Home charger woes...

[Fellsteruk]

Thanks, he did say 2core initially but 3core to earth would be ideal. I’ll take a look at cost and total diameter but your right I only have 1phase, I noticed the cable colors where different “no yellow/green” on the 3core thought strange but not enough to understand why so thanks for explaining.

I’m going to be supplying and laying the cable myself he’ll be just connecting it so I double check he’s happy with 2core and go that route and same some pennies.

Thanks

 

[thegruf]

...

Gonna be around 35meters of cable which is going to be fun laying and around £120 just for the cable which will be 6mm 3core armoured

cheaper here:

Armoured Cable Free Next Day Delivery

arg is right about 2 vs 3 core but also reckon that with 6mm 3-core (which should be fine for 7.2KW load/35Mtr) you should be able export the earth from the house without having to local earth; with 2 core you would be best to local earth. Not a biggie but a bit of extra faff. You should really get a sparky to advise on this though. Trade will usually save on materials as they are efficient on labour, but different if you are part installing yourself though. I find sparks usually don't mind if you do the slog of putting the cable in and get them to terminate+certificate. Is easy money for them and you get to save a few quid.

 

[WannabeOwner]

Anyone using one, got any thoughts?

Buy a bit more, just in case you need a diversion round an obstacle

Lay (fatter) cable suitable for second car in future?

Run extra core for an additional switched circuit? (although, given how fat the cores are, and extra core for a "garden light" would be a bit nuts ... arc-welding maybe?!! ).

We put multi-core armoured down garden so that I had (separately) switched circuits for garden lights, pond pump, etc. Only has one earth, and one neutral, but one-live-per-circuit. Probably irrelevant in this use-case.

I've got my cable from here, very happy with their service, at the time they where cheap for the job I was doing, dunno about now.

The Electric Cable Company - Cables

6mm 2-core £35M = £68.46 inc VAT
6mm 3-core £35M = £91.56
Delivery £ 11.40 if you spend under £75 - Glands? External gland pair for 6mm £7.32

 

[arg]

but also reckon that with 6mm 3-core (which should be fine for 7.2KW load/35Mtr) you should be able export the earth from the house without having to local earth; with 2 core you would be best to local earth.

I am sorry, but this is incorrect advice for this situation.

If you were using the cable to supply an outbuilding with extraneous conductive parts (eg. plumbing) and wanted to export a PME earth, then you would need a bonding conductor and indeed the SWA armour is insufficient for that purpose (but at 6mm², the core in the cable isn't enough for that purpose either: the core plus the armour in parallel are still not quite 10mm² equivalent). Note that bonding conductor sizing is based on consideration of diverted neutral currents under normal operation, not faults.

But this is an EV chargepoint and the considerations for exporting PME earth or not are completely different. Here there is nothing to bond and the CPC carries no current under normal operation. The concern with exporting the PME earth is with an open-neutral fault on the supply, where the PME earth rises to live potential and presents a shock risk. Size of the conductor is irrelevant here, unless you are adopting 722.411.4.1(ii) approach of multiple earth rods to hold down the neutral - which would be crazy in this situation where a simple earth rod to create a TT earth at the chargepoint would be much simpler.

 

[Fellsteruk]

Thanks for the comments guys, I’ll only be using this for the EV charger, no other circuits and one vehicle as I just don’t have the space for a 2nd EV even if I got one.

I’ll be going for a 7.2kW charger and I think I’m settled on the ecoMini which is £420 so about the same as a TWC but gives me more options because I don’t have to worry about a tethered cable.

Spark said 6mm 2core would be good so given the cost I think I’ll go that route which will put me at about £800 for all the cable, charger and install which I guess is t too bad.

What’s the general opinion on the ecoMini charger? Doesn’t seem to have the issues the roleco ones have.

 

[thegruf]

confirm @arg is quite correct - should have thought that through a bit more before posting

 

[Neronero]

Hello,

I'm looking to buy an UMC blue adaptor 32A if possible?

Thanks