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Look into getting an Electroverse card ? Might be easier if you are with Octopus ?
The issue being this is any one of 22 delivery staff, spread around UK and using various hire car depots and three different companies.
I'm going through a carbon reduction project at work, and our road mileage is the biggest issue. We can start with hire cars, look into supporting staff with personal car changes when we can but that's much more expensive for them and us as employer.
if you're wanting a commercial "fuel card" for national charging network, then Shell Recharge would do that I expect. It covers all the big operators (except Tesla, Gridserve and Chargeplace Scotland, at the moment as far as I'm aware). I had the card supplied commercially. In my case it came with the cars rather than being issued to me personally, but I presume it could be supplied for depot or individual multi/open vehicle use.
Surely the driver isn’t expected to have all the cards / apps to hire an electric car?
There isn't really 'all the apps'.
Almost all rapid chargers take contactless debit card payments. The exceptions are:
- older Charge Place Scotland ones, which are your only option in remote Scotland
- Tesla public superchargers, but these are not essential as there are always others.
Apps are a lot more common for 'fast' chargers i.e. the 7kW AC ones but these are next to useless anyway in most scenarios so can safely be ignored unless you have a specific situation i.e. there's one at an office you go to and spend all day etc.
I recently used an Ionity charger that did not seem to accept contactless. The instructions on the screen were not clear so I waved a bunch of cards at it and the one that got accepted was apparently Electroverse. Not sure if I was just unlucky or incompetent. Or both.
Not sure if I was just unlucky or incompetent.
There are usually two RFID readers - one for scheme cards and a different one for actual debit cards. This has stumped me once or twice before.
Shell Recharge would do that
Is it just me that can't get a card? I have the app but when I click on 'Order card' I just get a 'Sorry, currently unavailable' message and tells me to use contactless – it's been like that for months.
Don't know johndoh, maybe they are only supplying RFID cards to fleet contracts at this time or something of that nature.
I’d think that V2H would be no more stressful on the car battery than regular driving
It's *much* less stressful. Some models even use the lower power charge/discharge for conditioning of the battery. If needed. Most vehicles won't though.
Johndoh If it's any help to you, electroverse and zap-map have networks that are pretty much the same if not identical (they all announced instavolt as a partner at the same time, so I suspect they are all piggybacking the same New Motion network *now owned by shell I think*). They issue RFID cards
Little thread revival here; I posted the following questions on the Electric Car thread but it seems more relevant here:
We’ve just ordered our second id3. We’ve had this one for 4 years and just over 40000 miles and it has been fantastic. The new one will have the bigger 77kwh battery which will make trips around Wales that little bit easier.
However, the bigger battery has inspired us to pull our fingers out to sort home charging which we can’t currently do due to on street parking. We’ve been fine with public chargers (and Pembs is surprisingly well served with them) but the cost have increased recently.
We have a process we can follow with the council to ask permission to put a kerbo-style cable channel across the pavement so now need to sort a suitable charging facility on the front of the house.
(We can park outside our house 99% of the time and are good terms with our neighbours).
I don’t think we can fit a proper charger on the space available (mostly due to the chunkier plugs, sockets and cables) so I’m looking at getting someone to cut a chunk out of the render to allow a waterproof and lockable 3-pin socket to be put low down on the front of the house. Our leccy box is by the front door so connecting it on its own circuit should be ok.
What ratings do I need look for in the socket, wiring etc? I WON’T be doing the work but want to be able to have an informed chat with an electrician.
We can then come home after work and most nights trickle charge off a granny charger for at least 12 hours which will be great.
I’m sure there might be other solutions you can think of, which I’m keen to hear, but I’m pretty sure this is the most cost effective route for us.
Cheers
If you want to take advantage of cheap overnight charging rates then that may be at odds with your 12 hour trickle charge. There are some fairly small chargers around - look at the Hive EO mini untethered for example. Not cheap but it includes various smart capabilities and will have the PEN detection required for EV chargers, which I would have thought would be pretty much essential if you want to avoid the risk of electrocuting passers by.
If you want to take advantage of cheap overnight charging rates then that may be at odds with your 12 hour trickle charge
Only if you empty your car. If you're driving say 30 miles a day, you can easily put that back in the 6 hour overnight window. 50 miles is more likely. So as long as you're driving less than that on average, you're golden. And if course, even if you need more you can get 6hrs at 7p and 2 more hours at 24p, that's still cheaper than 8hrs at 24p and massively cheaper than 60p at a public place.
