free home charger installation

free home charger installation

Author
Discussion

JonnyO

Original Poster:

237 posts

199 months

Tuesday 25th March 2014
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So chargemaster and British gas are offering free installation of a polar charger. Is there any catch to this or should I just get one fitted?

RossP

2,523 posts

282 months

Wednesday 26th March 2014
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The only 'catch' is they monitor your usage to help government stats.

Get one! Pay the extra £95 to get the 7kw unit though.

Tell Chargemaster I referred you so I get my £20 M&S voucher ;-)

strudel

5,888 posts

226 months

Sunday 22nd June 2014
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I don't even have an EV yet but I thought I ought to future proof myself. If I'm reading this right, do I even need an EV or to be a British Gas customer to get this done? Seems a bit like a free lunch.

LordFlathead

9,641 posts

257 months

Monday 23rd June 2014
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JonnyO said:
So chargemaster and British gas are offering free installation of a polar charger. Is there any catch to this or should I just get one fitted?
Yes go for it. It gets you thinking along the lines of commitment for an EV. There is no catch and a local visit by my estate agent said it "adds value" to your property - not sure how you quantify value in this scenario, but it was definitely not a negative smile

RossP said:
The only 'catch' is they monitor your usage to help government stats.

Get one! Pay the extra £95 to get the 7kw unit though.

Tell Chargemaster I referred you so I get my £20 M&S voucher ;-)
^^ This. I opted the for 7kw unit and because my house is over 100 years old and my board did not have an RCD, they fitted one alongside the main DB. Total fitted cost was £135 and it is a very neat job.

strudel said:
I don't even have an EV yet but I thought I ought to future proof myself. If I'm reading this right, do I even need an EV or to be a British Gas customer to get this done? Seems a bit like a free lunch.
You are in exactly the same scenario as myself smile I have not committed to a particular vehicle just yet because there are a lot of new models coming on the market and it is an exciting time to be considering one. The second hand prices are becoming attractive and there are great reports on this forum making for safer decision making.

Personaly, I am leaning towards a Leaf which is suitable for my relatively short commute although I rather fancy an i3 REx, but I'm sitting tight at the moment watching the residuals and the feedback from the owners.

Get yourself booked in for a 7kw HC. My understanding it that the grant is not endless and the retail price for the installation was getting close to £1500.

Nothing to lose thumbup

strudel

5,888 posts

226 months

Monday 23rd June 2014
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I assume the British Gas deal is an extenstion of this:

http://www.chargemasterplc.com/index.php/free_home...

Had a look around and other manufacturers seem to be available - are there any distinct differences or is it just cosmetic?

rswift

1,179 posts

174 months

Tuesday 24th June 2014
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I'm in a similar position, no electric car, but I do fancy the idea .... Either Amperage/Volt or i3 with a range extender (whilst saving up for a Tesla S).

My question is the different standards, type 1/2 etc. I know there is another thread running re this, but anyone have any real world experience ? I.e. If the wrong one is installed for a car yet to be bought, is it u/s or just a case of modified cables etc ?

strudel

5,888 posts

226 months

Tuesday 24th June 2014
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I found this on my travels: https://evconnectors.com/

Looks like you can the combination you would require, as the other thread is mine though I can't confess to really knowing what I'm on about biggrin

mids

1,505 posts

257 months

Wednesday 25th June 2014
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OLEV have released a new statement today making some significant changes to how this grant is awarded.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-funding-to-...

strudel

5,888 posts

226 months

Wednesday 25th June 2014
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So basically, missed the boat - or do I have until the 30th? Failing that I have to buy an EV and apply through the new scheme come September.

rswift

1,179 posts

174 months

Saturday 19th July 2014
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Had mine fitted today. The fitter says they are almost flat out & being asked to work weekends etc. He reckons that you'd still get one one the scheme if you apply before the end of the month. The invoice I signed for (paid for by the government....I.e. us) was for £1300 !

mids

1,505 posts

257 months

Saturday 19th July 2014
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That's because the maximum grant that the government will pay is £1000 but it will only cover 75% of the cost of the installation so in order to maximise their profit the installers ensure that the install cost is worked out to be £1000/0.75 = £1333.

As explained in the link above, these 'free' installs for people who don't have EV's are all coming to an end as from 1st September.

DSLiverpool

14,672 posts

201 months

Sunday 20th July 2014
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No car but will look to get this booked ASAP

Maybe just me but I had to call them as it wouldn't accept my phone number - it is a spread sheet and wants no spaces at all


Edited by DSLiverpool on Monday 21st July 12:58

Otispunkmeyer

12,557 posts

154 months

Monday 21st July 2014
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Interesting. Just about to move into a new house and I think I should get one of these fitted in the garage. Similarly not got an EV but a second hand leaf is looking like a right good option to me at the moment.

RammyMP

6,729 posts

152 months

Monday 21st July 2014
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I think you have to prove you've got an electric car

HotJambalaya

2,023 posts

179 months

Tuesday 29th July 2014
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How exactly do these things work? can pretty much any EV use them with their own cables and leads? whats the type 2 cable and whats best for a leaf?


Otispunkmeyer said:
Similarly not got an EV but a second hand leaf is looking like a right good option to me at the moment.
Exactly where I'm at, used leafs are looking good, and tempted to have this done!

Edited by HotJambalaya on Tuesday 29th July 17:21

RossP

2,523 posts

282 months

Tuesday 29th July 2014
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RammyMP said:
I think you have to prove you've got an electric car
I think you should check facts before posting randomly rolleyes

There is currently no requirement to own an electric car but this is changing soon.

untakenname

4,953 posts

191 months

Tuesday 29th July 2014
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What's involved hardware wise with the installation of the 30 amp package? As far as I know the house wiring is just the standard gauge wiring and not the 6mm 32amp wiring (looked into it when researching tig welders). I don't have an electric car but there's no harm in future proofing for someway down the line.

RammyMP

6,729 posts

152 months

Tuesday 29th July 2014
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RossP said:
I think you should check facts before posting randomly rolleyes

There is currently no requirement to own an electric car but this is changing soon.
if you want one if the British Gas subsidised ones you have to prove you have a Leaf. That's what the Nissan dealer told me after a weekend in a leaf, not a random post.

It's the range that puts me off, the BMW i3 range extender seems like a better option but they just look so fking ugly!

mids

1,505 posts

257 months

Tuesday 29th July 2014
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HotJambalaya said:
How exactly do these things work? can pretty much any EV use them with their own cables and leads? whats the type 2 cable and whats best for a leaf?
Unfortunately there isn't one plug to fit all EV's, there are two options and which one you choose depends on what car you're going to be owning.

There's a bit more info in this thread : http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

mids

1,505 posts

257 months

Tuesday 29th July 2014
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untakenname said:
What's involved hardware wise with the installation of the 30 amp package? As far as I know the house wiring is just the standard gauge wiring and not the 6mm 32amp wiring.
They don't use the house wiring, they run thick steel wire armoured cable from your fuse box to wherever you have the charging point installed.