Electric vehicle charging point.

[bellator]

I'm thinking of buying a PHEV Hybrid car and wonder if anyone on this forum has had any experience of fitting a charging point to a parking setup similar to mine. I know I can mount a charging point to the wall of my house which would be fairly straightforward but I'm aware that by running a cable over the pavement I would be creating a trip hazard. Incidentally, I live in a close and the parking bay, grass and paving in the photo are shown on my deeds as belonging to my property.

 

[Justin H]

I'm thinking of buying a PHEV Hybrid car and wonder if anyone on this forum has had any experience of fitting a charging point to a parking setup similar to mine. I know I can mount a charging point to the wall of my house which would be fairly straightforward but I'm aware that by running a cable over the pavement I would be creating a trip hazard. Incidentally, I live in a close and the parking bay, grass and paving in the photo are shown on my deeds as belonging to my property.View attachment 6141

In your deeds does it say that you own and maintain these areas, or does it say that the path and parking space is allocated for use by your home?

 

[5teep]

If that's not a public pathway then fit the cp to the wall of the house and just run the cable across it as you need to.

/edit, if you're worried you can always add hi viz marking to the cable.

 

[Deleted member 7171]

What's the battery capacity? I would suggest it's may be only 15 KWh or so? In which case I'd save on getting a 7KW home charger and if an electrical socket is close enough use a granny charger to keep it topped up. You can get them up to 10 metres in length, but don't be tempted to use a domestic extension lead.

 

[Alb]

If that's all your property there's no reason you can't have a post mounted charger adjacent to your parking space.

 

[Gomev]

What's the battery capacity? I would suggest it's may be only 15 KWh or so? In which case I'd save on getting a 7KW home charger and if an electrical socket is close enough use a granny charger to keep it topped up. You can get them up to 10 metres in length, but don't be tempted to use a domestic extension lead.

Nothing wrong with using an extension lead provided it is rated 13amp is uncoiled and the ends are/can be protected from water.
Many of us use these on occasion when necessary, there has been lots of discussion threads on these forums regarding this.
Screwfix and Wickes have good options.

 

[Lovemyev]

Would it not be possible to run / bury the SWA cable, just over to the left of the main path way of about 6 - 7 slabs ?.
You just know that those slabs are all going to break when you try lifting them !.
Firstly, cut the turf and retain for latter use, then create a trench deep enough to carry the SWA.
You only have one single slab to lift, behind the garden wall ?.
The SWA can then be run to the external wall of the house and terminated into a Wiska box ?.
You will be able to isolate the feed from the CU if required.
Couple of options here maybe ??.
Install a solid wooden post in front of your car and then either mount a suitable / lockable water proof box enclosure with a three pin socket inside.
Plug your "Granny" lead into this to charge your car.
It can be isolated in the house when not in use of course.
But if you ARE considering installing a wall box for your PHEV in a similar location.
Can I suggest, that fitting a 32 Amp 7 kw unit maybe a better long term investment ?.
This could be seen as a bit of over kill for a charging a PHEV because it will not benefit from the higher charging rate of course.
BUT - If you DID upgrade to a full BEV in the future, your wall box is already suitable.
The price difference between a 3.6 kw and 7.0 kw unit is not going to be that much more expensive and worth the outlay I.M.H.O.
I owned a PHEV for over four years, before going full BEV almost two years ago now.
I paid the extra £20 to have the 7.0kw unit fitted way back then and it proved to be well worth the extra money I spent at the time.
Worth considering anyway I guess ?.

 

[AdamMGEV]

Be easier just charging with a granny cable from your house wouldn't it? And use one of those cable protection things to stop anyone tripping over it.

 

[AdamMGEV]

Or just fit the charger on your wall and get a long enough Type 2 cable?

 

[Justin H]

It all depends on how much you want to spend. I still think that the house deeds need a closer investigation. The area outside looks very 'municipal' and speaking as a electrician I would want an assurance about who owns the land. It would be great to dig a cable duct under the ground and install a 7kW charger on a manufactured pedestal, like the Myenergi ones for instance. But this would cost a lot. It's probably better to install the charger on your house wall and use a long 'brightly coloured' type 2 cable. You can judge how many pedestrians walk in front of your house as to whether you put cable protection down.

 

[phillycee]

tbh - you could just get an external plug socket on the house an run an extension lead out to the car - it looks like you only have to cross one public paving slab... the lead could then run along the bottom of the curb and loop back.

The gap in the paving looks deep enough to hold a 13A cable and not cause a trip hazard. If you really worried you could put a cable matt over the top...

You could get a 7kw charger and use a type 2 cable... but they are quite a bit thicker than 13A and would be a bigger trip hazard. I think making it work with a normal 13A is going to be simpler. ...

Its also the cheapest option...so you can try it..see if it works for you and if you get any complaints from the neighbours.

I was planning on getting a proper 32A charger for my ZS... but I started with extension lead and granny charger first and in the end I haven't bothered to get it installed. A mix of granny + local free pod points has been enough for my needs and milage. So I'm in no hurry to get a proper charger. This might change if my milage increases but for now its fine...

