Guide On How To Charge Your Electric Car With Charging Stations
Electric cars (EVs) and plug-in hybrid vehicles are relatively new on the market and the fact that they use electricity to propel themselves means a new infrastructure has been put into place, one which few are familiar with. This is why we have created this useful guide to explain and clarify the different charging solutions used to charge an electric car.
In this EV charging guide, you’ll learn more about the 3 places where it’s possible to charge, the 3 different levels of charging available in North America, fast charging with superchargers, charging times, and connectors. You’ll also discover an essential tool for public charging, and useful links to answer all of your questions.
Before we get into those concepts, it is good to know the various terms used for charging stations. They usually all refer to the same thing.
- Charging station
- Charging outlet
- Charging plug
- Charging port
- Charger
- EVSE (Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment)
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Electric Car Home Chargers
Charging an electric car or plug-in hybrid is mainly done at home.Home charging accounts actually for 80% of all charging done by EV drivers. This is why it’s important to understand the solutions available, along with the pros of each.
Home Charging Solutions: Level 1 Level 2
There are two types of home charging: level 1 charging and level 2 charging.
- Level 1 charging happens when you charge an electric vehicle (EV) using the charger included with the car. These chargers can be plugged with one end into any standard 120V outlet, with the other end being plugged directly into the car. It can charge 200 kilometers (124 miles) in 20 hours.
- Level 2 chargers are sold separately from the car, although they’re often purchased at the same time. These chargers require a slightly more complicated setup, as they are plugged into a 240V outlet which allows charging 3 to 7 times faster depending on the electric car and the charger. All of these chargers have an SAE J1772 connector and are available for online purchase in Canada and the USA. They usually have to be installed by an electrician. You can learn more about level 2 charging stations in this guide.
For every electric vehicle or plug-in hybrid, the use of a level 2 home charging station is recommended to help you charge faster and enjoy your EV’s full potential. Provincial and municipal incentives are available in some regions to help with purchase and installation costs. You can also check the following websites for more information.
- Quebec incentives for electric car home chargers
- British Columbia incentives for electric car home chargers (the program is temporarily suspended)
- For the United States, we suggest you check your government website.
The pros of home charging
To enjoy all the benefits of charging at home, you need to use a level 2 home charger.
A fully charged battery in a few hours
A level 2 charger allows you to charge your electric car 5 to 7 times faster for a full-electric car or up to 3 times faster for a plug-in hybrid compared to a level 1 charger. This means you’ll be able to maximize the use of your EV and reduce stops to charge at public charging stations.
It takes around four hours to fully charge a 30-kWh battery car (standard battery for an electric car), which allows you to make the most out of driving your EV, especially when you have a limited time to charge.
Start Your Day Fully Charged
Home charging is normally done on evenings and at night. Just connect your charger to your electric car when you come home from work, and you’ll be sure to have a fully charged battery the next morning. Most of the time, an EV’s range is enough for all your daily travel, meaning you won’t have to stop at public chargers for charging. At home, your electric car charges while you eat, play with the kids, watch TV, and sleep!
Save Big on Charging Costs
- In Quebec, it is about 30% less expensive to charge at home than at a public charger and 6 times less expensive to drive 100 km (62 miles) on electricity than on gas.
- In Ontario, it is roughly 65% less expensive to charge at home than at a public charger and 5 times less expensive to drive 100 km (62 miles) on electricity than on gas.
- In British Columbia, it is roughly 30% cheaper to charge at home than at a public charger and 5 times less expensive to drive 100 km (62 miles) on electricity than on gas.
- In the United States, it all depends on the price of electricity and gas. You have to compare the consumption of electricity in kWh/100 miles of the EV multiplied by the cost of the kWh vs. the consumption of gallons/100 miles of the gas car multiplied by the price of a gallon of gas. That way, you will be able to quickly know how much you could save on your travel costs.
Electric Car Public Charging Stations
Public charging allows EV drivers to charge their electric cars on the road when they need to travel longer distances than allowed by their EV’s autonomy. These public chargers are often located near restaurants, shopping centers, parking spots, and such public spaces.
To locate them easily, we suggest you use ChargeHub’s charging stations map that is available on iOS, Android, and web browsers. The map lets you easily find every public charger in North America. You can also see most chargers’ status in real time, make itineraries, and more. We’ll be using our map in this guide to explain how the public charging works.
There are three main things to know about public charging: the 3 different levels of charging, the difference between connectors and the charging networks.
Charging Station Connectors
Charging Station Networks
EV Charging Basics
Learn more about different charging options for electric vehicles (EVs), plus where you can find rebates to help cover purchase and installation costs.
