirror image of each other. BUT the two hots of a 220V circuit are interchangeable, so they don't matter. You need a bonding plug to make the truck happy. A jury rigged plug that bonds the ground to the neutral. Didn't y'all do this once before?
Enough with the “y’all”!
There ain’t nothing wrong with y’all
I was thinking the same thing, based off charging a Tesla with the F150 - video
Actually that setup is against the electrical code. A proper to code set up is to use a generator input with a plug and socket cord. A generator input has a plug, not a socket. It's what I have on my house, the inlet is in a waterproof box outside where I run the generator using a 25' factory made generator cord.
@@acdii He said that it was made 20 years ago, and at the time I'm going to guess it was up to code! (Definitely not safe with the exposed terminals on the end of the cable though)!
Hahaha that Tommy "f-ing a" clip insert from the defender tire blow killed me haha that should be the standard from now on!
Aside from neutral bonding stuffs, I noticed that 30A extension cord is equipped with male connectors on both ends. That is very dangerous. Should be male to female to prevent expose live contacts. The wall receptacle for 220V should be a male for transfer power input.
Is there any update on getting this to work? Winter is coming 😉.
at 11:48 I doubt swapping the two hots will fix that issue ... the ground the truck is expecting is internal but your ground is to earth. I am surprised stuff did not blow with the power on ... is that lockout working ... this is very odd
just about fell out of my chair laughing when you put that clip of Tommy in the defender. 😂
Just FYI that cord you got with two male ends can potentially be really dangerous!
It’s called a suicide cord. Lol
@@yeahdude1986 that’s it! Yeah got on a service call because somebody hooked up one of these at a memory loss clinic. And only made the cord long enough that the generator had to be ran inside the electrical room… it was bad
Main meter Netural with ground wire to truck from electricity
You need to disconnect the ground wire in the cable. The house has its own earth ground so it’s not necessary. Having both wires connected is pointless anyway because the neutral and ground are bonding inside the breaker panel. The truck is sensing a short between the neutral and ground which would be dangerous on an appliance, but not on a house with an earth ground. Your guy is on the right track though.
Do you disconnect ground from both plugs or just one side of the plug? I’m assuming both.
I used to have that same interlock backup system for my house when I built it. Great for what it was, but major pain in the ass to wheel out and setup for a 10min outage. I now have solar and Tesla Powerwall with its gateway. Waaay more convenient than the old generator hookup and so long as the sun is shining I’m powered indefinitely with no sound or emissions.
I hope you have a short winter where you are
Love that they're now using the Tommy meme in their own videos.
It is easy enough to check if the neutral and ground in the truck are bonded. Just check for continuity with a multimeter.
I'm glad you showed this. Companies act like it's as easy as buy a car and plug into your house. First you need a way TO plug in. Then make sure it actually works. Could be thousands over just buying a car.
Always test! Would hate to think you are covered and when you need it .. it doesn't work
The video was great, I have this interlock transfer switch on my home panel and use a generator during black outs. I was really surprised the truck wouldn't power the home and great video!
If he had a transfer switch as you would have if you had a standby Generac generator, I don't think there would be a problem.
The cables are available at Lowe’s, Home Depot, etc. They come in 30A or 50A models, depending on the output of your generator, fuse panel, house needs, etc.
My question is for the the Lightning which basically has the same setup battery wise.
If you are out in the middle of nowhere and you're powering an RV with it, how much is it going to use and how much is left at the end of your camping trip? Are you going to have enough to get back home? Same thing for powering a home. If you're out of electric for 3 or 4 days or a week and you've been powering your home, what happens when you need to go get supplies and you're out of battery power?
I remember hearing that the Lightning can determine how much power you need to get home and will not allow you to draw more than that from the onboard outlets.
What if you're 400 miles from home? What if roads are closed and you have to reroute? What if the chargers it routes you too are not working, which seems to be the case a lot? Lots of unknowns it seems. Don't get me wrong, I like the idea of electric but where I am there are very few chargers. Only one public charger that's a slow one and according to the interwebs only one or two others at hotels. Where I live, you don't normally do 20 mille stints like most tend to make you believe. And chargers few and far between, it makes planning a trip a little much. But maybe one day...
@@glbennett66 I would assume Ford has instructions for someone that wants to use the truck for backup power and such.
I did want to address the suicide cable real quick. Yes...they are dangerous. The Honda parallel kits for their smaller generators are also suicide cables. You have to have some common sense in life, something that is missing, to use it. The interlock on the house prevents power from going down the cable at all, so you want to plug that into the house first. Then plug it into your generator and start it. Which we did exactly that in the video. Is it the 100% right way to do it? No. But a little common sense goes a long way in life.
