As long as you’re able to charge overnight your car will be ready to go without having to visit a petrol station.

For those with a driveway Electric car home charger installation is the way to go. As long as you’re able to charge overnight your car will be ready to go without having to visit the equivalent of a petrol station.

You can charge at home as long as cables do not cross a pavement or public path, the OLEV grant would not be available if this was the case.

Research has revealed, for example, that the average UK driver covers just 20 miles a day.

It’s estimated that around 80% of electric car charges take place at home.

What you need to know

Government grant

See this page for information about claiming the Government grant.

Beware of Free installation

Manufacturers may offer a ‘free’ home charger as part of the car sale however, beware of the small print. One installer says that this often only covers simple installations.

Installation from a customer’s perspective

Equipment

There are a number of Charger models available. You’ll need to decide the location, Plug type and whether you want the cable to be permanently attached. Most Electric cars use a CCS plug, although some use Type 2. Older Nissans and a few others use CHAdeMO. You’ll need to know which type it is.

Costs

Installation

Expect to pay £400 – £500 on top of the OLEV grant.

Electricity

Typically 14p per kW/h

Cost of Electricity for charging at home

Free charging at home

Equipment

Smart chargers

All Chargers now have to be Smart Chargers in order to qualify for the OLEV Grant. A key aspect of Smart Chargers is that they can be controlled remotely from the Grid, this enables the Grid to reduce the consumption if necessary.

You will need to decide between a Tethered (wired-in) or Untethered (plug-in) charging cable.

Remember the charger could be in place for a long time, so consider your future with Electric vehicles.

Earthing rods

These are best avoidedhttps://www.youtube.com/embed/GyfluIwryfU?feature=oembed

Home charging stations are compact, weatherproof and easy to install – taking as little as two to three hours to fit a unit. But don’t be tempted by your local electrician. The best thing to do is contact a certified OLEV (Office for Low-Emissions Vehicles) installer. Choosing someone like this will ensure your home charger is fitted to the highest safety standard.

There is an Office for Low Emission Vehicles (OLEV) grant available which provides up to £350 off the cost of purchasing and installing a home charging point.

Installation can be more complicated than you might anticipate…

Quoting for a charger installation Artisan Electrics

Quote from Dans the Engineer in response to this video:

I think this highlights how complex EV charge point installations are. What seems very simple actually isn’t.

Firstly, if the client told me they want the cable hidden in shingle I would be asking them to dig 600mm deep with marker tape. Or suggest that the cable is clipped direct. It cannot be just hidden under the surface.

I also wouldn’t put the EV circuit on the RCD side of the board as any DC fault current could interfere with the type AC RCD despite the suggested charger having a built in Type A RCD. I believe a separate consumer unit should be installed dedicated for the EV as to not interfere at all with the existing installation.

It starts getting a bit out of hand so when you have companies banging out two or three of these a day I wonder what they are actually doing.


Artisan Electrics responded:

You’re totally right this is a great comment. Most people think it’s like putting in an outside socket but it’s much more complex than that and there’s no such thing as a “standard” install in my opinion as there are so many factors to take into consideration.

Electric Vehicle Homecharge Scheme approved chargepoint model list

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