Some information about EV Charging Stations

Some information about EV charging stations

Unlike a gasoline-powered car, a major advantage of an electric vehicle is that you can plug it in at home or use an EV charging station when you’re on the go.

Plugging into an electrical outlet at home. But EV charging stations in large suburban parking lots or urban parking garages open up a world of questions.

How to use Electric Car at Charging Station?

Most public EV charging stations will require you to sign up for an account, although this is fairly simple and these networks will store your credit card on file usually, you need to wave the front of the charger to activate the EV charging session. and place that card in your glove box or center console.

A display on the EV charging station will show you how much electricity (and how much money) you’ve added to your electric car. There will be a clearly marked phone number that you can call if you have any questions or need assistance.

For example, most public EV charging stations add Level 2 power to the Chevrolet Bolt EV at 25 mph. Level 3 chargers or DC fast chargers, also known as fast chargers, provide more power.

Tesla’s Supercharger network offers DC fast charging and only for vehicles from that automaker. This brings up an important note for Tesla owners and to use a non-Tesla charger you’ll need an adapter available for less than $100.

Are EV Charging Stations Free?

Some public EV stations offer charging at no charge, but free EV charging stations are much less common than stations that require payment and you might be surprised by how much it costs to charge an electric car at a public electric car charging station. Will come

Most EV charging stations will charge by the kilowatt-hour (kWh), which is the amount of energy transferred to the car’s battery, and unless it’s a free charger the session charges more than it costs to plug your EV at home. Most households in the US pay around 14 cents/kWh on average and it’s unlikely you’ll find many public EV chargers that offer to juice up your EV for less than that.

The fee is per minute at some public stations.

Many different EV station owners set charging prices and just because an EV charger has the ChargePoint network logo, it doesn’t mean that the prices are the same and your local grocery store’s charger may be priced nearby. The shopping center should not be the same as the station in the parking lot.

Some major retailers, such as Whole Foods, offer free EV chargers in many locations, although realistically, this benefit is bound to end at some point.

Don’t expect to get by with free EV charging forever.

Most electric cars only cost a few dollars for more than 100 miles, making plugging in cheaper and greener than filling up with unleaded ones.

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How much does it cost to use a public EV charging station?

Charges for using EV charging stations vary as some public EV chargers are free to use. Those that require payment, they usually charge based on how much energy is transferred to the electric car and other rates per minute.

The cost depends on the size of the battery, the power of the charger and the efficiency of energy delivery to the electric vehicle. American households pay around 14 cents/kWh for electricity. Requirement to pay about three times as much when using a DC fast charger.

Electric Car Charging Station Location Apps

Firstly, download the Charging Station Location app on your smartphone. Each EV’s built-in navigation system can point you to EV charging stations, and several apps can tell you if plugs are in use and if the station is at fault. It can save you from disappointment.

Different charging networks for EV charging have their own apps. However, a widely used app is PlugShare, which relies on users to supply current information about charging stations (for pun) and will keep you updated about recent changes and developments. Is the EV charger currently under construction in a parking lot, or are those chargers temporarily off-limits or charging the EV slower than usual?

Using an app from charging station providers such as EVgo, Electrify America, and ChargePoint streamlines payments and allows monitoring of your electric vehicle’s charging status.

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