While I am all for common sense, I suspect your insurance company isn’t! Everything else is done correctly, why not use the correct inlet and extension cord? Most suicide cords are made to use a dryer or range outlet as an inlet, with NO interlock or safety protection, in a pinch. Your system seems pretty well thought out, and perhaps even professionally installed, except for that one last minor, yet very important detail. Spend $50 and guarantee someone won’t accidentally electrocute themself man!
Electrical codes are to keep people safe, even if they are not paying attention.
It won’t take much to make this setup safe.
The Honda has a floating ground, the truck does not
Here in South Louisiana, I took a direct hit from Hurricane Ida last year. I'm very much considering this for emergency backup.
Is there a follow-on to this yet? The F150 manual says the truck is “bonded neutral”. The house is too.
The problem is that the neutral and ground wires are in parallel, with current flowing in each. By definition that is a ground fault.
I’m prepping my house and think I need a 3 pole transfer switch (General or Reliance).
My F150 is to be built in November so I have nothing to test it with.
Would be great if you can demonstrate the “code-compliant” solution.
Pretty cool video. I like this guy, he knows his stuff.
TFL - r ya working on the follow up video for this?
So great video. Did not know what was involved to make sure your power box wiring was correct before you can use your truck as a generator.
Also, NEMA requirement is to have one location where ground and neutral are bonded. This can only be done at one location, usually at main breaker. Most portable generators are neutral bonded due to the assumption that the generator is the main source. Having two bonded locations may cause the ground to go live.
At 11:50 Don't need anything but the Powerboost hybrid. Think of it; a hybrid solution that can power the truck and house with unlimited power as long as you refill your tank. I like the hybrid option more than the full EV option until they can figure out the batteries and charging speed and availability.
Plot twist: The truck says "ground fault" but the truck was actually detecting "faulty ground" and the house is built on a giant sink hole and could collapse at any moment and the truck was warning them.
I have not heard Ford say that the powerboost could power a house, but I have heard them advertise the electric F150 can power a house with the correct charger installed. These guys have the wrong truck. The power boost can power tools at a work site or recreational appliances.
How does the grounding system work in a vehicle?
Cool watching this video, seeing how they have the house interrupt, then at 18:00 into it, I noticed that I have the same shirt as Roman that I just bought a few days ago.
The Homeowner: Yeah, I had an interlock installed to keep from back-feeding the grid with my generator.
Me: Yeah, 220, 221, whatever it takes.
Keep in mind, that if you Use a 50 AMP Plug, along with a 50 Amp Connection in the House (instead of a 30 Amp), it allows you to use Both legs of the Onboard Generator equally, allowing more efficient Power use.
Does the truck have one main battery or 2?
That home owner was like “Roman, you have at least another 800 sq ft to vacuum”. Go ahead and do the rest of the house too.
I can see a lot of uses for the inverter in the truck, and it would work great in a pinch to power a house during an outage. But I can't say I'd rely on one to power the house during long outages.
Having spent four days without power (along with 800,000 others here in the Mitten State about two weeks ago), I finally got a chance to run the inverter I bought back in 2019. I have no need to run the AC (two out of four days, yeah...we had hot/humid weather, but the other two were nice enough to have the windows open). But our needs were taken care of by a Honda EG2800i inverter. It ran fans, coffee maker, electric tea pot (a salute to Roman 😁), microwave, refrigerator, dishwasher, and in the winter it can run the blower in the furnace. It also ran all of our lamps in the evening (all LED), the TVs (same), numerous chargers, and my network shelf with router, switches, and cable modem. Since we ran it from extension cords (10 gauge to the house, 12 gauge to each room), we couldn't use the stove. (If we stay here, we'll get a transfer switch installed.)
So, the EG2800i ran our necessities for four days straight. It is rated at 2,800 watts peak, 2,500 watts under constant load. Most appliances are not running continuously, so the inverter/generator runs at a lower speed most of the time. (The EG2800i and other Honda inverters use an Eco mode to run them at a lower speed until a load is detected.) Because of that, I could run the inverter for about 18 hours, filling up the inverter's tank with 2.2 gallons of gas. So that works out to 3 gallons per day. Meanwhile, my neighbors running their old generators were fueling up a lot more often, and making enough noise to drown out my inverter, since theirs have to run full bore 24/7. (With "dirty" power that is NOT safe for electronics!)
Here are reasons I'd prefer to hang onto an inverter for long-term use in home emergencies:
1) Placement. I can roll the inverter anywhere around the house, and safely away from it to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning. I can't maneuver a truck or any vehicle into the backyard or alongside the house, where I would run power into the house.
