Electric Car Home Charging point

gazmate

Hi I have a Cupra Born EV car coming in July 2023, I live in a detached house in Hastings East Sussex.

I have a couple of queries if any one has any advice ......................
 
1) Whats the best route to getting a EV car charging point fitted,
I am assuming no grants are available, and I am unsure what type and how to choose the charging point and supplier?

2) Do I also need to change my British Gas tariff for charging the car.
I am on the standard tariff, do people switch tariff or even to a different supplier? 

Scot_39

Most electricity suppliers will fit a charger - BG, Octopus, EOn etc etc   Many normal domestic electrical services firms too..

Models etc - don't know.


RE Tariff Guess Most people will switch.

As depending on mileage the EV will be a massive chunk of annual electricity use - especially if have gas heating.

To get a cheaper overnight e.g. e7 type deals or EV specific tariffs for charging.

But these come with a day premium rate - so need to check.  Your car should have a nominal kWh per mile cost - so do the maths.

Say that was 44/12 vs 34p epg single etc.  If you save more on the 12 it's cheaper overall..

BG got into a mess with E7 recently iirc from posts here - but they too have an EV tariff and will fit a Hive charger from a quick google if dont want to move.

Have a look around at other suppliers like Octopus who have more than 1 EV deals - some of those are car / charger dependent.

Scot_39

PS

You might get more answers on the Energy section of forum re EV tariffs.

DrEskimo

All charging points are basically the same, just with different features. It really comes down to your personal preference on aesthetics and feature lists that are important to you. Generally speaking the Zappi charger is highly recommended.

You can ring any local EV installer, which are essentially electricians who are qualified to install EV chargers.

In terms of tariff, have a look at Octopus. They still generally have the most competitive EV tariff, but of course a lot of competition has gone out of the window with the recent energy crisis. As above, think about your mileage and how much you will be charging, how that compares with your typical home use, and then can work out what your average cost will be and whether a EV tariff would be of benefit or not.

Goldenyears

It's a good idea to get a free inspection beforehand of main fuse, meter and tails from your regional distribution network operator (DNO).  I did because I was fretting about my main fuse which according to the fuse carrier was only 60 amp.  When the DNO engineer pulled it  ( and nobody is supposed to do this except them) it turned out to be 80amp and was fit for purpose.  I thought I needed 100amp but engineer said not necessary for most people, and "anyway I would need a new fuse carrier and by the way you are looped with your neighbour so not possible to unloop for less than £2000!!"  He claimed the tolerance on an 80amp fuse meant it was OK for about 90amp continuous.

Scot_39

@Goldenyears

My sis was told main fuse / holder needs replacing - according to SP - who have supposedly reported it - after a temporary generator feed hooked up during a 2-3 day power outage.

The electrician said that someone should come out to fix it in the near future - that was several months ago.

Its probably at least 50 years old - family moved in 70s etc - passed down - 2 gens now - the rest of the house rewired since then - but not the incoming feed wire from street and main fuse block - both look pretty ancient.

Any idea who pays for work ?

DNO - her etc

Plus the lost feed - from she thinks a burnt out / short wire in the street - impacted the next door too - so does that mean 2 houses looped - so maybe the pair total current limited too ?

It's not the first time on the street - seems to be a regular - if not quite annual event.

I suspect that ancient understreet wiring and associated local distribution systems are going to be very severely tested in the next decade or so. As millions slowly switch from GCH to drawing 5-10kW+ for electric heating for hours on end.

Goldenyears

Qualified electricians are not supposed to touch the main fuse and its carrier which should have a seal.  During a rewire they might risk it if there is no master switch for the house..  I have found as a householder that the DNO are very easy to talk to about your concerns and they would estimate for the work, if any.

Regarding whether you are looped with a neighbour, there are youtube videos which demonstrate how you can usually tell from the cables coming into the fuse carrier.  Your DNO has maps which show exactly who is looped and where the common point is, but it's not as important as I originally thought.  My neighbour is looped with me and has an EV charger.

My DNO engineer told me that in the next few years a lot of these older properties are going to be unlooped at no charge to the householder.

SensibleSarah

If you think that you might get solar for the home at some stage then get a home charger that can deal with being charged via that route as well as grid power - the Zappi isn't the cheapest but very versatile from that point of view. 

Ectophile

Goldenyears said:

Qualified electricians are not supposed to touch the main fuse and its carrier which should have a seal.  During a rewire they might risk it if there is no master switch for the house..  I have found as a householder that the DNO are very easy to talk to about your concerns and they would estimate for the work, if any.

They aren't supposed to, and it should have a seal.  But they do, and the seal was probably cut by a previous electrician years ago.

But watch out of you've had a smart meter fitted.  When the power goes out, they store just enough power to send a message out saying that there's been a power cut.  It's not unknown for the DNO to turn up in their van to onvestigate why the power has gone out, only to find someone working on the home electrics.

MrsBrooks13

I’ve enquired with British Gas about their EV tariff (I’m an existing customer) as I’m taking delivery of an EV shortly. They told me the wait for a smart meter to be installed is anything from 3 x 12 months! Has anyone waited this long? I can’t switch to the tariff without one!

Alanp

When I was a sparky many years ago I used to pull the main fuse sometimes after some careful snipping of the lead seal so it could be put back virtually unnoticed, never had a problem but I can’t advise anyone to do it..