Advice on ways to get power to my council garage?
Good afternoon everyone.
I'm looking for advice on ways to get power to my council garage. I have a ground floor flat and I am disabled. I currently lease a mobility scooter through Motability and I am finding it extremely difficult to charge it effectively. My flat is cold during autumn, winter and I've found at the beginning of spring too, so charging it at the flat isn't possible (I have to have the window open to run the cable from the charger).
Storage of the scooter is in a garage to the rear of the flats but it's not connected to the property and is the middle garage of 5. This being a council garage they do not provide on-site power or water.
My only saving grace has been that my previous address is still occupied by my mum and there IS storage and power there, so I swap my scooter for hers and charge it up overnight and then go pick it back up. She is currently on the council waiting list to move and she has Band 2 status (assessed needs for housing) so won't be at that address much longer.
So, I need a way to charge up my scooter overnight if possible and wonder if anyone else has encountered and overcome this problem? For the health of the batteries, the scooter should be charged after every use and the charger trickle charges the batteries so this takes time.
I have contacted the council and told them of my issue, suggesting solar panels as a possible solution and received a phone call from them stating they would not allow solar panels to be fitted. They said anything I had fitted to the garages would have to be put back the way it was if I were to no longer rent the garage so it isn't something they would allow. I cannot use a petrol generator because there would be no way to properly ventilate it. The council have said they may be able to fit me an outdoor socket the front of my flat but I'm worried about the potential risks of electrocution and fire in wet weather. I can cover my scooter which would cover the charger but water can still run down the wire and potentially enter the charger.
Can anyone help me please? My scooter is effectively my legs away from home as I cannot walk very far on my crutches and it's always painful. And not being able to charge it effectively is making me a prisoner in my own home.
Comments
-
@Yorkshireman22 Hi, firstly what an incredibly frustrating situation for you, I'm so sorry. The impact on your daily life must be more than frustrating.
Now I'm not the best person to answer sorry as I'm the least technical person I know but have been racking my brain and only came up with one idea.
This is a bit long-winded sorry, my usual modus operandi 🙄😅
Do you know the approximate cost of getting electric put in the garage (and therefore the rough cost too of removing it should you ever move?)
Is it worth having another conversation with someone at the council armed with that information to see if they'd be agreeable to you getting that work done if you have it put in writing/your agreement to have it put back as it was if you move etc in the future. And/or could you pay them the cost of reinstating it to original state so they've got that assurance ? (This idea of paying them would be my last resort tbh).
Is it worth approaching a head of dept at your council/emailing your request. You should be able to find the details of who heads up the various depts on their website (very many apologies if you already know this). It might be a Senior Projects or Buildings Manager and I'd send it to whoever heads up 'Customer Experience/ Care' too as it might be both who deal with it and can make the decision. Or at least they'd then liaise with each other about it (imo it's easier that when approaching just one person with a request, it could be easier for it to be declined whereas approaching two, they have to discuss and liaise about it).
I'm hoping it's a front-line person who you have dealt with so far and someone with more seniority may be more accommodating /help you with a workable and safe solution for you.
I contacted a Senior Manager of Planning at my council about forthcoming roofing work as I'd asked for help with clearing up each day as I couldn't do it and was refused by the special support team! The Senior Manager came to see me and did put in place the support I'd asked for and was very accommodating.
I think you're absolutely right not to have it plugged outside of your flat where it could be exposed to rain, very dangerous potentially.
You need to be able to come and go and I feel your council should have somebody there who will take a common sense approach for you.
I do wish you good luck with it.
If the above failed, is it worth getting an electrician to come round to get their suggestion ie a fixed plastic cover/hub on wall with some kind of safety feature that protects from rain/the elements. Just a thought from my definitely non-technical brain.
2 -
Sorry to hear but that sounds really frustrating. I think the outdoor socket seems the best option they are made with a water proof lid with a space for the cable and you can use an outdoor extension as they have a built in safety switch. It would be safer than an opened window.
I’m not sure about the electrics but have you looked at camping, boating and caravan off grid options for solar powered solutions? They are smaller and might be easier to fit and remove.
There are also electric generators that can be charged via solar or mains and then wirelessly charge your scooter. They aren’t actually generators but I think that’s what they are called, they are more like large power banks and are lunch box sized or smaller. So it’s like having an additional portable battery. They can be pricey but in an ideal world you’d have it plugged into to a solar panel, charge it in the day indoors or have two and swap them every night.
1 -
Hi Yorkshireman (I am too a Yorkshireman.) I live on a medical elderly estate, my neighbour has a shed in the garden to store her scooter, but she has an outdoor socket that looks well protected. The council will have to fully comply to regulations and would be responsible if they provided you with a socket that presented a fire / electrocution risk given you have told them it's use, so I wouldn't worry about that if I have understood that's what they have suggested. One point though, the cold absolutely knackers batteries so if you charge outside try to do in the middle of the day.
1 -
If it's any reassurance, according to The UK Office for National Statistics 345 people unfortunately were registered as passing by electrocution between 2001 - 2017, however therefore there's far more chance of someone having an accident on the road, so ironically you're probably safer charging the thing up than driving it. 😥
1 -
Good afternoon everyone. Thank you so much for your replies I really do appreciate it. @Santosha12 I have only spoken to front line at the moment and I have yet to hear about the socket installation. The lady who contacted me was going to pass it on to the relevant department as she was Estates and it would be Housing Adaption/Alterations I would need. I can go up the chain of command if I need to and have had the director of Housing involved in older issues regarding the storage of my mobility scooter. I have sent her an email with my query and have heard nothing back yet. As regards to costs, I would probably be looking at £1000's to have solar panels fitted if I can't get a grant to help with the costs. I don't think it would cost as much as that to put the roof of the garage back to how it was before.
@wobblyone I have looked into things like that already but I am unsure of the power requirements needed to fully charge my scooter and these solar generators run into the £1000's as well. If I knew how much power storage I would need from one of these generators to charge up my scooter then I could use this as a possible solution. If anyone could assist me with this I would be grateful.
@Naz4 From the conversation I had with the lady from the council, they would be responsible for fitting and maintaining the socket so I know it would/should be installed correctly. And thank you for the stats on electrocution, that is reassuring. My concern isn't the socket as I know it will have to be weatherproof. My concern is water build-up along the wire of the charger. If this enters the charger I don't want it to cause a short that leads to a fire. The charger isn't designed to be used outdoors and I don't want to put my neighbours at risk. The council are already making me break their tenancy and fire regs by having the scooter at the front of the property. Solar charging would be the ideal solution but it looks like I'm just going to have to make do with a plug outside the front of the flat.
Are their any electricians on here that could offer reassurance to me about this matter? If I can get that maybe I will not worry so much. Any advice is welcomed.
0 -
It maybe pricey, but can you get a high capacity power brick so you can then charge where you want? This is just an example. https://goalzero.eu/en/product/goal-zero-yeti-500x/?utm_source=chatgpt.com
0 -
If you used a weatherproof extension cord then used a weatherproof junction box with the scooter under a cover would that work? Not too expensive but a bit clumbsy.
0 -
@Yorkshireman22 thanks so much for update.
£1000's for solar seems unrealistic/difficult and charger not to be used for outdoors also. I'd definitely be going down the route of Senior/Housing Adaptations etc. Put it on their shoulders to deal with imo, they're paid for the challenges, I'm guessing you're not.
Finally, I hope you can get electricians on here who can advise re plug outside of your flat.
Not trying to be controversial but when I see problems presenting themselves like this I have to think what the heck are people doing (NOT YOU, but people who are employed to do a job) my first port of call in previous jobs is how do we fix this/get to a solution. I do really hope you get to one that works well for you. Council people get your finger out, please!!
1 -
Waterproof electrical outlets are easy to buy and install, it's just money.
0 -
It's expensive and not enough to charge a mobility scooter. Even on a clear sunny day, every day of the year.