I don’t think we can fit a proper charger on the space available (mostly due to the chunkier plugs, sockets and cables)
Really? It takes up almost no space and the cable isn't very thick.
If you want to take advantage of cheap overnight charging rates then that may be at odds with your 12 hour trickle charge
If you're on Octopus intelligent go and it knows you're on a slow charger (and the car can sync with Octopus), you're often not limited to six hours charging overnight.
A Tesla charger question from a non-Tesla owner. Is the situation below the same for every Tesla charging situation?
On my usual route from Hampshire to Wales/FoD I have Membury as my old man bladder emptying stop. When I used to pass through in my ICE car I saw the 8 or 10 Tesla superchargers and thought "Well, when I go electric I will be sorted for this journey" Well, let me tell you now, this was very wrong. I confidently rolled up in my shiney electric car expecting a quick boost while having a pee, and bump! I hit a rubber speed bump thing in front of the charger. Tried again but then decided it must be there to stop wally's from running into the charging machine. Got out, grabbed the cable, went to plug in, cable won't reach. Spent 5 minutes puzzling over it until a very helpful Tesla owner came over and said "Yup, stupid short cables because people steal them. Reaches a Tesla though"
Gone is my simple recharge option due to a silly rubber thing and a short cable. Have to plug in to the slow charger and wee very slowly.
I'm a happy at-home charger but last week (for the first time in a couple of years) I had to charge during a journey. Lots of annoying little issues...
On the outward journey I went to charge at Reading services - charger wasn't doing anything whilst I was waving my bank card over the marked spot (but the screen was so scratched I couldn't see any messages) but it also wouldn't release the charge cable so I could try another charger. Rang the support number and they walked me through releasing it, all worked fine after trying a different charger.
On the way back I wasn't paying much attention to where Google diverted me to in order to charge and just selected the first option, took me through a couple of small towns to a BP petrol station with a couple of chargers (seemed to just factor in distance rather than time, fair enough if you're super low but seemed an odd choice to divert so far from arterial roads otherwise). One was in use but the other one had the same issue, wouldn't read my card (or phone), rang them up and they said they'd reboot it and for me to wait 10 minutes before trying again. I ended up going to another charger (under 10% battery at this point) but by the time I got there it was in use so went back to the BP one, same issue with payment not working. Ended up going to yet another charger a few miles away and it worked fine.
Only minor inconveniences but I could have done without the added stress and hassle...
Gone is my simple recharge option due to a silly rubber thing and a short cable
There's a massive Gridserve installation at Chievely and Leigh Delmaere, and chargers all over the place along the M4 and just off it. Tons of choice
@johnjn2000 I’ve only been to two or three Tesla stations but that does seem to be the norm. I just try and hit ones that are nowhere near all in use, and park in the wrong bay, so technically using two ‘tesla spaces’. As I’m only ever stopped for 20 mins tops it’s not caused any issue yet.
I take delviery of the new car on Monday, quick query re tariffs. I am assuming the overnight cheap rates are matched to an increase in daytime rates? Is that correct?
IF so, how much charging do you need to do to make the tarrfffs the right choice?
On IOG my rates are 7p and 28.79p per kwh vs a flat 27p on their variable tarrif. So every kWh used off peak saves 20p vs standard variable tarrif, and to spend 20p extra at IOG peak rate vs standard takes more than 11kWh usage (which is about the typical daily usage). Say your EV does 4 miles per kwh then 120 miles is 30 kWh used (a bit more charging cos of losses) - if you drive more than that a month the savings from charging should more than offset the extra peak cost, even more so if you can shift other load to the off peak window. Obvs other tarrifs are available etc etc
On IOG my rates are 7p and 28.79p per kwh
Is it region specific? My rates on IOG are 7p and 26.81p
Yes the rates are region-specific.
I did a similar calculation to thepurist for maybe a bit higher normal consumption (500kWh per month) and came up with 200 miles as break-even usage, so same ballpark We don’t do many long trips but we do live in the middle of nowhere so we use the car for daily transport and it’s worth it for us.
This is the front of the house - the plan in my head is to get someone to cut out the render around the airbrick to allow a socket to be fitted recessed into the wall. The cable then would run down to the pavement where we'll fit the cable channel. The spare cable and the built-in controller on the charging cable would sit under the car (not the i10 in the picture!).
Even an EO Mini would stick out lots once the charging cable is plugged in - we'd have to dig out lots of the wall to make sure the end of the plug was flush with the outer edge of the current wall-line. A lockable 3-pin socket has a much smaller profile: 
As stated up there ^ : a granny charger trickling overnight would usually replace the daily use to work and shops and even a non-specific EV rate would be cheaper than any of the public options. The cheaper we can make the home option the better. I'd love a fully functioning 7kw home charger but we just can't do it I think.
Is there any good reason not to order an EV charger though Octopus. I want an Ohme to access the Octopus Go tarriffs and 4g not wifi and untethered...and their price is competitive.
I assume they just sub it out to a local fitter so I guess the quality of the work can vary.
I assume they just sub it out to a local fitter so I guess the quality of the work can vary.
Yes they sub it out. I still thought that ordering through Octopus would give less scope for blame shifting and finger pointing in the event of problems, but so far so good.
But….
it really feels like you’re a beta tester for Ohme. Sometimes it just doesn't work, and there’s no way you can diagnose the problem. It’s too complicated for this Bear Of Very Little Brain.
I want an Ohme to access the Octopus Go tarriffs and 4g not wifi and untethered
An alternative is an Indra Smart Pro which works with IOG. I bought one online and had a local electrician install it, Octopus wouldn't do ours as the cable run was too long.
https://www.indra.co.uk/products/smart-pro-ev-charger-without-cable/
Anyone here switched to the £30 all you can charge/month deal with octopus..
Hard to know if i'll save money, or not.
The reason being...with IOG, when the car is charging at 7ppKw, the rest of the house is also on 7ppKw.
Will this be similar with teh 30 quid deal? i.e when the car is charging, the rest of the house is, erm, free I guess?
Or will ALL units be 26ish ppKw, and the charger 'tells' octopus how much IT used, then that gets refunded...??
DrP
Or will ALL units be 26ish ppKw, and the charger 'tells' octopus how much IT used, then that gets refunded...??
This is how I understood it. I jumped at it when it was £20, but then cancelled after doing the maths. I think you had to do 1200 miles per month to break even or so. I don't spend that much on IOG charging.
Will this be similar with teh 30 quid deal?
Was looking at this last night, and no - only energy going to a single car is in the £30pm. So the charger must report back how many units its used and knock it off the total. If you use the same charger to charge two vehicles you'd need two £30pm subscriptions which would clearly make no sense unless you had two chargers as you just couldn't charge enough KWs overnight from a single charger to use £60pm of leccy.
Two sides to this - the rest of your house won't be on the cheap leccy, but on the flipside your day time electricity is cheaper than on IOG as it's on whatever standard/variable/fixed rate you are normally on which is about 2p per unit less than the IOG daytime rate.
I can't work it out for me - on the weeks I'm driving to work (35 weeks a year) It'll save me money but on the months I'm not it'll probably cost more. I think I might find myself doing more pleasure miles though as they'd be effectively free (apart from car and tyre wear) - 60mile round trip to ride at a trail centre of an evening - that'll be free. Can't be arsed to take my roof bars off mid week commuting which reduces range - not financial issue.
Fair enough...
Although, Octopus, on their facebook group, said you CAN charge 2 EVs from a charger and make use of it, as long as the EVs 'don't communicate with teh charger/tarriff'.
i.e I ahve a polestar, OH has a leaf. for these cars, the Ohme charger does all the 'talking to octopus', so for our use the charger can't tell which car it is..erg we could charge both cars on one tarriff.
A tesla talks directly to octopus, so won't be able to charge 2 of them.
Anyway... I think I'll stick to IOG.
DrP
i.e I ahve a polestar, OH has a leaf. for these cars, the Ohme charger does all the 'talking to octopus', so for our use the charger can't tell which car it is..erg we could charge both cars on one tarriff.
Interesting. I'm just going off the ts&cs and am a complete EV virgin so what do I know. The car I'm about to buy does not talk to octopus directly either.
convert - you should be ok then.
My understanding is (for smart octopus tarriffs) you need EITHER a car brand that communicates with Octopus, OR a charger brand that communicates.
Our charger (Ohme phome pro) does the communicating. Essentially, every time i plug either the leaf or polestar EV in, it thinks it's my polestar (only because i entered that data into the ohme app), and that the car is at zero% charge! so will always try to schedule a charge to fill it up by the 7am requested time.
DrP
I take delviery of the new car on Monday, quick query re tariffs. I am assuming the overnight cheap rates are matched to an increase in daytime rates? Is that correct?
It depends on the tariff. Some (like Octopus) give the cheap rate (at specific times) to the whole house and then increase the rate for the rest of the day. Others (like OVO) just give a cheap rate for EV charging (in theory at any time) but don't then increase the rates for anything else. You pays your money and you takes your choice 😀
While I've got a captive audience....
The charger I'm currently buying is for the holiday let we run next door. Ours is on hold until the grant scheme opens up again. I'll just lob the cable over the fence and charge from the holiday let for a couple of months!
For the moment the holiday let will be on a standard tariff (so about 27p I think). Guests will use it via the squareupcharging app which I think add 20% commission on. As an EV charging guest what price would feel reasonable? I don't want or need to fleece the guests but making a little bit of the investment back (beyond hopefully attracting new guests) would be nice. It'll obviously only be 7kw but it'll be super convenient in an area that is a bit of a public EV dessert (10 miles to the nearest ones and they are only 40kw and none in the sort of locations you'd want to spend much time as a tourist). So 40p all up or a bit more? I know some holiday lets are charging supercharger rates but that seems a bit captive audience w***erdom to me.
Hmm, I expect i'd pay 40p for the convenience of a destination charger..
I think i was paying 50cent (no rappers were involved) at Eftelling in the netherlands, and was OK with this.
DrP
Of the two hotels I've recharged at, one was 30p and the other 50p. So a 40p/kWh charge at the place I'm staying would be seen as normal, start charging what I'd pay at a motorway service station and I'm starting to wonder if it's worth it for the convenience factor. I can see the argument being that you'd pay the higher amount if you stopped at a service station, while also having the convenience of not going out of your way, but it's a bit of a dick move and doesn't do much to create goodwill between you and your guests.
Had to charge on a work trip this week as needed 110% of my battery for the round trip. Was running early so stopped on the way out and the only annoyance was the northbound chargers were 50kWh and the southbound ones I'd used previously are 250kWh, so I had to slowly eat my breakfast. Also, I know there's a million charging apps, but it can be worth it as using the gridserve app meant I paid 6p/kWh less than just plugging in and swiping my card.
Even an EO Mini would stick out lots once the charging cable is plugged in
We have a tethered cable and it comes out of the bottom of the unit so it sticks out no more than the unit which is about 8cm or so. The plug then hangs down against the wall so the whole lot sticks out no further than that.
Tethered would fix the sticking out problem but the coil of cable would also be a tricky thing to store around the charger...it would need a bigger hole.
I'm not massively concerned about people dicking around with anything we put there - it's a quiet part of the world - but I don't wnat to make a huge hole in my house or impinge on the walkway. I suppose a mini charger might fit on to the side of the window reveal so the plug sits parallel to the windowsill. Then it's more cost. Hmm...thanks for the thoughts.
Any recommendations for a good source of longer type 2 cables. We had our (untethered) charger for our guests at the holiday let installed yesterday and want to give them a 10m cable to give them parking options. The internet is awash with online suppliers but I'm assuming they will range in quality not necessarily linked to price....
Charger for our house is an ongoing nause. We have a energy saving trust grant for £400 but finding a company that is both on the list of approved fitters (Octopus aren't) and can find an engineer prepared to travel to our postcode is proving challenging! A grant designed specifically for rural folk....that won't travel to rural folk. Joy.
I bought a 7.5m of eBay and fitted myself.
Sounds like you might not want to mess with eBay though.
I bought a 7.5m of eBay and fitted myself.
Sounds like you might not want to mess with eBay though.
Sounds like you are talking about switching the cable on a tethered charger and wiring in a new one. I'm just wanting to buy a new cable with a plug at each end to go in an untethered charger (we wanted to keep is minimal aesthetically as it's likely not to get much your for the moment).
I'd happily go ebay - just ideally from a supplier that someone's beta tested for me first and is known to supply reasonably quality cables 🙂
Or, if you aren't having a charger and are just using the 3-pin plug; just select your tariff, tell the car you want to charge at the off-peak time. One you've set that up, just plug in when you get home each day.
