EV charging for households

Charging at home means cheaper and greener driving. But how do you charge your electric car if you don’t have off-street parking or a driveway? If you can’t have a EV home charger installed, does an EV have to be less convenient and more expensive to charge? How to apply for EV charging for households without off-street parking.

A variety of solutions are emerging to help the 40% of homes without off-street parking switch conveniently to an electric car. So what are the options if you don’t have off-street parking?

Charging Issues For EV Drivers

For the vast majority of electric vehicle (EV) drivers, plugging in the car at home is the most convenient way of charging it up. By simply plugging into a home charging wallbox while the vehicle is parked up and setting the charging time to start during off-peak power times, cost and environmentally conscious motorists can wake up to a fully charged EV battery every morning.

This doesn’t work for everyone though. Around 25% of households in the UK don’t have easy access to off-street parking outside their homes, and this can make charging an EV much more complicated. This is because EV drivers who park on the road outside their home are forced to either charge their EV at public or work charging stations or run cables across the pavement that separates their property from their parking spot.

Several issues could affect EV and Plug-In Hybrid (PHEV) drivers who want to charge their vehicle outside their homes in this way. The big questions that most people will be asking themselves are ‘what are the possible legal implications of doing this?’, ‘what would happen if someone injured themselves by tripping over the charging cable?’ and ‘is it possible to safely charge up a plug-in car with extension cables?’

Can I run my charging cable across a pavement?

If you can normally park close to your home, you might be tempted to run a cable across the pavement. There are products and set-ups that will ensure you run cables safely. But as many pavements are already cluttered with bins, recycling boxes, bikes and badly parked cars – cables are yet another potential hazard for pedestrians, wheelchair users and people with buggies. So it is understandable that many councils are urging against it.

If you can’t go over it, maybe you can go under it. Green Mole is looking to scale up a service that can actually create a tiny tunnel from your terraced house to your parking space big enough to house a charger cable, without digging anything up.

Invest in a ChargeArm

One of the biggest barriers to EV charging is how homeowners without the luxury of off-street parking are unable to get a dedicated home charger installed on their property – but this is no longer the case with the ChargeArm!

The ChargeArm is an all-new alternative for charging your electric vehicle “over the pavement.” The Dutch-designed ChargeArm allows EV drivers to charge overhead instead of obstructing the pavement with wires and cables.

The ChargeArm is installed at the front of your property and can be wall-mounted or ground-mounted. Given that the charging arm extends and is suspended from a distinct height whilst charging, you can easily charge your EV without bothering pedestrians or posing a safety hazard. Simply unplug your charging connector from the unit, tug the arm down and plug your connector into your EV.

So, say goodbye to untidy three-pin plug charging and long waits at public charging points with the ChargeArm! A unit that promises safe, tidy, and clean charging.

Public Charging Points

Use Zap-Map to find your nearest public charging point and top up on your charge!

If you are tactical about your charging, you could also find public charging points that allow you to charge for FREE! To find free public charging points, simply click the filter on the Zap-Map app or website.

One thing to note is that public charging is the least convenient out of all the EV charging methods. You may have to leave your home and wait around for a few hours until your EV is sufficiently charged, which is a pain, especially if you don’t have a real need to leave the house. Therefore, a top tip is to always time your public charging for when you need to leave the house, such as if you need to go shopping or to the cinema, as you can charge whilst you are out and about, instead of having to kill time.

However, the bright side of public EV charging is that the network is growing every day. There are now over 31,000 chargers in the UK alone, according to Zap-Map, so there will always be a charger nearby if you need one!

Charging at work

Charging your electric vehicle at work is a great way to save on both charging costs and time! If your employer offers free EV charging, you can charge whilst parked at work, meaning you are significantly reducing commuting costs (especially compared to an internal combustion engine vehicle, given the rising cost of fuel!). Not only that, but you have one less thing to worry about,  given that you will have significantly and conveniently charged your EV if you work the typical 7.5-hour day.  The length of your working day might even equal a full charge for certain EVs, such as the Nissan leaf! You won’t have to top up at a public charge point on the way home, either.

Having electric vehicle chargers at the workplace can also bring multiple benefits for the company itself, such as increased employee satisfaction and retention and improved green credentials.

What should I do if my workplace doesn’t have electric vehicle charging points?

Tell them about the Workplace Charging Scheme grant – there is up to £14,000 worth of government funding available!

We install both home and commercial electric vehicle chargers, so if you would like a tailored EV charging solution, first-class customer service and unbiased advice, we are here, and we will help you every step of the way.

