Home charging advice.

[mgboyes]

What would it give you that a commando socket and a UMC wouldn't?

A spare UMC that you can keep locked in the car boot ready for use if you ever find yourself in need of an emergency top up.

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I've seen an UK - spec Wall Connector installed and in use (i.e. actually charging a car) at the Gatwick Store.

When we talk about a "Wall Connector" we're talking about a UK/EU version of the Tesla-branded high powered wall connector currently on sale in the US/Canada (Tesla Accessories and Charging Adapters Wall Connector). No such thing yet exists outside North America.

However there are lots of third party Type 2 charge points on sale in the UK, from PodPoint, Chargemaster, Rolec, ABL and others. The various Tesla centres all have some of these installed to charge their cars (as well as commando outlets with UMCs on them).

 

[smac]

I've seen an UK - spec Wall Connector installed and in use (i.e. actually charging a car) at the Gatwick Store. At least I assume it was UK - spec since it was installed and working in the UK. I'm currently trying to decide on a charging option while I wait for my car (due December - ish) and the Wall Connector looks a good choice. However, Tesla couldn't tell me when it would be available or whether the Commando socket voucher could be used towards the cost. Does anyone have any info on this?

Hi and welcome to TMC!

I am not sure what Gatwick have, but a lot of the units I saw (a year ago now admittedly) were simply Tesla UMCs but permanently wall mounted, and plugged in to Commando sockets dotted around the service centre.

Now it is perfectly feasible to mount your UMC that comes with the car in a similar fashion to the service centres. This is probably the 100% best "user expereience", however now you "need" a second UMC to carry around (it isn't at all essential, but sometimes handy, staying at family or hotel that has a commando etc.).

One alternative is to go for a "Type 2" wall point instead. Those of us early enough to benefit from the full ULEV grant had these installed FOC. There is still a scheme in place, and whilst now you must contribute, one option is to forego the Tesla voucher and talk to a professional firm such as nuworld or phoenix works, to see how much difference this makes. In other words, does a second UMC cost more?

The minor downside to the Type-2 approach is the push button that automatically opens the charge port is missing, however you can now open the port using the key fob, so this isn't a massive problem.

Any more questions please feel free to ask.

 

[Gwill53]

A spare UMC that you can keep locked in the car boot ready for use if you ever find yourself in need of an emergency top up.

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When we talk about a "Wall Connector" we're talking about a UK/EU version of the Tesla-branded high powered wall connector currently on sale in the US/Canada (Tesla Accessories and Charging Adapters Wall Connector). No such thing yet exists outside North America.

However there are lots of third party Type 2 charge points on sale in the UK, from PodPoint, Chargemaster, Rolec, ABL and others. The various Tesla centres all have some of these installed to charge their cars (as well as commando outlets with UMCs on them).

Sorry to contradict you but what I saw at the Gatwick store was a Tesla-branded high powered wall connector so it definitely does exist outside of North America. George Day, the Store Manager told me that, since they have one there, it can't be long before they are released in the UK

 

[miimura]

When we talk about a "Wall Connector" we're talking about a UK/EU version of the Tesla-branded high powered wall connector currently on sale in the US/Canada (Tesla Accessories and Charging Adapters Wall Connector). No such thing yet exists outside North America.

However there are lots of third party Type 2 charge points on sale in the UK, from PodPoint, Chargemaster, Rolec, ABL and others. The various Tesla centres all have some of these installed to charge their cars (as well as commando outlets with UMCs on them).

Actually, there is a Tesla Type-2 Wall Connector provided in China, Hong Kong, and Australia. However, it is not High Power like the North American HPWC. It is limited to 40A single phase, maybe 32A if the firmware from 6-12 months ago has not been updated. Some affectionately call it the Low Power Wall Connector. Strangely, Japan got cars with the North American inlet and the HPWC to match. In any case, this Wall Connector is wired just like the European UMC in the fact that it routes the single phase of utility power to all three lines of the Mennekes connector and through to the on-board charger. This allows a car equipped with a single charger (16A max per phase) to pull 32A or more from a single phase supply. This was the only charging solution from Tesla in Australia until less than 6 months ago when they finally released the European type UMC with an adapter pigtail to Australian 10A 240V sockets. A similar UMC adapter for Australian 15A "Caravan" sockets has been promised but I don't know if it has been delivered.

 

[mgboyes]

Actually, there is a Tesla Type-2 Wall Connector provided in China, Hong Kong, and Australia. However, it is not High Power like the North American HPWC. It is limited to 40A single phase, maybe 32A if the firmware from 6-12 months ago has not been updated. Some affectionately call it the Low Power Wall Connector. Strangely, Japan got cars with the North American inlet and the HPWC to match. In any case, this Wall Connector is wired just like the European UMC in the fact that it routes the single phase of utility power to all three lines of the Mennekes connector and through to the on-board charger. This allows a car equipped with a single charger (16A max per phase) to pull 32A or more from a single phase supply. This was the only charging solution from Tesla in Australia until less than 6 months ago when they finally released the European type UMC with an adapter pigtail to Australian 10A 240V sockets. A similar UMC adapter for Australian 15A "Caravan" sockets has been promised but I don't know if it has been delivered.

Well you learn something every day...!

 

[tonyj01]

Thanks for all the info in the thread.

I'm in Manchester and have ordered an MS 90D for March 16 delivery. The charging situation is confusing [all the cables, connectors, ampage]. I reckon most of my changing will be at home, especially with a 300 miles range if charged to 100%. But I know you don't charge to that level! So SuC and Ecotricity are for when on more major journeys - all needs planning.

My next problem is that I think my wife and I will lease a BMW i3 for her, she does about 4000 miles a year locally, we will get one with no range extender, this can now be leased for less than £200 per month, and we will need to get two home chargers installed!!

Maybe its time to get a Tesla home battery and Economy 7!!

Regards,

Tony

 

[robin_]

My next problem is that I think my wife and I will lease a BMW i3 for her, she does about 4000 miles a year locally, we will get one with no range extender, this can now be leased for less than £200 per month, and we will need to get two home chargers installed!!

We have a P85D and an i3. We just charge the i3 using the UK 13A three pin plug adaptor. It's more than quick enough unless you're needing to recharge multiple times a day.

 

[miimura]

We also have two EVs and only one proper wall box. The e-Golf has been charging on the provided charging cord that uses the household outlet. In America it only delivers 1.4kW, so a UK outlet and charging cord should deliver 2.3kW, right? That's more than enough since you can always plug the i3 into the proper wall box when needed.

 

[Spit]

Hi Tony,

I have been looking at economy 7 as I am about to order my 85D

extraenergy have a good deal which is 17.59p standing charge, 11.632p daytime and 6.274p nighttime. I pay British Gas 11.2p electric all the time and about 24p standing charge so the extraenergy deal would be fantastic. Only issue is I have seen a few bad reviews of the company so its putting me off!

That deal would be perfect for me as I have solar panels for the day anyway and would mean a daily top up of the battery for say 30Kw would be less than £2!

 

[Belly Buster]

Extra Energy are a new entrant to the UK supply market (they've been around longer in Germany).

They are a discounter, so you will get cheap prices but less customer service. A sort of Ryanair of the energy sector.

With that said, how often do you have to get in touch with your supplier? If you do switch to them, cross your fingers and hope they don't mess up your "change of supplier" process, keep a bit of an eye on your bills, and you should be fine.

 

[mgboyes]

Thanks for all the info in the thread.

I'm in Manchester and have ordered an MS 90D for March 16 delivery. The charging situation is confusing [all the cables, connectors, ampage]. I reckon most of my changing will be at home, especially with a 300 miles range if charged to 100%. But I know you don't charge to that level! So SuC and Ecotricity are for when on more major journeys - all needs planning.

