In message , Andy Wade
writes
On 28/07/2014 11:48, Colin Stamp wrote:
What's the rated output of the charger? The cable from the garage to the
car shouldn't need to carry more than that.

Be careful, if we're talking about an ordinary single-phase
transformer-plus-bridge-rectifier type of charger (no smoothing of the
DC output) the RMS output current in the cable will be significantly
more than the mean DC current, due to the peaky waveform.

I'd advise rating the cable at least a factor of two above the rated
mean DC output, to play safe. Voltage drop considerations may dictate
that an more in any case.

My chargers are just some cheap automatic things from Wickes or Aldi (I
hate and never understand the row of LED's), and the old little 6A
selenium rectifier one which had a nice meter on the front until my
daughter dropped it. It never bothered me that the case had melted above
the rectifier.
--
Bill