🚙Level 2 EV Charging: How Your ⚡Electrical Panel Plays a Role
EV chargers can run for hours at a time per charging session, making them a source of continuous load on your home's electrical panel.
Power has to travel through several components before it reaches your car's battery.
✅Your electrical panel is the main highway bringing power into your home.
✅The circuit breaker sets the speed limit by limiting how much power can safely flow.
✅The wiring carries that power to your charger.
✅The Level 2 charger manages the flow of electricity.
✅Your vehicle ultimately decides how much power to accept based on its onboard charger and charging settings.
Two homeowners can install the exact same charger and get completely different charging speeds based on their home's electrical system.
A newer home with a 200-amp electrical service, available breaker space, and properly sized wiring can often support a full-speed Level 2 installation.
An older home with a 100-amp panel may not have enough electrical capacity for another large continuous load without upgrading the service.
That's why electricians perform a load calculation before installing EV chargers.
If your panel is already near its limit, adding a charger may require a panel upgrade for safety and capacity.
Whether you plan to drive a Tesla, Rivian, or another EV, understanding the basics will help!
Check out the link👇 to our website for more info on residential electrical panels, or contact Jake to get started.