With a PHV you don't need a particularly fast charger

 

[busa]

Why are you wanting a "wall charger"?, there isn't much point with the MG HS, as it will only accept a charge no greater than what the " granny charger" will put out, so the benefit of a faster charger will be lost.
If you intend to buy a full EV in the future and you want a wall charger ready for then, maybe it's worth waiting, who knows what advances in battery and charger technology will be like, look how far things have progressed already?

 

[Alb]

If you want a diverse range of opinions, this is the place to come

 

[Mike01Hu]

I'm thinking of buying a PHEV Hybrid car and wonder if anyone on this forum has had any experience of fitting a charging point to a parking setup similar to mine. I know I can mount a charging point to the wall of my house which would be fairly straightforward but I'm aware that by running a cable over the pavement I would be creating a trip hazard. Incidentally, I live in a close and the parking bay, grass and paving in the photo are shown on my deeds as belonging to my property.View attachment 6141

Lots of good advise here but why go for hybrid unless your mileage needs are high? My old hybrid was great as I used to have regular long trips of around 300 miles in addition to my short local journeys. I had a Zappi fitted with a long cable but no footpath issues and gave me a 2hr charge time. I now have the MG5 SR and my longest journeys now are around 70miles, so range is not a problem and charging is fine. Finally note that the charger grant is going as is the EV grant, so make your decision now.

 

[Edoc16]

If you want a diverse range of opinions, this is the place to come

Agree so its moan/bitch time, the boss and I took a wee trip up to Perth yesterday (43miles) and having 110 on the "clock" I mistakenly thought not a problem so after a some refreshments and a mooch round time to go home, I started to have range anxiety as I had 58 showing to get home but...thinks... its cold so might not make it so via Zap Map, there was free charging about 2 miles away at the Park and Ride so arrived and saw about 10/12 Tesla chargers and only 4 CCS but there was a van and others taking up the spaces so I plugged in the fast charger next to the van and went for a walk as I needed some free electrons, came back - van had gone and the CCS 50kw was free until this guy in a Tesla reversed in next to me so I made a feeble comment saying the Tesla chargers not working? he said yes but...they charge for it and these were free ! my Wife said quietly if he can afford a new Tesla surely he can afford to pay to charge it ! So far Stirling and Perth council areas are free but with all the Teslas using them, might not last :-(

 

[5teep]

Agree so its moan/bitch time, the boss and I took a wee trip up to Perth yesterday (43miles) and having 110 on the "clock" I mistakenly thought not a problem so after a some refreshments and a mooch round time to go home, I started to have range anxiety as I had 58 showing to get home but...thinks... its cold so might not make it so via Zap Map, there was free charging about 2 miles away at the Park and Ride so arrived and saw about 10/12 Tesla chargers and only 4 CCS but there was a van and others taking up the spaces so I plugged in the fast charger next to the van and went for a walk as I needed some free electrons, came back - van had gone and the CCS 50kw was free until this guy in a Tesla reversed in next to me so I made a feeble comment saying the Tesla chargers not working? he said yes but...they charge for it and these were free ! my Wife said quietly if he can afford a new Tesla surely he can afford to pay to charge it ! So far Stirling and Perth council areas are free but with all the Teslas using them, might not last :-(

If you're driving an MG5 only the middle charger at Broxden P&R works for you, just an fyi.

 

[jamesie]

Agree so its moan/bitch time, the boss and I took a wee trip up to Perth yesterday (43miles) and having 110 on the "clock" I mistakenly thought not a problem so after a some refreshments and a mooch round time to go home, I started to have range anxiety as I had 58 showing to get home but...thinks... its cold so might not make it so via Zap Map, there was free charging about 2 miles away at the Park and Ride so arrived and saw about 10/12 Tesla chargers and only 4 CCS but there was a van and others taking up the spaces so I plugged in the fast charger next to the van and went for a walk as I needed some free electrons, came back - van had gone and the CCS 50kw was free until this guy in a Tesla reversed in next to me so I made a feeble comment saying the Tesla chargers not working? he said yes but...they charge for it and these were free ! my Wife said quietly if he can afford a new Tesla surely he can afford to pay to charge it ! So far Stirling and Perth council areas are free but with all the Teslas using them, might not last :-(

Had the same (identical!) experience in the summer.

A good reason to start charging (amongst other reasons).

 

[AdamMGEV]

Had the same (identical!) experience in the summer.

A good reason to start charging (amongst other reasons).

Personally I think k they should stop offering free chargers otherwise they're always full of people charging up all day for free. In my tesco you can never get on them because taxis love sitting there or leaving their cars there charging for free.

 

[jamesie]

Personally I think k they should stop offering free chargers otherwise they're always full of people charging up all day for free. In my tesco you can never get on them because taxis love sitting there or leaving their cars there charging for free.

Agreed.

Also, the charger owner has no incentive to maintain/fix the chargers.

In addition, it discourages charger companies from situating chargers near to free one's (why would they?).

 

[Edoc16]

Personally I think k they should stop offering free chargers otherwise they're always full of people charging up all day for free. In my tesco you can never get on them because taxis love sitting there or leaving their cars there charging for free.

Don't disagree Adam but I'm assuming there not free to councils who I believe "sponsor" them but also agree chargers should be timed limited which would discourage free loaders who are also looking for parking spaces !