Sharing my no driveway/on street parking setup

[stonecoldrmw]

One of the biggest advantages of EVs that can get overlooked is in reducing air pollution. Of course where this is an issue, and where councils have targets to reduce it, is in dense urban environments. Bristol City Council's own planned diesel band and Clean Air Zone encompasses just the city centre and immediate residential areas.

I live in the latter, and let me tell you there are very few people in such areas who have the luxury of a driveway or dedicated off-street parking.

Which is why it's annoying that the OLEV grant doesn't cover people without a driveway, and some councils appear to be discourage charging EVs at homes without driveways. Fortunately BCC don't appear to fall into that camp and having written to the mayor I've been told they're not planning to clamp down or fine people that do.

Then you have the simple fact that charging at home is far cheaper than using public charge points (unless they're free) and far more able to cater for additional uptake in EVs.

Anyway, where there's a will there's a way, and of course common sense prevails, but I thought it'd be useful to share my setup. No referral links!

QUBEV 7kW Charger: QUBEV - EV Charging Unit | Type 2 Socket | 32 Amp/7.2 kW | IP65 |

Not quite the smallest on the market (EO Mini) but not far off and similarly discreet. The branded label can easily be peeled off so it's just a black box (also been tempted to spray or decorate it to match the house's brickwork but cba yet).

Without the OLEV grant it makes no sense to go for any other models really, and I got it installed for £300. Make sure you ask for the RCD inside to be installed within reach! I flip mine off when not in use, partially for security but mainly because the QUBEV's light flashes blue when it's ready to charge which is just annoying when it's stuck on the front of your house.

10m Type2 to Type2 Cable: EV Public Charging Cable | Type 2 to Type 2 | 16/32 Amp | 3.6/7.2 kW | 5/10 Metre |

Seems fine so far (it works!). Plenty long enough to both reach my car when outside and safely tuck it under the wheel arch to prevent people walking into loose cables.

External Cable Protector (1m): External Cable Protector from The Workplace Depot

Really good, it's entirely made of rubber so it doesn't shift an inch when on the floor even if kicked. Can be connected (and cut down) to get lengths over 1m which I may consider at some point if needed but so far it seems enough. Flap opens from the top so it's not a faff to run the cable through unlike, I imagine, some of the ones where the channel is underneath.

Nest Cam Outdoor: Nest Cam Outdoor - Outdoor CCTV Camera - Google Store

Obviously optional. Bit of extra security so you can be happy to turn SentryCam off, but main use is that I've set up an alert zone over the top of the parked cars so I get notified of movement... basically so I know if/when the space outside becomes available and I can move into it if needed.

Solar Security Light: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Outdoor-Karrong-Bright-Security-Motion/dp/B07RL68NY5

I actually got mine from the legendary Aldi middle-aisle for £4.99 but the above is identical. It's stuck above my door and rather than security it's for pedestrian safety as it lights up the footpath and the cable cover at night. I only turn it on when charging and it works surprising well; as soon as someone gets within 3-5m of the cable cover it turns on and having watched people from the Nest Cam it really does do its job. You can see it's effect in the first image. Highly recommended!

Octopus Go

Goes without saying. I plug the car in when I go to bed at ~10.30-11.30pm and take it back as soon as I'm up at ~7am so most neighbours probably don't even know I plug it in overnight at all. I'd prefer to get it in before the school runs as I know little kids can run about without looking properly and of course the cover is bigger for them in comparison to an adult.

Hope that helps anyone that was in a similar situation to me. I've had absolutely no problems, complaints or issues, and if anything my neighbours have been great and were almost as excited as I was when my SR+ finally arrived.

Fair play to you for working out a sensible solution that works. To protect yourself from claims though, I would deffo get something cut in to the pavement through the council.

You've done a great job, just don't get hit by some calamitous person looking for an excuse to make a quick quid

 

[Mark_T]

You've done a great job, just don't get hit by some calamitous person looking for an excuse to make a quick quid

... and do check if your home insurance covers you for 3rd party liability for an accident caused by your cable beyond the property line...

 

[Jason71]

There's no way I'd feel comfortable routing a cable across a pavement like that. I doubt I'd even sleep at night thinking about the what-ifs, but that's just me, a bit of a worrier although glad to see lots of posts echoing the same thought. I hope you're taking them into consideration OP.

A few months ago I saw a photo of someone who'd made a decent job of it and saved it to show my brother (who has an EV but no drive) so here it is attached. He said he'd got help via his local council to do the install. Similar to the solution posted by Adopado ^^

Not sure anyone who wears high heels would be a fan of that becoming common!
I'm asking for someone else obviously

 

[Flatchat]

Not sure anyone who wears high heels would be a fan of that becoming common!
I'm asking for someone else obviously

True. Hadn't thought about that.

Also looks neat in that photo but in reality how often can you park so accurately when spaces are rare?

It's just a difficult problem to solve and will be debated for ages yet. Lamppost charging the best answer? Dunno /shrug

 

[Adopado]

Also looks neat in that photo but in reality how often can you park so accurately when spaces are rare?

You would certainly need plenty of cable length to allow for parking a few feet either way.

