How to Prep Your Home for an EV

Congratulations! You’re interested in or just bought a new EV! Whether you’ve got a new Mercedes EQS or Mercedes EQE, you’ll need an electric vehicle home charger so you can refuel it in the comfort of your garage overnight while you sleep.

While there are EV charging stations in the Centerville area, an electric vehicle home charger in your Kettering or Springboro home is still the most cost-effective and easiest way to charge your new vehicle. Find out how to prepare your home for an electric vehicle with our handy guide.

Your EV Charger Journey

Decide on an Electric Vehicle Home Charger Type 

Most electric vehicle home chargers fall into Level 1 or Level 2 charging. Here’s more information:

• Level 1 EV charging usually takes a day or two to fully charge an electric car. This is the slowest type of charging available.
• Level 2 EV charging can last during the overnight hours while you sleep. In a pinch, you can top off your car with this type of electric vehicle charging. Batteries don’t heat up as much with Level 2 charging compared to DC Fast Charging at a public station, meaning they will last longer. 

Ready Your Garage

If you haven’t cleaned out or organized your garage, now is the time to do that! Make sure that you get your garage ready for an EV before you take delivery! You may wish to clean out clutter first if your garage has been used as a storage space for a long time. You’ll need to figure out where to put the home charging box.

Find Your Power Panel & Assess Consumption

The power panel in your home distributes 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 electric vehicle charging station (or wall box) in your home. You do not want to overload your electric distribution panel.

Hire an Electrician

Next, hire an electrician. You can discuss any concerns you have about your power consumption and adding EV charging with that qualified professional. The electrician will install a dedicated 240-volt plug or add a hardwired circuit back to the power panel for your electric vehicle charging its batteries. Usually, this costs a few hundred dollars in labor, plus the costs of the wall box. But your costs 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. 

Buy Your Charger & Have it Installed

Mercedes-Benz highly recommends a ChargePoint Home Flex Level 2 charger. Once this home charging station comes in, have your qualified electrician install it.

Contact Mercedes-Benz of Centerville to Learn More!

Do you have additional questions or concerns about getting your Oakwood home ready for an electric vehicle? Contact us or call (937) 433-2698. We’re happy to help in any way we can! Meanwhile, look over our new vehicle specials to see if you could save any money on your purchase.