Did a stupid thing !

[Gadget Geek]

I would have considerable doubts about solar power in the UK though, I was born there and lived there until I was 24! Despite Cyclones we still get a lot more sun that the UK.

I've got mine trickle charging off the solar as we speak with some going to the house battery as well.

 

[Thebiglad]

Install a suitability rated, good quality timer control and you are sorted !.
What does your outside socket outlet look like, was it installed by a spark and is it on its on dedicated circuit do you know ?.
Can you grab some photo’s ?.

I've attached 2 pics showing big picture plus close-up of actual socket.
The double exterior socket was installed by me, replacing an older cheaper socket. It's on it's own separate circuit.

This set-up has been working fine for the last 18 months until a clown (me) tried driving the MG first thing in the morning to take the dog out !

 

[Lovemyev]

I've attached 2 pics showing big picture plus close-up of actual socket.
The double exterior socket was installed by me, replacing an older cheaper socket. It's on it's own separate circuit.

This set-up has been working fine for the last 18 months until a clown (me) tried driving the MG first thing in the morning to take the dog out !

So, what do you think about installing a suitably rated timer control then, if you want to take advantage of any good "Off Peak" rates that maybe suitable ?.
Not one of your common or garden plug in Christmas tree timer control timers of course.
An electric cylinder emersion heater timer can handle 3.5 Kw's.
Is that grey cable that is already plugged in, is it an extension cable running to your Granny unit ?.

 

[Gadget Geek]

So, what do you think about installing a suitably rated timer control then, if you want to take advantage of any good "Off Peak" rates that maybe suitable ?.
Not one of your common or garden plug in Christmas tree timer control timers of course.
An electric cylinder emersion heater timer can handle 3.5 Kw's.
Is that grey cable that is already plugged in, is it an extension cable running to your Granny unit ?.

Not a good idea. The Pilot signal needs to stop the charge before you cut the power otherwise you can get a spike which can damage the onboard inverter.

 

[Lovemyev]

So, nobody has ever fitted a timer control to facilitate delay timing on their ZS EV Gen 1's ?.
Not even a wall box ?.

 

[N2STY]

If plug timers were acceptable I would use one like this set timer with phone or home management like Alexa\Google

https://amzn.eu/d/dpd4BD2

 

[Gadget Geek]

So, nobody has ever fitted a timer control to facilitate delay timing on their ZS EV Gen 1's ?.
Not even a wall box ?.

It's your £30,000+ car. You can use a timer switch if you want. I was just pointing out what can happen. The user manual tells you to unplug the car first before switching off the granny charger. just trying to save you an expensive repair which may not be covered by the warranty.

 

[Lovemyev]

I would be really interesting to know if any body HAS used a suitable rated timer to control their Granny unit on the Gen 1 model ?.
You are correct, the manual recommends that if you are charging with Granny, you should unlock the car first to pause the charge, then remove the type 2 plug, then turn off the power socket at the wall.
We had a Wi-Fi relay connected internally to the dumb Rolec unit for two years and it was a absolute god send for charging on "Off Peak" electric when we had our MG ZS EV Gen 1.
It was totally controlled via an App on my phone.

 

[Thebiglad]

So, what do you think about installing a suitably rated timer control then, if you want to take advantage of any good "Off Peak" rates that maybe suitable ?.

An electric cylinder emersion heater timer can handle 3.5 Kw's.
Is that grey cable that is already plugged in, is it an extension cable running to your Granny unit ?.

Since your earlier reply today I've been looking at what's available and it seems like the best set-up would be exactly that - for an immersion heater as it's up to 20 amps. It doesn't need a time setting as the switch to cheap rate happens automatically with a pulse that come down the electric supply to the house.

The grey wire is the hard wire for the socket and it just needs shortening and tidying. I left it long as I had planned to do some sort of automation in the consumer unit and suspected longer would be good for a while until it is complete, however the car isn't back from the garage yet so I'm doing the daily runarounds in the diesel Dacia (don't shout at me).

Just for general info: if I charge enough to fill the battery overnight then the chargepoint lock has already released. Whereas if, in the morning, she is still charging then I need to use the remote to unlock the plug from the car.

Just wondering if anything in this auto-charging project might conflict with cars electronics ????

 

[Lovemyev]

Hoping to get feed back from a member who has taken this route, before I would continue.
@Gadget Geek has raised a very good point here !.
There is no soft disconnect via a timer control powered by a 240 supply.
A wall box relay works differently by interrupting the signal via the pilot conductors, which then in turn disconnects the high load feeding charge to the car.
I have searched the forum and I am unable to locate any history regarding this right now.
Although I am pretty sure on the ZS EV Gen 1 somebody was using this method back in the day.

 

[Gadget Geek]

It's a roll of the dice. It could work perfectly for years, but then one day . . .

Not sure if one of these would help. Amazon product ASIN B079K36GBY

 

[N2STY]

It's a roll of the dice. It could work perfectly for years, but then one day . . .

Not sure if one of these would help. Amazon product ASIN B079K36GBY

Surely the voltage spike will be car end the only guaranteed way is to stop pilot wire first

 

[DB Go Rex]

Spending 30k on a car surely justifies spending £800 on a charger install. I just don't understand the faffing with the other setups...

 

[Tim Green]

I wonder whether there is a timer with an electronic switch - eg not a relay or contactor, ideally a thyristor/triac. As these would only disconnect as the mains crosses zero there would be little chance of any spikes.

 

[Thebiglad]

Unfortunately, over here in France installing a dedicated 7kw would cost approx 2000€ !

 

[AK OK]

I'm firmly convinced there should be at least a door sensor on the charging port, a prominent idiot light, preferably accompanied by a loud bong (or an MP3 recording of someone yelling "careful f###wit"), triggered by preparing for motion with the charging door open.

H'mmm. Magnet, reed switch, and a live feed taken from any "ignition" 12V feed. Magnet on the back of the hatch, reed switch behind the grille moulding so nice and dry. H'mmm

Hmmm ... wired to a chunky old red brake light off a land rover series, hot glued to the dash top..... It might just work...

 

[Stuart Wright]

I'm using my granny charger into an external 16 amp socket, so other than putting a timer into that socket, no I can't.

I'm running a 2021 gen 1 ZS EV.

I plugged my granny charger in to a smart plug. Worked perfectly charging on a schedule and never got hot.
Amazon product ASIN B07Z942YWS

 

[pollenface]

We've heard that people forget about the cable being plugged in (in their garage) and snap the plug and flap off while walking around the front of the vehicle. We religiously put the traffic cone next to it (that we stole from the traffic people) to avoid doing this.

 

[Lovemyev]

I plugged my granny charger in to a smart plug. Worked perfectly charging on a schedule and never got hot.
Amazon product ASIN B07Z942YWS

Tom has just posted a great set up / review of the latest model of the “Tapo Smart Plugs”.
The latest version has energy monitor via an App on your phone.

 

[Gadget Geek]

I plugged my granny charger in to a smart plug. Worked perfectly charging on a schedule and never got hot.
Amazon product ASIN B07Z942YWS

Still the same risk of a spike damaging the inverter though.