I just bought a Tesla, How do I use a Tesla charging station? Tell me

Congratulation on the new Tesla, your Tesla comes with a Tesla portable charger that allows you to use your general power outlet in your house. Tesla has come up with a fancy name called A universal mobile connector (UMC in short). The cable allows you to draw 10 Amps of current from your 240V outlet. This generally provides a short of 2.4kW of power. Over the course of a night's sleep, the charger allows your Tesla to gain 1/3 of its battery back. At the current rate of 2.4kW, it approximately gives you an extension of 12km of driving per hour of charge. Over the course of 8 hours, an additional 100km range is added to your EV.

This further can be enhanced by attaching a different tail, this is the end of the cable that plugs into the wall socket. The current Gen2 model of UMC comes with both 10A and 15A tail. This further can be boosted using the Tesla Tail Adaptor, which allows the Tesla UMC to utilise the 3-phase power supply allowing up to 7kW to be drawn. This will add up to 40km of driving per hour of charge. The 3 phase power outlets are usually found in industrial sites, commercial sites, and camping grounds.

In addition, the Tesla chargers come with a tethered cable and are conveniently located in the most desirable locations like restaurants, shops, and highways. The pricing of the chargers varies significantly depending on geographical locations, timing (off-peak and peak). Tesla superchargers provide a significantly faster charge as compared to the Tesla wall connector and the UMC.

Another option of charging is the Tesla destination charger, these charges are available at various locations particularly at locations where users are most likely to stay overnight. In regards to the charging capabilities, destination chargers either have type 1 or type 2 charging sockets. Many destination chargers have a tethered cable with a Type 2 connectors, however, there are also destinations with a simple type 2 socket. At these locations, you need a type 2 Telsa charging cable, the charging cable can be purchased from evse.com.au. In other locations, where the charging infrastructure is installed in the early years of EV, the adaptor can be of great use that allows you to connect the type 2 charging cable at type 1 destination chargers.

In conclusion, the standard cable that comes with the Tesla is sufficient to allow mid-range driving of 50km to be driven by the Tesla, however, if a higher driving range is required. It is highly recommended for type 2 to type 2 cable to purchase as it will allow you to use the public electric infrastructure. As more electrical charging infrastructure grows, the lower the driving range anxiety EV owners will experience.

Sam Korkees is an avid Tesla fan and more importantly a believer in clean energy solutions to power Australian electric vehicles. Electric or walking, no compromises. Read more at https://evse.com.au/

At Eve Australia we believe that the drive toward a better future starts today. Our mission is to help power the future of Australian Mobility through clean, affordable and convenient Electric Vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure.