Underground driveway charger?

[refjamie]

I wished them well with their project and declined.. but it's really smart indeed and would suit block paving drives perfectly. Someone will bring one out cheaper before long.

 

[Mark_T]

Personal choice I know, but anything short of a tethered cable wouldn't cut it for me, so these buried socket solutions just don't make the grade, as you still have to deal with the storage and deployment of a cable.

 

[Durzel]

Personal choice I know, but anything short of a tethered cable wouldn't cut it for me, so these buried socket solutions just don't make the grade, as you still have to deal with the storage and deployment of a cable.

I agree. Messing about with fishing a cable in and out of the boot is something I’ll tolerate for public charging, but at home I just want to arrive and leave with the minimum of fuss, particularly as it gets closer to winter.

 

[phillcom3]

Going down the camouflage route, there was also a fully charged episode with Zappi, the owner had put their Zappi on a post in a shrubbery. Very discrete though be careful with the secateurs!

A shrubbery!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69iB-xy0u4A

 

[Daverh]

Here's the poor man's version of that Dutch one

 

[dspwhite]

Nice, didn't know the council would let you dig up the pavement so readily.

 

[dspwhite]

Quick quessie. For non Tesla-chargers (e.g: Rolec or Andersen), how do you typically release the cable from the Model 3? Even after unlocking the car, I found the Rolec cable was still clamped, and to release it, I had to open the boot and use the manual release ring.

 

[Tony Hoyle]

You have to use the app or the screen in the car. It does kinda suck. Setup to sell tesla chargers I suspect. since this is a solved problem on every other EV.

 

[Obliter8]

You have to use the app or the screen in the car. It does kinda suck. Setup to sell tesla chargers I suspect. since this is a solved problem on every other EV.

... Or use the app to manually open the port from the charging menu

 

[dspwhite]

Looks like the Andersen is the one I'll go for. One worry I've heard is the Smart stuff. I've heard that the power companies can temporarily shut off charging against one's wishes (for economy etc.). Is there a user override to prevent them from doing this? If I want to economize by charging only at night etc., then that should be down to me and only me.

Have any of you bought the full price version (without the OLEV £500 discount) to avoid the "Smart" stuff?

 

[evGuesty]

Do you have a front porch or eaves where you can hide something like this out of sight until you press the button to lower it.

 

[dspwhite]

Do you have a front porch or eaves where you can hide something like this out of sight until you press the button to lower it.

Oh that's interesting! Device is 22 ¾” x 22 ¾” x 11 ¼”, so unfortunately that's too big. I'd need something more like 15" across/deep rather than 23".

 

[evGuesty]

This one is more compact but not electronic. The pics show some interesting setups where the cable is routed through a hole in the ceiling.

30A EVoReel EVSE - Retractable Reel Electric Vehicle Charging Station - AC Level 2, 30 Amp, 30 Ft. Cable (EVoReel with EVoCharge EVSE)

Surprised their aren’t more retractable options on the market.

 

[KennethS]

Looks like the Andersen is the one I'll go for. One worry I've heard is the Smart stuff. I've heard that the power companies can temporarily shut off charging against one's wishes (for economy etc.). Is there a user override to prevent them from doing this? If I want to economize by charging only at night etc., then that should be down to me and only me.

Have any of you bought the full price version (without the OLEV £500 discount) to avoid the "Smart" stuff?

I went with the Tesla wall charger (bought on eBay, although not far off the Tesla retail price but it was new in box and sold by someone who got it as a referral reward — many were available on eBay). My main reason was I did not want any “smart” features or ability of power company to monitor my usage. Call me paranoid, but as EV take up increases and fuel duty receipts decrease, it will not surprise me if a new duty will be applied to electricity used to charge EVs. For those installations where usage is able to be monitored.

 

[arg]

This one is more compact but not electronic. The pics show some interesting setups where the cable is routed through a hole in the ceiling.

30A EVoReel EVSE - Retractable Reel Electric Vehicle Charging Station - AC Level 2, 30 Amp, 30 Ft. Cable (EVoReel with EVoCharge EVSE)

Interesting as a point of reference, but beware if anybody is thinking of ordering from the USA: Tesla cars there have different connectors so the plug won't fit, and also the equipment will be built to US electrical regulations and may or may not be satisfactory to install in the UK.