Car charging facility for clients
Discussion
One of my clients suggested I install an electric car charging point for customer use. He dropped his car off for repair and had his wife in tow with their i3 - he said it was marginal for him to get home. He suggested that other customers will likely be in a similar position so a charger here would be helpful.
I think he's got a very valid point. 90% of my clients travel over 50 miles to get here. Some take the train back to central London but many have someone give them a lift. With increased electric car usage it makes sense to provide the option here.
I have 3 phase at the workshop. Is it a mater of just buying a socket and getting my electrician to wire it in? Anyone in this business? I don't need anything fancy just the ability to top a car up every now and again.
I think he's got a very valid point. 90% of my clients travel over 50 miles to get here. Some take the train back to central London but many have someone give them a lift. With increased electric car usage it makes sense to provide the option here.
I have 3 phase at the workshop. Is it a mater of just buying a socket and getting my electrician to wire it in? Anyone in this business? I don't need anything fancy just the ability to top a car up every now and again.
Yes, in short. Also consider that most home charge socket kits are single phase, so you wouldn't even necessarily need to wire 3phase from your distribution board to the socket. The only possible considerations are if there is a spare breaker in your distribution board, and what the total load on your main supply is. Offering the free top up is all well and good, but you won't want to be doing it at the expense of tripping the whole workshop offline.
voicey said:
One of my clients suggested I install an electric car charging point for customer use. He dropped his car off for repair and had his wife in tow with their i3 - he said it was marginal for him to get home. He suggested that other customers will likely be in a similar position so a charger here would be helpful.
I think he's got a very valid point. 90% of my clients travel over 50 miles to get here. Some take the train back to central London but many have someone give them a lift. With increased electric car usage it makes sense to provide the option here.
I have 3 phase at the workshop. Is it a mater of just buying a socket and getting my electrician to wire it in? Anyone in this business? I don't need anything fancy just the ability to top a car up every now and again.
We had an Easee charger fitted, they can be 7kw or 22kw - you can integrate with an app called Monta to recover electricity use at whatever rate you decide - customer just scans the code to start their charge.I think he's got a very valid point. 90% of my clients travel over 50 miles to get here. Some take the train back to central London but many have someone give them a lift. With increased electric car usage it makes sense to provide the option here.
I have 3 phase at the workshop. Is it a mater of just buying a socket and getting my electrician to wire it in? Anyone in this business? I don't need anything fancy just the ability to top a car up every now and again.
superpp said:
how long are cars parked there, a 7kw charger adds roughly 30 miles per hour a 3 pin 'granny charger' 10 miles per hour.
This is the key question. If people are only there an hour then an AC charger won't be much use.Do you know how much spare capacity you have power-wise? Something like a 20kW DC charger might be good if you have the budget.
If people are there for a few hours then AC becomes more useful. And is much cheaper!
MustangGT said:
Good idea, but no, not that simple. EV chargers are smart and need a qualified EV charger installer to fit. Likely to cost hundreds of pounds. As an alternate I would suggest a printed map showing the location of nearby public chargers.
If he gets a 440v socket wired in by a spark as suggested, there are many EVSEs that can just be screwed onto the wall and plugged in without specialist anything.voicey said:
One of my clients suggested I install an electric car charging point for customer use. He dropped his car off for repair and had his wife in tow with their i3 - he said it was marginal for him to get home. He suggested that other customers will likely be in a similar position so a charger here would be helpful.
And you think the point is valid?!Tell him/her to plan a little better. Or bin the battery dream.
Thank you for all the responses.
In terms of capacity, there is loads here. The property used to be a factory with some pretty heavy machinery - I have three massive distribution boards. I've just got a few lifts, lights and a compressor running. My electricity bill is about £100pm (I'm still on a legacy contract).
In terms of how many and how long we'd have cars here charging - not many at all. I only book in about 4 clients a week - about half are trailered here and most people who drive here take the fast train back to London.
However, my clients travel a long way to use us and pay a lot of money for our services. They also have a lot of choice on where they can go so I'm an open to sorting something out.
The client that suggested it has two cars we me, spends over £5k pa and has done for the last 7 years. Even if he's the only user it'd be worth it to keep him happy.