2) I'd be without a vehicle while it's connected to the house. Many households have two adults and own two daily drivers--either someone has to stay home and lose a day at work (many can't work from home), or the home can only be powered when the truck is in the driveway (which risks losing anything stored in the refrigerator or freezer). And it leaves the home without an inverter if the truck were away on a road trip.
3) Refueling. I'm not particularly fond of carrying or storing large 5-gallon gas containers (not with arthritis, anyways--kinda takes the fun out of life). I can handle filling my inverter with a 2-gallon container once or twice a day. I'd prefer to drive the truck to refill it with gas.
4) For smaller homes, a smaller inverter might use less fuel. (One helpful test for TFLTruck might be to run only 100-200 watts off of the inverter for 24 hours and see how much fuel it uses.)
5) The inverter will be with me forever, and is a one-time cost; the truck will get replaced, and who's to say someone owning a truck today will want one next time, or buy a new truck but change to a model or brand that doesn't offer the inverter? (I'm speaking more of using the truck's inverter as a long-term solution for powering a home, not for all of its other uses such as job sites, RVs, etc., where it's a revolutionary idea.)
Just some food for thought...
Not in FL, ground and neutral are only bonded at first disconnect point, which is the power meter, breaker panel inside the house have separate grounds and neutrals
The bonding occurring in the meter housing or in the distribution panel is irrelevant. They're bonded regardless, and apparently, the truck won't like it.
Did you try to run the truck generator with the cord plugged in but not connected to the home?
he is using what is known as a suicide cord with male prongs in both ends. Doing as you suggest would energize the bare prongs on the other end of the cord.. and be extremely dangerous.
@@stevewhitsett7744 Common sense would dictate not touching the end with your hand while it's plugged in, but I see your point. I have experience with it that they don't.
@@DarrylWilletttoy4rn85 yeah it’s pretty obvious from the things Roman was saying that he specifically should be nowhere near a suicide cord.
I learned a hell of a lot from this episode. Plus I liked the recycled Tommy explosive moment
Watching this video was reminiscent of Geraldo Rivera opening Al Capones vault. It proved that a simple external generator does a better job than using a truck to power your house. It sounds good in theory, however… Stick with what works.
I hope he owns a rifle if he thinks he can have his generator just sitting out on his driveway when the power grid goes down.
Most places won't go to hell on the sort of timescales we're talking(unless it's truly widespread, like a CME or cyber attack and it becomes obvious quickly it's widespread). I say this as a guy who thinks there's a general purpose use for something like a AR-15.
@@Swordsman52 in an extended power failure, like a few days or more, human scum start cruising around looking for unattended generators. Then they sell them at the home depot parking lot or Craigslist in a couple hours.
I've been through multiple, multiple day power failures. The generator is kept behind the house, out of sight of the street, and is chained to the house for good measure.
I love how the house owner just has a ram power wagon in the background for a Ford vid
can we get a count of the amount of times the guy said “umm” 😂
I bet if you disconnected the ground in the cord it would have worked. Remove the connection between the ground a neutral
I suspect the ground from the car does not connect to the ground in the panel. Fault in the cord or the power inlet box. Also while they fix this they should replace the inlet box with a male connection and replace one end of the cord with a female end for safety. Get advice from an electrician too.
@@bob847vid grounds and neutrals in the panel are connected, truck didn't like that.
@@jnuechte he has the tools to do a simple continuity test which would tell him if the trucks neutral and ground are bonded. I’m sure a google search could tell too. If it is bonded at the truck you may be right since the other tools worked as they are not bonded in the tool like it should be bonded in the house panel. If not bonded at the truck, I suspect faulty ground from truck to panel somewhere.
That doesn't work. I've tried that.
@@JeffBea you tried it with your f150 hybrid?
Good video. Will be looking for the resolution video in the future. I have a 7500 watt diesel generator in my RV and had wondered about being able to power my house. Instead, I decided to get a 22kw automatic standby generator installed, with auto transfer switch, connected by wifi that does it's own self diagnostics and exercising . All for $9000 installed and connected to my 1000 gal propane tank. Much less expensive than the truck!(LOL) But I like the truck and may consider getting one in the future. I'll wait to see how Andre's truck does over time. Thanks.
Diodes should fix the issue if it thinks current is going back to the generator. Now this has brought up a very good point about solar powered homes still on the grid. How does the power company shut that power down when working on lines?
Diodes only work on DC system. The grid is AC (not Edison!).
In the comments I think Jarad was on to the problem. If desperate, I would have tried grounding the truck to the house ground rod, use jumper cables if nothing else available. If the house is equipped with GFIs, trip them or use the breaker(s) to isolate the circuits they are on. Finally if the truck still doesn’t reset, turn off ALL the individual CBS, if truck then resets, turn them on one at a time to see if there is a culprit. I realize this was just a test and the home owner may not be interested in turning his home into some kind test lab! Good luck!
