I had exactly the same issue with a looped supply, UK Power Networks came back quite quickly and said it was fine to have a 7kw charger. No-one came to my home to do a survey, but I had sent Pod Point a number of pictures of the setup.
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I had exactly the same issue with a looped supply, UK Power Networks came back quite quickly and said it was fine to have a 7kw charger. No-one came to my home to do a survey, but I had sent Pod Point a number of pictures of the setup.
Well that’s promising - may I ask what area you’re in? Not sure if it would make a difference but I’m in Tunbridge Wells, Kent....
Glan gluaisne
Active Member
As I mentioned earlier, the lowest rated fuse I've seen was in a terrace of council houses with looped services, and was, believe it or not, just 30 A. It was a very old installation, judging form the lead sheathed cable I'd say probably at least 60 years old, and back when these houses were built they most probably only had a handful of 5 A outlets, plus maybe one 15 A one, together with a single light bulb in each room. There were no cooker points or immersion heaters fitted, either. Heating and hot water came from a solid fuel boiler and open fires.
.jg.
Member
Looped means that one house has a cable from the street to their meter but the connection to the meter in next house is run from the same cable, run through the neighbour's property.
.jg.
Member
The electrician who wired my house a couple of years ago told me that he has recently worked on new developments of small houses, where properties each had a total of only 32A. (They weren't looped though).
even more encouraging- half an hour away from me! Fingers crossed I’ll hear back this week - thanks for the help
Hey all - so I’m still waiting to hear back, nothing so far. Picking my car up next week so I’m going to have to granny charge for the time being. It would be really helpful to get your advice;
I got a 10m portable cable from pod point as an extra on my order, and I was thinking I may be able to use this to extend the granny charger, if the ports /ends of the cables are compatible, i.e male to female etc. Saying that though, the cable won’t fit through my letterbox, so I’d have to leave a door or window open. So I’ve written that idea off for now.
my question really is - we don’t have an outdoor, weatherproof socket installed..... should. I bite the bullet and get a sparky round to fit one of these, or will there be some good weather proof extension leads to use through the letterbox as an alternative solution until I know more from pod point?
what would you recommend?
I got a 10m portable cable from pod point as an extra on my order, and I was thinking I may be able to use this to extend the granny charger, if the ports /ends of the cables are compatible, i.e male to female etc. Saying that though, the cable won’t fit through my letterbox, so I’d have to leave a door or window open. So I’ve written that idea off for now.
my question really is - we don’t have an outdoor, weatherproof socket installed..... should. I bite the bullet and get a sparky round to fit one of these, or will there be some good weather proof extension leads to use through the letterbox as an alternative solution until I know more from pod point?
what would you recommend?
Glan gluaisne
Active Member
First off, a normal charge cable, with a Type 2 plug on one and and a Type 2 socket on the other, cannot be used as a charge point extension lead, I'm afraid. The end that plugs in to a fixed charge point normally (the plug end) has one of the communication pins deliberately left too short to allow it to work as an extension lead.
Probably the best option might be to get a proper outdoor socket installed, although you need to be careful to select a type that will accept the relatively bulky cable and plug that comes with the UMC. This will just fit inside a BG IP66 weatherproof outlet, although it's a tight fit around the cable. It may well not allow the sealing lid to be closed properly on some other makes (I've not checked all of them, but it's an extremely tight fit in an MK, for example, too tight for easy use).
Another option would be to get a suitable heavy duty extension lead made up. I made one up a while ago, that has a BG weatherproof outlet fitted on the end and uses heavy gauge cable fitted through a watertight cable gland to the BG box. Although not intended for use as an extension lead outlet, I've not had any problems using it like this:
You can't use a Type2 cable to extend a chargepoint that has a captive cable on it already (eg. the UMC or a wall-mounted tethered chargepoint). You can only use such a cable with a socketed chargepoint (such as most public chargepoints, and your home chargepoint if you opted for a socketed one). They are deliberately designed to refuse to charge when "daisy-chained" like that, as it would defeat some of the safety aspects of the system.
So your options are getting a good extension lead or the proper outside socket.
