I have a 14-50 outlet in my garage that I will use from time to time when I need to top up the car. Knowing that the outlets are not rated to be plugged and unplugged constantly, I was thinking of leaving just the pigtail plugged in and connect the UMC when needed. Does having just the pigtail plugged in use any power or will it just sit idle?
I think a lot of people are misinterpreting the intent. I read the above as saying that the Mobile Connector will be going with the car regularly, but that the plug/adapter from the Mobile Connector to the NEMA 14-50 outlet will be left plugged into the NEMA 14-50 outlet. This is
not, as I read it, a question about leaving the car plugged into the wall outlet (via the Mobile Connector).
If I'm correct in my interpretation of the question, then there should be no current draw from the plug/adapter; it's basically just an extension of the wiring in the wall, and unless something is wired into it, no electricity will flow as a result.
That said, unplugging the plug/adapter from the Mobile Connector on a regular basis will put wear and tear on
it. I don't know how many such cycles the Mobile Connector can take. My guess is that it can take many more cycles than a cheap NEMA 14-50 outlet, but maybe not that many more than a higher-quality outlet; and it'll be much more expensive to replace a Mobile Connector if it should fail.
I’m expecting to do most of my charging at work and only use the 14-50 at home when I need extra range, hence why I was asking about leaving the pigtail hanging at home.
Personally, if I needed to use my own EVSE to charge at work, I don't think I'd bother. I guarantee that it'll get old very quickly to have to pack and unpack the Mobile Connector, plug it in, etc. Doing so in inclement weather will be even worse, and runs some risk of damaging the Mobile Connector, which is not rated for use in rain and snow. Of course, you could avoid charging at work in bad weather, but that defeats the monetary advantages of doing so (I
assume that's why you want to charge at work), at least on days with bad weather.