EV Charger Types
EV chargers are classified into three categories: Level 1, Level 2 and direct current (DC) fast chargers.
EV chargers are classified into three categories: Level 1, Level 2 and direct current (DC) fast chargers.
Important differences include:
- Input voltage. This is how much power a charger requires to operate and is expressed in volts.
- Power output. This is how much power a charger can generate and is expressed in kilowatts (kW).
- Charging speed. This is the number of miles added to the EV’s battery per hour of charging and depends on the charger’s power output.
- Equipment and installation cost. While basic EV chargers are inexpensive and can be plugged into a standard outlet, others have higher upfront equipment and must be installed professionally by an electric vehicle service provider (EVSP).
- EV power intake. Depending on your EV, the power output pulled from a charger (in kW) may be limited by how much the EV’s battery can withstand. Check your vehicle’s specifications to know which charging level your vehicle can use.
Numerous manufacturers produce EV chargers, with a variety of products, price points, applications and functionality. Because of these differences, it is important to choose an EV charger that fits your intended use and budget.
Direct Current Fast Charging
How fast is DC fast charging?
Depending on the EV, DC fast chargers can currently produce a 10-80% charge for a 300-mile range battery in approximately 20 minutes (~540 miles of electric drive per hour of charging).
What is the input voltage for a DC fast charger?
Currently available DC fast chargers require inputs of at least 480 volts and 100 amps, but newer chargers are capable of up to 1000 volt and 500 amps (up to 360 kW).
How much do DC fast chargers cost?
A CALeVIP Cost Data analysis found that the unit cost per charger for rebate recipients ranged from a minimum of 18,000 to a maximum of 72,500. The mean and median unit cost per charger was 29,135 and 23,000, respectively.
In addition to higher equipment costs, DC fast charger installations require a commercial electrician from the initial planning phase due to the electrical load and wiring requirements.
Is a DC fast charger the right EV charger for me?
DC fast chargers are the highest-powered EV chargers on the market. They often are used as range extenders along major travel corridors for long-distance trips and in urban environments to support drivers without home charging or very high mileage drivers. At current charging speeds, they are ideal for places where a person would spend 30 minutes to an hour, such as restaurants, recreational areas and shopping centers.
It is important to note that not every EV model is capable of DC fast charging, and therefore, they cannot be used by every EV driver. Further, DC fast chargers have multiple standards for connectors, whereas there is only one common standard for Level 1 and 2 charging (SAE J1772). DC fast chargers have three types of connectors: CHAdeMO, CCS and Tesla, though CCS is increasingly becoming the industry standard.
Level 2 Chargers
How fast is Level 2 charging?
A Level 2 charger can currently produce a full charge for a 300-mile range battery in about 6-8 hours and is perfect for destination and overnight charging.
What is the input voltage of a Level 2 charger?
Level 2 chargers typically require 220V or 240V service.
What is the power output of a Level 2 charger?
Level 2 chargers are available with a variety of power outputs from 3 kW to 19 kW, which can sometimes be adjusted.
How much do Level 2 chargers cost?
CALeVIP Cost Data show that rebate recipients reported average L2 equipment costs ranging from 685 to 6,626 per connector. The mean and median were 2,976 and 2,884 per connector, respectively.
Is a Level 2 charger the right EV charger for me?
Level 2 chargers are typical solutions for residential and commercial/workplace settings. Most offer higher power output than Level 1 chargers and have additional functionality.
Non-networked vs. networked chargers
In general, Level 2 chargers are distinguished between non-networked chargers and networked chargers.
Networked chargers have advanced capabilities, such as charge scheduling, load management and demand response. They are more common in commercial/workplace settings where payments are required or at multiunit dwellings (MUDs) where the property’s electricity bill is shared by multiple residents.
They may be designed for indoor or outdoor use (e.g., NEMA 3R, NEMA 6P, NEMA 4x rated).
Some models of networked chargers also can limit charging to certain hours, which allows the operator to maximize a time-of-use (TOU) electricity rate structure and only allow charging when electricity is the cheapest (usually sometime between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m.). This type of control also increases the likelihood of participating in utility demand response programs.
Some of the enhanced features of a networked Level 2 charger include remote access/control via Wi-Fi or cellular connection, access control/ability to accept multiple forms of payment, load balancing across multiple chargers and more. Additionally, California will soon begin allowing the use of submeters already embedded within networked chargers to bill electricity use. For more information on submetering, visit the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) website.
Non-networked Level 2 chargers are used both in single-family residences and MUDs. They may be designed for indoor or outdoor use (e.g., NEMA 3R, NEMA 6P, NEMA 4x rated). Non-networked Level 2 chargers are useful for installations at MUDs or commercial sites that are powered by the residents’ or tenants’ subpanels.