Given that you are aiming for a dedicated chargepoint, and should eventually achieve that (even if it has to be at lower power), you are talking about just a temporary solution. So personally I'd go for an extension lead (which you can later keep for charging away from home too).
You want something with H07RN-F cable, good quality plugs/sockets, and preferably a "dribox" or similar to keep the connection between the UMC and the end of your extension protected from weather (again, once this is over you can use the dribox to roll up your extension/UMC for storage).
The extension cable must be RCD protected (especially as you are passing it through your letterbox and risking damage there). If you know that your house has RCD protection of the socket circuits then you could just go with a plain extension; otherwise an RCD in-line with the extension cable would be a good idea (though this may then be challenging to get through your letterbox).
I've not used them myself, but others have recommended this supplier of extensions - and their choice of components/cable etc. looks good to me. They offer choice of RCD or not.
Heavy duty single socket extension leads
Don't buy the sort of cheap extension reel sold by B&Q or similar where the socket is moulded into the cable reel and the cable is 1mm² or less - these are very likely to overheat or otherwise get damaged.
So your options are getting a good extension lead or the proper outside socket.
Given that you are aiming for a dedicated chargepoint, and should eventually achieve that (even if it has to be at lower power), you are talking about just a temporary solution. So personally I'd go for an extension lead (which you can later keep for charging away from home too).
You want something with H07RN-F cable, good quality plugs/sockets, and preferably a "dribox" or similar to keep the connection between the UMC and the end of your extension protected from weather (again, once this is over you can use the dribox to roll up your extension/UMC for storage).
The extension cable must be RCD protected (especially as you are passing it through your letterbox and risking damage there). If you know that your house has RCD protection of the socket circuits then you could just go with a plain extension; otherwise an RCD in-line with the extension cable would be a good idea (though this may then be challenging to get through your letterbox).
I've not used them myself, but others have recommended this supplier of extensions - and their choice of components/cable etc. looks good to me. They offer choice of RCD or not.
Heavy duty single socket extension leads
Don't buy the sort of cheap extension reel sold by B&Q or similar where the socket is moulded into the cable reel and the cable is 1mm² or less - these are very likely to overheat or otherwise get damaged.
Jason71
Well-Known Member
I bought one from there. not actually used it but it certainly looks suitably chunky. I also bought a dribox
DRiBOX 285 meduim perfect for our 2 way outdoor extension leads
I know the UMC is supposed to be water proof but did not want to take chances. This one is big enough for the UMC and the plug and socket and when in the car it is a good size to hold the 10m extension cable itself so does not really take up much more space than the cable would on its own and keeps it tidy and hidden
I was using the UMC at my parents one time on a suitable extension and it started raining. I got really worried as none of it was proper waterproof (IP44 rated). Then I said Doh, and slide the connection and UMC under the car - sorted.
At home I do have my commando connection and UMC in a drybox like box, just unbranded and from screwfix.
At home I do have my commando connection and UMC in a drybox like box, just unbranded and from screwfix.
Glan gluaisne
Active Member
In the 6 years or so that I've been driving plug-in cars, having a decent, weatherproof, heavy duty extension lead has been worth its weight in gold at times. I've probably only used it a couple of dozen times, but those are times when it's been extremely useful to be able to get an overnight charge. It's so useful that I bought a cable bag just for the extension lead and adapters, so that it's easier to carry around and doesn't get the car messed up if the cable ends up wet or muddy.
Having played around with, or looked closely at, ready-made leads, I opted to make my own, using HO7RN-F cable (flexible, yet very tough), plus some decent connectors, including both a 16 A commando and an adapter with a 13 A RCD plug. I've found that the BG unswitched weatherproof single gang outlet is fine on the end of an extension lead, even though it's designed to be wall mounted, as it's robust, and remains sealed when face-up (as long as the lid is clipped down) and is large enough to take the rather bulky plug and cable on the granny lead. I just fitted a watertight cable gland for the incoming cable, to ensure the cable entry is well sealed, and added a couple of cable ties inside the box as extra security for the cable (just to make it more resistant to being pulled out of the gland).
