OHME Smart Tariff with app Vrs NonSmart with Car

[007fair]

Hi All 

I have had my BZ4X for 2.5 months and am generally very happy with it (Apart from a rattle in the roof lining).  I was on the Octopus Go Tariff which gives cheap overnight rates (7.5p per Kwh) so have been charging it in my garage with a three pin plug using the in car scheduler set to - Times between 12.05 am and 5am / Max rate 8Amps (It feels safer for a 3 pin plug).  I don't do many miles.  This system was working fine.

I got my OHME E Pod charger fitted the other day and have switched to Octopus Intelligent Go Tariff.   On paper it seems like a good idea but ..  is it?

Just wondered what the general consensus on intelligent charging was out there?

PROS

• The system will charge at the lowest rate it can find no matter when you plug it in. 

CONS

• A pfaff to set up with additional apps and connections.
• Needs an internet connection (If internet goes down or trips the charging stops)
• Is not compatible with other charging schedules (Like the one in the car).
• Can only set a % charge (IE put in 50%) rather than a max %.

 

I am thinking the simpler approach of Octopus Go is better.  Set the charge schedule on the car and just plug it overnight when required. 

  

[FROSTYBALLS]

2 minutes ago, 007fair said:

I have had my BZ4X for 2.5 months

Please update your profile to include the BZ4X

[philip42h]

1 hour ago, 007fair said:

Times between 12.05 am and 5am / Max rate 8Amps (It feels safer for a 3 pin plug).  I don't do many miles.

There's nothing 'wrong' with what you were doing. 5 hrs at 8A will have given you 9.2 kWh each night - so an average daily range of around 27 miles (?). If that's all you need, that's fine.

A 3-pin plug is rated at 13A (peak) but the granny charger takes a more conservative view and limits you to 10A for safety anyway. 5 hrs at 10A would give you 11.5 kWh and a daily range of around 35 miles - which is, obviously, further should you want/need it.

Switching to a 7.4 kW charger will provide more charge in less time - so hopefully over 100 miles of range in the same 5 hr window.

But to your question, I don't think that the technology behind intelligent charging is quite ready for universal adoption just yet. While on paper that is exactly what you should be doing - to minimise your impact on the electricity supply network and thereby get the best price for yourself - it does appear to tie the consumer into a specific supplier and a single brand of charger (or small number of charger brands). It feels a bit of a "VHS vs Betamax" scenario to me ... 

I'm still waiting to go EV (I will next time I change car, I think) but I won't go for an overly intelligent tariff or smart charger until there is a decent amount of standardisation in the industry so that, having invested in a charger, I can switch cars and electricity suppliers without 'hassle' or additional expense.