Cant say id advise that based on our experience unless your not driving very far on a daily basis....
getting about 14kw/50 miles into the battery from the granny plug on the off peak tariff
Holding off getting a 7k Fitted till mums at her new house.
Convert, I've bought a few of different lengths incl most recently 15metre type2 to type2 single phase for untethered Rolec charger. I just generally make sure they quote/have a BSI kitemark.
I'd happily go ebay - just ideally from a supplier that someone's beta tested for me first and is known to supply reasonably quality cables
I bought a 10m cable from here:
EV Cables | Type 1 | Type 2 | Green or Black| 1.8, 3, 5,7 .5, 10 & 15 metres – EV Extras
Happy with the quality. Just make sure you pick single-phase vs three-phase. Obviously 3-phase is faster, but the cable is significantly heavier and awkward to coil and probably won't bring any additional benefit at home.
I tend to take the long cable with me in the car and it has occasionally come in useful - if someone has ICEd a charger, I can park in front of them but still plug in. It does block them in, but I'm rarely there for more than an hour.
An observation on the basis of a few days travelling, ok i am using a hybrid and a fairly small battery, that i charged a few times out of interest as much as anything. French paege 6euro, swiss 12chf, admittedly the French was a 50kwh and the Swiss was a 400kwh charger. i also used a second french unit that was about 11euro. All from 0 to 80%
Yet locally in the UK rate seem to be £14.
And then petrol, the UK is much cheaper. Just doesn't seem to be very connected thinking if you want to encourage EV use.
I found exactly the same.
At Lidl in Sarlat - 150kw charger, 49.61kWh - €19.34
At McDonalds just off the m40 - 160kw charger, 27.74kWh - £24.13
I took out an Ionity plan for €11 ish that got me a €0.33/kwh rate in Europe, I think the same plan in the uk is £0.44 or something.
I'm collecting our second EV on Sunday (ID7 tourer to replace a golf). We don't charge our first (Zoe) anywhere but home as it's the short trip car and also not fast charge capable. Plan is to charge the ID7 at home as much as possible but long trips will obviously need away from home charging. I've signed up with electroverse to do this as we are an octopus customer. I cannot find out how to link the accounts, have they stopped doing this and the associated discount?
Second question is that we are on intelligent flux as we have solar and a battery. I'd like to have my cake and eat it, is it possible to get cheap power for an EV on this tariff?
I'd like to have my cake and eat it, is it possible to get cheap power for an EV on this tariff?
I'd check IOG import and fixed export. Sure the export rate is lower than IOF but so is the import and if you're adding a 77kWh(+?) ev the import rate will make a difference. If you're a bit geeky check out the Predbat integration on Home Assistant which optimises import & export based on tarrif including flexible charging slots, expected usage, expected solar generation, grid carbon mix, saving sessions, free sessions...
Predbet looks to have a steep learning curve :D. I do have a home assistant pc running so that could be an option. Also wondering if going simpler and using the solaredge TOC feature would give most of the benefits with simpler setup. I can definitely set import times with that so could fill on 7p electric overnight to run the house during the day (with all solar getting exported). We've been on flux for 6months and have had a good return (export roughly double import) which I am keen to keep. The gap (approx 7p) between off peak purchase and peek export is the same so might be able to maintain a reasonable offset/profit. May even improve as currently when we do charge the Zoe its at 22p/kWh.
I don't know if this applies to the VW ID cars, but as the manual for my E-hybrid Golf is pretty crap on such things, and to help others who may run into the same issue. There isn't an obvious way to set timed charging. But it can be done.
In the charging menu on the car you can set locations. For those locations you can set preferred charging times and levels.
I've swapped to IOG and connected the ID7. First charge controller by octopus was last night. Not sure what's happening with the export, still says flux but they also say that is not allowed. Have used the solar edge app to configure overnight charging and to discharge just before the cheap period.
If you haven't already worked it out, you link your electroverse card to your octopus account in the electroverse app /website (not the octopus app / website). I presume in your account settings, I think within the payment method
Thank you. That option does not appear to be available in the app at the moment. I can only add card payment methods. Still waiting for the physical card to arrive so may change after activation. Will give them a call if that does not work.
Why do electric cars need so much space to charge? I observed in a supermarket that three charging spaces for electric cars took up six conventional car spaces. Is it because they’re bigger?
