EV Home Chargers

Lairdie · June 16, 2022

This may be off topic in which case I apologise.
However any suggestions/recommendations for home chargers? I’m trying to get myself setup for delivery of my NX and it’s looking like a long wait for contractors, we’ll up here at least. I’ve also discovered that almost every company has its own recommendations. I’m easily confused 🫤.
Advice welcome.

rayaans · June 16, 2022

34 minutes ago, Lairdie said:

This may be off topic in which case I apologise.
However any suggestions/recommendations for home chargers? I’m trying to get myself setup for delivery of my NX and it’s looking like a long wait for contractors, we’ll up here at least. I’ve also discovered that almost every company has its own recommendations. I’m easily confused 🫤.
Advice welcome.

They're all much of a muchness in what they do.

We've got a zappi and it's been great so far. It had one issue but it's within the warranty and the customer service from zappi was absolutely amazing

Alan Thompson · June 16, 2022

2 hours ago, Lairdie said:

This may be off topic in which case I apologise.
However any suggestions/recommendations for home chargers? I’m trying to get myself setup for delivery of my NX and it’s looking like a long wait for contractors, we’ll up here at least. I’ve also discovered that almost every company has its own recommendations. I’m easily confused 🫤.
Advice welcome.

https://chooseyourcharger.co.uk/

These guys help you compare chargers (online) and link you with local fitters.

I've not used them personally, but know of them.

Harrier Man · June 16, 2022

4 hours ago, Lairdie said:

This may be off topic in which case I apologise.
However any suggestions/recommendations for home chargers? I’m trying to get myself setup for delivery of my NX and it’s looking like a long wait for contractors, we’ll up here at least. I’ve also discovered that almost every company has its own recommendations. I’m easily confused 🫤.
Advice welcome.

I posted a comment in a different thread, a modified version of which I repeat below ...

I went for the British Gas installed Alfen charger as that was being offered by Lexus when I ordered my car; however, I cannot comment on how good it is as I have no car to test it on - yet! Before I went down this route, I had enquired about a Rolec charger because, at the time (January), they were guaranteeing installation before the government grant deadline expired at the end of March. They put me onto a local, independent company in Aberdeen that provided me with 2 quotes, neither of which was for a Rolec charger! When I enquired why, they said they had experienced reliability issues with Rolec. This appeared to be confirmed by a local restaurant that still hadn't got working chargers 3 months after the main boxes had been installed.

This was my experience in February and of course things do change. I have no axes to grind, just reporting what I was told at the time.

Bish1402 · June 16, 2022

If you're only going to charge once a day / overnight just use the 3 pin plug....if you can that is...

Ken R · June 16, 2022

I got the BG Alfen charger as part of the Lexus promotion.

Install went well and the box is neat. Have had a few "communication " issues with it however but these were very swiftly addressed by the BG ev charger team. It was put down to poor phone signal so make sure you have decent signal where you are.

Other than that the box is easy to use.

Malc · June 16, 2022

44 minutes ago, Ken R said:

It was put down to poor phone signal so make sure you have decent signal where you are.

is this going to be a common factor with EV chargers then ??

Having to move home to a good signal area to ensure you can run your EV car :wink3: ... oh my ! bring on the V8 petrol cars forever

Malc

John Adams · June 16, 2022

24 minutes ago, Malc said:

is this going to be a common factor with EV chargers then ??

Having to move home to a good signal area to ensure you can run your EV car ... oh my ! bring on the V8 petrol cars forever

Malc

Well I live within a 1/4 mile of mobile masts and we get an excellent coverage with speeds of 140mbs on 4G and BG tell me the reason I cannot always connect the app to the charger is because of a poor signal. My smart meter works well on 2G so I suspect there is a problem with the charger. I am on my second now which is a lot better but still drops out. I think BG need to rethink their responce

Malc · June 16, 2022

it's an age old problem that some teccy people often try to fog issues with what they think are unknowledgeable people ... and simply lie, make things-up, to protect themselves and their products and Outcomes ....... I've experienced it personally over the years in my working life and businesses ..... Cest le Vie

2 hours ago, John Adams said:

I think BG need to rethink their responce

EVs are still a bit of an unknown quantity whereas we all know that a super doopa V8 gets high and brill on petrol :thumbsup:

Lairdie · June 16, 2022

Thanks all. Looks like pot luck. I did try the British Gas since Lexus partnered with them but they wouldn’t do an installation. I suspect the reasons is what Malk suggested.

