BMW i3 BEV 2014, George – Living with an EV: Home charging

BMW i3 BEV 2014, George - Living with an EV: Home charging

What name would you like to appear in your article? 

George

 

What is the make, model and year of your EV?

BMW i3 BEV 2014

 

Tell us about your home charging set-up

I have a Rolec which cost me £80 because I chose the 7Kw version. It is untethered. I chose it because I had seen Rolec chargers and liked the look of it. It had a fault early on but that was quickly remedied by Rolec and it has worked fine ever since, over 7 years now. I wouldn’t recommend any charger to anyone as they should do their own research and . Plus, there are a lot more different models available now with differing functions. They also cost a lot more!

 

Tell us about your home charging routine

I am a farmer so I work from home and therefore my journeys and miles vary considerably. There is no typical week. I charge the car during the day mostly, when I am generating electricity as that is the most economical way to do it. I aim for the car to be fully charged ready for the next journey and leave it plugged in unless I don’t want to charge it at that time, for example because it is dark. Occasionally I will charge it using the off-peak charging settings in the car if really necessary.

 

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Are you part of a charger-sharing scheme for those who don’t have their own charger?

No.

 

Tell us about your electricity provider and tariff

My electricity provider and tariff would not apply to most people as this is a business on a business 3 rate tariff. They do provide an incentive for EV use by giving me about £81 per year towards the cost of charging an EV. In practice, apart from dark days in the winter, I don’t pay anything to charge my car as I charge it from solar PV generated here. My typical cost for electricity for the farm for the summer months is less than £5 per month. The income from generated electricity is several times that amount. Obviously this is not likely to be a common set-up.

 

Are you planning on changing your charger and/or electricity supplier and if so to who and why?

No.

 

Estimate how much money you save per month owning and running an EV compared to an ICE car

From an in-depth study conducted with Coventry University using actual miles travelled, the monthly saving on fuel alone was between £1,500 to £2,000 per month. There are also savings in Vehicle Excise Duty and servicing. Insurance is broadly similar to an equivalent ICE car.

 

See other home charging reports here

 

 

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