Why You Should Consider Charging
At A Reduced Charge Rate
It may be counter intuitive but sometimes it's advantageous
to charge at a slower rate.
Here’s three of the best reasons and their advantages.
Battery Balancing and Battery Life Expectancy
Fast charging is known to dramatically reduce the the life expectancy of your battery. As a rule you should be limiting the times you fast charge your car to only when you need to. However, on some vehicles it's not possible to slow down the charge (from inside the car), which could be considered a design oversight. As a workaround, on a small number of EVSEs/Chargers the charge rate is selectable right down to 6A! This feature is enabled on all our portable EVSE models.
Also, although all modern electric cars have some form of Battery Management System (BMS), to look after your battery pack, slow charging does help the BMS more comprehensively condition and balance the battery. The result being that the next time you fast charge your car it may do so much more efficiently.
Solar Matching / Advantage
By charging at or under the capacity of your solar panels and (obviously while the sun is shining!) you will only use the sun to charge your vehicle which will essentially mean you are running your car for free. Check the table below as to the setting on your EVSE you should select dependent on the number and size of your solar array.
How to use Type 2 or universal public charging stations
Most public charge stations are universal, or untethered, meaning they don’t have their own cable. This reduces the chances of any damage to cables that may not be placed neatly back once someone has finished charging (think air hoses at petrol stations). This does however mean you will need to bring your own cable to use them.
What cable do I need? By far the most common socket type in Australia (where the plug goes into the charger) is Type 2 (also known as Mennekes).
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What does that mean for you?
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If your car has a Type 1 plug (or J1772), you will most often need a T2-T1 cable. Type 1 cars include most Nissan Leafs, Mitsubishi PHEV, most BMW and Mercedes electric vehicles and PHEVs
If your car has a Type 2 plug, you will need a T2-T2 cable. For Type 2 cars think Tesla, Hyundai Kona and Ioniq, Renault and Jaguar I-Pace.
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How to use Type 2 or universal public charging stations
Most public charge stations are universal, or untethered, meaning they don’t have their own cable. This reduces the chances of any damage to cables that may not be placed neatly back once someone has finished charging (think air hoses at petrol stations). This does however mean you will need to bring your own cable to use them.
What cable do I need? By far the most common socket type in Australia (where the plug goes into the charger) is Type 2 (also known as Mennekes).
​
What does that mean for you?
​
If your car has a Type 1 plug (or J1772), you will most often need a T2-T1 cable. Type 1 cars include most Nissan Leafs, Mitsubishi PHEV, most BMW and Mercedes electric vehicles and PHEVs.
If your car has a Type 2 plug, you will need a T2-T2 cable. For Type 2 cars think Tesla, Hyundai Kona and Ioniq, Renault and Jaguar I-Pace.
How to use Type 1 or ChargePoint EV charger
Some chargers are tethered, meaning they come with their own cable. If this is the case, you can just turn up, plug in, and recharge. Look for a cable that suits your car type (Type 1 or Type 2), or look at using an adaptor if it’s the wrong type for your car.
T1-T2 cable allows any car with a Type 2 plug to rock up to a Type 1 charger, plug in the adaptor and enjoy a charge.
Conversely, the T2-T1 adaptor allows cars with a Type 1 plug to charge from a Type 2 charger.
Just remember, once you’ve finished powering up, be kind and place the cable back neatly for the next person. The last thing someone wants is to pull up to charge and find the cable damaged!
How to charge from DC fast chargers & Tesla super chargers
Then we have DC fast chargers. Are we talking about Tesla charging stations, or superchargers?
Well yes, and then some.
Unfortunately (at least for non-Tesla owners), most Tesla superchargers will only charge Teslas. However, there are other DC chargers out there which can charger other EVs, as long as they have the capability. Some of these with DC capability include all Tesla models, Hyundai Kona, Hyundai Ioniq, Jaguar I-Pace and the Nissan LEAF. DC chargers come with a cable attached, so if your car is compatible, you just plug in and enjoy a super quick charge. DC chargers, like the Tritium EV charger, will generally have a CCS2 or CHAdeMO plug. It’s just a matter of determining what plug type your car has, finding a DC charger near you, and plugging in for a quick boost.
