Recommend a home charger for Leaf

itsmine

Kangas daddy wrote: »

That’s very helpful, many thanks. 32A tethered looks like my best option as I understand it, the cable that connects to the car is like a garden hose on a reel that’s pulled out from the wall unit to the car. Sounds a lot better option than going to the boot to get your own cable and connecting it to the charger and car in the rain
Many thanks again

This sounds ideal! What make/model of charging point has this retractable cable feature please?

BoatMad

I have an ABL Rolec unit , 2 years 32A capacity , in use every day. permanently tethered cable

I would strongly recommend a tethered cable option where any sort of sustained use is being considered

creedp

BoatMad wrote: »

I have an ABL Rolec unit , 2 years 32A capacity , in use every day. permanently tethered cable

I would strongly recommend a tethered cable option where any sort of sustained use is being considered

Did you buy it locally or online? Would people have any concerns with servicing / warranty issues buying online?

goz83

creedp wrote: »

Did you buy it locally or online? Would people have any concerns with servicing / warranty issues buying online?

You can buy online.

I think the majority of us did...save for those who got the free charger last time.

unkel

I have the ABL unit that was installed for free under the old free charger scheme. Solid unit, made in Germany. Have it over a year, zero issues. I'm using it with a type 2 cable permanently attached to it. It was 16A when installed, but I flash upgraded it to 32A myself

Buy one of these 16A online second hand, flash yourself and you have a mighty cheap solution

Kangas daddy

unkel wrote: »

I have the ABL unit that was installed for free under the old free charger scheme. Solid unit, made in Germany. Have it over a year, zero issues. I'm using it with a type 2 cable permanently attached to it. It was 16A when installed, but I flash upgraded it to 32A myself

Buy one of these 16A online second hand, flash yourself and you have a mighty cheap solution

Does the €600 grant not require a receipt? They insist a qualified electrician installs and the receipt is how they know it’s a proper, safe install. Do they not look for a receipt too for the unit itself for the same reason to eliminate potentially ‘dodgy’ kits?
Garage have applied for €5k car grant (Leaf) and I think but by no means certain they said once that’s approved then I can go about getting the home charger so I’m as usual confuddled as a pending newcomer to the EV world.

creedp

Kangas daddy wrote: »

Does the €600 grant not require a receipt? They insist a qualified electrician installs and the receipt is how they know it’s a proper, safe install. Do they not look for a receipt too for the unit itself for the same reason to eliminate potentially ‘dodgy’ kits?
Garage have applied for €5k car grant (Leaf) and I think but by no means certain they said once that’s approved then I can go about getting the home charger so I’m as usual confuddled as a pending newcomer to the EV world.

I spoke with SEAI about this. My understanding is that no receipt required for Unit, i.e. you are not required to include a receipt with application form. Instead your electrician / installer is required to sign off on the cost of both the installation and materials used for the purposes of the grant. So all it takes is for the installer to be happy with the price you want to include for the Unit. There is probably an outside chance of the SEAI auditing an installation but the probability is very low.

Kangas daddy

creedp wrote: »

I spoke with SEAI about this. My understanding is that no receipt required for Unit, i.e. you are not required to include a receipt with application form. Instead your electrician / installer is required to sign off on the cost of both the installation and materials used for the purposes of the grant. So all it takes is for the installer to be happy with the price you want to include for the Unit. There is probably an outside chance of the SEAI auditing an installation but the probability is very low.

That’s great, many thanks. Off to trawl done deal or Amazon so 😀👍

KAGY

After years of lurking I've finally put a deposit on a 2015 leaf :-)
As I have a heatpump and electric oven I've decided to get a charger with load sensing (I.e. measures the load on the live and restricts the amount the car is getting)
So far I've seen the zappi, the circontrol be on, and maybe the halo wallbox from the first post.

Is there any others I should look at?

from_atozinc

KAGY wrote: »

After years of lurking I've finally put a deposit on a 2015 leaf :-)
As I have a heatpump and electric oven I've decided to get a charger with load sensing (I.e. measures the load on the live and restricts the amount the car is getting)
So far I've seen the zappi, the circontrol be on, and maybe the halo wallbox from the first post.

Is there any others I should look at?

when did ye get electricity in Longford? )

KAGY

from_atozinc wrote: »

when did ye get electricity in Longford? )

We rob it from the big sparky hose up the poles like everyone else. :-P

unkel

Well wear KAGY!

If you might install solar PV panels some time in future, the Zappi would be a good choice

And do you mind giving us the details of the Leaf you bought, spec, price, from dealer or not, etc.?

polydactyl

So buying new build house in Dublin. Got builder to put the appropriate wire through to the front wall so in the future when I buy an electric I will have an easier charger install,

However parents have a leaf and plan on using a granny cable to charge when up visiting but half wondering about installing a charger from the get go as easier for them. What basic charger for Leaf 1 would you recommend for once a month charging? Obv don’t want to spend a fortune and can’t avail of grant as don’t have electric myself.

KAGY

unkel wrote: »

Well wear KAGY!

If you might install solar PV panels some time in future, the Zappi would be a good choice

And do you mind giving us the details of the Leaf you bought, spec, price, from dealer or not, etc.?