In this case, any electricity used by the chargers will be charged to the individual’s electricity bill, thus eliminating the need to separately meter the chargers. Further, when electrical capacity is available, non-networked Level 2 chargers are useful for site hosts that need higher power than Level 1 charging but do not have a large budget.
Sponsored by GET Electric, this is a guide to charging your electric vehicle at home or on the road – including an explainer on plug types and charging levels
One of the challenges for buyers considering an electric car is the breaking of old habits.
For most people, adding driving range to your vehicle has been as simple as visiting a fuel station for a quick refill and getting back on the road within minutes.
If you’re transitioning to an electric vehicle, it’s going to take time to adjust to the ‘new normal’ of topping up your car. Charging is still slower than pouring liquid fuel into the tank, but it’s improving over time.
While charging an electric vehicle is simple, there are several ways to do it that involve different charging times and costs.
One of the first things you’ll hear about when it comes to plugging in an EV is the different levels of charging. This can be broken down into three categories – Levels 1, 2 and 3.
JUMP AHEAD
Level 1: AC trickle charging
This is the most basic home or destination charging option, where you plug the car into a standard 240V AC (alternating current) socket.
While convenient, this is the slowest method, offering only about 2.0kW of power through a normal 10A socket. This means it can take from four to 50 hours to charge your car, depending on the battery size.
How to work out Level 1 charging time for battery capacity
Calculating this is quite simple – just divide the battery capacity (kWh) by the charging rate to gain an approximate time. For a Level 1 charger, this rate is typically 2.0kW. For example:
- The new Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV has a 20kWh battery. divide that by two and you get about ten hours.
- The Tesla Model 3’s 57.5kWh usable battery takes about 29 hours.
- The Mercedes EQC 400’s 80kWh usable battery will take about 40 hours.
There’s also a more accurate formula: divide the battery capacity (kWh) by the charging power speed (kW).
Of course, these times will be less if the battery is already partially charged – a 50 per cent charge will require half the time, which is why it’s a good idea to top up whenever possible.
How to work out EV charging times for distance
If you want to know how long you’ll need to charge your car to travel a certain distance, the charging power in kW is the same value as the kilometres you’ll get from 10 minutes of charging.
For example, if you are using a 2.0kW Level 1 charger you will get around two kilometres for every 10 minutes of charging.
Level 2. AC fast charging
While Level 1 charging will usually be convenient for plug-in-hybrids that can be fully topped up overnight, you might need something faster for a battery-electric vehicle (BEV) with a much bigger battery – if you need to utilise the full driving range capabilities every day (200 to 700km depending on model).
The good news
- There’s a quicker home option by installing a Level 2 (wall-box) charger, which increases the single-phase charging power to 7.2kW.
A Level 2 unit brings charging times down considerably, with the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV gaining a full charge from empty in 6.5 hours, and the Tesla Model 3 and Mercedes-Benz EQC at around 8 and 11 hours respectively.
And you’ll get a 7.2km travel range for every 10 minutes, meaning about 43km after an hour’s charging – which is enough for the average Aussie commute.
A 7.2kW Level 2 charging unit works off standard 240V single-phase wiring with the wall-box costing around 1000 to 1500 dollars plus installation, which is pretty good value considering what you pay for a full set of tyres or new car options such as a sunroof.
Level 2 charging can also increase to 11kW or up to 22kW capacity if you have 415V three-phase power available.
Since most EVs are limited to charging a maximum of 11kW AC only (via the ‘onboard charger’ inverter), you can get 11km for every 10 minutes of charging, so an hour on the plug will yield about 66km of range. A limited number of models are capable of 22kW, such as the BMW iX1 as standard, and available on the Mercedes-Benz EQE and Porsche Taycan.
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You’ll also find many public charging points are Level 2 (7.2kW, 11kW or 22kW), so be sure you know what capacity they are before you drive to them if time is important.
They may also require your own Type 2 to Type 2 (Mode 3) portable charging cable, which is usually a separate accessory purchase for around 200 to 500.
It’s worth noting that most PHEV models, because of their smaller battery capacity and battery management systems, will only charge at a maximum rate of 3.6kW or 7.6kW even when using a 22kW AC charger.
GET Electric has also opened its own hub of 22kW chargers in Port Melbourne, giving nearby EV owners an option for a top-up – particularly those living in the area’s high-density apartment towers.
Level 3. DC Rapid charging
Charging capacity ranges from 50kW on a Rapid charger up to 350kW on an ultra-Rapid unit.