Is it because they’re bigger?
Well, my neighbour's got an Audi-something on test for a few days, and it's undeniably gi-bloody-normous. He likes big cars but this one takes the biscuit somewhat.
Why do electric cars need so much space to charge? I observed in a supermarket that three charging spaces for electric cars took up six conventional car spaces. Is it because they’re bigger?
I'd guess because sockets are in different places on the cars so you need room everywhere to allow for all the options and cable space.
That an probably some H&S about distance between supplies.
Just a guess.
Why do electric cars need so much space to charge? I observed in a supermarket that three charging spaces for electric cars took up six conventional car spaces. Is it because they’re bigger?
Wait till you notice how many spaces the fuel forecourt takes up.
Oh and mobility access
Question for y'all. I rarely public charge, but had to do so this week. I parked up with 53% remaining of an 83-85kWh (no one is exactly sure) the car charged to 100% but indicated that it had used 46kWh...how is this possible? 47% of even 85kWh is only 40kWh and given my car's battery health was supposedly at 95.6% you've got to assume its actually somewhere between 81 and 83kWh. This was a slow charger - it took 9.3h to charge.
@daffy - the car said 46kWh, how much were you billed for? also, what car have you got? that might help someone to give you an answer.
EVs aren't bigger. There are big EVs but there are also big ICEs. And there are small EVs too.
@Daffy there are charging losses.
The bill said 46kWh. It's Jaguar Ipace and was using a Pod-point 7kW charger. Surely transmission loss is accounted for in the charge price per kWh, not by measuring how much the charger uses and not what it actually delivers? That's like saying a leaky pump at a petrol station measures from the tank, not the nozzle and you pay for the inefficiency of the pump.
Hmmm few interesting issues today.
Car linked to IOG. Plugged in last night and told both in car and Octopus app to 100%. Woke up this morning to 55% charge! For some reason it trickled in at 1kWH rather than the chargers full rate. My suspicion is that the charge cable might have not been seated properly. When I checked the car the DC cover retaining strap was pinched. After pulling the cable and reinserting the car then charged at full rate.
Second issue was when the car was plugged into a rapid charger away from home octopus seemed to interrupt the charge and create a charge schedule. VW app then reported a charging issue and charging ended. Not sure at the moment what wife did to restart the charge. Clearly don't want that to happen again so need to work out why Octopus though a schedule was needed.
Surely transmission loss is accounted for in the charge price per kWh, not by measuring how much the charger uses and not what it actually delivers? That's like saying a leaky pump at a petrol station measures from the tank, not the nozzle and you pay for the inefficiency of the pump.
I dunno. Ecotricity bill me for the gas they supply, not how warm my house is. They can't control how much heat leaks out of my windows or how efficient my boiler is.
I don't know if the chargers actually know how many kWhs have gone into your battery. They know the battery's SoC, because it's being communicated, but not sure if it knows the actual kWhs delivered. Next time I rapid charge I'll check.
Surely transmission loss is accounted for in the charge price per kWh, not by measuring how much the charger uses and not what it actually delivers?It most likely delivered 46kWh, most of the "losses" are in the car. Cooling the battery while you charge and running the three or four ECUs required to be active during charging.
I "lose" around 1.5 kWh on my hybrid (I regularly get a bit more than the total physical capacity of the battery)
Also, if i run preheating on my car for the while it's plugged in i "lose" an extra couple of kW for every quarter of an hour i run it.
The losses in the charger will be minimal.
This was a slow charger - it took 9.3h to charge.That won't help. Very fast charging = lots of cooling over a short period. Very slow charging = not very much cooling for a long long time...
I don't know if the chargers actually know how many kWhs have gone into your battery.
Why wouldn't they?
I have various electricity monitors that know exactly how much power has passed down a cable in a particular direction.
Anyone tried configuring a second car to IOG yet? Apparently they now support 2 (compatible) EVs so you don't have to switch to IOG controlling the charger for a multi EV household.
Second issue was when the car was plugged into a rapid charger away from home octopus seemed to interrupt the charge and create a charge schedule. VW app then reported a charging issue and charging ended. Not sure at the moment what wife did to restart the charge. Clearly don't want that to happen again so need to work out why Octopus though a schedule was needed.
Hmm smart charge was enabled in the Octopus app. Not very smart though if it can't tell the difference between at home or not and of a rapid DC charger or home AC charger. Seems quite lame you would need to disable this anytime you wish to charge away from home.