Three-pin plug EV charging for households

To charge your electric vehicle with a 3-pin plug, you will need three things: a standard 3-pin domestic socket in your house, a 3-pin plug car charger that will fit with your EV (either Type 1 or Type 2) and lastly, an electric vehicle. To charge, you simply plug one side into your electric car and the other into a 3-pin plug socket.

While it may sound easy enough, three-pin plug charging has some drastic disadvantages. Firstly, you will need to thread wires in, out and around your home, which is not only messy and tricky but can be dangerous as cables and wires will be on public pavements. With this in mind, you need to check your local council’s policy on three-pin plug charging and on-street parking as some are against it, deeming it to be a safety hazard to others as the wires & cables obstruct the pavement – a hazard to pedestrians, especially children and people with disabilities. When conjoined with other variables such as parked cars and bins too, it can be extremely risky.

 

Secondly, there is the risk that members of the public could accidentally (or purposefully) unplug your electric vehicle when it is charging – disrupting your charging schedule.

 

Thirdly, 3-pin plug charging is dangerous in terms of electricals as they are not designed for continuous high-power usage, such as charging electric cars.

Finally, 3-pin plug charging may seem convenient, but it is actually the slowest way to charge your electric vehicle – it could take up to or over 18 hours for a full charge.

As industry experts, we only recommend using a three-pin plug charger in emergencies.

Friends, Family or Neighbours

If your friends, family members or neighbours have dedicated home chargers, they might be kind enough to let you use them! We only recommend this when visiting or as a last resort – you don’t want any fallouts!

Moreover, you would have to check that their electric vehicle charger was compatible with your electric car. For example, a Type 2 EV would need a matching Type 2 charging cable.

Rapid Charging Hubs

This provision helps add flexibility to all users, and we need more. But concerns remain over them being a more costly option (even at Pod Point’s very competitive pricing) if they are the only way you get your charging done.

Elsewhere, notably Scotland and Essex, substantial high-powered charging hubs have appeared. These impressive facilities look absolutely ideal for en route charging, though their locations suggest that’s not their sole purpose. So it will be interesting to see how popular they are in time.

EV charging for households

Alternative EV Charging Solutions

If connecting your EV to a charging point on or around your property is proving difficult, then you can always take advantage of the public charging network instead. Smartphone apps like Zap-Map will direct you to all the local charging points in your area or while you’re out and about, meaning you can charge your EV while at the supermarket, shopping centre or wherever an EV charge point has been installed.

Many councils and public car park operators have successfully applied for grants and installed EV chargers in places like town centre car parks. In fact, the network of public charge points for EV’s recently reached54779 individual connectors, making it easier than ever to plan long distance journeys. Topping up your car’s battery is getting faster too, with rapid chargers now available at most motorway service stations.

Workplace charging is also becoming much more common. If you’re lucky enough to have a car park at work the government grants currently available make the cost of fitting an EV charger really attractive to employers.

EV charging for households

Electric Car Charging For Drivers With A Disability

The Motability Scheme is a UK government-backed initiative dedicated to helping people with disabilities, war pensioners and carers drive a brand new, safe, and reliable car.

As a part of their ‘worry-free’ motoring package, Motability have partnered with Ohme, Easee and BP Pulse to offer a no-cost charging solution to Motability customers who lease a 100% electric car.

Motability customers interested in an EV who don’t have a driveway (or access to suitable off-street parking) can choose a complimentary subscription to the BP Pulse network of public charging points instead of having a home charger fitted.

EV charging for households

Motorists with a disability who do have off-street parking can opt for a compact, all-weather home EV charger – fitted by a qualified specialist installer – as a part of the lease at no additional cost.

Emerging charging solutions

LAMP-POST CHARGING

Charging equipment built into lamp posts is a new way of charging that utilises the existing highway infrastructure, helping to reduce overall installation costs. The first service to emerge in the UK was Ubitricity, whose customers purchase a smart cable from them to use their charging posts on lamp posts around London.

Other manufacturers and service providers are emerging at the moment, including City EV, Rolec StreetCharge and Char.gy.

The technology goes hand-in-hand with nationwide efforts to convert lamp posts to lower energy LED lighting systems, which reduces the overall power consumption of a lamppost, causing it to effectively have spare capacity.

EV charging for households

Here in Brighton, over 200 Lamp Post chargers were installed in Spring 2020 following a government grant from the Office of Low Emissions Vehicles. These chargers are available to both residents and visitors, with some locations offering reserved parking and others being shared. They are operated by EB Charging and are accessed using a smartphone app, which handles account and payment management for users.

