EV charger installation companies?

Shefwedfan

daheff wrote: »

sorry to hijack this thread somewhat, but can people tell me what I should be getting installed if I got any of the below cars?


Nissan Leaf 40kw (or 60 if I wait)
Kia Niro PHEV or BEV
Hyundai Kona/ Ioniq


I guess from reading this forum that all chargers are not the same - are there converters available (eg from ChaDemo to CCS?)

thanks

ChaDemo is only on leaf.


Everything else will be CCS, including all the new VW's and its range.


You can just install a charger point with no cable, then plug in the cable you get with car. That is what I done.

KCross

daheff wrote: »

sorry to hijack this thread somewhat, but can people tell me what I should be getting installed if I got any of the below cars?


Nissan Leaf 40kw (or 60 if I wait)
Kia Niro PHEV or BEV
Hyundai Kona/ Ioniq


I guess from reading this forum that all chargers are not the same - are there converters available (eg from ChaDemo to CCS?)

thanks

You are confusing slow home charging (AC) and public rapid charging(DC).

Public rapid use either ChaDeMo or CCS. Neither of those are relevant for home charging.

The cars have two charge ports (AC and DC).

The cars you have listed will be using a type 2 port for AC charging and they will all come with a cable to match that.

So you need to decide whether you want a tethered or untethered charge point. Tethered means the cable will be attached permanently to the charge point and you need to ensure the cable is a type 2 cable (vs type 1 which is used for old Leaf).

If you go untethered you will use the cable that comes with the car and plug it in/out each time or leave it plugged in permanently.

Grumpypants

Got an updated quote from NMD for a socket style one not a Zappi. €820 plus Vat so around €930. €330 after the grant.

It's the same one you can get on Amazon for €380. So €550 to install!

unkel

That's more like it. Still not particularly cheap, but he will do a good job.

Shefwedfan

Grumpypants wrote: »

Got an updated quote from NMD for a socket style one not a Zappi. €820 plus Vat so around €930. €330 after the grant.

It's the same one you can get on Amazon for €380. So €550 to install!

They will be making a mark up on the product, I would guess they have to sell at street price so 600 quid, I think electricautos are selling for that



So really you are looking at 330 for install

DM1983

Local electrician charged €200 for a very simple install. 2m cable run. No priority switch. Very neat and tidy job. Ordered tethered rolec with outside socket online and shipped through parcel motel. Total cost to me was €100.

I remember a few months ago people saying on here there was some form of glitch ordering through evonestop and the VAT wasn't applied to Irish orders. Worth checking if its still the case because that would bring total cost for a basic install under the €600. Don't be put off by having to complete a simple form yourself. There is nothing to it.

Also, definitely get a tethered unit. No question. So much handier. Electrician said swapping a type 1 to type 2 plug in the future would be the most basic of jobs.

Random Bloke

Dmangan wrote: »

Local electrician charged €200 for a very simple install. 2m cable run. No priority switch. Very neat and tidy job. Ordered tethered rolec with outside socket online and shipped through parcel motel. Total cost to me was €100.

I remember a few months ago people saying on here there was some form of glitch ordering through evonestop and the VAT wasn't applied to Irish orders. Worth checking if its still the case because that would bring total cost for a basic install under the €600. Don't be put off by having to complete a simple form yourself. There is nothing to it.

Also, definitely get a tethered unit. No question. So much handier. Electrician said swapping a type 1 to type 2 plug in the future would be the most basic of jobs.

Sorry if answered before but can you use the grant to pay for a charger that you buy from amazon / eBay? Or do you need an invoice from a RECI electrician inclusive of the cost of the charger?

DM1983

Random Bloke wrote: »

Dmangan wrote: »

Local electrician charged €200 for a very simple install. 2m cable run. No priority switch. Very neat and tidy job. Ordered tethered rolec with outside socket online and shipped through parcel motel. Total cost to me was €100.

I remember a few months ago people saying on here there was some form of glitch ordering through evonestop and the VAT wasn't applied to Irish orders. Worth checking if its still the case because that would bring total cost for a basic install under the €600. Don't be put off by having to complete a simple form yourself. There is nothing to it.

Also, definitely get a tethered unit. No question. So much handier. Electrician said swapping a type 1 to type 2 plug in the future would be the most basic of jobs.

Sorry if answered before but can you use the grant to pay for a charger that you buy from amazon / eBay? Or do you need an invoice from a RECI electrician inclusive of the cost of the charger?