In terms of capacity, there is loads here. The property used to be a factory with some pretty heavy machinery - I have three massive distribution boards. I've just got a few lifts, lights and a compressor running. My electricity bill is about £100pm (I'm still on a legacy contract).
In terms of how many and how long we'd have cars here charging - not many at all. I only book in about 4 clients a week - about half are trailered here and most people who drive here take the fast train back to London.
However, my clients travel a long way to use us and pay a lot of money for our services. They also have a lot of choice on where they can go so I'm an open to sorting something out.
The client that suggested it has two cars we me, spends over £5k pa and has done for the last 7 years. Even if he's the only user it'd be worth it to keep him happy.
Op I would certainly look at installing one/two proper plug in charging stations.
(Looked at your website, looks like you’re not far from me)!
I play golf on the Kent Coast, and we have members driving from London regularly as well as people doing play and stays, traveling far and wide. Range anxiety is real, & ultimately business want the clients and visitors to be happy and spend money!
I’d even go as far to suggest offering the service FOC or at cost.
Install the best system you can, if you’re servicing super cars (who have made a 100+ mile round trip) running a 3 pin plug out on the courtyard is not the best look.
(Looked at your website, looks like you’re not far from me)!
I play golf on the Kent Coast, and we have members driving from London regularly as well as people doing play and stays, traveling far and wide. Range anxiety is real, & ultimately business want the clients and visitors to be happy and spend money!
I’d even go as far to suggest offering the service FOC or at cost.
Install the best system you can, if you’re servicing super cars (who have made a 100+ mile round trip) running a 3 pin plug out on the courtyard is not the best look.
From my limited knowledge
go here
https://www.niceic.com/householder/find-a-contract...
and search on your area, then pick the "approved contractor" not the "domestic installer"
go here
https://www.niceic.com/householder/find-a-contract...
and search on your area, then pick the "approved contractor" not the "domestic installer"
You could certainly consider putting in a charger, I know several places that do it, some for their own vehicles of course, but customers during the day.
A "normal" charger delivers 7kW. That's typical about 21 miles per hour of charging.
A 3-phase charger van deliver 22kW, but not many cars can use 3 phase (and some will only take upto 11kW) and probably even fewer carry a 3 phase charging cable with them. But it might be useful if you already have the connectivity.
Nearly all cars are Type 2 AC connectors today. So you could probably install a tethered 3-phase charger so people don't need to bring their own cable. There are some older cars that are type 1, but they're few and far between. Just check your top customer isn't one of them! (Don't think i3 was ever sold 3 phase)
A "normal" charger delivers 7kW. That's typical about 21 miles per hour of charging.
A 3-phase charger van deliver 22kW, but not many cars can use 3 phase (and some will only take upto 11kW) and probably even fewer carry a 3 phase charging cable with them. But it might be useful if you already have the connectivity.
Nearly all cars are Type 2 AC connectors today. So you could probably install a tethered 3-phase charger so people don't need to bring their own cable. There are some older cars that are type 1, but they're few and far between. Just check your top customer isn't one of them! (Don't think i3 was ever sold 3 phase)
Sheepshanks said:
MustangGT said:
…..qualified EV charger installer…….
Genuine question - as I’ve had the cabling put in but not got a charger yet - what’s one of those, will they have a certificate or something?MustangGT said:
Yes, to sign off the paperwork for an EV charging station you need to be EV qualified.
I'd be glad for more information but I'm not aware there's any such thing. Any electrician belonging to one of the normal registration schemes can install and certify an EV charger.However, as the OP's is a business case, it might be relevant that if he hopes to get a grant then the installer needs to be an authorised OZEV (Office for Zero Emission Vehicles) installer. That's a paperwork thing though, not any kind of assurance on electrical competency.
MustangGT said:
The cabling is not your standard domestic wiring either.
Well, the OP's installation isn't domestic, but any electrician will be able to figure out the cable required. MustangGT said:
Good idea, but no, not that simple. EV chargers are smart and need a qualified EV charger installer to fit. Likely to cost hundreds of pounds. As an alternate I would suggest a printed map showing the location of nearby public chargers.
No they are not.They can be a simple £32.00 commando socket.
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