You will want to think about each of the following things when choosing your EV charge point. You can filter by each feature using the MaxxEV comparison tool.
- Speed
- Cable (tethered or untethered)
- Smart
- Fuse Protection
- Solar
- Lock
- Earthing rod
- Remote diagnosis
Let’s look into each in a bit more detail…
Speed – There’s a couple of things to think of here. The first is that most homes have a single-phase power supply, but some homes have a ‘3-phase’ power supply. A 3-phase power supply will deliver three times the power of a single-phase power supply. A single phase supply will be capable of delivering 7kW (kilowatts) to your charger, known as ‘Fast’ charging. If you have a 3-phase supply, and install a 3-phase charger, your charger can handle up to 22kW (also, rather unhelpfully, known as ‘Fast’ charging).
The second, is that the speed of charging can actually be limited by your car. Some pure electric cars, and most hybrids, are limited to charging at a rate of 3kW at home, which is known as ‘Slow’ charging. But a lot of cars are capable of charging at 7kW at home.
Now, if you live in a large, new home or a farmhouse, you might need to adjust everything you’ve just read. Some properties have a ‘3-phase’ power supply, which means your home can deliver 22kW to your charger (rather unhelpfully also known as ‘Fast’ charging). You will also have to check the maximum power your car can draw.
Cable – Chargers come ‘tethered’ or ‘untethered’, and often offer the option to buy as either (filter chargers for this here).
The key thing to know here is that electric cars have either a ‘Type 1’ or ‘Type 2’ socket. Type 1 used to be common, and Type 2 is now common across all new electric cars.
A tethered charger gives you convenience because you simply need to plug one end into your car but it does mean that you can only use that charger to charge either a Type 1 or Type 2 car.
An untethered charger means slightly more time to plug in both ends of the cable each time you charge, but gives you the flexibility to charge either a Type 1 or Type 2 car (using two different cables).
It is generally recommended to choose an untethered charger if you have a Type 1 car, as your next car is likely to be Type 2, and you don’t want to have to replace the whole charger. We would recommend a tethered charger if your car is Type 2.
Smart – ‘Smart’, essentially means the chargers can communicate remotely, which means it can do some clever things. It varies by charger, but these include:
- Know the start and end time of the off-peak period on your electricity tariff so you can tell if to only charge off-peak. Plug in when you get home, and know that the charger will only start when electricity is cheap, and end before the peak rate kicks in
- Track the carbon intensity of the electricity grid. With some smart chargers, you can set a preference to prioritise charging when the grid is at its cleanest.
Fuse Protection – You don’t want to blow your home’s fuse, right?
Well, some homes just have a low fuse rating… and the old solution used to be to install a Slow charger.
Luckily that isn’t the case any more. A lot of chargers come with ‘Load balancing’ functionality. Basically, this means that they are capable of Fast charging, but they will lower the power to your car if they notice that your home is getting close to using too much power.
Fuse Protection is particularly important to consider if you’re going to have more than one charger. Then you’re much more likely to be in danger of reaching your fuse limit without Fuse Protection.
Solar – If you’ve got solar panels then you’re surely going to want to make the most of the clean power that you generate.
A few chargers on the market can speak to your solar system. So, if you tell them to charge only on solar, they will wait for your system to be generating more power than you’re using in the home. At that point, they will switch on and vary the power going to the car to match the excess generation from your solar.
Lock – Worried about your neighbours plugging in to your charger? Although you rarely, if ever, hear of this happening, it is a key concern for some drivers. Some chargers come with a locking function.
This can be as old-school as a lock and key, or it can be a bit more advanced, with locking possible from your mobile phone, or activation with facial recognition.
Earthing rod – Your charger needs to be earthed. If it isn’t and something trips while your charging it could be painful. The risk of this happening is small, but worth protecting against. It fact, it is a regulated requirement in the UK.
Some chargers require a metal spike, known as an ‘earth rod’ to be driven into the ground on your property. Some chargers are built with technology that intends to replace the need for an earth rod.
Remote diagnosis – Being smart means chargers can report to the manufacturers, or manufacturers can access your charger remotely to try and diagnose, and even sometimes fix, errors remotely.
How to compare the best home charging points
The best way to compare chargers is by clicking ‘Find your charger now’ on the home page. Once you’ve chosen the charger that is the best fit for your needs, you will be connected with the right installer that offers that charger and covers your area.
