Electricity and gas prices are set to rise by around 54% from this month, putting huge strain on household budgets.
For owners of electric vehicles, or for anyone thinking of buying one it could cause some to hesitate if the cost of charging is going to increase and put more strain on your wallet, especially when it comes to installing an EV charger at home.
Not that sticking with a petrol or diesel car is any cheaper and we’ve all seen the massive price rises at the pumps in the last few weeks and months.
The fact is electric vehicles remain the most cost effective (and environmentally friendly) vehicle to own and there are several ways you can save money on your electric vehicle charging – and even on the cost of installing a home EV charger if you don’t already have one.p
1 – Apply for a Government grant
If you live in a flat or rented accommodation you could apply for the Electric Vehicle Homecharge Scheme, which can reduce the cost and installation of a electric vehicle charging unit by up to 75% – or £350.
This is a government grant delivered through the Office Zero Emission Vehicles.
Unfortunately, this scheme is no longer available to homeowners in bungalows, detached houses, semi-detached houses or other ‘single unit’
2 – Get a professional to install your charger for you
If you’re going to have an EV charging unit installed at your home or commercial space, you should always look to hire a professional installation company to do the work for you.
As well as helping save on costs it’s worth noting that having a professional install your electric vehicle charger is a much safer option and ensures your unit works properly and doesn’t cause a potential hazard to your property.
3 – Improve efficiency by adding solar panels to your home
It’s not essential to have solar panels installed on your home or property if you’re going to install an electric vehicle charger, but it can help save you a lot of money on electricity, especially in the long run.
Many new EV chargers come equipped with energy storing units, which can save excess electricity and store it to be used to charge your vehicle later.
If you’re generating your own electricity through solar panels, your electric vehicle could use this stored energy as its primary source (meaning you’re not using electricity from the grid and therefore not paying tariffs) and then switch over to a main electricity supply.
There are grants available to reduce the costs of installing solar panels on your home, like the government backed ECO3 fund, which is available to both homeowners and tenants of rented property.
4 – Get the right EV charger installed
As we’ve said, you don’t need solar panels to reduce the costs of charging your electric vehicle (although it helps) and there are systems built into most new EV chargers that help you reduce the cost of charging.
Many smart EV chargers come with built in technology that tracks the unit cost of electricity through the day and only charges your vehicle when electricity prices are at their lowest.
This means you’re always paying the lowest possible amount to keep your electric vehicle charged.
You can also save money by choosing the right type of EV charger based on the speed you want your vehicle to charge.
If you only want a home charger to leave your car plugged in overnight, or you plan to use your home charger for longer charges and use public chargers for a top up, it’s not cost effective to buy a rapid charger.
You should think carefully about how you plan to manage the charging of your electric vehicle and buy an EV charger that fits.
5 – Keep the battery between 20% and 80% charged whenever possible
As well as choosing the right EV charger, you can also reduce your charging costs by better managing how you keep your car’s battery topped up.
The best thing to do is to keep your battery charged optimally between 20% and 80% as often as you can.
This isn’t just better for the longevity of the vehicle’s life, it can also reduce your costs because the first and last 20% of charging is where much of the cost builds up.
Save money with a professionally installed EV charger at home
With the sale of new petrol and diesel cars being outlawed in the UK by the end of the decade switching to an electric vehicle is a great option to not only reduce the ongoing costs of owning and maintaining a fuel car, but reduce the environmental impact of driving.
And by having a professionally installed EV charger at home you can reduce the costs of managing your vehicle charging even more by using the tips above to keep your costs down and increase the efficiency of your electric car’s battery.
If you want to get a new electric vehicle charging unit installed at home, get in touch with us at Downtown Electrical.
All our installers or fully qualified and registered and will work with you to install your charger in the right place to ensure you get the best from it.
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