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Many van owners may be put off the idea of investing in an electric vehicle – after all, the concept of having to charge your van can seem unfamiliar and complicated. However, this is not an issue you should be worrying about at all: there are plenty of charging options available for a wide range of vehicle types, so you’re bound to find the right fit for your e-van. Read on to discover everything you need to know about charging your electric van.
Finding a charging point
Home charging
If you keep your van at your home or workplace overnight, it’s important to be able to charge it during that time. Off-street parking, such as a garage or a driveway, can make this much easier, as you can install a home wallbox to recharge the van with.
It’s definitely worth getting one of these home charging options, as they significantly speed up your charging time compared to a standard domestic socket. A wall box provides you with up to 55% higher charging performance, making it much quicker than charging via a domestic socket. Renault, for example, says a 7.4kW home wallbox will charge the 33kWh battery in the Master Z.E. van in six hours, giving drivers 120 miles of real-world range.
Charging on the go
If you’re going to be using your van throughout the day, you may have to top it up at a public charging point. Most electric vans come with a sat-nav that has a database of available charging stations nearby, while you can also use a phone app like Zap Map or Open Charge Map to find stations near you. Zap Map claims there are 34,000 charging points across 20,000 different locations across the UK. The most common type you’ll find are fast chargers, of which there are 19,000. The app and website shows both the availability of the stations, and how much a charge is likely to cost you.
Charging options
Mains charging (Slow)
Slow charging is offered by domestic sockets at home and some workplaces, by using the standard 3 pin plug that you use for most household electrical items1. Being the slowest way to charge, they normally offer AC charging rates of up to 2.3kW.
Type 2 (Fast)
Using a type 2 connector, fast chargers are usually found in public car parks, supermarkets and domestically installed wall boxes. Like slow chargers, they use AC but at speeds of between 3.6kW and 22kW.
CCS (Rapid)
Rapid charging is the fastest way to charge and uses a CCS socket. Using DC to charge, the most common types of rapid chargers provide 25kW or 50kW. However, ultra-rapid DC chargers can achieve 100kW with some even capable of 350kW. Rapid chargers are mostly found at service stations and on main roads and can be used to charge your vehicle in as little as 45 minutes while you stretch your legs2.
If you’re interested in different types of electric vehicle charging infrastructure, then you might be a great candidate to invest in an e-van. At Vanaways, we stock an extensive range of electric vans to suit your individual needs and requirements. Contact us today to find out more about how we can help you.
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