Having an EV tariff increases the daily tariff !

[Gadget Geek]

All EV 'chargers' have been smart for some time now. Law came into force June 2022 that all new chargers have to be. Not all of course are currently supported with some specific tariffs like IOG etc.

I got my dumb Pod-Point for free in 2019 as part of a deal with Hyundai.

 

[salty]

All EV 'chargers' have been smart for some time now. Law came into force June 2022 that all new chargers have to be. Not all of course are currently supported with some specific tariffs like IOG etc.

I got my dumb Pod-Point for free in 2019 as part of a deal with Hyundai.

Why was that made law?
What was the matter with the old dumb charger, what difference, does it make.

 

[Rolfe]

Of course you're going to charge your home battery during the off-peak period though.

 

[Everest]

Why was that made law?
What was the matter with the old dumb charger, what difference, does it make.

To clarify the point; the law was made for all fixed installation 7kW+ chargers. It does not apply to portable or granny chargers. The reason is to enable intelligent charging controlled by energy companies in order to help balance grid usage as there becomes more and more EV uptake.

 

[mystreet]

My EO mini Pro 2 lost its support back in November. They stated that due to the incoming law they could not support it. More like did not want to spend money on a new program for the Raspberry PI to control it. Lasted all of 5 years before being obsolete. But working well as a dumb charger, car controls timing. With Eon, changing to Octopus Go beginning of May.

 

[Gadget Geek]

Of course you're going to charge your home battery during the off-peak period though.

EV-Only Tariffs (Restrictive): Providers like OVO (Charge Anytime) or Scottish Power (EV Optimise) offer exceptionally low rates (e.g., 10p/kWh) that only apply to the energy sent directly to your electric car. If you charge a home battery during these times, that energy is charged at your standard, higher tariff rate. These tariffs often require a specific smart charger or app to work.

 

[johnb80]

EV-Only Tariffs (Restrictive): Providers like OVO (Charge Anytime) or Scottish Power (EV Optimise) offer exceptionally low rates (e.g., 10p/kWh) that only apply to the energy sent directly to your electric car. If you charge a home battery during these times, that energy is charged at your standard, higher tariff rate. These tariffs often require a specific smart charger or app to work.

This gets into an interesting area, the companies are charging for energy based on readings from a non calibrated / approved device which I believe is illegal.

 

[Rolfe]

EV-Only Tariffs (Restrictive): Providers like OVO (Charge Anytime) or Scottish Power (EV Optimise) offer exceptionally low rates (e.g., 10p/kWh) that only apply to the energy sent directly to your electric car. If you charge a home battery during these times, that energy is charged at your standard, higher tariff rate. These tariffs often require a specific smart charger or app to work.

Well, I didn't know that. My off-peak Octopus rate is currently 3.5p/unit, and has never been higher than 7.5p/unit, and I can use as much power as I want during that time. I charge my home battery, and run the washing machine and dishwasher. Sometimes even the tumble drier if I put the washing on a short cycle and transfer the clothes just before I go to bed.

 

[johnb80]

Well, I didn't know that. My off-peak Octopus rate is currently 3.5p/unit, and has never been higher than 7.5p/unit, and I can use as much power as I want during that time. I charge my home battery, and run the washing machine and dishwasher. Sometimes even the tumble drier if I put the washing on a short cycle and transfer the clothes just before I go to bed.

And that is still the case with Octopus. The only thing that has changed recently is that the maximum charge time for your car is 6 hours in 24. If your car had charged during peak times for say 5 hours and continued to charge for a further 3 hours during the off peak time you would be charged peak rate for 2 of the hours. I'm not sure what would happen if you disabled the smart charge option to grab some extra overnight energy.

 

[Kenp1]

We are still waiting for the 6 hour limit to come into effect on Octopus.

 

[Rolfe]

So I gather. I thought I might try something this morning, although in the end I decided not to.

