Should I buy a home charger for my EV?

One of the major benefits of owning an electric vehicle is you can, quite literally, ‘refuel’ the battery anywhere there is a power point; at home, the office… even from the bakery out the back of Bourke, if you ask nicely… and buy a pie.

However, there is a downside to that convenience. Y’see, charging an electric car from the standard 240V electricity grid is extremely slow. It’s like filling up your combustion car at the bowser with a hose the same size as a drinking straw.

But there are ways to speed-up the flow of electricity to reduce charging times, either by using the growing network of public fast-charging stations or installing a higher voltage charger at a location where the vehicle is often stationary for extended periods of time, such as in the home garage or the office carpark.

A home charging unit is a device that amplifies the rate of power over a standard three-pin household powerpoint.

In Australia, our 240V electricity grid delivers power at around 2.3kW, which means that completely refilling the battery pack in a modern electric car – most of which have a capacity of between 38-100kWh – would take a day, or more.

Most EV manufacturers recommend only charging from a household plug in emergency situations as drawing power over a long period of time can damage the socket.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, only using high-voltage 150kW rapid or 350kW ultra-rapid charging stations can cause accelerated degradation in the battery because of the excessive heat generated.

The sweet spot that offers a balance between convenient charging times and long-term useability is, therefore, charging your EV at a medium pace.

A wallbox charger can do that. So, here’s what you need to know about home chargers.

Firstly, it needs to be installed by a qualified electrician in either your driveway or garage at home, or in your regular parking spot at the office or worksite (subject to approval by your employer and/or the building owner, obviously).

If connected to the standard electricity grid, it can boost the power output to 7kW. Or if you have access to three-phase power, it can increase to 22kW.

In both cases, what that does is slash the charging time to be more convenient. If it’s the former, then it should take between four and seven hours to fully replenish the charge.

With the latter, the time comes down dramatically, to less than one hour in EVs with a smaller battery pack like the Nissan LEAF, MG ZS EV and Hyundai Kona Electric.

An EV with a larger battery can easily be fully recharged overnight, or during a full day at work.

Most car-makers that currently sell EVs – and plug in hybrids that can be driven solely on battery power for short distances but also be recharged at home – offer a wallbox-style charger as an optional extra when buying the vehicle.

While some brands, such as Porsche, include a home charger as part of the purchasing experience, other car-makers charge between $1000-$5000 for an optional wallbox, plus the installation fees.

Or you can choose from a wide range of aftermarket home chargers, which cost from as little as $800. With this option though, it is imperative you check the plug type is compatible with your EV.

That’s because some of the first-generation electric cars sold in Australia were fitted with Type 1 connections, which are predominantly used in the US and Japan, whereas the new standard for Australian EVs is a Type 2 plug that is favoured by European car-makers.

A smart charger is a home charger that can be connected to the internet, allowing EV owners to directly monitor their vehicle while being charged using a mobile phone app.

They also allow users to schedule charging times to take advantage of off-peak electricity rates.

If you already charge your vehicle at home, a higher-voltage wallbox charger will draw the same amount of power from the grid – just faster.

Like a petrol tank, a battery can only hold a certain amount of energy. And once it is full, it won’t draw any more power from the charger. So, no, it won’t add any more to your power bill.

If – or more likely when – you decide to buy your next, or another, EV, the home charger will most likely still be compatible.

Again, it all depends on which plug type it has and whether it is the correct one for the car.

If you have a newer electric car with a Type 2 connection, it’s a safe bet that you’ll be able to recharge any other EV that comes onto the market from now on.

If you currently have an older EV, and a wall charger with a Type 1 plug, then you can purchase an adapter that connects Type 1 to Type 2, or have an electrician update it with a Type 2 plug.

If you decide to offload your EV and revert back to a car with an internal combustion engine, you can sell the wallbox with the vehicle. It would make the car more appealing to second-hand buyers and increase its value.

However, it’s probably smarter to keep the wallbox in place even if you don’t use it, as having a home set-up for EV ownership will almost certainly future-proof it and have a more positive impact on the value of the property.

So, there you go, there are many reasons to install a home charger if you own an EV, not least of which is the fact that you can recharge your car more quickly.