Home charger for limited mileage

[MrG]

Seems a bit expensive for the short amount of cable. I would definitely recommend getting at least one other quote.

Definitely. Any recommended companies?

 

[MrG]

I agree.
If your home charging is likely to be small, then the "Granny" lead will do the job.
But ( because there is always a but ) remember the "Granny" lead is called that for a very good reason, it is VERY slow.
You will only be getting around 10 miles of range for every hour spent on charge !.
Therefore, you have to figure in LONG timing times.
Also, "Granny" leads are not seen as a long term solution being used on a domestic socket.
This will depend on the age / condition of your home electrics of course.
A better long term solution is a dedicated 7kw wall box all day long.
I would go for a 32 Amp unit and not the lower powered 16 Amp units that will only proved 3.6 kw.
If you are luck enough to have a couple of 7kw A/C posts at your disposal i.e. super markets etc.
If you have a post at work, then fine.
Otherwise you have to find the time to be stuck on that super market post at some time.
If your SOC is low, you could be there for hours.
Average weekly shop is likely to take you ........ 1 hour ????.
You will only pick up 25 miles at best in that time.
A 7kw wall box will give you the same amount of juice as the super market unit, but you have the convenience of not having to leave your house to get a that charge.
Also, if you are on a EV friendly tariff then it could be possible to charge your car late at night and then it is ready to go in the morning.
What is better than having a fuel station on your drive ??.
No brainer for me, get a wall box !.

Think we're pretty sure we're going for the wallbox. Ohme could be the one!

 

[chowbenter]

Think we're pretty sure we're going for the wallbox. Ohme could be the one!

At present my electric supply (shared loop) doesn't come up to code & needs upgrading, It's getting upgraded later this month by the DNO. I might go independent of the OLEV grant as my old antiquated bakerlite fuse box system would require around 40 metres of cable to my double garage from the house, I'd have to price it up what BP Pulse would charge over and above the short distance the OLEV grant covers!!! From what I've read it would be cheaper for me to buy in all that I need & dig the trench & lay the armoured cable, install a Consumer unit/ isolation switch earth rod etc get everything in place then get a qualified electrician mate to wire everything up ! We shall have to see what price BP Pulse come up with.

 

[MrG]

At present my electric supply (shared loop) doesn't come up to code & needs upgrading, It's getting upgraded later this month by the DNO. I might go independent of the OLEV grant as my old antiquated bakerlite fuse box system would require around 40 metres of cable to my double garage from the house, I'd have to price it up what BP Pulse would charge over and above the short distance the OLEV grant covers!!! From what I've read it would be cheaper for me to buy in all that I need & dig the trench & lay the armoured cable, install a Consumer unit/ isolation switch earth rod etc get everything in place then get a qualified electrician mate to wire everything up ! We shall have to see what price BP Pulse come up with.

Can't seem to find a price to buy the tethered Ohme unit outright, without installation. Did you come across it when you were looking for BP Pulse at all?

 

[chowbenter]

Can't seem to find a price to buy the tethered Ohme unit outright, without installation. Did you come across it when you were looking for BP Pulse at all?

No I haven't come across one for sale yet.

 

[Lovemyev]

Octopus where doing an offer on the OHME unit if you signed up to them.
Not sure if that offer is still running now though ?.

 

[MrG]

Octopus where doing an offer on the OHME unit if you signed up to them.
Not sure if that offer is still running now though ?.

I think that was just for a cable, not the actual tethered unit which is what I'm after.

 

[Lovemyev]

There doing the whole thing for something like £199 !.
Pretty sure they all went pretty quickly though.

 

[Davemac278]

As always, lots of valid points here. I'm not retired (though I wish I was!) and have two young children, under the age of nine. As a family, we love the idea of doing a lot more driving based day trips - when the world allows - so the EV will be perfect for that.

Our current mileage of about 4000 miles is based on our 2009 Ford Fiesta which, as much of a workhorse as it has been, has consumed petrol. My wife and I are quite risk-averse so having a home charger may suit us better as a 'Plan B...just in case.'

Currently looking at getting some quotes from 'smarthomecharge.co.uk' and 'elecology.co.uk'. Has anyone used these companies?

