Charging with Zappi

[ChrisDunsheath]

Hi everyone i have had my Mk2 ZS EV LR since December and mainly charge at home using a Zappi V2 charger. the zappi is not connected to the internet and i do not have solar or battery’s however i am on Octopus Go to benefit from the 4 hour cheap rate. Recently my Zappi has quite often only charged at half speed during these times even though the Zappi is set on eco+ mode and boost times are set correctly. I had a few occasions of this slow charging and eventually switched it off and on and the next time it charged ok however the next time i charged again about a week later it again only charged at half speed for the full 4 hours (approx 3.7 kw per hour). There are no timers set in the car or on the MG app and the battery % slider is set to 100%. Has anyone experienced anything like this? Today i have switched the Zappi off and on so i will see what happens overnight.

 

[Tread Softly Terran]

Hi Chris. Also have MG ZS EV LR 2022 trophy & zappi 2. Haven't had any problems, but can i ask why do you set it on eco + & boost? As you dont have solar panels have you tried charging using 'fast' setting? (Providing your home electrics can take 7.2kwh charge plus home usage).

 

[Tread Softly Terran]

For info I believe MG recommend the ZS EV LR version of the Mk2 routinely be charged to 80% to preserve battery life, unless going on a long journey. They also recommend doing a 100% 'balance charge' about once per month.

 

[Andrew Sinclair]

...can i ask why do you set it on eco + & boost?...

It may be that Chris uses the Zappi Eco + mode along with setting boost times to coincide with cheaper night-rate electricity. I have mine set to Eco + and it waits for 'Surplus' which never arrives because I don't have panels then at 21:30 it 'boosts' until 03:30, these being the Octopus Go cheap rate times.

I have experienced slow charging overnight but this was because another member of the family turned on the washing machine, dishwasher, and dryer at the same time

 

[ChrisDunsheath]

exactly as mentioned above. eco+ used so it boosts between 00:30 and 04:30 to use the cheaper rate. Yesterday i power cycled the zappi off and on then plugged the car in and overnight it charged at full speed. it’s as if the zappi goes into some sort of sleep mode when not used for a few days and then does not wake up correctly? next time i charge i will try starting it charging in fast mode for a few minutes then switch it to eco+ and see what happens again as i don’t really want to be switching it off and on regularly

 

[johnb80]

Have a look in advanced menu and supply grid. If grid limit has been set, other house loads could reduce the Zappi charge rate. Have a look at your consumption on the Octopus website and see what the demand was when your charge rate was reduced.

 

[ChrisDunsheath]

Have a look in advanced menu and supply grid. If grid limit has been set, other house loads could reduce the Zappi charge rate. Have a look at your consumption on the Octopus website and see what the demand was when your charge rate was reduced.

View attachment 19903

The only other thing during the night is the dishwasher that comes on at 1am however car charging starts at 00:30. should the grid limit be set to off?

 

[johnb80]

The only other thing during the night is the dishwasher that comes on at 1am however car charging starts at 00:30. should the grid limit be set to off?

If you don’t want supply restrictions, yes it should be off. Does yours have a value set?

 

[ChrisDunsheath]

If you don’t want supply restrictions, yes it should be off. Does yours have a value set?

looks like it is set to 60A

 

[johnb80]

looks like it is set to 60A

Yes thats the case there, what size main fuse do you have? its usually labelled on the service head where your main cable comes in.
At 60amps if you have anything else running that approaches a total of 7 kW or thereabouts, ZAPPI will start to reduce the charge current. So things like washing machine, tumble drier, immersion heater, heat pump would be major possibilities.
The Octopus display shown above, was that when the car didnt charge at full rate? the graph shows low usage for sure.

 

[ChrisDunsheath]

Yes thats the case there, what size main fuse do you have? its usually labelled on the service head where your main cable comes in.
At 60amps if you have anything else running that approaches a total of 7 kW or thereabouts, ZAPPI will start to reduce the charge current. So things like washing machine, tumble drier, immersion heater, heat pump would be major possibilities.
The Octopus display shown above, was that when the car didnt charge at full rate? the graph shows low usage for sure.

the previous octopus pic was with no car plugged in just normal nightly use of dishwasher. main fuse label is 100A but i think the installer said it’s actually 60 amps. i have another screen on zappi that shows Max Grid Power is off so not sure if it is using the 60A figure firmware version is 3.171 so maybe a different layout to your picture. Car starts charging at 00:30 and dishwasher starts at 01:00 and it’s not starting at full speed then slowing down as can be seen in the attached octopus picture that shows when car was charging only at half power for the full 4 hour duration. you can see the small peak on the second bar when dishwasher is on as well