These are the public DC chargers (480V/direct current), including Tesla Superchargers, that are crucial in making EVs viable for driving long distances with little downtime for charging.
It’s worth noting that lower-capacity EVs, such as plug-in hybrids and the Nissan Leaf, MG ZS EV and Lexus UX300e can use 350kW chargers, but will still only charge at a rate of about 50kW. Similarly, the BYD Atto 3, MG ZS EV, and GWM Ora are limited to between 60 to 90kW DC.
Higher-capacity models such as the standard range Polestar 2, Tesla Model Y RWD and Mercedes-Benz EQA, have a maximum charging capacity of around 100 to 150kW – which brings more than 100km every 10 minutes.
New-generation 800V architectures allow even faster charging, with models like the Porsche Taycan, Audi E-Tron GT, Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Kia EV6 capable – in the right circumstances – of charging from 10 to 80 per cent in under 30 minutes.
Most PHEV models can only connect to AC chargers, but the Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross PHEV, Outlander PHEV, Mercedes-Benz A-Class PHEV (optionally), and Range Rover PHEV line-up can charge via either AC and DC power.
⏱️ 0-80 per cent charge time
You may have noticed carmakers often provide a DC charging time based on a battery being charged up to 80 per cent instead of 100 per cent.
This is because the internal resistance of a battery rises as the state of charge increases. In other words, the more the battery is charged the slower and less efficient it is to keep charging it. Charging past 80 per cent also isn’t healthy for typical lithium-ion batteries.
As a result, charging is quickest when the battery is flat. After an initial burst, the charger settles into a constant rate until the battery reaches about 80 per cent full.
After that, the charging slows again – partly due to the decreased efficiency and to prevent the battery from being damaged by overheating or overcharging.
The time it takes to charge between 80 and 100 per cent can vary based on a number of factors, such as battery heat. This is why carmakers can calculate how quickly the battery will reach 80 per cent, but can’t provide a definitive time for a full charge.
EV charging plugs and sockets
As we’ve seen with mobile phones, there are different kinds of EV plugs and sockets, which threatened to make the rolling out of charging networks quite complicated.
The good news for Australian drivers is there is now a standard for AC charging; but it’s a different matter when it comes to DC Rapid charging.
1️⃣ Type 1 AC
Also referred to as J1772 or SAE J1772, this is the standard AC-plug in North America and Japan, and is found in Australia on pre-2019 Mitsubishi Outlander PHEVs, first-generation Nissan Leafs, and older BMW i3s.
It has a five-pin design. The two small pins connect data between the car and charger to determine the maximum current available to the vehicle – which prevents the car from moving while still connected.
The three larger pins are for the 110/240V AC power connection, including the earth. Because there are few public chargers with Type 1 plugs, a Type 2 adapter accessory is available to purchase.
2️⃣ Type 2 AC
Also referred to as the IEC 62196 or Mennekes plug, this is the standard port in Australia and Europe for AC charging and is used by all car manufacturers selling a new EV here today.
The Type 2 plug has a seven-pin design, with five power pins to support three-phase charging.
While older Tesla Model S and Model X EVs sold here use a Type 2 plug, it has modified the connector with a notch at the top to ensure only they can access the Tesla Supercharging network (although trials are underway to open it up to all EV models).
All plug-in hybrid models in Australia are equipped with Type 2 charging ports. EVs with CCS2 sockets (see below) can accept Type 2 plugs.
AUSTRALIAN STANDARD: CCS2
Short for Combined Charging System, CCS can be used for AC and DC chargers.
This is the most common charging port type in Australia, as nearly all models sold here adopt this standard and all DC fast chargers have a CCS2 connector.
CCS2 extends the bottom of Type 2 with two pins in order to DC fast-charge.
CHAdeMO
This is an abbreviation for Charge de Move, which is French for ‘move using charge’. It is a rare DC port standard found in most Japanese-built EVs and PHEVs, such as the Nissan Leaf, Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross PHEV and Lexus UX300e. However, the latest Nissan Ariya EV has shifted to CCS2 and older Tesla models can use a CHAdeMO via an adapter.
Public charging stations in Australia still mostly offer a CHAdeMO cable since any that are co-founded by the Federal government’s Australian Renewable Energy Agency (Arena) need to follow guidelines set by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) back in 2017. But, some other fast charging providers have emerged only offering CCS2 plugs.
Most vehicles with CHAdeMO sockets also come equipped with the standard Type 2 socket for AC charging.
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Ac type 2 charger
Welcome to EV101: Electric Vehicle Charging Basics
What Affects Charging Speed?
