New to EV and looking for home charger.

Blazer · 28-03-2026 10:23AM #1

Picking up my EV on Tuesday so looking around to see what's the best in terms of ev chargers.

I have access to work charger which I envisage will cover nearly 99% of my charging.

Am I better off using the granny charger to charge (MYP) if I'm ever stuck at home (connected to an outdoor socket) or better safe than sorry getting a proper ev charger.

I see Bord Gais are doing one for €799 including grant (i just switched to them) but have no plans as of now to switch to an EV tariff because of work.

joe1303l · 28-03-2026 10:51AM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058436417/new-to-ev-and-looking-for-home-charger

If you intend owning an EV or even a PHEV longterm, it’s definitely prudent to install a proper 7kW wallbox at home. The likes of Fokearn are usually pretty reasonable and you’re not tied to a specific electricity provider.
Granny chargers aren’t a good long term solution. (UK/IRL 3pin 13A plugtops aren’t meant to pull 7kW continuously for hours and can overheat). They are also extremely slow if you did need to add a substantial charge to your MYP. Link to Fokearn below;

https://www.fokearn.com/home-charging

MojoMaker · 28-03-2026 10:34AM

An "EV tariff" is just a marketing label. There is in reality no such thing, just discounted time periods of the night that fit into an overall price portfolio for an electricity provider. Don't be fooled by the spiel.

You're best of looking at your overall energy consumption patterns and selecting a plan that fits your overall household need, and by doing so you may find that you're actually better off with a standard (discounted) day/night plan, or even sticking with the 24hr plan.

If you have work charging and your anticipated electricity needs for the new car is only occasional then:

The granny cable will probably be enough, assuming you don't have to drape it out a window
The higher day time rates on those "EV tariffs" will probably make the overall proposition unattractive.

893bet · 28-03-2026 10:51AM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058436417/new-to-ev-and-looking-for-home-charger

how far are you from work? I would install personally and have it done. In 5 years time the grant might be gone and chargers more expensive.

Blazer · 28-03-2026 11:03AM

thanks folks,, I’ve seen fokearn come highly recommended on here and Reddit so will check them out.

Blazer · 28-03-2026 11:20AM

It’s a 35km to/from and I’d be onsite 4 days a week.

I’m thinking full 100% charge on the Friday which should cover me for the weekend and then a top up on Monday to 80%.

Is a weekly charge upto 100% recommended or best to avoid except when absolutely needed?

893bet · 28-03-2026 11:34AM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124346954#Comment_124346954

yeah you are arriving home close to full on Friday, unless doing a lot of weekend driving you won’t even need a top up till back to work.

As long as work don’t with draw charging suddenly you are grand.

If you own the house I would do the install and future proof it personally. What ever you get make sure it’s “solar ready”. After 12 months of the EV all you will say is “why don’t I do that 5 years ago” and be thinking about converting all cars on the house to electric.

joe1303l · 28-03-2026 12:24PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124346954#Comment_124346954

Doesn’t matter, just charge it as you need to.

Oscar_Madison · 28-03-2026 10:55PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124346954#Comment_124346954

As respected posters on this forum said to me when I first got an EV- “relax” 😀

You’ll find your feet and your groove VERY quickly once you get your home charger - it’s the in between time where you have your EV and waiting on your home charger that might do your head in a little. But that’s temporary and shorterm - once you get your home charger you’ll relax into your own groove of charging.

For me a few months on, leaving aside normal driving escapades, I do like to keep it charged for “emergencies” and “unexpected” - but that’s simply because I have elderly relatives on the wrong side of 85…and a bit of a distance away 😀

k123456 · 29-03-2026 10:17AM

Go for one with a tethered cable, I have non tethered , and its not ideal to fish a charging cable from the boot

Technically you do not need ;

Charge time Setting built into the charger, because you can control time of charging from the Car directly , or an app on your phone

youtheman · 11-06-2026 11:26AM

I am about to pull the trigger on an EV. I sent a few queries to various companies, with some photos, about installing the EV charger. Some responded confirming that I need to upgrade my tails (from 10mm2 to 16mm2 or 25mm2), and possibly run a new earth. I contacted a local electrician and he can do that for me. The question I now have is should I also get that electrician to install the charger (he recommended Zappi)?. I assume with no grant. Also, is the Zappi suitable for a house that does not have Solar PV (yet!)?.

...Ghost... · 11-06-2026 12:27PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124542103#Comment_124542103

Don’t get a Zappi. Known to regularly fail just outside of warranty. Quite a few YT electricians have said they won’t install them anymore.

Gael23 · 11-06-2026 12:35PM

For safety reasons granny chargers should be avoided at really any cost. Too many house fires linked to them

joe1303l · 11-06-2026 04:49PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124542311#Comment_124542311

To be fair, I think some of this can be attributed to the fact that Zappi units are around for quite a bit. Warranty on them can be extended for a fee. Aftersales service is pretty good. I’d have no hesitation in recommending one but they’re not cheap.

myfreespirit · 11-06-2026 05:24PM

I have an Easee One untethered charger for nearly three years and have found it reliable and simple to use. It's a neat unit with no screen - all control of the charger is done from the Easee app on my phone. Made in Norway, any support questions I had were answered fairly quickly by email.

User1998 · 11-06-2026 05:35PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124348495#Comment_124348495

Just leave the cable connected to the charger?

...Ghost... · 11-06-2026 05:45PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124543157#Comment_124543157

I hear what you're saying, but I don't agree. If we were talking about failures in general, that would be different. We are talking about many failures just outside of warranty. I'm not talking about aftersales support, i'm talking about reliability. They're becoming known for crapping themselves as soon as the warranty expires. Customers are often offered refurbs at a discount, which IMO, is a sticking plaster.

Zappi got popular because they had solar integration and an eco-system. I'd go for a Hypervolt, or Ohme.

If I was installing acharger and didn't need any solar integration or load management, i'd install a Tesla charger….but only because I own Teslas and the charger is pretty slick looking.

Pat734 · 11-06-2026 06:33PM

Most EV owners I know have Zappi. With the exception of one person everyone's very happy with no issues whatsoever with most owners well outside of the the warranty period. The one person who did have something go wrong had a tradesperson hit the unit with a very solid ladder, it cracked the unit, so nothing to do with the Zappi, the installation company replaced it at half price as a gesture of goodwill.

youtheman · 12-06-2026 09:12AM

Can the Zappi unit be used/operated easily when you don't have solar PV connected?

tlaavtech · 12-06-2026 09:22AM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124544856#Comment_124544856

Absolutely!

Zappi has the option of diverting solar into the car, but it doesn't have to be. Most people here (including me) will charge their car on cheap night rates and sell solar back to the grid during the day.

...Ghost... · 12-06-2026 09:40AM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124544856#Comment_124544856

As can most other ev chargers. I had a Hypervolt 2.0 installed (replacing my dumb Rolec charger) before I had solar installed. They are independent of eachother, but can be se to run with eachother.

New to EV and looking for home charger.

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