Cheap rates for EV?

Misteek

Hi everyone 👋 

My friend has got a mobility car but its electric.

She doesn't have a drive. So they didn't fit her with a EV charger.

She has been told to use BP pulse app to get a slightly cheaper charge when using public ev chargers.

However on the app they seem to be a good few miles away from where she lives.

So which is the cheapest method and chargers out there ? 

born_again

Have a look on something like Zap Map for Local chargers & their costs.

A rough rule is in terms of Ultra & Rapid chargers Tesla are about the cheapest & if you do enough miles then subscription will make it cheaper.

Maybe have a look & see if any neighbours have chargers & asking if they can use that & pay them.
There are also a couple of apps that people can offer their home chargers on. Such as

https://www.joosup.com/

Misteek

born_again said:

Have a look on something like Zap Map for Local chargers & their costs.

A rough rule is in terms of Ultra & Rapid chargers Tesla are about the cheapest & if you do enough miles then subscription will make it cheaper.

Maybe have a look & see if any neighbours have chargers & asking if they can use that & pay them.
There are also a couple of apps that people can offer their home chargers on. Such as

https://www.joosup.com/

Oh brilliant thanks for that.

I was thinking they should try to get a charger fitted in their house privately. Because the car is parked right outside the garden. There's no pavement for people to walk on. The car is just on the boundary of the garden where rhe hedge is.

So can she just get a longer wire? Would this cost alot ?

LightFlare

Daft question - but given the obvious issues, why didn’t they get an ICE ?

born_again

Misteek said:

born_again said:

Have a look on something like Zap Map for Local chargers & their costs.

A rough rule is in terms of Ultra & Rapid chargers Tesla are about the cheapest & if you do enough miles then subscription will make it cheaper.

Maybe have a look & see if any neighbours have chargers & asking if they can use that & pay them.
There are also a couple of apps that people can offer their home chargers on. Such as

https://www.joosup.com/

Oh brilliant thanks for that.

I was thinking they should try to get a charger fitted in their house privately. Because the car is parked right outside the garden. There's no pavement for people to walk on. The car is just on the boundary of the garden where rhe hedge is.

So can she just get a longer wire? Would this cost alot ?

Is this a rented property? Given the mention fitted privately.
Best bet, ask a company that fits them for a quote. They will be able to give the best answer on costs.
A std install usually includes 10 mtr of cable to the charger. Any more incurs etc cost. Cable from charger to car can be bought separately is required.

Ectophile

Tesla chargers tend to be cheaper.  But before travelling, check that any particular charging hub will accept non-Teslas.

A "granny lead" provides a way to trickle charge a car without having to have a permanently installed charger.  But make sure any socket it's plugged in to is in good condition.  The pligs can overheat if not.

Martyn1981

Ectophile said:

A "granny lead" provides a way to trickle charge a car without having to have a permanently installed charger.  But make sure any socket it's plugged in to is in good condition.  The pligs can overheat if not.

@Misteek - On that point, this could be a solution for your friend. But, crucially I'd check to see if you can dial down the power level for granny charging. Some BEV's will do this, Tesla's can select Amps down to 5A, so about 50% for a granny charger. We had a 2018 IONIQ and that would allow you to choose 100%, 75% or 50% for a granny charger or a home charger.

BTW granny chargers are the ones you just plug into a socket, and pull about 10A / about 2.2kW. Home chargers are professionally installed and supply about 32A / 7kW.

If we need to use a granny charger for an extended period of time, say 2hrs+, or in conjunction with an extension lead, then we'd dial the power down to avoid cables/sockets overheating.

So ..... sorry for the waffle, and yes it's a long shot, but if your friend can dial the power down, then a granny charger and a short 13A extension lead, may be the simplest, fastest and cheapest solution. Especially now it's getting warmer, so the cable may fit through a 'cracked' window - my term for a window that's in the slightly open, but locked position. Assuming of course that the boundary/hedge isn't a silly distance from the power socket.


Sorry, additional thought, you can buy granny leads separately that offer variable power levels. Here's an example, not a recommendation, just the first I found. But interestingly, in this example, I see that there are options for lengths go up to 15m (though not available at the moment). Which may be enough for your friend, and 6A would overnight add ~60 miles of range.

Wow, finding several that go up to 20m, didn't even know that was a thing. Example.

Mildly_Miffed

Ectophile said:

But make sure any socket it's plugged in to is in good condition.  The pligs can overheat if not.

Radical suggestion: If you believe a particular socket is in such poor condition that it can't cope with sustained high currents, why not replace that socket?

They're not exactly expensive or hard to replace.

If it's a normal internal 2-gang, then they're a couple of quid and about five minutes for any competent DIYer or handyman.

If it's a weatherproof external, then they're a tenner and not a lot more work.

Or why not just get the handyman/DIYer to fit a far more suitable 16A commando socket...?

born_again

Ectophile said:

Tesla chargers tend to be cheaper.  But before travelling, check that any particular charging hub will accept non-Teslas.

A "granny lead" provides a way to trickle charge a car without having to have a permanently installed charger.  But make sure any socket it's plugged in to is in good condition.  The pligs can overheat if not.

The IET Wiring Regulations (722.55. 101.0. 201.1i) specify that 13A UK sockets which are installed to charge an EV must comply with BS 1363-2 and be marked 'EV' on the back of the plate.


Remember that the built in thermal cut out on a granny charger only protects from the plug on the granny charger to the car. So if the extension cable is not of the required std to take the load &/or coiled up. If that overheats the thermal cut out will not work & the extension can/will catch fire.


So that is no cheap extension leads.🤷‍♀️

lordmountararat

With some EVs you can dial down the charging current via the software. I limit my granny charger to 8 amps, which is not as much as my tumble dryer.

QrizB

lordmountararat said:

With some EVs you can dial down the charging current via the software. I limit my granny charger to 8 amps, which is not as much as my tumble dryer.

Our granny charger has its own control box where you can choose the charging current from a range of preset values.