WIRELESS KERBSIDE CHARGING

British company Connected Kerb are developing new kerbside chargers which aim to help those without off-street parking but providing smart yet subtle new charging infrastructure options.

They are also one of several companies worldwide developing a wireless charging solution, which could one day be the most effortless way to charge an EV.

EV charging for households

POP-UP CHARGERS

UK company Urban Electric recently announced their plans for pop-up chargers, which are due to be trialled by Oxford City Council.

These chargers help to solve an increasing concern about the rise of street-furniture and pavement clutter. The chargers live underneath the pavement, completely hidden from view, rising out of the ground when needed for use.

EV charging for households

TROJAN “LANCE” CONCEALED CHARGERS

UK firm Trojan Energy have designed a similar bespoke charging solution that leaves no physical or visual clutter to the pavement surface. The solution involves a “lance” connector, which the user owns, that is connected to a concealed in-pavement socket. Once connected, the user can benefit from up to 22kW of charging power.

KERBSIDE HOME CHARGER

Unlike similar but public chargers, the charge post uses the electricity supply from the house it is in front of. There is a corresponding parking bay marked “EV permit holder” to ensure that parking is available for the owner, along with appropriate signage on the owners garden wall. The charging point was installed by Council-approved contractors and paid for by the owner.

CABLE GULLEYS

Some UK terraced houses have drainage gulleys running from the house to the road. It turns out that these drainage gulleys can also be used to safely lay a temporary cable between the property and a vehicle without causing any obstruction to pavement users. In 2019 Oxford City Council trialled 5 different charging solutions for residents without access to off-street parking, including cable gulleys. The trial found that whilst there is no ‘one size fits all’ solution for on-street charging, a home charger and simple cable gully solution was the cheapest, most highly utilised solution, as well as the one least likely to elicit complaints from neighbours.

The success of cable gulleys in their phase 1 trials led to further funding to develop a new cable gulley solution. Called the Ox Gul-e project, it was put on trial in August 2021 and it is hoped will lead to a large scale pilot scheme in the future.

ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGE CHANNEL

Building upon the cable-gulley idea, UK based company Green Mole have developed another product to help those with off-street parking. Their Electric Vehicle Charge Channel, or “EVCC”, is a new solution to the problem. The EVCC is submerged below the surface of the pavement, providing a safe route for an EV charging cable from the household to an EV, without cluttering up the pavement or creating any hazards. Green Mole claim that the EVCC will ultimately be a worthwhile investment for any home as EVs become the norm.

The product is been created in conjunction with Liverpool John Moores University and the University of Salford to bring EVCC to market.

OVERHEAD CHARGING

A company in Holland has developed a new overhead charging arm called ChargeArm. It can deliver a charging cable from a private property to a vehicle over the footpath, up to a distance of 2.2m. The device raises the charging cable up mechanically, allowing continued use of the footpath without creating any obstruction for pedestrians, buggies or wheelchairs from trailing cables.

It’s been developed specifically to solve the problem of people charging from home and creating hazards with trailing cables. The makers say that unlike leaving cables on the ground, ChargeArm helps to keep them cleaner and reduce wear – claiming they will last up to ten times longer as a result. It is a stand-alone mechanical arm that can be used with any existing home charging points available on the market.

There is no word on this being introduced to the UK yet and it is unclear as to the legalities of using something like this.

ELECTRICITY… DELIVERED TO YOUR CAR!

For many, wanting to charge a vehicle at home isn’t just about cost – it’s also about convenience. Charge Fairy is a service that aims to provide that convenience, with electricity quite literally delivered to your vehicle. A mobile electric van, complete with an onboard battery pack, will come to your location and recharge your car – at a very competitive price of £5.99 a month for an initial 10kWh of electricity and 37p/kWh thereafter. Once you’re a customer, they will even use your usage data to predict when your next charge is needed, securely charging your vehicle overnight while you’re asleep. No request needed!

Portable batteries

Just like Chargefairy, there are now portable battery solutions that can charge your car wherever it is. ZipCharge is one of those – it’s a small, portable battery on wheels, the size of a flight suitcase that can charge up to a claimed 40 miles of range. Perhaps not something which you would want to be doing all the time, but it is a solution nonetheless. There are also a number of companies in the US selling portable EV solutions like EV Rescue, EV CubiCharge, Blink Mobile and Lightning eMotors.

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