Anyone tried configuring a second car to IOG yet? Apparently they now support 2 (compatible) EVs so you don't have to switch to IOG controlling the charger for a multi EV household.
We have 2 cars (an EV and a plug-in hybrid) and are on IOG.
Have an Ohme Home Pro charger and have both cars set up in the Ohme app. Select which car is going to be charged in the app, plug in and away to go. Works without any problems.
Have an Ohme Home Pro charger and have both cars set up in the Ohme app. Select which car is going to be charged in the app, plug in and away to go. Works without any problems.
That's the old way of doing it because Octopus limited you to one car. Seems they will now control 2 cars directly.
I have the Ohme charger, IOG, and a mate staying tonight who will want to charge his car. What's the best way of doing it?
I think it's just plug in and schedule the guest car for the overnight period? I think Ohme will realise it's not the car it's been programmed with and probably just start charging. The schedule on the car will then control when it accepts charge.
I parked up with 53% remaining of an 83-85kWh (no one is exactly sure) the car charged to 100% but indicated that it had used 46kWh...how is this possible? 47% of even 85kWh is only 40kWh and given my car's battery health was supposedly at 95.6% you've got to assume its actually somewhere between 81 and 83kWh. This was a slow charger - it took 9.3h to charge.
That doesn't surprise me. My battery is nominally 32kWh and if I have 30% to put in I aim for 30% of 37kWh, which seems to work. So the charger is putting in 15% more than the battery is gaining. My car does have fairly old charging technology.
Charging to 100% may also take a bit more, as you're stuffing more charge into a nearly full box, and a slow charger may also contribute, as I suspect the overhead for the charging systems, both in the charger and the car, is partly time based.
I have the Ohme charger, IOG, and a mate staying tonight who will want to charge his car. What's the best way of doing it?
In the Ohme app go to ‘Settings’ and under ‘Charging settings’ click on ‘My EV’s’. You can then ‘Add an EV’.
When you then go back to the app home screen you will have a drop down in the top left corner that allows you to select t which car you want to charge.
I have the Ohme charger, IOG, and a mate staying tonight who will want to charge his car. What's the best way of doing it?
Are you using the cars API or just adding a percentage. If the latter you can just plug your mates car in and make a guess as to how many percent of your car corresponds to the desired percent of his. If you see what I mean ….
Thanks all. I added his car from the list in the Ohme app and put it on max charge during our IOG cheap rate. It didn't seem to work initially but I can see that it charged at 7kW from midnight.
As an aside, he has a Kia EV3 and he gets 350 miles out of it.
That's just how much energy has gone down the cable. Doesn't really tell the wall box how much energy went into the battery. I don't even know if any cars are yet transmitting the amount delivered to the battery anywhere outside the car itself. Just controlling how much can come down the cable.Why wouldn't they?
Anyone on IOG able to do a quick check for me? I've noticed that during one of the recent free electric sessions the car didn't charge so the extra energy I used (almost 10kWh) was billed at the standard rate, but they've refunded me based on the lower rate so I've basically been charged for their "free" electricity. Wondering if it's a common thing - you need to cross reference the free energy rebate against the actual billed electric but only if the website shows usage at standard rate during the session. TiA.
Does anyone have any experience with buying a secondhand charger?
Still looking at options for solving the issue of home charging from the front of my terraced house to the street.
Council will give us planning permission for a cable channel in the pavement and we have good relations with our neighbours and can park outside our house 95%+ of the time.
I’ve got an electrician coming to give me a quote to install a cable from our fuse board to the front of the house.
A 3-pin socket will be the cheapest option (with some sort of lockable box to stop people unplugging it) but I’ve seen that you can get second hand chargers and got wondering.
Not too bothered about any ‘smart’ potential for off-peak timing because anything from home will be MUCH cheaper than public chargers. Even trickling through a 3-pin will be great as 12 hours from 8-8 will still top us up most days.
Not sure you actually need a charger? You can get a commando socket on the house and a cable, no? What does the charger actually do if it's not a smart one?
EDIT it does do something, like negotiating charging and providing isolation and electrical thingies. You can buy what looks like a cable with a commando plug on one end and a type 2 on the other, but it still has electronic gubbins inside.
Dumb EV chargers start at under £200 anyway by the look of it.