Power Up at Home,Drive Towards Tomorrow

By installing a residential charging station at your home or apartment, you can charge as you eat, sleep, and play, all while making sure your vehicle is ready-to-go the next morning.

Generally speaking, there are three different types of EV charging: Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3. Level 2 charging stations are by far the most convenient charging stations for homes and apartments due to the fact that they’re significantly faster than Level 1 stations, and don’t usually require costly upgrades to power supply like their Level 3 (DC fast charging) counterparts.

Residential charging stations are usually Level 2 charging stations and can deliver somewhere between 3.7 – 22 kW of power output. These electric car charging ports work by connecting to your home’s electricity supply via either 1-phase or 3-phase connectors. With a Level 2 charging station at maximum power output, one hour of charging will provide approximately 120 kms of range.*

To compare, Level 1 charging stations—which plug directly into the wall socket—have a maximum output of 2.3 kW. With a Level 1 charging station at maximum power output, one hour of charging will provide approximately 20 kms range.*

Home chargers are also more cost effective than public charging stations as they make use of cheaper electricity from the residential energy grid during off-peak hours or with electricity generated by sustainable energy supplies (e.g. solar panels).

To find out more about the specific features of a residential home charger, check out our signature home charging station: EVBox Elvi.

*Calculations are approximations based on the average consumption of 18 kWh per 100 km. Actual consumption depends on the vehicle, battery size, and driving conditions.

Level 2 charging stations have a maximum power output of 22 kW. At 22 kW, a charging station can fully charge a Tesla Model 3 in approximately three hours and 45 minutes. Level 2 charging stations are ideal for home scenarios because they deliver maximum power to an EV without requiring costly grid upgrades, depending on your location of course.

However, as with all hardware, there are variables. The speed of residential charging stations varies depending on the type of charging point 1-phase, 3-phase, and whether they deliver 16 A or 32 A, the residential location’s power output, and the type of EV. To get a better understanding of the different charging speeds for a Level 2 charging station, here’s an overview of how long it will take to charge a Tesla Model 3.

Level 2: 1-Phase, 16A 3.7 kW 14h45m
Level 2: 1-Phase, 32A 7.4 kW 7h20m
Level 2: 3-Phase, 16A 11 kW 5h00m
Level 2: 3-Phase, 32A 22 kW 3h45m

Beyond the type of charging station you choose, how fast your home charging station will charge your EV comes down to the amount of power you can take from the grid. Some residential homes may not be wired to deliver 22 kWs of AC, affecting charging speeds.

To attain your desired charging speed, it may be necessary to upgrade your electrical supply. But before you do, it’s important to understand what your vehicle is capable of.

We always say that the EV is the ultimate deciding factor in charging speeds due to the vehicle’s conversion capacity. As the power from the grid is AC and an EV’s battery charges with DC, the current must be converted. If an EV’s AC/DC converter only allows for conversion at 11 kW an hour, then even with 22 kW output, the EV will take twice as long to charge.

For a Tesla Model 3, a 3-Phase, an 11 kW charging station is best suited due converter’s capacity (11 kW) and the size of the vehicle’s battery. With it’s 6.6 kW on-board charger and comparatively smaller battery, a Nissan Leaf driver would be better off choosing for a 1-Phase, 32A charging station. It’s important to have an overview of these details—both for your home and your EV—if you’re considering investing in EV charging for your residence.

The short answer is yes: residential charging stations should work with all types of electric passenger vehicles.

However, there are a few variables. Whether a particular EV is compatible with a specific home charging station depends on the vehicle’s socket, the type of connector of the charging cable (CHAdeMO or CCS2), and whether the charging station’s cable is fixed or not.

When looking to invest in a charging station for your home or apartment, these details will be specific to the vehicle you drive and thus, may limit the capacity for other vehicles to charge using the same charging port.

What about charging Tesla with home charging stations?

Again, the short answer is yes. With any Level 2 charging port, you will be able to charge your Tesla, providing you have the right connection for the charging station. Although Tesla has their own home charging installation setup including the Tesla Wall Connector, Tesla vehicles are compatible with many other brands on the market via a CC2 or CHAdeMO adapter.

The price for charging your vehicle at home depends entirely on how much you pay for each kilowatt-hour (kWh) of electricity used.

In the US, the average price per kWh is around $0.13 while in the EU, that number is comparatively higher at an average domestic price of €0.21. And across the EU electricity costs vary greatly. For instance, in Germany the price per kWh climbs to around €0.30 on average. Furthermore, these prices will change at certain times of the day; you’ll likely pay more for charging during the day than in the middle of the night.

But what does this mean? If you’re looking to fully charge a Nissan Leaf with a 62 kWh battery in the EU, you’re pay around €13 with a maximum range of 364 km. However, if you’re looking to charge a Tesla Model X with its larger, 95 kWh battery, it will cost closer to €20 with a range of up to 625 km.

To keep the price of charging down, you can connect your residential EV charging station to a charging management platform. Charging management platforms have intelligent features including autostart — starting charging during low-cost periods — and dynamic load balancing — which safely balances the energy usage between a charging station and other high-power usage appliances.

In the long run, how much it costs to fully charge your EV at home will depend on a number of factors. However, the ultimate cost is still comparatively lower than for vehicles with internal combustion engines, not to mention the reduced cost to the environment due to CO2 emissions, and to our health care system due to air pollutants.