EV Charging Basics
Introduction to
ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGING AND DRIVING
PlugIn Stations Online (PISO) provides sales, installation and service of all levels of electric vehicle charging stations. We offer expert advice before, during and after the sale to provide our customers with a product that best suits their needs. We offer everything from turnkey installations to equipment only sales. We work closely with our customers to find the solution that works best for them. We have installed hundreds of stations since 2011 and we have hundreds of happy customers.
RANGE PER HOUR
How long does it take to
charge an average car?
When driving an electric car, drivers rarely run down their entire battery. On a daily basis, drivers will commute to work, run errands, etc., topping up at each stop (if charging is available) and then refreshing the battery each night at home. You will only need to charge your vehicle enough to replace the amount of electricity used that day – less than 100 miles for most drivers. The only time you will need to charge an empty battery to full is on long trips, and luckily fast chargers are going into rest areas across the country.
For this reason, we use the term RANGE PER HOUR (RPH) to discuss how much energy a charger can deliver.
LEVELS OF CHARGING
Level 1 (5-10 RPH)
Home Charging
Most plug-in vehicles ship with a level 1 charger. These chargers plug into a normal 120V household outlet and deliver only 5-10 RPH. If you’re relying on level 1 charging, you will only be able to get about 50 miles of driving range per day by charging overnight.
Level 2 (20-25 RPH)
Home, Workplace, and Commercial Charging
Level 2 chargers are the most commonly seen in public settings and in multifamily dwellings. PlugIn Stations also carries level 2 chargers that can be installed in homes. Publicly available chargers can be networked and set to collect payment from drivers for energy used.
DC Fast Charging
(100-2000 RPH)
Highway Rest Areas and Commercial Charging
DC Fast Chargers (DCFC) are designed to deliver a maximum amount of energy into a car’s battery in as short a time as possible. Most DCFC you see these days will deliver about 200 RPH, but 600 RPH units are being commonly installed now. This means that you can stop at a rest stop for a halfhour lunch and get 300 miles of range to continue your trip. The charging technology exists to deliver 2000 RPH, but these installations are rare at this time because they are costly and most vehicles on the market cannot yet accept that much electricity.
TYPICAL COSTS OF INSTALLATION
The cost of installing an EV charger varies widely by installation site. Below is intended only to give a general idea of associated costs.*
30% Federal Tax Credit
Purchase and install your station by December 31, 2020, and your business may be able to receive a 30% tax credit up to $30,000.
Private Home Charger
| Charger: | <$1,000 |
| Electrical Work: | $550 – $1,500 |
| Rebates: |
|
| Net Costs: | $750-$1,500 |
Multifamily/Workplace/Commercial Level 2 Charger
| Charger: | $1,500 – $8,000 |
| Electrical Work: | $1,00 – $12,000 |
| Rebates: |
|
| Net Costs: | $0 – $10,000 |
DC Fast Charger Site
| Charger: | $15,000 – $80,000 |
| Electrical Work: | $20,000 – $200,000 |
| Rebates: |
|
| Net Costs: | $30,000 – $250,000 |
*this is for NY State but similar rebates and incentives are available for other states as well.
FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES
Most states have some form of rebate or other incentive available to help off set the cost of purchasing and installing an electric vehicle charging stations.
For example in NY:
FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES – NY STATE
- A Charge Ready NY
$4000/plug available for workplace, multifamily, and public chargers. - Utility incentives
Varies by utility, potential to cover all electrical and site work costs. - NYS Alternative Fuels / Electric Vehicle
Recharging Property Credit: 50% of cost (after other state rebates) up to $5000.
EQUIPMENT AND SOFTWARE OFFERED BY PLUGIN STATIONS
ChargePoint
ChargePoint is the most widely-used brand of charger equipment and software in the US, providing station types for all applications from home to workplace and commercial charging.
EVBox
EVBox, widely available in Europe, is starting to break into the US market by offering a lower-cost solution to charging needs. EVBox produces hardware that can run software created by 3rd-party providers such as Greenlots.
BTC Power
BTC Power is a manufacturer of level 2 and DCFC equipment that also uses 3rdparty software to operate. BTC’s DCFC equipment is widely deployed across the country.
ABB
ABB manufactures dc fast and ultra fast charging stations which range in output from 50kw to 350kw at up to 500 amps. They represent some of the fastest charging solutions available.
Greenlots
Greenlots has created an intuitive software platform that is compatible with most 3rd-party charging hardware {BTCPower, Tritium, and EVBox included)