My next problem is that I think my wife and I will lease a BMW i3 for her, she does about 4000 miles a year locally, we will get one with no range extender, this can now be leased for less than £200 per month, and we will need to get two home chargers installed!!

Maybe its time to get a Tesla home battery and Economy 7!!

Regards,

Tony

As a 2 EV house Economy 7 is a no brainer.

But don't be fooled into thinking you can travel 300 miles on a charge. Plan on the basis of 200 miles from a full charge in the real world and you'll be fine. The NEDC rated range figures are completely unrealistic (just like they are for all cars, but all manufacturers are required under EU law to publish them).

 

[Spit]

Extra Energy are a new entrant to the UK supply market (they've been around longer in Germany).

They are a discounter, so you will get cheap prices but less customer service. A sort of Ryanair of the energy sector.

With that said, how often do you have to get in touch with your supplier? If you do switch to them, cross your fingers and hope they don't mess up your "change of supplier" process, keep a bit of an eye on your bills, and you should be fine.

Thats what I was thinking, been with British Gas about 7 years and never had to ring them once. For that price I have to give them a try. My house is 8 years old and has a modern meter, do I have to change it for E7?

 

[Belly Buster]

Thats what I was thinking, been with British Gas about 7 years and never had to ring them once. For that price I have to give them a try. My house is 8 years old and has a modern meter, do I have to change it for E7?

Chances are yes. You will need a dual rate meter. If you don't have E7 at the moment, you likely have a single rate meter. The supplier should arrange for one to be installed, hopefully at no cost.

 

[thegruf]

fwiw I use Ovo Energy as they have a "greener Energy" tariff which only uses power from renewable sources (okay I know iit is not connected to a wind turbine).
Their standard tariff is not too bad either, and their service has been pretty decnt in my experience (not connected to them in any way btw)

UK power generation is quite poor for CO2 emissions in fact. Appx 360gm CO2/KWH.

So if you are using 330w/mi you are getting appx 110gm CO2/mi or 68gm/km, factor in charginf losses of 10% + grid transmission losses of 7% and you iro 75gm/km
So ZEV but not quite as low C02 as you might think.

Mind you the well to pump figures, never mind the hopelessly misrepresentative CO2 figures of ICE vehicles mean that Tesla is light years ahead of any ICE.

France being majority nuclear power claim some amazingly low CO2 generation figures though whether that factors in plant construction and waste processing is up for debate.

 

[blackmonday]

Tesla, PODpoint (tesla preferred supplier in London according to Tesla) and Chargemaster are not being very helpful with getting my garage set up with a charger. My car is now 4 weeks from delivery as well. Can anyone here recommend an installer in central London?

 

[robin_]

Tesla, PODpoint (tesla preferred supplier in London according to Tesla) and Chargemaster are not being very helpful with getting my garage set up with a charger. My car is now 4 weeks from delivery as well. Can anyone here recommend an installer in central London?

Why do you need a charger? Just get an electrician to run a 16A single phase commando socket for you and use the charging cable that Tesla will give you with your car. Much cheaper.

 

[martinwinlow]

Couldn't agree more - as long as you don't do more than 10 hours (overnight charge) x 230V x 16A (=36kwh) x 3 miles per kWh = ~100 miles of driving per day. MW

 

[robin_]

Couldn't agree more - as long as you don't do more than 10 hours (overnight charge) x 230V x 16A (=36kwh) x 3 miles per kWh = ~100 miles of driving per day. MW

Sorry. I actually meant a 32A single phase commando (which is what the blue adaptor on the Tesla works with).

10 hrs x 230V x 32A = 69kWh
x 80% charging efficiency x 2.5 miles per kWh = 138 miles/day.

That's exactly the same as what you would get from a PODpoint using a Type 2 cable. Only way to go faster is to have a three phase power supply as far as I'm aware.