We do get asked this question quite a lot! It’s a personal choice but ~60% of customers choose the convenience of a tethered charger to save having to get a charging cable out the boot of the car each time they charge. Untethered chargers do look smaller and a bit neater though so if space is tight or you don’t want a bulky cable on show then it’s untethered for you!
What lengths are available?
The below table shows the different cable lengths available for the chargers we supply and install. It’s worth remembering that it is possible to retro fit a longer cable than the ones available from the manufacturers, just give us a call and we’ll talk you through this – they can be made to any length and colour!
| Model | Cable length available: |
| Ohme Home Pro | 5m, 8m |
| MyEnergi Zappi | 6.5m |
| Hypervolt | 5m, 7.5m, 10m |
| Easee | Untethered only |
Which is more cost effective?
Untethered chargers are slightly cheaper than their tethered equivalent. That said it’s only relatively small price difference of ~£50 which is a lot less than the cost of buying the cable itself! Most cars come with a Type 2 5m cable in the boot ready for you to use.
What happens to the tethered cable when it’s not being used?
All the tethered chargers we supply and install have a cable holster to keep things tidy. The MyEnergi Zappi and the Hypervolt are also designed so you can wrap the cable around the charger itself when it’s not in use. Just bear in mind that the longer the tethered cable the more of it there is to wrap up and store.
What length charging cable should I go for?
First you need to think about where you park your car and where you’d like the charging point to go. Once you’ve done that you can just pace out the distance to the charging port on the car and it’s always best to add ~2m so that the cable isn’t tight when in use. Do remember that your next EV might not have the charging port on the same side of the car though!
If you park a long way from where the charger is being installed then you might be best off with an untethered charger and a separate extra long lead. This is a common solution for customers without off-street parking. One customer even had a 65m cable that we had to get a custom made trolley for!