Home charger or not?

[ukslim]

New UK MG4 Trophy owner. I'm really conflicted about whether to stump up for a home charger or not.

• We do between 260 and 360 miles a week, except when we have weekends away
• My wife takes the car to work (20 miles each way) - there's free 20kW charging there, and it seems as if there's no competition for it on the days she's in. But there's a sense they might start charging, or that more people will start fighting for the bay.
• There's 50kW Tesco Podpoint within 5 minutes walk of home
• We do have off-street parking that's perfect for a charger
• There's an outdoor 3-pin socket at the back of the house, so a £60 waterproof extension lead would easily reach the car at the front

One part of me thinks a home charger would be hugely convenient, and would give us the option of cheap tariffs.
Another part of me thinks that free charging at work makes it pointless, and the £800+ upfront pays for a lot of public charging
Another part of me thinks we'll probably end up with one eventually, so why not now? (I have capital from selling my old car)
And another part of me thinks if I wait, they'll get cheaper and/or better.

So yes, very conflicted and undecided. Anyone want to guide me?

 

[RobQuads]

If you have free charging else where I am not sure I would go to the expense. As you say the money will pay for a lot of public charging.
Chargers will get cheaper and much more advanced over the next few years I suspect although they won't drop massively as a good chunk of the cost if the installation / labour costs and I don't see them coming down at all.

Watch out from charging from your outdoor socket on the back of the house. Make sure its on a very good wiring ring if your going to be pumping 13A continuously down it as it will get hot and if there are lots of connections between the socket and your consumer unit then there is an increased risk of fire as cables can get hot.

 

[wandle MG4 trophy]

I do fewer miles than you but opted to install a charger at home and do not regret it. It’s very convenient. It’s very cheap if you can get Octopus Go or similar. It’s a long term investment. It may add value to your house.

 

[PristDean]

Part of me thinks.... the job may may change, they may start to charge and competition for the spot 'should' increase given the steer towards EVs..
Also, charging at home on a cheap tariff enables you to not just do that, but run appliances on it
overnight such as a dishwasher , washing machine etc.

If you have solar panels you could charge the car for 'free'
I have a Hypervolt and love it. Outlay was worth it for me as I have panels but it also buys me peace of mind to a degree. removing the reliance on others for charging.

 

[tsedge]

I agree with @RobQuads, having a home charger needs a proper electrical inspection and may require running a new circuit from the consumer unit. However, such things are often covered in EV charger deals from your electricity supplier, might be worth investigating.

 

[ukslim]

Part of me thinks.... the job may may change, they may start to charge and competition for the spot 'should' increase given the steer towards EVs..
Also, charging at home on a cheap tariff enables you to not just do that, but run appliances on it
overnight such as a dishwasher , washing machine etc.

If you have solar panels you could charge the car for 'free'
I have a Hypervolt and love it. Outlay was worth it for me as I have panels but it also buys me peace of mind to a degree. removing the reliance on others for charging.

Thanks. Two independent solar installers told me my roof was unsuitable, unfortunately, due to its shape.

 

[Ian Key]

The convenience is worth it especially if you can change to either an EV tariff or Economy 7 and can run washing machines, dishwashers etc. on the cheap rate too.

 

[ukslim]

If you have free charging else where I am not sure I would go to the expense. As you say the money will pay for a lot of public charging.
Chargers will get cheaper and much more advanced over the next few years I suspect although they won't drop massively as a good chunk of the cost if the installation / labour costs and I don't see them coming down at all.

Watch out from charging from your outdoor socket on the back of the house. Make sure its on a very good wiring ring if your going to be pumping 13A continuously down it as it will get hot and if there are lots of connections between the socket and your consumer unit then there is an increased risk of fire as cables can get hot.

Thanks. Indeed my first attempt at 3-pin charging was abandoned, when the plug on the extension I already owned reached 55°C within half an hour (and that extension is clearly labelled with a 2400W rating). Still, that's the plug not the circuit. It's an old house, but the outdoor socket was fitted as part of a new kitchen extension 4 years ago, and is fully RCD'd so I've some faith in it.

 

[NewMG4me]

Do the maths on Octopus rates - there are options. We are on Agile Octopus which varies the rate every 30 mins depending on markets. They publish the next day's rates at 4pm every day so you know when the cheaper times are. A couple of times I have taken advantage of negative KwH rates - i.e. they are paying you to use electricity - although I havent seen this for 2-3 weeks. Example rates below -

 

[AndyL61]

If you are fairly confident about the at work charging, why not just give it a go and use a granny charger for top up's at weekend. If you find it too slow and you need the 7kw home unit you could always add this later. It's more like £1k for the home unit . That buy's a lot of juice.