Your vehicle
There are a lot of variables that affect each vehicle’s charging speed. When a battery is more depleted, the charging speed is typically faster. However, batteries don’t like to charge quickly when they’re too hot or too cold, so charging may be slower in extreme temperatures.
Different vehicle manufacturers design different batteries. And because the battery is usually the single most expensive “thing” inside a vehicle, it’s in everyone’s best interest to maximize the battery’s longevity, health, and safety. As a result, when a vehicle charges, the vehicle decides the power it draws from the charger in a way that maximizes longevity.
The charging system
Different electric vehicles have different capacities for charging speeds; charging stations also have different capacities, and the maximum rate of your charging session is determined by whichever is lower, the capability of the car or the charger. For example, a 50 kW capable EV would not charge any faster at a 350 kW station. Also, it is worth noting that higher capable vehicles can charge at lower capable stations, they are just limited to what the station can provide.
Outside temperature
Electric vehicle batteries don’t like to be too hot or too cold. The charging of a battery generates heat (check your mobile phone when its charging), and the battery management system will protect a battery from overheating, so when the battery gets too hot the battery management system will slow down charging (and if the ambient temperature is high or you’ve been driving your EV for a long time then this might happen earlier as the battery temperature is already elevated).
How Does the Vehicle Decide Your Charging Rate?
The vehicle’s Battery Management System (BMS — or “brain”) considers all of the factors explained above in order to maximize the longevity of the battery. Is the battery hot right now? Is it cold outside? Is the battery old and deteriorated? How full is the battery? Given all of this information, the vehicle tells the charger the voltage and current it can accept. the product of which determines the charge rate.
When the vehicle starts charging, it may reach (or get close to) the maximum charging rate (i.e. 50 kW). But as the charge continues — and the battery gets hotter and its cells start to fill — the vehicle will slow the charging rate to reduce the strain on the battery. When the battery is about 80% full, the charge rate can slow rapidly, as shown in the example below:
Why Does My Charging Speed Slow Down as I Charge?
To answer that question, we first have to understand the vehicle’s battery. When most people imagine a car battery, they might imagine one big block sitting inside the car. In reality, inside a “battery pack” are hundreds — and often thousands — of smaller “battery cells.” (The Tesla Model S has up to 7,104 battery cells!) As a result, when a battery charges, those thousands of cells are actually what’s being charged.
A helpful analogy might be to imagine sitting in a movie theater. When the theater is empty, it’s easy to find a seat right away. But as the theater fills up, we have to take a few moments to find a seat — and climb over people (without knocking over their popcorn). That’s what happens with battery cells at the molecular level. When the battery cells are nearly empty, it’s easy to “find a seat” to charge. But as the battery cells fill up, it takes more time to find (and navigate) the empty cells. Generally, above 80% full is when it’s hardest for electrons to find a seat in your battery’s movie theater.
NOTE: Your charging speed will slow down throughout the course of your charge. And every vehicle decides that “slow down rate” differently. Every manufacturer determines this in order to keep your vehicle’s battery healthy and increase longevity.
Why Does My Charging Speed Slow Down as I Charge?
To answer that question, we first have to understand the vehicle’s battery. When most people imagine a car battery, they might imagine one big block sitting inside the car. In reality, inside a “battery pack” are hundreds — and often thousands — of smaller “battery cells.” (The Tesla Model S has up to 7,104 battery cells!) As a result, when a battery charges, those thousands of cells are actually what’s being charged.
A helpful analogy might be to imagine sitting in a movie theater. When the theater is empty, it’s easy to find a seat right away. But as the theater fills up, we have to take a few moments to find a seat — and climb over people (without knocking over their popcorn). That’s what happens with battery cells at the molecular level. When the battery cells are nearly empty, it’s easy to “find a seat” to charge. But as the battery cells fill up, it takes more time to find (and navigate) the empty cells. Generally, above 80% full is when it’s hardest for electrons to find a seat in your battery’s movie theater.
NOTE: Your charging speed will slow down throughout the course of your charge. And every vehicle decides that “slow down rate” differently. Every manufacturer determines this in order to keep your vehicle’s battery healthy and increase longevity.
Why Am I Not Getting the Maximum Charge Rate on My Car’s Nameplate?
There are several reasons for this. When a car advertises a maximum charging rate of 50 kW, that doesn’t mean it can consistently charge at that rate.
When a vehicle connects to a charger, a conversation takes place between the charger and the vehicle — and it’s dominated by the vehicle. The charger tells the vehicle both the voltage and current rates it can accept, and the charger provides only what the vehicle can accommodate. As a result, the vehicle manages its battery to provide the longest useful life by not overcharging it. Here are some examples of things that affect your charging speed: