Charging at home

Click through to find out more on:

Charging an EV at home is akin to charging your smartphone - it's simple and can be done overnight! All you need to start is access to a power socket.

Most EV owners opt for home charging as it is convenient and cost-effective. Below we’ll cover the key things you need to know about home EV charging, including: types of chargers, installation, costs and future technologies.

Charging methods

There are two primary ways to charge your EV at home. The exact time will depend on your vehicle's battery capacity and the charger's output.

  • Standard wall sockets: Known as ‘Level 1’ charging, it is the most readily accessible method. It allows you to charge your EV using a portable charger (that often comes with your EV) plugged into regular power socket. While it is straightforward and doesn't require additional equipment or installation costs, it is usually the slowest charging method taking 20 to 30 hours for a full charge.

  • Wall chargers: Known as ‘Level 2’ charging, these dedicated units can significantly speed up the charging process by up to three times compared to a standard power socket. By way of example, a 7.2kW wall box can provide a full charge in around 8 hours. Dedicated wall chargers need to be installed by a licensed electrician using a dedicated power circuit (similar to the requirements of a high output air conditioner).

A black rechargeable electric vehicle charging station Description automatically generated

Installing an EV charger

Installing a wall box charger usually involves the car manufacturer or a third-party provider, and it's often an optional extra at the time of purchasing your EV. Installation costs can vary, and it's essential to ensure that your home's electrical system can support the additional load. Installation needs to be undertaken by a licensed electrician. Currently in the Endeavour Energy network, there is no need to apply for permission to install a wall charger unless there is need to upgrade the property’s power supply.

Costs of home charging

The cost of charging at home depends on the size of the EV's battery and the cost of energy. Charging at home is in most cases the cheapest way to charge your EV.

By way of example, the cost to fully charge a typical EV battery (60 kWh) at home on a flat electricity tariff ($0.30/kWh) would cost $20. Depending on the EV model and style of driving, this would provide anywhere between 350 km to 450 km of driving range.

In terms of comparative cost between an EV and a petrol car:

  • a typical EV would cost $4.50 to cover 100 km at an electricity rate of $0.30/kWh
  • an equivalent petrol car would cost $14.50 to cover 100 km at a fuel rate of $2.0/litre.

If you have solar panels, charging can cost virtually nothing during daylight hours.

EV charging tariffs

If you are charging your electric car from home, you may want to consider the type of plans provided by your electricity retailer - the company that sends you your power bill.

Depending on your personal circumstances, you may be able to save money switching to an electricity plan with a time of use tariff. Increasingly we are seeing electricity plans for electric vehicle owners which may enable you to:

  • charge overnight at a cheaper off-peak rate
  • charge during the middle of the day (10am - 2pm) at a cheaper off-peak rate

You can search and compare different energy plans using the Australian Government's Energy Made Easy website which provides a free online price comparison tool to help you select the right plan for you.

Bidirectional charging (V2G/V2H/V2L)

While not yet approved for use in our network, bidirectional charging of your EV has the potential to transform our energy system by significantly increasing the amount of distributed energy storage connected to the electricity network.

In future, this means your EV could be used to help to power your home, keep downward pressure on everyone's power bills and help stabilise the electricity grid.

Bidirectional charging (also known as V2G/V2H/V2L) is two-way charging of an EV so that it can discharge energy from its battery to power a building or home, or potentially export energy to the grid, enabling energy to flow where it’s needed most.

We are the first network in NSW to trial to-way charging from an EV to power one of our sites at Glendenning using a Wallbox Quasar two-way charger and Nissan Leaf EV.

Our trial is setting the groundwork for the future installation of two-way EV chargers by customers to save them money on their power bill or for use as backup power during an outage. For more on this trial see here.