I had planned a day out today, cycling round Loch Katrine. That would have required the car and the bike to be fully charged in the morning. However yesterday evening I was feeling unwell and went to bed early without putting anything on charge, thinking I'd better forget the whole thing. I woke up about 6.30 feeling better and seriously contemplated asking for a Smart charge to finish by 8.30 (which would have been enough, as the car was sitting on 81%) and nipping out to plug the bike in. Common sense set in as I considered that I hadn't made any of the preparations (like making a packed lunch) I had intended, and that bombing off on a 37 mile bike ride probably wasn't that clever under the circumstances. So I didn't.

To be fair, I could have swallowed a couple of hours charging at the peak rate, or simply set off on 81% and picked up more at the destination chargers at the Loch Achray hotel while I was out on the bike, but I think getting an out of hours Smart charge like this is an option we'll lose when the changes come in.

 

[GaryMG4]

If I manage to use enough of my existing charge today I plan to try a different calibration charge tomorrow. Around 10am tomorrow I'll put the Zappi in ECO mode and plug in, that way it will take a maximum of 1.4kW per hour until 23:30, but it looks to be a sunny day so should get plenty of free (FiT) solar. I'll schedule an 8 hour overnight charge from 23:30 hoping it will reach 100% 5:30, but accept the peak rate extra if necessary. I've turned off smart charge at present as I am using solar, as suggested by Octopus.

 

[Rolfe]

I did a calibration charge a month ago in anticipation of the possibility of eight hours at the cheap rate evaporating. My thoughts for the future are mainly to start the charger at 10.30 and let the car take what it can get from the home battery to minimise grid electricity for the first hour. Then the same at the end, let it use a bit of the recharged home battery for the last bit and balance. It will use some peak rate but not much. I might even organise to do it the night the clocks go back!

As I understand it, for a calibration charge to be valid it has to be continuous, and it can be tricky forcing Octopus to do an unbroken eight hours.

 

[GaryMG4]

As I understand it, for a calibration charge to be valid it has to be continuous, and it can be tricky forcing Octopus to do an unbroken eight hours.

That's why I turned off smart charge, that way I can program the Zappi to give 8 hours and with ECO it will force a maximum of 1.4 kW plus the solar excess for the rest of the time. So I'm hoping that most of the charging will be over by 5:30 am.

 

[Rolfe]

I thought that's what you were doing. It's a bit above my pay grade though. I feel I really ought to get rid of my "I will never use any peak-rate power ever" mentality and realise that even that is only 27p/unit and it's not going to break the bank.

 

[GaryMG4]

I thought that's what you were doing. It's a bit above my pay grade though. I feel I really ought to get rid of my "I will never use any peak-rate power ever" mentality and realise that even that is only 27p/unit and it's not going to break the bank.

It's easy to get stuck in that rabbit hole. I was really unsure about the ECO+ mode on the Zappi, convinced I'd spend more on full price electricity than I'd save by using solar but last month proved me wrong.

 

[Rolfe]

That's the mode I use all the time. Never use any peak rate. I've set the threshhold to something like 10 kw, so it never takes any solar, and only charges when I set a Zappi schedule, or request an Octopus smart charge.

 

[GaryMG4]

That's the mode I use all the time. Never use any peak rate. I've set the threshhold to something like 10 kw, so it never takes any solar, and only charges when I set a Zappi schedule, or request an Octopus smart charge.

My 'needs' are the opposite, being on FiT I'm happy to max out my solar use. My quandary was that I could end up using so much peak rate that it would cost more than just using the overnight.

 

[Rolfe]

Not having FIT, I don't really understand how it works that you'd end up using peak-rate power, but I hear it's a great deal if you managed to get it.

 

[johnb80]

Not having FIT, I don't really understand how it works that you'd end up using peak-rate power, but I hear it's a great deal if you managed to get it.

With FIT you get paid for every kWh generated no matter how you use it, you also get additional payments if you export.