Does anyone have or considered an Anderson EV charger?

[HenryBaker]

Looking at homechargers. There are quite a few. The Anderson EV is expensive but ai loke the design and the ability to hide the type 2 cable.

Does any one have any experience or view on this choice?

[Raxacorico]

We have a Zappi, and whilst not as good looking as an Anderson (or as expensive) it does not detract from the look of the house since it hides inside our garage! I can still charge with the up & over garage door closed.

[Utumno]

Funny you should ask. I had an Andersen A2 fitted last Friday by Elecology in advance of the ID.3 arriving later this year. My actual original choice was to go with the Hypervolt, however Mrs Utumno basically got her veto in very late on the "white plastic" look of the thing; she much preferred the look of the Andersen. I've learned through long experience that if her OCD can be assuaged by the application of some cash, my ears thank me for it for years afterward. So she got her way, and we now have a fully functional Andersen A2 ready and waiting for the ID.3 to arrive.

My Dad even popped round at the weekend with his Model 3 and sucked 15kWh out of it during his 2 hour tea and biscuit visit so it's definitely delivering 7.4kW/32A perfectly happily. I've had zero issues, the charging app is fine as far as I can see, and the charger has no problems maintaining a solid connection over my home WiFi. The tethered cable is really light and extremely flexible compared to others I've used, which was a pleasant surprise, and the look of the thing is really tidy. Our charger is attached to our driveway fence and so on show permanently, hence Mrs U vetoing the white plastic wall wart charger....

Anything specific you wanted to know just ask, happy to provide opinions and pictures if you're interested. Though don't judge me for not having repainted the fence during lockdown

[HenryBaker]

Do send some pics if you can manage it. I am in exactly the same boat on why the Anderson (Mrs) , but also think it looks good.

[HenryBaker]

Did ylh go the full Anderson service inc. install? And how long did it take from order to install, please.

[Utumno]

No problem

This is the Andersen mounted, but not powered yet. Taken for Mrs U's approval. No earth spike needed, the armoured cable was trenched on the edge of the driveway and it runs sympathetically along the vertical edge of the fence boarding :-

Next picture is a bit of a game of "spot the armoured EV charger cable". I promise it's there. Nothing was too much trouble for Dan the installer and I think he's done an absolutely cracking job of making the cable as invisible as possible. Hint: it runs along the fence, up behind the drainpipe and along the beaming to the door. This is where I ask you all not to judge the lack of creosote on the fencing

And the view over the driveway gate looking down the drive toward the charger fully fitted and ready to charge. The ID.3 will charge specifically in the empty space next to it.

[van]

Likewise we were going to get an Andersen as the most likely mounting point is next to the front door and the missus felt the other options we'd considered wouldn't look very tidy. On measuring the space though the Anderson would also look untidy. So decided now to go behind the adjacent garden gate and as it will be out of sight will probably go Hypervolt.

Interesting seeing a charger mounted on a wooden fence post. I had in mind that it's not recommended. Perhaps I'm confusing it with solar inverters or key safes. Age can be a wonderful thing I'm told - mostly by people younger than me!

[shire-dweller]

I am also trying to decide. I was originally inclined to go with the Andersen A2, but then I realised that the box dimension was to too "deep" (15cm depth) for my driveway, and it would get in the way of passengers opening the car doors. It happens that my driveway is rather narrow between a fence and a house wall (one of those modern developments where the developer squeezed every centimetre of land they could). So I am now inclined to go with the Hypervolt, which is only 10cm deep and the tethered cable looks relatively tidy rolled around it.

[van]

I am also trying to decide. I was originally inclined to go with the Andersen A2, but then I realised that the box dimension was to too "deep" (15cm depth) for my driveway, and it would get in the way of passengers opening the car doors. It happens that my driveway is rather narrow between a fence and a house wall (one of those modern developments where the developer squeezed every centimetre of land they could). So I am now inclined to go with the Hypervolt, which is only 10cm deep and the tethered cable looks relatively tidy rolled around it.