So I’m an electrician and this is my take on it. So his idea with the panel being bonded is most likely correct. So if In fact his house panel is bonded then it is installed incorrectly. Every meter at your house is bonded (first means of disconnect) . So what we have here is a double bond since the house panel and the meter are bonded. That is bad. Now saying that ,running his generator into his house hurts nothing. And running his house how it is right now more than likely will never become a problem , only if there is a unbalanced load will he ever experience a problem with the double bonding. As for him re wiring the plug that was pointless as he just changed positions of the hots which dosent matter.
meter is not considered the first disconnect. The neutral bar in his panel must be bonded to the grounds. any sub panel fed from the panel will have the grounds and neutral separated. You should know this if you are an electrician read your code book again. 23 year master here btw.
@@FosterFarmsOk every meter on a home has a ground rod that goes in the ground outside then hits the meter. That’s where it’s bonded neutral and ground. From that point you either have a main outside that feeds inside or both inside. You do not bond the main panel in the home because that would be double bonding. You should know that.
@@FosterFarmsOk check out article 250.24 tells you everything in code
@@fordsbetter3496 yes I'm aware of were the GEC bonds inside a meter. Not every house or service has a main outside ahead of the breaker box.
The patch cord between the homeowner's generator and the garage outlet should not be male-to-male... Could easily be fixed be replacing the female (receptacle) in the garage with a male (plug) device... Then the patch cord would be male to female... Just sayin'
Maybe try this same test with someone who has a separate generator panel, installed by an electrician. It has a disconnect so you can switch between panels, which is the proper setup and no chance of sending electricity to the lineman on the grid. Another type they use up here in Canada is a plug adapter into the meter itself which automatically disconnects from the grid. This guy sounds like he knows his stuff, but I dare say something is wonky with this setup. At my house I have a single disconnect circuit for my oil furnace, which is 110v and 600 watts or so. So not much load on the generator to heat my whole house continuously until my oil tank runs out. And much cheaper to do that switch than an entire generator panel which is thousands.
I don't think that would solve it since the main is still a bond point. A GFCI has a lead to ground so it can measure leakage between neutral and ground. It is sensing current via the neutral and ground through the cord, but it would be no different if there was a separate panel since the conduit connecting the panel is, if installed to code, part of the bond. All ground flows from the furthest panel through the conduit between panels to the main, which is where the bonding between earth ground and utility neutral/ground happens. Where you get a ground fault is when the actual bond is broken between neutral and ground. It is quite possible that main panel has a bad bond, or is not bonded per code. If you install a 220 sub panel with a 3 conductor line, two hots and a neutral, and do not have a 4th ground wire connected to the panel, you have a potential shock hazard. You essentially have isolated the ground of that panel and anything wired to it, and say it is a furnace connected to it, and you have a damp floor, you could potentially become the ground between the furnace and ground by placing your hand on it. So no, connecting to a sub panel or "transfer switch" panel wont solve the ground fault issue.
@@acdii Yes we use oil furnaces on the east coast and my garage is dry. Damp floor? Yes my panel has gfci for washrooms and outdoor plugs. It only disconnects the furnace circuit on the breaker panel. Difference is my setup is legal to code. This is a dryer plug, with a dryer cord that has been modified to have 2 male ends. Maybe the GFCI was the issue here actually. Most generators have GFCI protection built in, and also this transfer switch has an additional 15 amp breaker, along with my hard wired breaker for the furnace. You guys in the south know nothing about actual winter conditions and generator setups. This video is proof of that. Two male end modified plug lol. Don't let the insurance companies see that around here. www.amazon.ca/Reliance-Controls-Corporation-TF151W-Generators/dp/B000HRWG8U
@@acdii The transfer switch is GFI protected. Which is what you need to make this setup work. "The only time you'll need a GFI transfer switch to connect the generator to your home, is if your generator is fully GFCI protected. Meaning, its 120/240-volt outlets are GFCI protected and without a GFI switch, it will create a ground loop and trip the circuit. "
Justin's Power Wagon don't care 😆. Excellent video guys, that was a fun exercise
Instead of spending $40K + on a truck that can power part of my home circuits, I spent $9K and had a 22kW Generac installed. Runs the entire home, including 240v circuits. I can run my central heat / air, electric dryer, oven, etc. I don't have to be home either, the Generac will sense a power outage and come on automatically.
How much can the Generac tow?
14:35....is it really true, that men will not check a map, or in this case the owners manual?? could we actually solve this issue with reading the manual?? lolol it is telling them to read the manual after all. Justin might be right, perhaps the truck is perceiving the bonded circuits on that panel as an appliance that draws too much. I'm not sure.