What's the cheapest Electric car charger.

gord115

My wife's car is getting ready to replace and we're thinking of a second hand electric car.
We have my car for longer journeys so range not an issue.

I have found a few decent tarriffs for overnight charging (8p/kwh)
What I want to know is the cheapest way to get a home charger.

I have a private house with a driveway.
Are there any grants still available of will I have to pay the whole lot?

Any help appreciated.

born_again

No grants.

Try some local fitters. 

But do check that switching to a off peak tariff is going to be cheaper in the long run. If she does not do many miles, then car will not need charging that often.

facade

I'd have thought that the cheapest was a 16A waterproof socket spurred off your consumer unit, and the matching 3.3 KW charge cable.

As above, how many KWh a day will you consitently need? In 6 hours off-peak @ 3.3KW you could get 20 (which is 60 to 80 miles worth) and save about £4, but you have to pay extra for daytime electric that may cost more than £4, and if the car doesn't use 20KWh a day......

WellKnownSid

If you are in Scotland there is an interest free loan for the car and a contribution (£400?) towards charging point from a reputable supplier.

You can get dumb 7kW charging outlets from about £300 if you want to go DIY and you know the 18th edition.

Whatever you are doing if it is DIY will certainly 100% need to get your earthing right, and for example know the difference between a TT and a TN-C-S supply. Killing your wife to save a few bob on the installation is probably not MSE.

I believe you are supposed to notify your DNO.

Petriix

born_again said:

No grants.

Try some local fitters. 

But do check that switching to a off peak tariff is going to be cheaper in the long run. If she does not do many miles, then car will not need charging that often.

Many people use EV tariffs to save on their home electricity. Simply shifting some domestic usage into the off-peak period makes it win-win.

The 'cheapest' home charging option used to be getting a 32a commando socket fitted by a local electrician for about £100 then buying a 32a commando EVSE but I'm not sure what's available these days. In theory it should be possible to pay about £450 for equipment and £200 for installation, but most installers charge a premium.

Get a bunch of quotes. I asked for recommendations on the SpeakEV forum in 2019 and got a great price for my Zappi. Times have changed though. 

ididgetwhereiamtoday

I think you will find you will end up using the EV the majority of the time once you get one. Your ice car will pretty much be redundant as you will not be wanting to pay for petrol.  

I would not DIY an EV charger!

gord115

Thanks everyone. Much appreciated.

born_again

Having watched the Octopus guy spend over 4 hours fitting our Ohme Home Pro. I would not even think about fitting one...
As it requires pulling main fuse to do some of the work.

Petriix

born_again said:

Having watched the Octopus guy spend over 4 hours fitting our Ohme Home Pro. I would not even think about fitting one...
As it requires pulling main fuse to do some of the work.

... Unless you have an isolator switch. 

ididgetwhereiamtoday

Some things are definitely best left to the experts.