As I will need the 10 m cable I asked Hypervolt if it still winds tidily around the flanged cover and they said it does.

[Utumno]

I am also trying to decide. I was originally inclined to go with the Andersen A2, but then I realised that the box dimension was to too "deep" (15cm depth) for my driveway, and it would get in the way of passengers opening the car doors. It happens that my driveway is rather narrow between a fence and a house wall (one of those modern developments where the developer squeezed every centimetre of land they could). So I am now inclined to go with the Hypervolt, which is only 10cm deep and the tethered cable looks relatively tidy rolled around it.

This is one of the reasons the Hypervolt was previously top of our list - the "windability" of the cable and its relative neatness when wound. I showed the Ohme pictures to Mrs U and she immediately vetoed it because of the cable "scruff"

[monkeyhanger]

An extra £600 for a slightly nicer looking solution to my Ohme, it was an easy pass for me.

[G43FAN]

Interesting seeing a charger mounted on a wooden fence post. I had in mind that it's not recommended. Perhaps I'm confusing it with solar inverters or key safes. Age can be a wonderful thing I'm told - mostly by people younger than me!

If you go on any electrical forums that has been debated many many times and seems to be a judgement call. To most though a wooden fence is not classed as a permanent structure and so should not have any electrical installation fastened to it. That also seems to be the view of NICEIC.

[Utumno]

Interesting seeing a charger mounted on a wooden fence post. I had in mind that it's not recommended. Perhaps I'm confusing it with solar inverters or key safes. Age can be a wonderful thing I'm told - mostly by people younger than me!

If you go on any electrical forums that has been debated many many times and seems to be a judgement call. To most though a wooden fence is not classed as a permanent structure and so should not have any electrical installation fastened to it. That also seems to be the view of NICEIC.

The entire electrical system had a full inspection when we moved in here and it came back clean, including the mains powered hardwired lighting installation also on the fence posts. I got the audit done because I simply didn't trust the electrical install in this ancient barn and expected to have to a fix a load of things. Turned out there wasn't much to do (other than light replacements in the garage from fluorescent tubes to sealed LED's and the like).

Our fence is pretty damned permanent and expecting to always have a brick wall and a permanent structure to affix anything electrical to is unrealistic. Particularly out here, in the countryside

[Utumno]

An extra £600 for a slightly nicer looking solution to my Ohme, it was an easy pass for me.

Take my wife.

Please.

[G43FAN]

Interesting seeing a charger mounted on a wooden fence post. I had in mind that it's not recommended. Perhaps I'm confusing it with solar inverters or key safes. Age can be a wonderful thing I'm told - mostly by people younger than me!

If you go on any electrical forums that has been debated many many times and seems to be a judgement call. To most though a wooden fence is not classed as a permanent structure and so should not have any electrical installation fastened to it. That also seems to be the view of NICEIC.

The entire electrical system had a full inspection when we moved in here and it came back clean, including the mains powered hardwired lighting installation also on the fence posts. I got the audit done because I simply didn't trust the electrical install in this ancient barn and expected to have to a fix a load of things. Turned out there wasn't much to do (other than light replacements in the garage from fluorescent tubes to sealed LED's and the like).

Our fence is pretty damned permanent and expecting to always have a brick wall and a permanent structure to affix anything electrical to is unrealistic. Particularly out here, in the countryside

I was only agreeing with van's comment really, I'm not looking for an internet fracas... I am also not an electrician, but I have to work with a lot of them. As I said, there is no specific regulation stating you can't attach SWA to a wooden fence, it is a debate about whether the fence is classed as a permanent structure however and that is where the question comes in. I know that the electricians I work with won't install to wooden fences no matter how substantial but round here wooden fences are annually re-constructed after a good storm straight off the Irish sea, and there are specific rules in Wales.

If you've used an NICEIC registered installer then you will get a certificate and the work will be notified to Building control as is the law and I would suggest as you are happy with the install then that's that.

However Andersen's own website says you cannot install to a wooden fence. https://andersen-ev.com/ev-charger/car/home/ Point 5.