Having played around with, or looked closely at, ready-made leads, I opted to make my own, using HO7RN-F cable (flexible, yet very tough), plus some decent connectors, including both a 16 A commando and an adapter with a 13 A RCD plug. I've found that the BG unswitched weatherproof single gang outlet is fine on the end of an extension lead, even though it's designed to be wall mounted, as it's robust, and remains sealed when face-up (as long as the lid is clipped down) and is large enough to take the rather bulky plug and cable on the granny lead. I just fitted a watertight cable gland for the incoming cable, to ensure the cable entry is well sealed, and added a couple of cable ties inside the box as extra security for the cable (just to make it more resistant to being pulled out of the gland).
Glan gluaisne
Active Member
Just seen a link in another thread to this supplier of tough extension leads: 13A extension lead BMW, Tesla, Nissan & Jaguar compatible (RCD options)
Probably ideal for those looking for an extension lead to run a granny charger. I doubt I could make up a tough lead like these for the price they are asking, either.
Probably ideal for those looking for an extension lead to run a granny charger. I doubt I could make up a tough lead like these for the price they are asking, either.
MrBadger
Badger out
That what I got with inline RCD. I also got the cheap circuit tester as you never know what you might be plugging into - my only criticisms, which stem from multiple failures to charge t home due to home wiring issues are, wish it had, neon and switch on socket and RCD was latching type if power failed.
Back for an update....
received a missed call and this text this morning:
‘This is UK Power Networks. We called today as we had been given your details by Podpoint to upgrade your main fuse. We need more details to book a site visit, if you can call us back on 0800 029 4285 (Mon-Fri 0900 - 1700) we will assist you’
so I call him back, nice chap - he said they need to come and upgrade my main fuse from 60 to 80 Amps so I can have the Pod Point charger installed.... I explained I thought the issue was my looped supply, and he said that even if it is looped it probably won’t be an issue since we don’t need to go over 100 Amps... this is all another language to me if I’m honest.
The long and short of it is they have booked an engineer to come on the 17th to take a look and upgrade the main fuse if that’s all that needs doing - if the looped supply does need additional work however, they’ll have to book that in for a later date, as the work would be ‘more significant’.
On the plus side, I’ve been reassured that none of this work will cost me anything - he even said if they do end up needing to un-loop my property it would be free of charge.
Does the 60-80 Amp upgrade sound right to you? Any thoughts or advice would be much appreciated!
received a missed call and this text this morning:
‘This is UK Power Networks. We called today as we had been given your details by Podpoint to upgrade your main fuse. We need more details to book a site visit, if you can call us back on 0800 029 4285 (Mon-Fri 0900 - 1700) we will assist you’
so I call him back, nice chap - he said they need to come and upgrade my main fuse from 60 to 80 Amps so I can have the Pod Point charger installed.... I explained I thought the issue was my looped supply, and he said that even if it is looped it probably won’t be an issue since we don’t need to go over 100 Amps... this is all another language to me if I’m honest.
The long and short of it is they have booked an engineer to come on the 17th to take a look and upgrade the main fuse if that’s all that needs doing - if the looped supply does need additional work however, they’ll have to book that in for a later date, as the work would be ‘more significant’.
On the plus side, I’ve been reassured that none of this work will cost me anything - he even said if they do end up needing to un-loop my property it would be free of charge.
Does the 60-80 Amp upgrade sound right to you? Any thoughts or advice would be much appreciated!
60-80 upgrade is reasonably normal and arguably not even required if it's def at 60 already, and depending on how much other electric stuff you run.
Tbh tho, from what the smarter, more familiar, people are saying, I wouldn't count your amps till they are in the charger... Site visit will reveal all. It's great they have said no charge. Hold them to that as hard as you can if it all goes Pete tong.
At least it doesn't sound like they are saying no, which is the important info here!
Tbh tho, from what the smarter, more familiar, people are saying, I wouldn't count your amps till they are in the charger... Site visit will reveal all. It's great they have said no charge. Hold them to that as hard as you can if it all goes Pete tong.
At least it doesn't sound like they are saying no, which is the important info here!
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