sgt_woulds

Not if you build a certified Passiv house and can prove that the indoor temperatures will meet regulation requirements. In practice, most Passiv builders fit a (very) small heating system 'just in case'. In the same way, we should fit EV chargers to new build - just in case the next owner (or even the current one) gets an EV. Your personal preference may be to wash in cold water, but a house built to building regulations isn't built specifically for your personal hygene arrangements 🙂

As set by the manufacturer. For our chargers at work this is every 6 months, domestic will probably be 12 monthly until the warranty expires. As with PV, (which should be checked at least once bi-annualy from my experience) the checks will mostly cover any screw connectors to ensure the neutrals are not working lose and causing resistance/arcing. You could do this yourself, (if competent) but it probably voids the warranty if the inspection schedule is not maintained. Newer installs have hopefully moved over to pushfit or Wago type connectons rather than screws (so there should be less issues), but, given the value of the item you are plugging into it, paying for a sparky to check the install once a year would seem like money well spent.

As with MCS certification, the idea is that the installations are monitored by a governing body and the installers would have to rectify or lose their 'licence' to self certify - in practice this never happens. The governing body just protects itself and it's members, inspections are few, and rectifications are rarely enforced. Mostly it is about hushing things up. MCS is a perfect example, as is the NHBC. I started installing solar before MCS set itself up as the governing body - no consulation with the (3) existing installation companies, it just plugged itself into the PV goldrush when the Feed-in-tarrif was introduced and started making life difficult (and expensive) for us, and easier for the cowboys to get started. There were very few of the cowboys who ever faced any consequences for their appalling installations; luckily for us in the end, as fixing all the gash installs kept us going when the FiT ran out and all of the goldrush companies went bust... I can give you a perfect example of how such a certification body works: We installed solar panels on a newly finished house local to me. I had already suggested to the homeowner that he should have a proper building insection whilst the scaffold was up as I put it 'without scaring you I've seen a few things that concerned me' ! This of course was duley ignored until his roof started leaking - as we were the last ones up there we got the blame. Our company offered to pay for the scaffold (3 floors and 6m wide it wasn't cheap) but only if he got the buildg company to come out and inspect with us at the same time. The builder refused, and the NHBC (eventually) got involved. To cut a long story short, on the scaffold on the day of inspection was me, the homeowner, the builder rep, and the NHBC. Both the NHBC and the Builder were increadibly rude and ordered me to remove the panels for inspection. I counted to ten a lot that day! I replied that I was happy to comply, but first could we look at the issues with the roof itself - at which point the homeowner chipped in and asked me to explain. I walked up the roof and lifted the 'chimney' (fake grp) off without effort. I then walked the length of the ridge and randomly picked ridge tiles up - this was easy, since none of them were fixed. I repeated the same excercise with the lead flashings and pointed to all the gaps were the water was getting in. At which point the builder - who was red in the face by this point - begrudgingly said they would 'get the roofer out'. 'OK' I said, 'but before you do that, can I show you something else?' I then lifted the first row of tiles and felt and showed them the missing cavity closer. I pulled out the strip of insulation plugging the top of the cavity and shown a light down to the bottom of the wall. 'Do you think the house would perform better if the cavity was filled? Also, Mr NHBC, could you tell me how many cavity ties are required for this type of construction?' So the house was demolished and rebuilt and the building company were forced to pay for temporary accomodation for 7 months. The snagging list after the rebuild delayed them from moving back in for a further 3 months! I fully expected the NHBC at that point to tell the builder to inspect every other house on the estate. It would be amazing if the others were not also built to the same 'quality'. Of course this never happened! I meet the homeowner regularly as his son attends Cubs with my own. He is mystified why all of his neighbours were not concerned when they saw his house pulled down and rebuilt. Of the ones he spoken to, none of them have been contacted by the NHBC or the building company. They are all left in blissful ignorance. This will be the situation with PAS too.

The BCO might not, but the assessor for any new owners mortgage should. At the very least their solicitors will ask for paperwork during searches to confirm that the EV charger (or boiler or solar) has an installation certificate and up to date servicing record.

Calm down dear 🙂 Solar panels are already Mandated by the Future Homes Standard - PV panels are now cheaper than roof tiles so it isa win-win for the builder as well. Would a swimming pool help reduce the load on the national grid, or provide a habitat for wildlife? Of course not. Another strawman argument. All of the rules that go into building regulations are assessed against safety and societel needs. And apply to NEW BUILD not retrospectively unless a particular modification of your existing building brings it within scope (as with insulation or electrical upgrades) Having said that, anyone who can afford to install solar panels but chooses not to (somehow paying for a new kitchen is more popular!) are only spiting themselves.

In an ideal world, all insulation upgrades - EWI, and espescially IWI - should require building control submission, approval, and sign off. They should not be permitted until a full report is produced by the installer and submitted to BC for assessment, including; WUFI, Visual assessment of existing building and issues to be resolved before insulation works commence (pointing, broken gutters, existing cold bridges, etc) Method statement outlining how the installation will be handled - particularly highlighting cold bridging issues and weatherproofing This would then be agreed in priciple by BCO (surely A.I. can assist with this stage), pending final inspection (by a trained BCO assessor) and sign-off after completion. This would weed out the bandits and make the whole industry more proffessional - even the good guys sometimes make mistakes and a system of peer review is essential. Unfortunately it will never happen, as Building Control departments for all councils have been defunded in real terms in the last 20 years, and the private BC companies already have more work than they can handle.

Why can't they accept if offered?!

No, but it shouldn't be used as a strawman argument against fitting a charger to a new-build property in line with building regulations

All of this is amusing pub banter (including the tabloid clickbait costs) but the rules are the rules. An EV charger is in building regs. A bin gulley is not.

Alchohol costs more than car charging. Ask them to bring a bottle of wine... 🙂

Nowhere near that amont £10 if they charged from near zero% on day rate for the entire day until full charge. +/- a quid depending on vehicle. Extreemly unlikely to cost more - unless you are running a diesel generator to supply your house! You'd only be 1/3 correct. Building safety, energy performance, and future proofing. At least ensuring the house is adequate for the forseable future.

Don't forget, if you have an EV charger fitted, you also need an SPD under current regulations. To be honest SPD are so cheap these days I don't know why they are fitted as standard with a new installation anyway.

They are mandated for all new builds because at some point everyone will be driving electric. They are rapidly becoming the norm. When you build a house you have to comply with the rules for those coming after you. For the same reason, if you update the house electrics (add a circuit or whatever) you have to comply with modern regulations and update other parts of the system as required by the latest rules at the time of installation. Other wise we'd all be still on rewirable fuses. "They work well enough, and are cheap, why should I have to change..." Etc, etc, etc 🙂 If it is still possible to specify a 'dumb' charger I'd do it while you still can. From long experience with electronics, the more basic it is, the longer it will last. Avoid anything that needs a WiFi signal to operate because it will become obsolescent before you blink

it would be nice to see a comprehensive reasoned breakdown of alternatives to the status quo. Any suggestions for sources? Or we could all make our own armchair suggestions on here and start another shouting match... 🙂

In the UK, mandatory EV car chargers for new homes are now required under Part S of the Building Regulations since June 2022 I think the rules rules require smart car chargers to be fitted now? I remember that being discussed a while back, but I haven't checked. I was lucky enough to have my Type 1 fitted for free by the government long before I had an EV...