[Utumno]

If you go on any electrical forums that has been debated many many times and seems to be a judgement call. To most though a wooden fence is not classed as a permanent structure and so should not have any electrical installation fastened to it. That also seems to be the view of NICEIC.

The entire electrical system had a full inspection when we moved in here and it came back clean, including the mains powered hardwired lighting installation also on the fence posts. I got the audit done because I simply didn't trust the electrical install in this ancient barn and expected to have to a fix a load of things. Turned out there wasn't much to do (other than light replacements in the garage from fluorescent tubes to sealed LED's and the like).

Our fence is pretty damned permanent and expecting to always have a brick wall and a permanent structure to affix anything electrical to is unrealistic. Particularly out here, in the countryside

I was only agreeing with van's comment really, I'm not looking for an internet fracas... I am also not an electrician, but I have to work with a lot of them. As I said, there is no specific regulation stating you can't attach SWA to a wooden fence, it is a debate about whether the fence is classed as a permanent structure however and that is where the question comes in. I know that the electricians I work with won't install to wooden fences no matter how substantial but round here wooden fences are annually re-constructed after a good storm straight off the Irish sea, and there are specific rules in Wales.

If you've used an NICEIC registered installer then you will get a certificate and the work will be notified to Building control as is the law and I would suggest as you are happy with the install then that's that.

However Andersen's own website says you cannot install to a wooden fence. https://andersen-ev.com/ev-charger/car/home/ Point 5.

No fracas here, apologies if it sounded like I was kicking off (I wasn't, I promise!).

I got 4 competitive quotes, 2 of which were actual physical site surveys, all of which were NICEIC Approved Contractors with the Domestic Installer NICEIC approval. One of those quotes was from Andersen themselves. I asked specifically about the fence routing and every single one of the prospective installers - including Andersen specifically - said it wouldn't be a problem at all given the sturdiness of the fence. I even asked them about an alternative fitment around the back of the house, which would have been directly attached to the barn stone walling, and they universally said it would be more problematic to route there and less safe due to the proximity of our domestic kerosene tank to the charger location.

I was already aware that Andersen said they cannot install to a wooden fence on their website, and I specifically pressed them on this point during their site survey. The explanation I was given was that you can't install to a wooden fence panel, because they are often dropped into guides between concrete fence posts and aren't actually secured to anything. Many years ago we had just that kind of "new house builders fence" and it lost its fence panels every winter if the wind speed got above a spirited mouse fart. Attaching anything electrical to that would count as assisted suicide I suspect.

I ultimately took the view that as our moving-in electrical inspection came back clear, plus 4x charger virtual site surveys and 2x physical site surveys by NICEIC approved contractors were all saying the same thing, then I should probably stop worrying about it. One should not employ experts and then ignore their advice, after all Appreciate this is probably a level of attention most householders don't give to the problem at hand ... but then we're a mildly unusual household due to Mrs Utumno's disabilities.

We're very happy with the install and the certification all seems in order and official.

Again please accept my apologies if you felt my tone was turning lairy; it absolutely wasn't intended to come across that way!

[G43FAN]

We're all good then ...
Now 'Fencegate' is resolved, and to answer the original question, actually our (no, My Wife's) first choice was the Andersen but she wanted it a specific custom colour and I was given a 16 week lead time for supply so I went with the Zappi as the install was done as part of a much bigger re-wire and the delay would have caused issues
Have to say it's just a box frame around the device but they do look so much nicer than most anything out there.

[HenryBaker]

Thanks for the help. Loved the picture (and not bothered about the fence mounting or the state of the fence )

[Utumno]

We're all good then ...

Yup, never bad in fact

My Wife's) first choice was the Andersen but she wanted it a specific custom colour and I was given a 16 week lead time for supply so I went with the Zappi

Had I tried this I'd have been picking the broken glass out of my morning porridge for weeks

[Utumno]

Thanks for the help. Loved the picture (and not bothered about the fence mounting or the state of the fence )

You're most welcome