Electric car charging 17 June 2022 at 10:10PM in Techie Stuff 12 replies 411 views

rickyroma

Our new build house has a car charging port on an outside wall. We don't have an electric car yet but wondered what is special about the port? It has a 3 pin plug connector so what is the difference to this charging port compared to a standard external plug socket? 

daveyjp

Nothing.  The local planning authority will have a policy that an EV charging socket must be provided, either in a garage or externally.

Unless the policy states it needs to be a particular type a 3 pin external socket will suffice.

[Deleted User]

That’s only suitable for a granny charger and will only charge at 2kw an hour.( which may be enough) A proper home charger can charge at 7kw to 11 kw ph which is what I’d want. 

flaneurs_lobster

How do you know it's for a car and not for general outdoor power for (say) a lawn mower or power tool?

shiraz99

rickyroma said:

Our new build house has a car charging port on an outside wall. We don't have an electric car yet but wondered what is special about the port? It has a 3 pin plug connector so what is the difference to this charging port compared to a standard external plug socket? 

Picture please?

matelodave

ididntgetwhereiamtoday said:

That’s only suitable for a granny charger and will only charge at 2kw an hour.( which may be enough) A proper home charger can charge at 7kw to 11 kw ph which is what I’d want. 

AFAIK any 13a socket will charge an electric car at around 3kw (equivalent to about 10-12 miles per hour, of charging) so an overnight charge of 12 hours is likely to give you around 100-120 miles  depending on the car and assuming you car has sufficient battery capacity. I'm also guessing that a standard 13a socket has the benefit that you could use a mower or pressure washer which a dedicated charger wont

A standard dedicated car charger would be rated at 7kw would halve those times. Anything more capable, like 22kw would require a three phase supply

rickyroma

flaneurs_lobster said:

How do you know it's for a car and not for general outdoor power for (say) a lawn mower or power tool?

We were told by the developers although it wasn't yet compulsory (Nov 2021) for a new build to have a car charging port, it would be added to the house. Also there is a transformer box (?) labelled "car charging port" above the standard fuse box under the stairs 

rickyroma

shiraz99 said:

rickyroma said:

Our new build house has a car charging port on an outside wall. We don't have an electric car yet but wondered what is special about the port? It has a 3 pin plug connector so what is the difference to this charging port compared to a standard external plug socket? 

Picture please?

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[Deleted User]

It doesn’t  appear to be a fast charger as it’s a 3 pin socket. So should only charge at 2kw ph. Which I suppose is sufficient for most people. And it does mean you can use it for anything else. 

matelodave

ididntgetwhereiamtoday said:

It doesn’t  appear to be a fast charger as it’s a 3 pin socket. So should only charge at 2kw ph. Which I suppose is sufficient for most people. And it does mean you can use it for anything else. 

Its a 13a socket in a weatherproof housing with a 16amp circuit breaker. rather than a dedicated car charger..

It will supply a 13a or 3kw load and will therefore charge a car at up to 3kw. As I said above you could also use it for your mower , leccy drill or most other domestic tools 

A dedicated car charger would either have a tethered car charging cable with a connector to fit the car or an appropriate high power outlet connector to take a special car charging cable.

I

flaneurs_lobster

rickyroma said:

Also there is a transformer box (?) labelled "car charging port" above the standard fuse box under the stairs 

 Anyone know what this box is likely to be?