As an owner/to be an owner of the Electric Vehicle (EV), charging your EV is an important responsibility. As all-electric cars do not have a gas tank, so, instead of filling them with the gas, these cars need to be fuel up from a charging station. It is said that the average EV drivers charge 80% of their EVs at home. This article is a complete guide for your EV charging queries.

Charging your EV car is an easy procedure. You basically plug in your car with the charger that is connected to the power grid.  You must keep in mind that not all the charging stations work the same way. Some of them are already installed and you charge yout EV by casually plugging into the station. While other stations might need custom installation. Electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) is also known as an EV charging station. An important point to note is that the timing of the EV car charging also depends on the type of charger you use.

The two most popular locations where an EV can be charged are at home and work. Public charging points can be a valuable choice for EV users who do not have access to a home or office charging, it is a quick way to regularly top-up, or for necessary charging during the longer EV drives.

Your electric car chargers lie within any of the three main levels of charging stations: Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3 also known as DC fast charger. These chargers are categorized with respect to their speed with which they charge the EV. The department of energy is researching on providing wireless charging option for the EVs in addition with these three defined levels . Right now, this option is available for only certain models of the EVs.

Level 1 charging is conventionally done at home or workplaces. This type of charging uses 120 V AC plug. It approximately takes 8 hours to charge. The running time of this level charging is about 2-5 miles per hour. It does not require any additional equipment installation. Level 1 chargers have the capability of charging most of the EVs out there in the market.

A specialized station that provides power at 240V is required for Level 2 charging. Usually, level 2 chargers are located at offices and public charging stations and require about 4 hours for the battery to charge to a range of 75-80 miles. This level of charging does require special charging equipment.

The quickest charging option in the EV industry at present is Level 3 charging. At dedicated EV charging stations, DC fast chargers are available which charge a battery with a range of up to 90 miles in around 30 minutes. It provides charging via 480 V AC input. This type of charging requires the vehicle itself to have highly advanced, high-powered equipment as well as special equipment for the charging station. Level 3 charging is used in public charging stations including high traffic corridors.

Depending on the type of EVSE and the battery and its capacity, charging times range from 30 minutes-20 hours or more. Usually, all-electric automobiles have greater battery power than plug-in hybrid electric automobiles, so, it takes longer to charge a completely discharged all-electric vehicle. The charging time also really depends on the speed of charging and the size of the battery. According to some estimation, an EV with a 60kWh battery can take up to 8 hours to fully charge with 7kW of charging point. It has been observed that most drivers prefer top-up charging instead of empty to full charging options. For most EV cars, 100 miles range can be added within 35 minutes with rapid charging of 50kW. So, basically, the more your battery size is the charging point is going to be slower, which, in turns increases the charging time of the battery.

Many EV car drivers prefer charging when the battery is not fully empty, it can be at the parks or at the street charging stations. They also consider charging during work time at their office or home overnight. This is called top-up charging. Instead of letting the car fully charge from empty to full, drivers choose the top-up option while doing their daily work. Home and public charging points usually range from 7kW-22kW, considered perfect for top-up charging.

There are mainly 5 basic factors that affect the charging time/speed of the EV. The first factor is the Battery Size. As previously discussed, a larger battery size increases the time for charging. The second factor is the Current Status of the Battery. If the battery is fully empty, its charging time increases. So, it is better to top up when the battery is half empty. The third factor is the Charging Rate of Vehicles. There is a defined maximum charging rate for each EV, it can only be charged to its maximum charging rate. For example, you cannot charge a vehicle using a 22kW charging point, while its maximum charging rate is 7kW.  The fourth factor is the Rate of Charge Point. Each EV has its maximum rate of the charge point. The charging time also depends on the defined maximum rate. The level of charge point cannot be increased or decreased other than the required value. Last but not the least, Environmental Factors also effect the charging time of the battery, the colder it is, the longer it is going to take, to charge the battery. Cold weather makes the vehicles a little less efficient adding fewer miles per time charging.