Home charging facilities

Most electric vehicle owners will do most of their charging at home – at least those with access to off-street parking.

But a big question for many new to the technology is what sort of home charging facilities they need: Do they need to install a dedicated wall charger, or will a standard plug do the job?

In countries that use three phase electricity supply systems, there are three options for EV charging – these are referred to as Modes 2, 3 and 4

Mode 2 is where you plug a portable charger – that usually comes with the car – into a standard power point.

Mode 3 chargers are permanently fixed in position and directly wired. Whilst Mode 3 chargers generally provide higher charging speeds than Mode 2, this is not entirely true as you can buy portable chargers to use with bigger power outlets than can charge as the same rates as any Mode 3 charger.

home charging as even the smallest DC charger requires way more power than most home electricity connections are capable of delivering.

If you do choose Mode 2 or standard power point charging as your home charging method: I would urge you to buy a second charger to use at home and leave the charger that came with the car in the boot.

In fact, I recommend treating the car’s charger in the same way as you do a spare tyre (if you are one of the lucky few to have a late model car with a spare tyre) and only use it for emergencies.

Type 2 Portable EV Charger With CEE Plug