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Choosing a home charger
Most home chargers do the same basic job: they charge the car much faster than a three-pin plug and can be scheduled for cheaper overnight rates. The differences are in the extras. If you have solar panels, or plan to, a charger with a solar surplus mode is worth considering, because it can put power into the car that would otherwise be exported for a few pence.
If you have a battery too, the charger and battery need to be set up to work together, so the battery isn’t emptied into the car when you would rather keep it for the house.
Solar and an electric car in Derby
PVGIS gives a south-facing Derby roof about 979 kWh a year per kWp, but most of that arrives between spring and early autumn (PVGIS). In summer a solar-aware charger can cover a good share of a typical commute if the car is at home in the day. In winter it will do much less, and overnight charging on a cheaper tariff does most of the work. Can I charge my electric car from solar panels? works through the numbers.
Grants
The government’s electric vehicle chargepoint grant is for people who rent their home, or who own and live in a flat, and who have private off-street parking. It pays 75% of the cost of buying and installing a charger, up to £500 (GOV.UK). Homeowners in houses are not eligible for this grant. It has to be claimed through an installer authorised for the scheme, so ask about that when you get quotes.
What it costs in Derby
Checkatrade lists EV charger installation in Derby at £651 to £1,014, averaging £805 (Checkatrade). The main things that push the price up are a long cable run to the parking space and a consumer unit that needs upgrading first.
What's included
- A check of your main fuse, consumer unit and earthing arrangement
- Advice on charger type if you have, or plan to have, solar panels
- Mounting on a wall or post by the parking space
- Cable routed from the consumer unit, with protection as needed
- Set-up of the app and a charging schedule to match your tariff
- Solar surplus mode configured where the charger supports it
- Network notification where required
- A written price before anything is ordered
How the options compare
Charging speed
- Three-pin plug
- Slow
- Basic charger
- Faster
- Solar-aware charger
- Faster
Uses spare solar
- Three-pin plug
- Only by luck
- Basic charger
- No
- Solar-aware charger
- Yes, in a surplus mode
Cheap overnight rates
- Three-pin plug
- Manual
- Basic charger
- Scheduled
- Solar-aware charger
- Scheduled
Works with a battery
- Three-pin plug
- No
- Basic charger
- Sometimes
- Solar-aware charger
- Usually, set up together
