Australian EV Home Charger install regulations

[dyde]

Looking to get a home charger installed but very confused of the installation requirements.

Im familiar with UK based installs where it is mandatory to install a dedicated earth rod or seperate PEN fault detection device. However I can find no Australian specific installation instructions (looking at various brands)

For those who have had a Tesla Wall Connector or other home charge point installed, what was involved?

 

[Rolond]

Essentially it has to connected to a power circuit which meets the mandated requirements as per AS/NZS 3000 2018 (The current version of the Wiring Rules) installed by a licensed electrical contractor

There is no need for a dedicated earth rod, (your switch board will already be connected to one), we use the MEN (Multiple Earthed Neutral) system in Australia, so PEN is not used, if you use a Tesla wall connector the power circuit will need to be protected by a type B RCD (Residual Current Device - also known as a earth leakage Circuit Breaker) which costs about $400 more than the usual type A RCD as it does not have a built in RDC-DD (Residual Direct Current Detection Device)
There are other wall chargers which do have a built in RDC-DD, but are considerably more expensive than the Tesla one

It would pay before you buy the wall charger, to ask for a quote by one or more electrical contractors who will be able to tell you what is the maximum current rating of the circuit your switch board will support (If you want a higher rating circuit you would need to upgrade the mains to your switchboard)

Frankly if you can get by with the supplied mobile charger, depending on the amount of Km's you drive each day it would work out a whole lot cheaper, even if you need to install a 15 amp power point to use the 15 amp tail for the mobile charger

 

[moa999]

^ Absolutely agree with Roland.
The other Aus requirement as a result is to have an isolator switch next to the device.

While I agree with the comment on the Type B RCD from most of the quotes I see in the TM3 FB forum, there appear to be many electricians (including some on Tesla's recommended list) ignoring this requirement
(It's a $450-500 device that's quite large and probably needs a new box as well)

 

[dyde]

Thanks for your excellent reply.

Already have a 32A circuit with a 15A GPO going in, but due to limited incoming supply I'm looking at smart chargers instead (EO or Zappi) that can dynamically adjust charge rate based on house total load. I believe these both don’t require a type B RCD.

Maybe not necessary over standard 15A UMC, but just looking at options.

 

[dyde]

The other Aus requirement as a result is to have an isolator switch next to the device.

Wasnt aware of this one, thanks!

 

[moa999]

Correct on the Zappi and I believe newer EO units not requiring the Type B, same with the Gen3 Tesla unit (that's just been released in the UK but not yet AU)

 

[paulp]

I’ve just had a zappi installed and the electrician just wired it to the switchboard using a standard breaker (32 or 40 amp for memory) with an isolation switch next to the zappi.
Note you may need additional ct’s for the zappi to measure what you want to achieve, but Rus at Evolution Australia is very good at helping you work that out.
Any licenced electrician will do a compliant installation.

 

[Onshore]

^ Absolutely agree with Roland.
The other Aus requirement as a result is to have an isolator switch next to the device.

While I agree with the comment on the Type B RCD from most of the quotes I see in the TM3 FB forum, there appear to be many electricians (including some on Tesla's recommended list) ignoring this requirement
(It's a $450-500 device that's quite large and probably needs a new box as well)

Yeah in reality it seems hardly anyone is installing the type B.

Typical install is a 32a breaker + dedicated wire from switchboard to charger + isolator switch.

Main cost variable is the distance and difficulty in running the wire. If the board is in the garage, super easy. If its at the opposite end of the house, needs a long run through ceiling space or even worse, a trench, then could get a lot more expensive.

 

[dyde]

I’ve just had a zappi installed and the electrician just wired it to the switchboard using a standard breaker

Do you have the CT’s on your install?
If so, are they wired with a standard cat5/6 data cable?
Does this data cable run in the same conduit / holes, etc as the power?
(I come from a data background where this is a big no no, but the cable is ending up in the switchboard, so I guess a bit different)

 

[Nickdp]

Already have a 32A circuit with a 15A GPO going in

So the 32A circuit & 15A GPO cost is already committed. The Wall Charger and assoc. installation cost is 'nice' to have but not mandatory and could fluctuate depending on difficulty of running the cable as @Onshore said.

Maybe not necessary over standard 15A UMC

You nailed it in one - save your hard-earned.
15A UMC will give you anywhere from 3 - 3.6kW.
See table below and extrapolate as required.

.. depending on the amount of Km's you drive each day it would work out a whole lot cheaper...

If you charged at 15A and assume charging 14hrs/day (e.g. 6pm to 8am) that's high-200km's per overnight charge for M3. (taking us back to Rolond's point).

 

[paulp]

Do you have the CT’s on your install?
If so, are they wired with a standard cat5/6 data cable?
Does this data cable run in the same conduit / holes, etc as the power?
(I come from a data background where this is a big no no, but the cable is ending up in the switchboard, so I guess a bit different)

I have ct’s on the solar export only as I’m wanting to capture exported power and divert it to the car. I didnt run the ct’s to the zappi. Instead I got the harvi which the ct’s connect to, and the harvi transmits to the data to the zappi.
Agree power and data are best not mixed over long lengths.
For memory the ct was just two pair….but may be wrong on that.
I went with the harvi as it was going to be cheaper than getting a low voltage cable to the zappi As my high voltage was already there. If you’re running new high voltage a harvi is probably not the most economical solution.
There is some programming with the zappi especially for the ct’s. Instructions are reasonable, but not brilliant. CT’s are directional but well labelled.

 

[cafz]

The other Aus requirement as a result is to have an isolator switch next to the device.

As far as I have been able to determine, this is not in fact a hard requirement in Australia, though still often recommended. Oddly enough it is a requirement in New Zealand through the NZ-only section 7.9 of AS/NZS 3000.

 

[Vostok]

Frankly if you can get by with the supplied mobile charger, depending on the amount of Km's you drive each day it would work out a whole lot cheaper, even if you need to install a 15 amp power point to use the 15 amp tail for the mobile charger

For 99% of times I agree with you, it’s the 1% where you might get a sinking feeling. We had a family emergency once where home charging at 11 kW saved the day - we needed to add about 50 km range in the time it took to pack otherwise we would have been super-stressed whether we’d make it to the first supercharger on the way to our destination in country NSW.

I suppose if we didn’t have that option we would have had to go to Broadway Supercharger before heading out of Sydney, but being able to do a pretty fast top-up at home in a stressful situation was just one less hassle to worry about.

 

[Rolond]

You must have 3 phase power is you are able to charge at 11Kw

 

[Vostok]

You must have 3 phase power is you are able to charge at 11Kw

Yes, I do.

I normally set the car to only charge at 4 kW (6A per phase) so that it can de done from my solar &/or PW2. I very rarely dial it up to 16A per phase - but knowing that I can if I need to brings peace of mind.

 

[Rolond]

I have never actually charged at home, I am fortunate in that there are four free to charge Chargepoint J1772 (Type 1) chargers a 5 minute drive away at my local shopping center, which I visit several times a week for an hour or more for grocery's etc - I bought a type 1 to type 2 barrel adapter for about $75 and have so far have got about 420 Kwh from there so it has more than paid for it's self

If I need to charge faster there is a free to use 50 Kw charger (44Kw actual max) at the QUT which is about a 10 minute drive away - I usually go down at about 8:00 to 8:30 pm and take a book to read

I have had the car for about 11 months now so the HPWC was supplied, and I did consider installing it initially as I figured I would only be out the cost of the cabling and RCD (I am an electrician), but after I did a maximum demand calculation for my house and realized that I could only run a 16 amp single phase circuit to it and I became aware of the requirement for a type B RCD, which cost a whole lot more than a type A, I shelved the idea

 

[Culfy]

Essentially it has to connected to a power circuit which meets the mandated requirements as per AS/NZS 3000 2018 (The current version of the Wiring Rules) installed by a licensed electrical contractor

There is no need for a dedicated earth rod, (your switch board will already be connected to one), we use the MEN (Multiple Earthed Neutral) system in Australia, so PEN is not used, if you use a Tesla wall connector the power circuit will need to be protected by a type B RCD (Residual Current Device - also known as a earth leakage Circuit Breaker) which costs about $400 more than the usual type A RCD as it does not have a built in RDC-DD (Residual Direct Current Detection Device)
There are other wall chargers which do have a built in RDC-DD, but are considerably more expensive than the Tesla one

It would pay before you buy the wall charger, to ask for a quote by one or more electrical contractors who will be able to tell you what is the maximum current rating of the circuit your switch board will support (If you want a higher rating circuit you would need to upgrade the mains to your switchboard)

Frankly if you can get by with the supplied mobile charger, depending on the amount of Km's you drive each day it would work out a whole lot cheaper, even if you need to install a 15 amp power point to use the 15 amp tail for the mobile charger

From the Tesla Installation manual:
"Wall Connector features built-in RCD Type A + DC 6mA. The benefit of this protection is that RCD Type B are not required when installing Gen 3 Wall Connectors, consult local regulations on the type of breaker required." https://www.tesla.com/sites/default...3_WallConnector_Installation_Manual_AU_NZ.pdf

 

[cafz]

From the Tesla Installation manual:
"Wall Connector features built-in RCD Type A + DC 6mA. The benefit of this protection is that RCD Type B are not required when installing Gen 3 Wall Connectors, consult local regulations on the type of breaker required." https://www.tesla.com/sites/default...3_WallConnector_Installation_Manual_AU_NZ.pdf

Yes, the Gen 3 HPWC does now include DC fault protection so a separate Type B RCD is no longer required, which is quite a saving particularly on a three-phase installation.

The Gen 2 HPWC did not include DC fault protection.

 

[Culfy]

Yes, the Gen 3 HPWC does now include DC fault protection so a separate Type B RCD is no longer required, which is quite a saving particularly on a three-phase installation.

The Gen 2 HPWC did not include DC fault protection.

Glad to hear that confirmation. I've been stuffing around my installer a bit following threads and trying to make sure it's right! So much to learn.
Anyone got experience with installing these in the sun? Do they get too hot in summer if you do or is it a non issue? To install it under cover I'd have to put it out the front of the house, which I'd rather not do. But it needs to work in summer, obviously! The problem is I only have a North facing wall if I don't put it out the front.

 

[moa999]

And note that afaik the requirement for a Type B for Gen2s was a "should" (ie. highly recommended) and not a "shall" (absolutely required)