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The right way to install a wall charger and cost!

4K views 36 replies 17 participants last post by  Boxbrownie 
#1 ·
Hi all,

I just got a great deal on a wall charger which I have now purchased.

So now I am in the minefield of what exactly is the right way to install it and by the way I know this is something I am not legally able to do it myself.

As with all trades everyone seems to have their own opinion and I just want to know what is the right way.

My house was totally rewired 4 years ago with a brand new consumer unit 100 amp and has spaces within the consumer unit. I'm installing in the garage about 3 m from the consumer unit.

In my mind it's a simple wire from the charger to the consumer unit into a new fuse job done. However one company I spoke to wants to install a breaker off the main and not use the consumer unit at all.

I see this as an hour's work at best however they want to charge me £300.

Like with everything I want it done right but I don't want to be ripped off any opinions please.
 
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#3 ·
Most EVSE installers will put in a new dedicated mini CU.
Will you be putting the car in the garage or running the lead out the door? This will determine whether you need PEN protection or not, depending on what EVSE you have bought as some have more protection than others.
 
#5 ·
Hi all,

I just got a great deal on a wall charger which I have now purchased.

So now I am in the minefield of what exactly is the right way to install it and by the way I know this is something I am not legally able to do it myself.

As with all trades everyone seems to have their own opinion and I just want to know what is the right way.

My house was totally rewired 4 years ago with a brand new consumer unit 100 amp and has spaces within the consumer unit. I'm installing in the garage about 3 m from the consumer unit.

In my mind it's a simple wire from the charger to the consumer unit into a new fuse job done. However one company I spoke to wants to install a breaker off the main and not use the consumer unit at all.

I see this as an hour's work at best however they want to charge me £300.

Like with everything I want it done right but I don't want to be ripped off any opinions please.
I assume it is new and has smart capability ( ie internet connection)
 
#6 ·
The only technical reason most don't want to go into the consumer unit is that often they'll have to move things around to fit in a dedicated RCD or RCBO for the EVSE. It's possible to install it within a split board but can cause issues if theres a fault with the car/EVSE and it will take out a full bank. Once they start moving things around they should in theory test those circuits and document it as a small works which obviously makes it more difficult.

If the board is a full RCBO board then it's slightly easier as it's essentially just putting another RCBO on the end for the charger itself.

Most will prefer to split the incomer straight from the meter using "Henley blocks" and put a small dedicated consumer unit in, but it's not the "only" or correct way to do it just the preferred and industry standard.

The main points are that it should be on its own type A or B RCD and have adequate current protection (MCB). Obviously an RCBO does both so is easier and takes up less space.

One RCD shouldn't be connected into another RCD further up.

There should also be adequate PEN fault protection, but check as quite a few have this built in anyway. If not then you're going to have to look at finding another way of earthing it, usually a ground rod.
 
#7 ·
The installer may also add surge protection as part of the installation, which could be simpler adding a seperate consumer unit wiht built in RCBO and Surge Protection

 
#8 ·
It often gets repeated on here that a separate mini-CU is the only safe way to install a charging point. This is false!

There are reasons why an electrician might chose to fit a mini-CU.

EG:
  • There is no room in the existing CU.
  • They cannot source a suitable Type-A DP RCBO for the existing CU.
  • The existing CU is a non-complaint mess and the electrician doesn’t want to touch it.
However assuming you have a modern CU with space then it is perfectly acceptable to come off of that.
 
#12 ·
A lot of installers prefer to use a mini CU and split the feed into there. It makes their job much more predictable and avoids interfering with the house CU. In your case, with a fairly new CU, it's likely that a suitable replacement Type-A DP RCBO could be sourced and provide a perfectly satisfactory installation with minimal disruption. And perhaps if you were to discuss this with them they would agree. Either solution would work just as well.

You mention that the wall box is to be fitted inside the garage. Do you also intend to always charge the car inside there? There are several nuances involving earthing and PEN faults over charging inside or outside. Many threads on this subject if you search the 'Search Community' box above.

You don't say what wall box you have bought. These days it will probably be a 'smart' charger with internet features. As well as internal PEN fault protection. So that the complications over earthing arrangements could well be overcome inside the box itself. But it is something to be aware of and liaise with the installer over this aspect.

As to their quote, it is not very far from what would be expected if they intend to provide henley blocks and a mini CU in that quote. Have you asked for other quotes?
 
#14 ·
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It's a wallbox Pulsar Plus. I plan to have the charger inside (for aesthetic reasons) but charge the car outside.

Picture of my CU, plenty of bays and ots about 3m from where the charger will be on a straight run.

Also pic of what I think just needs wiring in. When I mention to EV charger to other electricians declined. I can't help thinking that is a premium on these at the moment. I imagine if I asked an electrician to install a separate to CU that would be no problem and didn't mention EV. But I still need to connect the wires to that
Product Font Machine Rectangle Gas
 
#15 ·
I installed a charger myself and used a sparky friend to do the final signoff and wire in. I had the tails split from a prior install AND did all of the drilling before, and for simplicity we went for an earthing rod instead of a PEN fault detector or a charger with PEN fault (as I already had one from an old property). So job was to pull the cable, terminate the SWA, fit the mountings, install the new CU (using existing split tail from a since-removed power shower CU), install the 10mm^2 for the PE rod (and then drill the hole and install the rod, which took a few attempts, garage floor concrete is NOT easy to drill!), wire it into the charger, test it with the MFT and do the approvals form with building control.

Despite all of this I had to pay my sparky mate for 4 hours work - genuinely it took that long and I was working the other half as the "apprentice" doing all the grunt work! Expecting to have a job like this done in an hour is very optimistic.
 
#20 ·
I did most of the work for my Zappi - running about 20m of 10mm twin and earth cable behind walls from CU under the stairs into the loft, down through a cupboard and in conduit along the wall of my office and down the outside wall, into an isolation switch. I also arranged for a trench and duct to be dug, and then pulled in 10m of SWA cable myself. The electrician connected the cable to the CU (rearranged some circuits, but didn't use a separate CU), used glands to connect the SWA to the isolator, connected the Zappi to the pillar, and mounted the pillar. I'd already arranged the base.

He took about 4 hours, much of which was testing. The £315 he charged seemed fair.
 
#21 ·
I did most of the work for my Zappi - running about 20m of 10mm twin and earth cable behind walls from CU under the stairs into the loft, down through a cupboard and in conduit along the wall of my office and down the outside wall, into an isolation switch. I also arranged for a trench and duct to be dug, and then pulled in 10m of SWA cable myself. The electrician connected the cable to the CU (rearranged some circuits, but didn't use a separate CU), used glands to connect the SWA to the isolator, connected the Zappi to the pillar, and mounted the pillar. I'd already arranged the base.

He took about 4 hours, much of which was testing. The £315 he charged seemed fair.
Can I ask, how do you find electricians that have the knowledge of testing EV charge point installs?

Phone up "do you install EV charge points?" I'm guessing not all electricians have the knowledge or test equipment to install charge points?

Then how did you quantify the work for a quote, you've done the cabling, how did you convey that for a quote?
 
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