You can buy the charger yourself but it has to be installed by a certified electrician. They will provide the 2 forms, a test record sheet and a certificate number 3, that you need to submit to claim the grant.

unkel

Dmangan wrote: »

Local electrician charged €200 for a very simple install. 2m cable run.

And for anyone wondering why he would charge €200 for a very simple job - this probably includes a few meters of 6mm2 T&E cable (€25), some ducting (€25) and a 40A RCBO (€35), so not an awful lot more than €100 for his time. Which is about right for a call out fee plus maybe 1.5h work or so for a simple install

icom

Got a Rolec online for 350 delivered and a local electrician installed it for 250, so the grant will cover everything.

17larsson

unkel wrote: »

And for anyone wondering why he would charge €200 for a very simple job - this probably includes a few meters of 6mm2 T&E cable (€25), some ducting (€25) and a 40A RCBO (€35), so not an awful lot more than €100 for his time. Which is about right for a call out fee plus maybe 1.5h work or so for a simple install

Plus certificate, plus isolator for charger, plus initial call out to check that mains tails, earth electrode and main bonding for gas/water are all correct size before the new circuit is added.

I guarantee some or all of those weren't included in that price

ted1

17larsson wrote: »

Plus certificate, plus isolator for charger, plus initial call out to check that mains tails, earth electrode and main bonding for gas/water are all correct size before the new circuit is added.

I guarantee some or all of those weren't included in that price

A decent sparks will have the above and can do it on site without a second visit

daheff

i already have solar panels in my house. They provide power to the house when working. Do I need anything special because of these when installing a charging point?



Also I assume charging points have 2 outlets on them (So 2 cars can charge together)? Any i've seen on a quick google look to have 2 outlets


edit these are the ones i'm seeing, but on closer look its 1 outlet

Socket

SemperFidelis

You don't need to do anything special if you have PV but you may want to install the Zappi charger and take advantage of the solar produced electricity. This can be set to only charge the car when there is excess solar electricity.

I've only seen home chargers with a single charge point (1 car only).

unkel

SemperFidelis wrote: »

You don't need to do anything special if you have PV but you may want to install the Zappi charger and take advantage of the solar produced electricity. This can be set to only charge the car when there is excess solar electricity.

To add to that, most EVs need 6A charging at the very minimum. So the Zappi only works for charging your car if you are overproducing at least 1.4kW over and above your household base load. So realistically you need a minimum of 6 or 7 PV panels (and a very small household base load), or your car won't charge at all on PV

If you have fewer PV panels at the moment, but plan to install more in future, then for sure the Zappi should be considered.

Shefwedfan

unkel wrote: »

To add to that, most EVs need 6A charging at the very minimum. So the Zappi only works for charging your car if you are overproducing at least 1.4kW over and above your household base load. So realistically you need a minimum of 6 or 7 PV panels (and a very small household base load), or your car won't charge at all on PV

If you have fewer PV panels at the moment, but plan to install more in future, then for sure the Zappi should be considered.

Interesting, I wasn't aware of that.



So if you had a 1.8kW system and you load is 0.5 then the Zappi would be useless as it wouldnt have enought to charge car?

denismc

Shefwedfan wrote: »

Interesting, I wasn't aware of that.



So if you had a 1.8kW system and you load is 0.5 then the Zappi would be useless as it wouldnt have enought to charge car?

It will still charge if you have a surplus of 1.3, its just that the balance will drawn from the grid.
I doubt very few people would charge at the minimum requirement anyway, it would take to long .
So the Zappi will work fine even without PV but obviously the more surplus you have from your panels the cheaper it is to charge your car.

KCross

Shefwedfan wrote: »

unkel wrote: »

To add to that, most EVs need 6A charging at the very minimum. So the Zappi only works for charging your car if you are overproducing at least 1.4kW over and above your household base load. So realistically you need a minimum of 6 or 7 PV panels (and a very small household base load), or your car won't charge at all on PV

If you have fewer PV panels at the moment, but plan to install more in future, then for sure the Zappi should be considered.

Interesting, I wasn't aware of that.



So if you had a 1.8kW system and you load is 0.5 then the Zappi would be useless as it wouldnt have enought to charge car?

As Denis said it will draw the shortfall from the grid so it will charge fine with less than 1.4kW excess solar.

