Page 2 of 3
Re: Full time granny charging
Posted: Wed Jul 27, 2022 7:32 am
by fivetide
After the evaluation of my under stairs electrics, I was told similar to the original poster. As you say, it did cost a few more quid to have someone pull up some floor boards and carpet and route the cabling through to a small garage board etc… but it was all put back afterwards. The small bits of conduit aren’t obvious and my Wallbox was welll worth the extra bit of effort. If you are too anxious, just go out for a few hours! The results will be absolutely fine
Re: Full time granny charging
Posted: Wed Jul 27, 2022 6:31 pm
by IanEV
The other thing to note if you do go down the granny cable route is you can use the app to reduce the amount of current the car draws - obviously it’ll take longer to charge though.
Re: Full time granny charging
Posted: Wed Jul 27, 2022 8:03 pm
by BioHzrd
IanEV wrote: ↑Tue Jul 26, 2022 1:13 pm
I’ve been meaning to post some pictures of what can go wrong with granny chargers- this happened to me earlier in the year. I purchased very good quality, heavy duty charger and extension cable.
For the first few days on holiday I was very careful I.e. unwound the cables didn’t put the cover down on the waterproof socket on the extension lead etc …
By day 5 I’d got lazy and didn’t ensure the cable was completely straight although it wasn’t wound up by any means. I also closed the lid on the waterproof socket on the extension cable - something people might be tempted to do on a wall mounted electric socket
Fortunately I discovered the issue before any fire but check the images outAD1BFE2A-9186-476A-BEAA-C70278A40B89.jpegBC52B166-7260-43F9-A6EF-98BA8E0C99DC.jpeg8B0CC038-6F9D-4F20-8EEE-6207D0BD7B2F.jpeg9EA51907-4AF2-409F-9360-64F80E830650.jpeg1E6A970D-8B4F-4213-B0F9-55DF871BBC48.jpeg0ACBC453-D6E8-4847-A4F3-75132A89AE89.jpeg
Should never plug a "Granny Charger" into an extension lead it's classed as Daisy Changing in the first place.
Issue has been due to one of two points, loose connection within the master seal type socket or same in the extension plug top. Be that over time or just poor installation on part of the socket or poor QA on the part of the extension lead you used.
Re: Full time granny charging
Posted: Wed Jul 27, 2022 9:17 pm
by dezember
IanEV wrote: ↑Wed Jul 27, 2022 6:31 pm
The other thing to note if you do go down the granny cable route is you can use the app to reduce the amount of current the car draws - obviously it’ll take longer to charge though.
Thanks. This is useful especially if I don't mind "trickle" charging it overnight
Re: Full time granny charging
Posted: Thu Jul 28, 2022 2:38 pm
by orrery
Deleted
Re: Full time granny charging
Posted: Thu Jul 28, 2022 2:39 pm
by orrery
BioHzrd wrote: ↑Wed Jul 27, 2022 8:03 pm
Should never plug a "Granny Charger" into an extension lead...
Buy an extension lead that is specifically designed for EVs from Toughleads. The problem is to do with old sockets and loose wires. Buy a granny cable that can be set back to lower currents (6 amps/ 8 amps) - see 3rd Rock Energy.
Plug into a socket that has been checked over and preferably has its own trip. Check all plugs and sockets in the first few minutes of each charge to make sure they are not getting hot - warm is OK, hot isn't.
If you are careful and sensible then there should be no problem in using a granny cable for long periods.
Re: Full time granny charging
Posted: Thu Jul 28, 2022 3:44 pm
by dezember
orrery wrote: ↑Thu Jul 28, 2022 2:39 pm
BioHzrd wrote: ↑Wed Jul 27, 2022 8:03 pm
Should never plug a "Granny Charger" into an extension lead...
Buy an extension lead that is specifically designed for EVs from Toughleads. The problem is to do with old sockets and loose wires. Buy a granny cable that can be set back to lower currents (6 amps/ 8 amps) - see 3rd Rock Energy.
Plug into a socket that has been checked over and preferably has its own trip. Check all plugs and sockets in the first few minutes of each charge to make sure they are not getting hot - warm is OK, hot isn't.
If you are careful and sensible then there should be no problem in using a granny cable for long periods.
Thanks! The 3rd Rock Energy recommedation is useful since the one that most people are using (Masterplug) has gone up in price. For those who are interested, they are selling it at a promo price now;
https://thirdrockenergy.co.uk/products/ ... kw-5-metre
Re: Full time granny charging
Posted: Thu Jul 28, 2022 6:27 pm
by Daffo1950
I bought one from Toughleads and just dial back the amperage to 6 or 8 amps and should be fine
Re: Full time granny charging
Posted: Thu Jul 28, 2022 9:49 pm
by IanEV
Just to add my extension lead was from Tough Leads and the charger from Third Rock and both were brand new un - damaged.
Re: Full time granny charging
Posted: Thu Jul 28, 2022 10:09 pm
by Archer17
I have been using a granny charger ( Third Rock from the Sun make) for several months to put excess solar pv generation into the car. This has worked well albeit the plug sometimes got warm so I was checking it regularly.
We have just swapped the old non smart 7kw charger for a Myenergi Zappi which does the same function ie puts excess solar into the car. As it does it automatically and uses the same plug as it would use for the 7kw charge I do find it less stressful to use.
So, yes it’s possible to use a granny, many people do but now I won’t be using ours unless it’s for an emergency ie we are travelling and without destination charging.