What do you need at home for EV ownership?

Thinking about buying an EV? Then to get the best out of it, it would pay to consider what you need at home as well, writes Nile Bijoux.

So you want to buy an EV. That’s great! If an EV suits your needs, it will be great to live with, but there are a few considerations you need to make around what you might need at home to get the best out of your ownership experience.

So with that in mind, we spoke to Glenn Inkster, e-Mobility division manager of TransNet NZ, to get a better idea of what the typical Kiwi home might need, or need to be aware of with regard to EV ownership.

He said that the biggest thing to consider before switching from oil to volts is the obvious one: the time needed to charge a car. It’s much slower than simply filling up with fuel at a petrol station, often taking hours instead of minutes.

However, that shouldn’t dissuade you. Just like we charge our mobile devices at night, even if they aren’t flat, so too do EV owners charge their cars.

Every new EV will come with a charger that plugs into a standard three-pin home power outlet, which supply power at a maximum of 10 amps, or around 2kWh. Some cars can limit this to reduce load on the wiring and power supply to the house.

At this rate, charging a currentgeneration Nissan Leaf with a 60kWh battery from zero to full will take around 12 to 14 hours.

Also consider that 60kWh is a fairly average battery size, perhaps even a bit on the smaller side. Some Tesla models push capacity up to the 100kWh point. A larger battery behaves just like a larger fuel tank, offering more range at the cost of a longer charge time.

The easiest answer to managing big charging times is to keep your EV topped up as you go. If you know you’re heading somewhere with a public charger, plug it in, so you get a few extra kilometres while you’re doing your thing.

For example, some malls have free public chargers, while some supermarkets have ChargeNet chargers in the car park. You have to pay to use the ChargeNet ones, but it’s a tiny amount compared to petrol.

Inkster says the best thing a new EV owner can do is get a wall box installed at their home. This is a pretty major piece of equipment that requires an electrician to install, with costs ranging between $1000 and $3000 before the installation costs. Some vehicle distributors will bundle a wall box in with the sale of an EV, so don’t be afraid to shop around if you’re buying new.

The wall box ups the power output of your home EV charging capabilities to as much as 22kW with three-phase power delivery or 7.4kW with single-phase.

Quick note – three-phase power delivery is the faster of the two, but not all cars have it. Every EV has single-phase. Using single-phase 7.4kW power, a car like the Tesla Model 3 will take between eight and 12 hours to charge from zero.

In fact, Inkster says that most charging in New Zealand should be done using a single-phase, 32 amp charging station.

‘‘People may not pay too much attention to single-phase/threephase until they are mistakenly told that they need three-phase and see the cost to upgrade. . . Even people who have larger homes that already have three-phase should install the charging station as single-phase, as this might save them thousands.’’

As for home wiring, Inkster recommends getting a new dedicated circuit, like an oven or hot water cylinder, as charging an EV ‘‘will be the biggest electrical load for the longest time that most houses will add, so it does need to be done right. However, once done, it will charge cars for many years to come.’’

Another thing to be aware of is pricing while charging at home. Charging an EV is definitely cheaper than filling up a tank of petrol, especially with prices for 91 RON sitting well above the $2.30 mark in some areas.

According to Drive Electric, a not-for-profit body aimed at making EV ownership in New Zealand mainstream, if you drive an average of 25-30km a day, the cost of charging an EV is equivalent to paying 30c a litre for petrol. You can charge your EV while you sleep for about $3 per 100km, depending on the model. A fast charge can cost up to $10 for 100km, and takes about 20 minutes.

For an average daily drive you won’t be using all your battery power, so it could cost $1 to recharge the next night. That’s $15 a fortnight – or less.

Additionally, charging faster doesn’t necessarily mean it will be more or less expensive, as it’s a question of more power used versus time spent using power. Some cars (and some wall boxes) will let you limit power output if you’re worried, though.

Finally, Inkster says that futureproofing is not necessarily about faster charging, ‘‘it is about better control of charging’’.

‘‘The need to replace energy quickly, like petrol, is changed for the convenience of replacing energy while you are doing other things at home. Safe, reliable charging that ensures you have the energy you need at the time you need it is important,’’ Inkster says.