Are you interested in purchasing an electric vehicle and adding a battery charging station to your home?
To help you before you take that step, we cover the different types of charging options including, a Granny Charger (level 1), Wall Charger (level 2) and Fast Charger (levels 3 and 4).
This article will also detail the difference between on-street and off-street parking and the cost of paying to charge an electric vehicle that will help you make the most informed decision.
Charging types and times:
Level 1 - Granny Charger:
- known as a Granny Charger due to being slower than the other charges in the market
- Included with car purchase and plugs into existing home PowerPoint
- Charges 10-20km per hour
- Best use: Top up charge when getting to a destination, for example, after driving to a friend's house
Level 2 - Wall Charger:
- Permentately fixed in owner's home, workplaces, and locations of large gatherings including shopping centres or hotels
- Charges 28-40km range per hour
- For public locations, bring your own charger
- The cable automatically locks into the car to avoid it being unplugged or stolen
Level 3 and 4 - Fast charger:
- Typically found on commercial premises and roadside locations for high traffic stops including service stations and rest stop
- Can charge a car from near empty to 80% in 15-20 minutes
- Best for people needing to get back on the road quickly, allowing a charge to happen whilst the owner grabs a coffee or has a quick rest
On-street vs off-street charging
On-Street: The NSW Government has committed $171m to install Electric Vehicle charging infrastructure across NSW. This includes providing charging stations within 5km of residential areas with limited off-street parking.
The NSW Government announced on the 24th of October that more than 500 new fast and ultra-fast charging bays are set to be built, which are capable of recharging electric vehicles (EVs) in just 15 minutes.
This investment provides the opportunity for Australians living in apartment buildings to also access the benefits of electric vehicles.
Off- Street: which is classified by home, work or car park.
Charging at home:
- Granny Charger: great for small trips including, taking the kids to school, doing grocery shopping or weekend drives
- Wall Charger: If you are using your car more heavily including long trips where you require a quicker charge
- For those with solar; take advantage of the sun’s power by charging your car during the day
- Charging from the grid: select times when energy purchase is reduced
Charging at work:
- Some city carparks are already equipped with charges
- If your work is offering to charge your vehicle this may be incorporated into your salary package
- The average distance to work in NSW is 16.6kms each way, it is estimated you would get seven return trips from a typical charge of your electric vehicle
Charging in commuter carpark
The NSW Government will be implementing more destination charges, aimed at being close to existing public infrastructure that is also close to the ‘end of the line’ locations, this aims to encourage more public transport and convert the remaining travel from home to public transport to electric vehicles and other environmentally friendly options, such as bike rides.
Paying for your charge
Whilst this may be free in some locations, swipe cards or app purchases may become popular to keep up with demand.
Brighte is on a mission to make every home sustainable. Brighte can provide finance for a range of sustainability initiatives including; solar, batteries, air conditioning, lighting and more.