You can also set it to only charge from excess solar in which case you would need 1.4kW excess but that’s a mode you pick rather than default behavior.

n97 mini

unkel wrote: »

And for anyone wondering why he would charge €200 for a very simple job - this probably includes a few meters of 6mm2 T&E cable (€25), some ducting (€25) and a 40A RCBO (€35), so not an awful lot more than €100 for his time. Which is about right for a call out fee plus maybe 1.5h work or so for a simple install

Ducting not required if the cable run is all internal. In my case it's internal and comes out through the wall into the back of an external junction box to which the CP is connected (came with its own short duct). The 6mm2 cable is cheap enough too... less that a fiver a metre.

gunnerfitzy

Untethered Zappi is expected to be for sale in the coming months if you really interested in the Zappi but would like to go untethered.

From MyEnergi FAQ:

Will you be developing an untethered zappi unit?
Yes, we’re releasing our socketed version zappi in October/Nov 2018.

https://myenergi.uk/faqs/

unkel

n97 mini wrote: »

Ducting not required if the cable run is all internal.

Not required, but you kinda need it for aesthetic purposes

denismc wrote: »

It will still charge if you have a surplus of 1.3, its just that the balance will drawn from the grid.

Aye, technically you are correct, but surely you don't want to pay the full daytime rate for (partly) charging your car unless you absolutely have to. The whole point about the Zappi is to use your excess production to send it to your car (for free), so you don't even use the cheap night rate for charging it

the perfect ten

Just got our first EV - an EGolf. Now looking at getting a home charger installed.

Has anyone had experience of using Electric Ireland to do the installation?

Shefwedfan

the perfect ten wrote: »

Just got our first EV - an EGolf. Now looking at getting a home charger installed.

Has anyone had experience of using Electric Ireland to do the installation?

No but they seem ok. As far as I know, which I could be wrong it is only a 16amp charger. Will do the job only slower.



Are you planning on investing in solar PV at any stage?

the perfect ten

Shefwedfan wrote: »

No but they seem ok. As far as I know, which I could be wrong it is only a 16amp charger. Will do the job only slower.



Are you planning on investing in solar PV at any stage?

I’d be looking for a 7.4kW charger. So 33 Amp. Probably looking at installing solar in 2 years time.

unkel

If you might install solar PV, then it's wise to get a smart charger that is able to send surplus electricity to your car. Like a Zappi, I believe the most popular of all EV chargers in this country at the moment.

User1998

unkel wrote: »

If you might install solar PV, then it's wise to get a smart charger that is able to send surplus electricity to your car. Like a Zappi, I believe the most popular of all EV chargers in this country at the moment.

Could I ask what the obsession is with the Zappi using solar to charge the car? It seems to get mentioned a lot

Whats the difference between having an expensive Zappi charging the car on Solar, and a cheap charger powering the car, while the solar powers other things in the house

Is it just so you have the car powered by 100% free renewable energy? Instead of the dish washer or fridge?

unkel

No, the problem with solar PV is that on most installs, when the sun shines, only 10% of your production is used by your house. 90% of your production is not used and goes back to the grid, you don't get any money for this. Put on the dish washer and this goes down to 75%, but if a cloud passes over, your dish washer will use power from the grid

With a Zappi charger, whatever you are not using yourself will be stored into your car

But you are right, it is an expensive charger, being at least EUR200 more expensive than a normal one. You do get a EUR600 subsidy for installing a charger though

KCross

User1998 wrote: »

Whats the difference between having an expensive Zappi charging the car on Solar, and a cheap charger powering the car, while the solar powers other things in the house

The main difference is thats it's fully automated. Turning on appliances to use the excess power is manual and as unkel said will also cause grid power to be used.

The Zappi will adjust itself continuously to only send the excess to the car. If you turn on the kettle the Zappi will reduce what it sends to the car automatically and when the kettle turns off it ramps up again.

If you're buying a charge point anyway and plan to have Solar you might as well get one that puts it all together.

But you are right, it is an expensive charger, being at least EUR200 more expensive than a normal one.

The Zappi also does load management out of the box. Most other cheap charge points dont do that and can result in you having to buy a priority switch which will cost €150-€200 to put in, so there isnt really much difference in the cost between them when you factor that in.

User1998

Ah I see, now I see the appeal of them. I wasn’t aware that most of the energy from the solar panels goes back to the grid without you getting paid. I got my 32a tethered unit installed for only €200 after grant which included a priority switch, whereas Zappis seem to be around €1000 even after the grant for a supply and install job?

Lumen

Is there a minimum amount of solar that makes sense for charging an EV?

I was thinking of doing a solar car port, but I read that a 10kW system is around 70sqm, so a 7x5 double car port would only be 5kW, and I imagine that's a maximum.