Catflap · June 16, 2022

Our other car is a Kuga PHEV and I went for a Hypervolt after looking through what was out there. Did everything I need all in the main package and could get it with a 10m cable (5m and 7.5 available to) so no extra earth rod or extra add on load balancing device needed as comes with all that. Been great so far and really happy with it.

I know we could just use the mains plug and did for 6 months but having the tethered charge is just so much more convenient.

krisdeb · June 17, 2022

21 hours ago, Malc said:

is this going to be a common factor with EV chargers then ??

Having to move home to a good signal area to ensure you can run your EV car ... oh my ! bring on the V8 petrol cars forever

Malc

That's the reason I ordered self-charging hybrid. Looking at the pace of the technological progress I should be fine for the next 10 - 15 years, so for the lifetime of my car, I don't intend to use it longer... And all those cowboys in their Teslas bragging about how cool they are on LinkedIn went quiet when I asked how about a trip to Scotland or living in the North West where I live, not mentioned the energy cost - I think (and it's only my opinion) that the decision (=tax) makers will make our life 'interesting' once they unplug us from petrol/diesel. We will be paying for the roads' usage based on mileage being reported online from our cars like the energy smart-meters from our houses now or maybe we'll be paying just for the energy but on whole different level... How many times in the history the energy was really cheap, I mean like really, really cheap? I want to be wrong, please don't attack me - I'm ALL yours about EV cars - I'm just sceptical, down-to-earth guy who doesn't believe what 'experts on the telly' said and I think I need to skip this learning curve. And the chargers and this whole infrastructure is another thing to maintain, update, also another point of failure in the house, sometimes even a hassle, an obstacle. A lot of people agreed with me but they are afraid to talk, being accused of environmental murderers and not going with the wind of change. For me, this wind is not blowing hard enough yet. And once again - I wish the change will be different, I wish to be all wrong about all of that.

JayWales · June 17, 2022

Having looked at the options, and now understanding a bit more about the charging on the NX itself, I've decided to get an outside socket put in the porch.

Will just plug into that and charge it overnight as & when needed. A cheaper option and the electricity costs the same anyway 🙂

NemesisUK · June 17, 2022

Presumably one can still program the car regarding charge times and also precondition the cabin temps irrespective of how one charges the car?

ColinBarber · June 17, 2022

3 hours ago, JayWales said:

Having looked at the options, and now understanding a bit more about the charging on the NX itself, I've decided to get an outside socket put in the porch.

Will just plug into that and charge it overnight as & when needed. A cheaper option and the electricity costs the same anyway 🙂

If the sparky knowns that a new outdoor socket is for EV charging (whether 3-pin, commando etc) then technically he has to install all the safety equipment as with a full charger so it may not be as cheap as you think.

krisdeb · June 29, 2022

On 6/17/2022 at 2:00 PM, krisdeb said:

That's the reason I ordered self-charging hybrid. Looking at the pace of the technological progress I should be fine for the next 10 - 15 years, so for the lifetime of my car, I don't intend to use it longer... And all those cowboys in their Teslas bragging about how cool they are on LinkedIn went quiet when I asked how about a trip to Scotland or living in the North West where I live, not mentioned the energy cost - I think (and it's only my opinion) that the decision (=tax) makers will make our life 'interesting' once they unplug us from petrol/diesel. We will be paying for the roads' usage based on mileage being reported online from our cars like the energy smart-meters from our houses now or maybe we'll be paying just for the energy but on whole different level... How many times in the history the energy was really cheap, I mean like really, really cheap? I want to be wrong, please don't attack me - I'm ALL yours about EV cars - I'm just sceptical, down-to-earth guy who doesn't believe what 'experts on the telly' said and I think I need to skip this learning curve. And the chargers and this whole infrastructure is another thing to maintain, update, also another point of failure in the house, sometimes even a hassle, an obstacle. A lot of people agreed with me but they are afraid to talk, being accused of environmental murderers and not going with the wind of change. For me, this wind is not blowing hard enough yet. And once again - I wish the change will be different, I wish to be all wrong about all of that.