I was about to take my install on an OHME with smarthomecharge but found a cheaper quote via Rightcharge so going with them. Non standard install of £577 for OHME with consumer box and earth rod.

Rightcharge, sort your electric car home charging and save money

Choose your perfect electric car charger and connect with the right installer.

rightcharge.co.uk

 

[MrG]

I was about to take my install on an OHME with smarthomecharge but found a cheaper quote via Rightcharge so going with them. Non standard install of £577 for OHME with consumer box and earth rod.

Rightcharge, sort your electric car home charging and save money

Choose your perfect electric car charger and connect with the right installer.

rightcharge.co.uk

Thanks for that-just sent a request through to them.

Seriously, some of the prices that are coming back from companies look like they've just plucked numbers out of thin air!

 

[Niall B]

Octopus had and may still have 2 offers on there website for OHME chargers if you signed up with them, they will also fit a type 2 Smart meter so you can make best use of their tariffs and the Ohme chargers, there are no exit fee's if you leave them at a later date.
1/ Was for a cable only with the built in charger with the options of a type 2 plug or a commando plug at the box end and a standard type 2 car plug at the other end of the 5 meter cable for £199.
2/ Was for a installed tethered wall box for £400, I would think this offer includes the grant and is for a standard installation.
You have to look around the website to find these offers, but a short email to them usuallygets a quick helpful response.
I've gone for the commando socket lead myself as it suits my situation. There's a interesting clip on utube about fitting a commando socket in a garage to accommodate a OHME cable.
Hope this is helpful and doesn't further confuse the issue.

 

[MrG]

I've got a quote from a company who have said that no earthing rod will be needed at my property for the Ohme charger as my setup allows them to bypass the rod and install instead a:

40A Type A RCBO + enclosure – This is a protective device required for your EV installation. We will install this at the origin of the supply to protect the EV circuit against current overload, AC and DC leakage.

Another company say that they don't understand this and that if an earthing rod is not being installed then a 'Garo box' should be there instead and they have this in their quote.

I'm no electrician so don't know who to go with here! Does anyone have any experience with this?

 

[mystreet]

Wonder if both installer are talking about the same thing, one just calling it a 'brand ' name Garo

 

[Iain]

If you have no electrical knowledge I would not get too concerned about the electrical jargon as it can be confusing.
I would pick the charging point that best suits your needs and price bracket and leave all the technical mumbo jumbo to the qualified installer. They should install the correct cable, earth requirements and RCBOs to suit your existing supply and new point.
When I had my basic Rolec point installed I had the electrician fit an additional on/off switch by my distribution board. This allows me to switch off the power to the charging point if I am away from home for any length of time.
I also opted for a point requiring a plug in lead rather than a tethered cable as you can keep the lead in the car to use at public charging points.
I can understand you want to make the correct decision regarding the charging point but, once the cable and ancillaries are installed, it should not be a big job to change the actual charging point at a later date.
I expect as the technology improves many of us will want to upgrade to latest specifications.

 

[Jake]

I've got a quote from a company who have said that no earthing rod will be needed at my property for the Ohme charger as my setup allows them to bypass the rod and install instead a:

40A Type A RCBO + enclosure – This is a protective device required for your EV installation. We will install this at the origin of the supply to protect the EV circuit against current overload, AC and DC leakage.

Another company say that they don't understand this and that if an earthing rod is not being installed then a 'Garo box' should be there instead and they have this in their quote.

I'm no electrician so don't know who to go with here! Does anyone have any experience with this?

The 40A RCBO + enclosure to negate the need for an earthing rod sounds like my BP Pulse installation. The enclosure also contains a relay that I can hear clunking in and out at random times throughout the day. I believe this relay can be controlled with a suitable app to defer charging times if required but I don't think BP have released it yet, not that I need that facility anyway. What it does give me though is a listing on my BP account of all the home charges along with any BP public chargers I use which I do find useful in monitoring my total monthly usage.

There was no additional charge for this enclosure but there would have been for an earth rod. Can't say I would recommend this as the relay clunking is quite audible through the garage wall and can be a nuisance to sleeping residents.