Thanks, Philip in electric autos will give me a good deal on the Zappi as I bought the car from them; its just that I have a contact who might be able to get something at wholesale price and I want to give him an idea of what's suitable. Zappi's in front at the mo.
I'll introduce the wheels in one of the other Leaf threads to keep this one for chargers.

liamog

I like the look of the EO Mini, not as fancy as the Zappi but is very small and subtle

creedp

liamog wrote: »

I like the look of the EO Mini, not as fancy as the Zappi but is very small and subtle

Anyone install an EO Mini? Any issues? Its significantly cheaper than a zappi and could be installed free with the grant.

Another installation question - did anyone install a 32amp external socket for a car charger allowing the charger to be plugged it at different locations as desired? I was considering installing 2 32amp sockets - one inside and outside the garage - which would allow me to charge outside most of the time but with he option to charge inside during very cold/snowy weather. The additional costs of the 2 sockets would be minimal but the security of the unit might be a problem as someone could simply unplug and walk away with it. Does anyone know if the cover of the zappi is lockable to stop someone unhooking it from the wall?

creedp

I eventually bit the bullet and picked up a tethered type 1 Zappi. When I took it out of the box I couldn't help noticing how insecure it would be on an external wall. Remove a couple of screws and €600 worth of unit could be removed from the wall (ignoring the risk of electrocution here!). A nice sturdy metal lockable casing would really help to make it more secure from theft.

Ozziej

So I just bought a leaf with a 6.6kw charger and am in market for a 32amp house charger. I looked at eo mini for around 500 plus vat and a guy to install.

The install guy came out to look. I have a situation where I bought a property that has two meters and two fuse boxes. One fuse box has an electric shower and one does not.

So I asked for two options

Option 1 is set it up with a fuse box at front of house which only needs 5 meters of cable. 300 plus vat for install. Seems ok.

Option 2 is to set it up with fuse box on side of house. This would take 15 to 20 meters of cable and because there is an electric shower on the fuse box he said i’d need a priority switch. Cost for install 900 plus vat.

Now can people comment on whether that seems reasonable (knowing you haven’t seen the situation.

He also said that when I combine the meters I will need to install a priority box even if I choose option 1. As when the two meters are combined the shower will trip the house fuse even though it’s in another fuse box.

Is that true?

I am torn between doing option 1 and worrying about priority box when I get around to combining meters or option 2 to do it now and get it over with

First port of call though is some other quotes.

_dof_

Electric Autos have the EO mini for 530 incl. VAT, Linky

but you could consider the Zappi for 50 quid more, you can get away without the priority switch since the Zappi can limit the charging current to keep the total household current below the limit for blowing the main fuse.

Ozziej

_dof_ wrote: »

Electric Autos have the EO mini for 530 incl. VAT, Linky

but you could consider the Zappi for 50 quid more, you can get away without the priority switch since the Zappi can limit the charging current to keep the total household current below the limit for blowing the main fuse.

Thanks. Could you recommend someone who installs zappi?

_dof_

Ozziej wrote: »

Thanks. Could you recommend someone who installs zappi?

Any registered electrician should be able to do it. I'm just waiting for my local electrician to show up to install my Zappi.

Kangas daddy

Approaching delivery of 182 L40 in 3 weeks and looking to get home charger for electrician to install. Feel free to laugh but is there any charger that once installed can change the connection type if in the future I buy a non-Leaf or is the ‘type 2’unicersal for current/future EVs?

I think I understand properly (?) that the CHAdeMO connection is only for FCP fast charging and not for home use but not absolutely certain as mention of CCS confuses me. I’ve been advised go for 32A which is good advice and easy for a not yet but imminent EV owner to understand.

I’ll be looking for a tethered unit and THINK ‘type 2’ is what I need for the new Leaf? Trying to future proof if I can but am still on learning curve.

optimal

Nice one. I have invested in a 30 kWh Leaf myself and this week is my first week driving it. Using the public charging system has been a bit of an adventure to put it mildly!!

I have invested in a Zappi charger which I’m waiting on to be delivered. Mightn’t be the cheapest but it will work well for me I think as I have a Heatpump and it can limit the current drawn to the MIC allowable.

I can PM you my supplier if you wish as I’m not sure about the rules on posting supplier details on this site.

Details of the charger are at https://myenergi.uk/product/zappi/

You will need type 2. They only have tethered although they say they will have untethered in Q3. Tethered is best I think and you also have to decide if you want 5 meter cable or 8.

If you want to limit current drawn you will have to wire back to a point between meter and fuse box using cat 5 cable. You could also use a “Harvi” device which will wirelessly connect to the Zappi if you can’t run a cable.

Kangas daddy wrote: »

Approaching delivery of 182 L40 in 3 weeks and looking to get home charger for electrician to install. Feel free to laugh but is there any charger that once installed can change the connection type if in the future I buy a non-Leaf or is the ‘type 2’unicersal for current/future EVs?

I think I understand properly (?) that the CHAdeMO connection is only for FCP fast charging and not for home use but not absolutely certain as mention of CCS confuses me. I’ve been advised go for 32A which is good advice and easy for a not yet but imminent EV owner to understand.

I’ll be looking for a tethered unit and THINK ‘type 2’ is what I need for the new Leaf? Trying to future proof if I can but am still on learning curve.