What You Need To Know About Buying an EV Charger

I am buying an electric vehicle and have no idea what charger to buy! And a glance at the market reveals a bewildering array of chargers. Hmm, so what is a car charger:
Well, it should be a SAFE and SMART means of safely charging your car outdoors.

And what does it do?
It provides a high energy AC/DC means of safely charging your car.

But wait it can do more:
Better designed chargers can integrate with your solar energy and battery storage, take advantage of lower tariffs or simply juice your car up as much as your connection will allow.

Why can’t I just use a 3 pin extension? Well, it is possible, but it could be unsafe and it just doesn’t have the capacity to safely do this over and over and over again. And it will take a long time to inefficiently charge your car. It’s kind of UNSAFELY overloaded!!! So NO, PLEASE DON’T!

Great, someone said I can install one for £999plus VAT. Is that possible? Well yes but…

• Is your charge point next to your distribution board? If it isn’t then an extra heavy cable will be needed to get the power where it needs to be. And if you use a cheap cable it will cause losses and be slower and more expensive to charge.
• My electrician says it’s best to hardwire ethernet in. Is that true? Often Wi-Fi signals externally can be weaker outside especially through thick walls and over greater distance. That could interrupt the capability to charge your car. Similar might apply to chargers with SIM card if signal is weak in your area.
• Is your electrical system certified safe before install and does your distribution board have enough safe capacity? You might need to spend some money having and EICR (Electrical Installation Condition Report), corrective work and/ or a new distribution board. It’s more expense but consider it a safety plus and future proofing for your home.
• Oh gosh! What else? A good electrician will check your incomer for you. A request to the District Network Operator (DNO) might be required to increase your fuse size. If you’re lucky they’ll put a 3 phase supply in for a nominal fee.
• Great I’ll have a 22KW fast charger. OK, but be aware: If you are limited to single phase then you’ll be limited to 7.4KW and that charger will not help you.
• Anything else? Well, you’ll probably want to specify a lead especially if you’re going for a tethered unit. Spend a bit more and get a good long lead unless you can guarantee exactly where your car is parked every night.
• I’m going to buy a charger then. Any other advice? Legally all new chargers must be SMART and registered with OZEV through your approved installer. Look for easy and slick apps that are well supported. Your OZEV registered installer will be able to guide you.

And a final note: Spend a bit more up front. If the infrastructure is right, then your EV charger will perform safely as intended. And if you change it, or sell your home, then you know the right infrastructure is still there and all certified.