 

[Jomarkh]

I wouldn't be without a home 7kW EVSE now.
I am on an overnight tariff and it cost me a £1 or £2 a day to charge the car plus I can shift my washing machine and immersion heater on it too as the whole house is on the cheap rate.
You could always rent it out to get some money back.

 

[AndyL61]

I wouldn't be without a home 7kW EVSE now.
I am on an overnight tariff and it cost me a £1 or £2 a day to charge the car plus I can shift my washing machine and immersion heater on it too as the whole house is on the cheap rate.
You could always rent it out to get some money back.

The only downside is that anything outside the 4 or 5 hours cheap rate is charged at a minimum of 30% on top . It depends how much you use during the other 19 to 20 hours against how much you charge the car.

 

[ukslim]

The only downside is that anything outside the 4 or 5 hours cheap rate is charged at a minimum of 30% on top . It depends how much you use during the other 19 to 20 hours against how much you charge the car.

Yes. I have gas heating and I don't think we use all that much on dishwasher/washing machine. So unless we charge the car a lot, a dual-rate tariff might even lose us money.

 

[JDMB]

Thanks. Two independent solar installers told me my roof was unsuitable, unfortunately, due to its shape.

Even if you can’t get solar, a battery can still have benefits. Being able to fill it off of cheap electric and then charging from it or using it in peak times can be very useful.

 

[Ian Key]

Yes. I have gas heating and I don't think we use all that much on dishwasher/washing machine. So unless we charge the car a lot, a dual-rate tariff might even lose us money.

You'll have to do a few calculations by taking a meter reading before and after you use your dishwasher/washing machine and anything else you could use overnight during the cheap rate hours so you know how many kW they use.
I'm on an Economy 7 tariff which gives me cheap electricity until 7am so I can even use the electric shower cheaper.

 

[wandle MG4 trophy]

You'll have to do a few calculations by taking a meter reading before and after you use your dishwasher/washing machine and anything else you could use overnight during the cheap rate hours so you know how many kW they use.
I'm on an Economy 7 tariff which gives me cheap electricity until 7am so I can even use the electric shower cheaper.

I bought a cheap energy monitor plug. It says my washing machine uses 0.5 kWh per wash and the dishwasher uses 1 kWh. Regular usage of these brings your average unit rate down significantly and compensates for the higher daytime rate. But do your sums.

 

[Splodgie]

As you don't have a simple comparison of, h"ave one not have one" but a range of charging costs and options. Perhaps a few additional considerations in favour of a home charger are .

1 convenience its always available, will never be blocked by an ICE car.
2 its cheaper than most other options on a night tariff
3 charging overnight and then using that cheaper power on a V2L setup. We have a cable into our utility room and use it for the tumble drier and washing machine. These are now utilising electricity from the overnight charge on the car at 9p per kWh anytime the car is home.
4 they look cool on a wall outside your house. I have a hyper vault and the grandkids are always asking me to alter the colours.
5 you don't have to sit around at EV charge stations waiting,(although the work option sounds convenient).

However, most likely this will be an economic decision so the "do your sums" advice is sound as it will be different for everyone as the cost of return on initial investment will depend upon use.

 

[DBedford]

Even if you can’t get solar, a battery can still have benefits. Being able to fill it off of cheap electric and then charging from it or using it in peak times can be very useful.

Who have you found who will supply and install house batteries to charge from the mains during off-peak and not initially require solar panels please?

I ask are all the suppliers I have contacted require panels to be installed as well.
Thanks
David

 

[wandle MG4 trophy]

Who have you found who will supply and install house batteries to charge from the mains during off-peak and not initially require solar panels please?

I ask are all the suppliers I have contacted require panels to be installed as well.
Thanks
David

JPS Renewable energy were at the Fully Charged show and provided me with a battery only quote. Given my usage I doubt that it makes good economic sense for me to store cheap rate energy for use during the peak rate. Payback time would be 8+ years and who knows what will happen to electricity tariffs during this period.

 

[PristDean]

Who have you found who will supply and install house batteries to charge from the mains during off-peak and not initially require solar panels please?

I ask are all the suppliers I have contacted require panels to be installed as well.
Thanks
David

I used a company called 'The Solar People'. A chap called Andrew Dufflin really knew his stuff and installed a Givenergy Battery for me. May be worth asking them the question.