Only 12 days and here we go, first news about ppm, pay per mile...

Lairdie · June 29, 2022

Well spotted Sir.
I agree with your post. I’m in Scotland and chargers (working/available) are still a bit sparse. Hence I’m playing it safe with a hybrid and home charging.

javadude · July 2, 2022

On 6/17/2022 at 2:00 PM, krisdeb said:

That's the reason I ordered self-charging hybrid. Looking at the pace of the technological progress I should be fine for the next 10 - 15 years, so for the lifetime of my car, I don't intend to use it longer... And all those cowboys in their Teslas bragging about how cool they are on LinkedIn went quiet when I asked how about a trip to Scotland or living in the North West where I live, not mentioned the energy cost - I think (and it's only my opinion) that the decision (=tax) makers will make our life 'interesting' once they unplug us from petrol/diesel. We will be paying for the roads' usage based on mileage being reported online from our cars like the energy smart-meters from our houses now or maybe we'll be paying just for the energy but on whole different level... How many times in the history the energy was really cheap, I mean like really, really cheap? I want to be wrong, please don't attack me - I'm ALL yours about EV cars - I'm just sceptical, down-to-earth guy who doesn't believe what 'experts on the telly' said and I think I need to skip this learning curve. And the chargers and this whole infrastructure is another thing to maintain, update, also another point of failure in the house, sometimes even a hassle, an obstacle. A lot of people agreed with me but they are afraid to talk, being accused of environmental murderers and not going with the wind of change. For me, this wind is not blowing hard enough yet. And once again - I wish the change will be different, I wish to be all wrong about all of that.

On the EV and Tesla FB groups there are plenty of people talking about driving the NC500 in their EV so Scotland can't be such a problem.

Even with current electric costs it's cheaper to fuel an EV at home and on some public chargers. (For my EV I pay 1.5p/m for electric compared with what would have been 21p/m for petrol of my previous "self charging" hybrid.) Some public chargers are similar to petrol/diesel at the moment but they're typically the ultra rapids that you only use on long journeys (and you'd be paying silly prices for petrol/diesel at motorway services too).

You're right: pay per mile or something will happen. For now (and probably always going forwards to incentivise the move for climate change) EVs will be cheaper than ICE cars. They're also a lot more fun to drive.

In reply to the original post I have a Zappi home charger in the garage. It wasn't cheap but I combined fitting it with a much needed rewiring of the garage and I look on it as a home improvement rather than just related to the purchase of one car. I don't use many features on it yet but it'll work well with solar panels when we get those. The app to view energy usage of the house and charger is cool. I use the car to schedule charging within a 00:30 to 04:30 cheap rate slot (with Octopus Go) but I think the zappi has some sort of scheduling too.

Lairdie · July 2, 2022

You’re correct Chris. The NC500 is well served by charge points. I drove it in the spring, partly by way of a recce.
But, there’s always a but, deviate away from it and points are harder to find. I’m sure things will improve but I’m an old fart and don’t want the anxiety.
I’ve gone with the Easee One

Malc · July 3, 2022

23 hours ago, Lairdie said:

But, there’s always a but, deviate away from it and points are harder to find.

I'm no EV afficionado and the " BUT " is that the NC500 is spectacular but the journeying off that route to the un-beaten track is stupendously marvellous motoring especially too

Most supermarkets now have charging points and also, somewhere I mentioned recently seeing an EV recharging from an ordinary electric point on our Town Quay scrubbing facility ...... 13 amp electric socket for washers etc .......... and that car had some sort of lead Adaptor to charge overnight ......... just a thought :unsure:

Malc

RXtoNX · July 3, 2022

On 7/2/2022 at 10:35 AM, Lairdie said:

I’ve gone with the Easee One

That’s what BG fitted for me under the foc Lexus offer after deciding that the normally supplied Alfen one shouldn’t be fitted at our address since we have almost zero mobile phone signal.

The Easee charger connects to Hive via the Internet, just waiting for my car now to try it out!