How to Prepare Your Home for an Electric Car

Whether you’re on the verge of buying an EV or still in the research phase, it will do you good to know the steps to follow to turn your home into an electric vehicle charging station before your new electric car arrives. Imagine replacing your trips to the gas station with the capability of charging your vehicle from the comfort of your Asheville garage.

An electric vehicle home charger is one of the best accessories an EV owner can have based on convenience alone. Keep reading as the team at Apple Tree Acura reviews five things you should do to prepare your home for an electric vehicle.

1. Choose Your Charging Type (AKA Charging Level)

Making the switch from a gas to an electric vehicle involves thoughtful planning and research for the road ahead, starting with figuring out what types of chargers are available and how they work. Electric vehicle home chargers typically fall into Level 1 or Level 2. See below for the difference between the two levels:

• Level 1 electric vehicle charging batteries often take days to fully charge.
• Level 2 EV chargers can fully charge in hours. You can often get between 60-200 miles of range in just 20-30 minutes with Level 2 DC charging, though. For this reason, most people intermix daytime “top-off” charging with overnight charging.

2. Prepare Your Garage

Having a home charger gives you more time to prepare for weekend road trips outside of Hendersonville eliminating the need to stop for a charge on the way to your destination. So, before your new electric vehicle arrives, make sure your garage is ready to accommodate an EV charger. Now would be a good time to declutter and organize the area where your charger will be located; especially if it’s primarily used as a storage space.

3. Locate Your Power Panel & Assess Consumption

Before your Johnson City home can successfully charge an EV, it’s important to ensure the power panel in your home can evenly distribute electricity throughout the entire building. It should be rated for a maximum amount of current flow measured in Amperes. Most new homes come with a 100 Amp power panel, but there should be an amperage rating printed on your main circuit breaker.

Next, you’ll want to get a handle on how much electrical energy you consistently use in your house by performing a self-assessment of your electricity use before you install an EV charging system. You do not want to overload your electric distribution panel.

4. Hire an Electrician

Next, hire an electrician. You can discuss any concerns you have about your power consumption and adding EV charging. You can also have them install a dedicated 240-volt plug or add a hardwired circuit back to the power panel. Usually, this costs a couple of hundred dollars but could be up to $1,000 or $3,000 if it’s found that your power panel is not sufficient as-is and requires upgrading.

5. Buy Your Charger & Have it Installed

An in-home EV charger can be purchased at your local Home Depot or Best Buy store; prices range from $200 to $900. You can also ask your electrician to recommend the EV charger that will perform best in your home. Once you’ve sorted out all the steps above, the next thing is to have your charger installed and then, enjoy your first experience with charging a vehicle at home!

Contact Apple Tree Acura to Learn More!

Switching to an electric vehicle after only driving gas-powered models can be a life-changing experience, so If you have additional questions or concerns about getting your home ready for an EV, our service department is here and ready to assist. You can also explore our service tips and tricks page for DIY tasks you can master at home. Feel free to contact us anytime online or call 828-684-4400, we look forward to serving all your electric vehicle needs.