Am I being scammed?

[unclestorm]

Hey all!

hope this is the right place for this type of questions!
I have a new phev coming in a couple of weeks and as such I need to get a power outlet to plug in the charging cable.

I live in an apartment building and have a private parking slot and a private storage room with its own breaker connected to my meter.
That breaker has two unused power outlets, one of which I intend to extend around 20 feet (6 meters) so that I can plug the charging cable of the phev. Or so I thought...
I was given a quote for a complete new breaker with THE EXACT SAME SPECS to the one I already have (25A 30mA single phase) to be installed near the parking slot.
Why?

can anyone help me understand or is the company I asked the quote trying to sell me unnecessary stuff?

thanks

 

[Julie.]

I assume the photos show the existing board, since this is unsuitable for an electric vehicle charge point.

The rcd here is ac, you need type a at the very least

 

[unclestorm]

I assume the photos show the existing board, since this is unsuitable for an electric vehicle charge point.

The rcd here is ac, you need type a at the very least

Thanks Julie,

yes it’s alternating current, but so are all power outlets. I need one closer to the car parking spot, so why can’t I move an existing one?

mto be clear, the vehicle comes with a charging cable that goes into a regular power outlet

 

[Julie.]

No, the rcd is type ac, it needs to be type A and not type ac!

Not the fact it's alternating current being supplied.

 

[unclestorm]

No, the rcd is type ac, it needs to be type A and not type ac!

Not the fact it's alternating current being supplied.

Thanks again Julie

allow me to further clarify with a picture of the charging cable.

It receives 230v and has a control unit. The car itself converts the AC to DC.

I just need a 230v AC outlet. Am I right?

 

[static zap]

The rcd here is ac

Sadly they work using a coil of wire with a magnetic core for high Q , that's effectiveness is spoilt if a DC current can flow thru it at the same time.
... a process of keep things cheap / room for improvement ..

 

[unclestorm]

Sadly they work using a coil of wire with a magnetic core for high Q , that's effectiveness is spoilt if a DC current can flow thru it at the same time.
... a process of keep things cheap / room for improvement ..

thanks a lot zap!

 

[Jim_e_Jib]

Thanks again Julie

allow me to further clarify with a picture of the charging cable.

It receives 230v and has a control unit. The car itself converts the AC to DC.

I just need a 230v AC outlet. Am I right?

View attachment 56618

The type of RCD required doesn't relate to the alternating current from your electricity supplier but rather the conditions under which it will or won't trip to provide protection.

In the UK, the regulations specify particular types of RCD for this application to ensure the RCD is not prevented from tripping by DC components saturating its tripping mechanism.

As per post #2 check with your electrician to see what type of RCD they propose fitting.

There is a good guide here:

Selection of RCD Types - Hager UK

RCD's exist in various different forms and react differently depending on the presence of DC components or different frequencies.

hager.com

 

[unclestorm]

The type of RCD required doesn't relate to the alternating current from your electricity supplier but rather the conditions under which it will or won't trip to provide protection.

In the UK, the regulations specify particular types of RCD for this application to ensure the RCD is not prevented from tripping by DC components saturating its tripping mechanism.

As per post #2 check with your electrician to see what type of RCD they propose fitting.

There is a good guide here:

Selection of RCD Types - Hager UK

RCD's exist in various different forms and react differently depending on the presence of DC components or different frequencies.

hager.com

Thank you Jim e Jib

 

[Julie.]

Thanks again Julie

allow me to further clarify with a picture of the charging cable.

It receives 230v and has a control unit. The car itself converts the AC to DC.

I just need a 230v AC outlet. Am I right?

View attachment 56618

We are aware you are talking about a mode 2 connection, however the connection should be made with a dedicated standard socket outlet protected by a rcd of type A.

As stated a number of times, type ac is not suitable.

In addition, this type of connection is very slow to charge a vehicle, and is usually only used when you cannot use a proper charge point, such as when away from home.

With the car you usually also get a mode 3 cable (plug at each end, no electronic box in the cable). Since you are having the wiring added, I would suggest getting a dedicated ev charge point, they can be 16A or 32A, so 16A would suit your 25A availability, and charge much faster than the 10A associated with the mode 2 connection you are looking at using.