PHEV charging question.

[Mottie]

We're thinking of possibly getting a PHEV. It has a 13.8kw battery. Mrs Mottie doesn’t want to have an 'ugly box' on the front of the house and I don’t want to pay £1k+ to have one fitted. It can be charged via a standard outdoor plug socket in around 6 hours which we already have fitted. Would there be a problem if we were charging it this way most days?

 

[ajrtd]

Thats how we charge ours.

Edit: We changed our charger from 3.7 to 2.3kW as we have solar panels.

 

[Murdochcat]

Just be aware that a lot of standard 13A external sockets are not man enough for the constant load that the car will require day in day out

 

[ebee]

What is a "PHEV" ?

 

[Mottie]

What is a "PHEV" ?

Plug in Hybrid Electric Vehicle. Not to be confused with self charging Hybrid Electric Vehicle. HEV.

 

[Mottie]

Just be aware that a lot of standard 13A external sockets are not man enough for the constant load that the car will require day in day out

Is it just the connections to the plug pins that are the weak link? What if I swapped the outside socket for a connector (type 2?) that fits the standard charge cable? BTW, the outside socket is fed from a13a fused switched spur from the downstairs ring circuit. Should I change that for a double pole 20a switch or similar?

 

[flameport]

Is it just the connections to the plug pins that are the weak link?

No. The differences in BS1363 are that 'ev' rated sockets have slightly different tests for the switch and removing/inserting a plug, and there is an additional cyclic loading test.
It's likely that plenty of existing socket outlets meet the requirements, but most manufacturers haven't done the additional testing yet.

Hager Sollysta single sockets are 'ev' rated, such as this one: https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/WMSS81.html

What if I swapped the outside socket for a connector (type 2?) that fits the standard charge cable?

Not possible as it's not just a connector, additional electronics are required before the vehicle will actually start charging, hence the big ugly boxes on the wall and the box of gubbins in the cable that connects to the 13A socket.

a13a fused switched spur from the downstairs ring circuit. Should I change that for a double pole 20a switch

Definitely, as the fuse will get hot in use.

 

[Mottie]

No. The differences in BS1363 are that 'ev' rated sockets have slightly different tests for the switch and removing/inserting a plug, and there is an additional cyclic loading test.
It's likely that plenty of existing socket outlets meet the requirements, but most manufacturers haven't done the additional testing yet.

Hager Sollysta single sockets are 'ev' rated, such as this one: https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/WMSS81.html


Not possible as it's not just a connector, additional electronics are required before the vehicle will actually start charging, hence the big ugly boxes on the wall and the box of gubbins in the cable that connects to the 13A socket.


Definitely, as the fuse will get hot in use.

Thanks but I think I’m not ready for this PHEV malarkey. I’m going for a self charging one!

 

[AndyPRK]

I thought these PHEVs were just a way around the regulations.

You don’t have to charge it, and just run on a perfectly good petrol engine.

Of course if your just popping into town you can use the battery.

 

[Mottie]

I thought these PHEVs were just a way around the regulations.

You don’t have to charge it, and just run on a perfectly good petrol engine.

Of course if you’re just popping into town you can use the battery.

PHEV's won’t fully self charge. Will only charge to about 25% I understand. Then you’re paying to lug a heavy battery around with the petrol engine.

 

[Murdochcat]

We’ve got a HEV for our main car - a good all rounder and as long as you use the accelerator gently it’ll maximise the use of the battery meaning 55+ mpg on local journeys. No faffing around with public or home chargers either

 

[Mottie]

We’ve got a HEV for our main car - a good all rounder and as long as you use the accelerator gently it’ll maximise the use of the battery meaning 55+ mpg on local journeys. No faffing around with public or home chargers either

Yeah, I’ll probably end up not bothering to plug in every night and get poor economy from the petrol engine because I’ll be lugging a heavy battery around! HEV it’ll have to be.

 

[Murdochcat]

Yeah, I’ll probably end up not bothering to plug in every night and get poor economy from the petrol engine because I’ll be lugging a heavy battery around! HEV it’ll have to be.

We were in France for a couple of weeks recently and it struck me how the French have gone for HEVs on a large scale

 

[Risteard]

We're thinking of possibly getting a PHEV. It has a 13.8kw battery. Mrs Mottie doesn’t want to have an 'ugly box' on the front of the house and I don’t want to pay £1k+ to have one fitted. It can be charged via a standard outdoor plug socket in around 6 hours which we already have fitted. Would there be a problem if we were charging it this way most days?

No. Granny charging should never be utilised as a permanent solution.

 

[spile]

We’ve owned an Ioniq PHEV since 2019 and it’s been great. 30 mile range on battery which means all our local trips and then 600 mile hybrid range for longer trips. Long term would not like to use the granny charger. Had a tethered charger fitted when we bought it.