 

[Mr H]

Not sure anyone who wears high heels would be a fan of that becoming common!
I'm asking for someone else obviously

You didn't say that last weekend love....

 

[Russinating]

I've actually ordered another cable cover to extend it. I always run the cable out of the gap so although it'll be longer than the pavement's width without cutting it down it'll just extend into my front area or under the car (which is what I wasn't sure about when I ordered one).

To answer some of the other questions re: parking, that's a fairly common situation. We have another small petrol car that if we're fussed we park in its space when we both leave somewhere so it's 'reserved'. As long as part of my entrance goes straight to the car (be it near the front or back) then the cable runs under the car and it's all pretty neat.

Generally though, pre CV19, the road was pretty clear outside when I leave for work as lots of people leave before me/commute by car.

As for liability, I'm happy to take the small risk. It's always hard to see how things look in photos but the cover really isn't much different to a drop curb in terms of height/elevation change. Hell there's even parts of my road where the kerb doesn't have a drop for an alley that's far more sudden/deep. The Nest Cam is partially there for that too, though of course recordings are only kept for 10 days. The channel idea is perfect, but not always possible; some utilities can run very close to the surface. It's something I'll definitely ask of my council, though something tells me this wouldn't be their priority right now...

It's also something that's better done en-mass, ie an entire street being done at once, 'ready', will cost significantly less per household than doing one here and there.

People will always moan at something new but in 5-10 years if every house had such a cable cover outside then nobody would care.

 

[Mark_T]

I'm sure you already know this, but you do have to comply with GDPR rules given your camera covers a public area.

Nothing too tricky though for the most part...

Domestic CCTV systems - guidance for people using CCTV

 

[Fraank]

I have a similar setup, albeit:

-10M tethered Rolec
-Ring doorbell
-Same style cable cover, but covers entire width

I also leave sentry mode on.

I personally feel I'm complying with the highways code (making best effort, and not doing anything restricted). Council offered me no other solution, and the village have been very good about it - generally leave my space when they can.

Good point above about checking liability insurance, I'll probably look into that for peace of mind.

 

[Russinating]

I have a similar setup, albeit:

-10M tethered Rolec
-Ring doorbell
-Same style cable cover, but covers entire width

I also leave sentry mode on.

I personally feel I'm complying with the highways code (making best effort, and not doing anything restricted). Council offered me no other solution, and the village have been very good about it - generally leave my space when they can.

Good point above about checking liability insurance, I'll probably look into that for peace of mind.

Any photos?

 

[littlebigcat]

I don't think that ramp actually complies with the Disabilities Act and you're open to action even if noone injures themselves on it.

It needs to be a wheelchair accessible ramp, something like this

 

[deftelf]

Similar setup - though I'm on the first floor so it's a bit more of a faff... https://photos.google.com/share/AF1...?key=TXBnelVfSy1hRWV4eG5rS2RfNGtuSzRuTkU2ZFVR Hardly ideal but I only do it once every couple of weeks or so. Not a huge amount of options otherwise until the council install some local public spots.
And yes, someone might make a fuss... I will have to live with the risk because you can't protect from every possible outcome, it's the same heavy duty cable covers that roadworks use.

 

[Fraank]

Any photos?

Sure, found this old one:

 

[Russinating]

Extended my cover to the full 2m now, much better and neater:

 

[Adopado]

... you see a bloke outside your house brushing himself down, trousers torn at the knee ... your "new normal" caring qualities immediately rise to the surface, shouting out, "Hey, Stay Alert! .. or just Stay at Home!"

(No really, I would say the trip hazard has been reduced ...)

 

[Mr H]

Is that a speed bump for errant wheelchairs??

 

[davidmc]

Extended my cover to the full 2m now, much better and neater:

I have a similar set up but only with the 3 pin plug. Also have 2 traffic cones either side of cable tray.

If your worried about trip hazard, get the cable at a height around cheat height and put a sign on it saying "How low can you go!" And pretend fire flames on the wire , or get the kids to swing it like a skipping rope and get the passers by to jump in.

 

[KennethS]

I'm sure you already know this, but you do have to comply with GDPR rules given your camera covers a public area.

Nothing too tricky though for the most part...

View attachment 525129

Domestic CCTV systems - guidance for people using CCTV

I wonder how this impacts on the use of sentry mode? Obviously there is a justifiable reason for having the car record events, but would it be advisable to have a notice in plain view that recording is being made? I would think yes to try and comply with the notice requirements in the legislation.

 

[Gil Kat]

This may help some align with official thinking - Hampshire County Council : Electric vehicle charging – guidance for residents

This is just stunningly good... I though all local councils were hostile... and here, Hampshire is being amazingly positive... just use a cover that spans the whole width of pavement, ..... and run the cable up to 2 car lengths along the gutter, so no need to be right outside the door. ... difficult for anyone to sue you if you follow those rules...

 

[Neilman]

This is just stunningly good... I though all local councils were hostile... and here, Hampshire is being amazingly positive... just use a cover that spans the whole width of pavement, ..... and run the cable up to 2 car lengths along the gutter, so no need to be right outside the door. ... difficult for anyone to sue you if you follow those rules...

But, reading the linked article and clicking on the "apply for a consent to place cables" has requirement to have £5,000,000 public liability insurance - ouch!