0 -
What do you mean by a junction box? A weatherproof extension may help in this instance and yes I can cover the scooter to keep it dry. Its the wire between the socket and scooter that concerns me. The socket will be placed as high as I need it which means any wire between the socket and scooter will be at a slant causing water to run down it and towards the footwell of the scooter. The charger clearly states that it is for indoor use only which is also a concern.
Thank you for the link. I have looked at it and that is a smaller version of others I have looked at before. But I'm not sure it would meet my power requirements. My scooter charger requires 24V AC and runs at 300W. And because the scooter has effectively 2 car batteries in it they trickle charge so it can take a good few hours to top up to full. I don't have much knowledge of electrical requirements but when I last checked some of the solar generators with larger capacity it was running up to about £3000 and I still didn't know if it would meet my requirements. I haven't been able to find anyone to advise me either.
I still have to wait for the council to get back to me about it and I have not long since emailed the department that deals with tenant alteration requests to further ask about this. Hopefully I won't have to wait too long to get a reply.
1 -
I just spoke to my brother (early '60s) whose a time served electrician of about 35 years. He has no issues with you running the scooter charging cable outside as an electrocution risk as it downgrades the voltage from the supply. You could wrap weatherproof tape on the cable itself for extra peace of mind, or as I suggested use a weatherproof extension either under a scooter cover or into a weatherproof junction box. The whole setup could be done for less than £50. I hope I understood what you are asking OK.
1 -
That sounds like a plan. Thank you @Naz4 for finding that out for me. I've still got to cross the t's and dot the i's before I pay out for anything and the last time I filled in a Tenant Alteration request I was turned down. So long way to go yet. Thank you again.
0 -
All the best with that. A scooter cover and some waterproof tape and you should be good to go as long as your scooter is safe. Maybe a bike alarm and a motorcycle lock if it fits in case someone tries to move it, I think you can get where it sends the alarm to fob for under £35. 👍️
1 -
I use one for my scooter but I have lithium batteries so not sure if that makes a difference. I’m not an electrician so not sure how these things work but this one works for me.
I’m not sure about the temperature storing it though.
The cover idea out front sounds like a good idea @Yorkshireman22. I hope it works out. You could probably use a plug cover for the scooter cable like the link below or a bigger version if you worry about it keeping dry.
0 -
How much charge do you get out of the Jackery generator @wobblyone? And what type of mobility scooter do you have? Mine is a class 3 Kymco Maxi XLS and has 2 batteries. If yours is a similar size and you get a decent charge then it gives me hope!
0 -
I have a lock for it but they changed the shape of the wheels so it doesn't fit through any more. I might have to add a secure bar on to my alteration request so I can lock it up under the window.
0 -
Hello! Please write the technical characteristics of your batteries and charger.
0 -
Hi! Thanks for the links. It is clearly visible that the output voltage is 2x12V, what voltage is needed to charge your batteries, see the scooter manual or on the scooter batteries. You should also know that the efficiency of the solar battery JS-100F is not high, as well as the intermediate battery E500. This system is for trips to a picnic in a gasoline car.
0 -
Mine is a little pavement scooter I think the batteries are something like 80 wh and the range is around 10m. So much smaller I’m afraid. I’m not sure how lead batteries work but it from what @egister it isn’t enough to charge your batteries.
0
Categories
- All Categories
- 14.7K Start here and say hello!
- 7K Coffee lounge
- 78 Games den
- 1.7K People power
- 89 Announcements and information
- 22.9K Talk about life
- 5.3K Everyday life
- 206 Current affairs
- 2.3K Families and carers
- 850 Education and skills
- 1.8K Work
- 485 Money and bills
- 3.5K Housing and independent living
- 971 Transport and travel
- 679 Relationships
- 71 Sex and intimacy
- 1.4K Mental health and wellbeing
- 2.4K Talk about your impairment
- 853 Rare, invisible, and undiagnosed conditions
- 909 Neurological impairments and pain
- 2K Cerebral Palsy Network
- 1.2K Autism and neurodiversity
- 37.5K Talk about your benefits
- 5.8K Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
- 19K PIP, DLA, ADP and AA
- 7.3K Universal Credit (UC)
- 5.4K Benefits and income