There are currently nearly 1.5 million electric vehicles in the United States. Millions of owners of these vehicles require finding EV charging stations near them. In this regard, there are different EV charging apps that allow them to find these charging stations more conveniently.
Purchases of electric vehicles are on the rise. According to the Edison Electric Institute, between 2017 and 2018, that growth was more than 80%. Hand in hand with this demand comes the need for more chargers, and that’s when these EV charging apps are born.
Tips for understanding how electric vehicle charging works
It’s not easy for people who’re used to recharging their cars with gasoline to understand how to refuel an EV. Here you’ll find all the key information you need to understand what an EV charger is and how to find the nearest one.
These are the words and terms you must understand:
- It’s the rate at which a charging station’s power is measured. More kW equals faster charging.
- It’s the electric vehicle’s battery capacity. To understand how much time is needed to recharge a certain battery, you need to divide the battery’s capacity by power. So, kWh/kW.
You may be wondering, “okay… but what about the actual chargers? What are the differences between them?”.
The first thing you must acknowledge is that not every EV can get its batteries refilled with any charger. It’ll always depend on the type of electric vehicle you’ve bought. Now, here’s a brief explanation of each of the existing EV chargers on the market:
Level 1 charger
All EVs can get charged with a Level 1 charger. It can get plugged into any standard 120-V outlet. Yes, like the one you’ve got at home! Almost every EV bought comes with one of these chargers.
Its power rating is 2.4 kW; it recharges most EV batteries to 100% in 24 hours.
Tip: most drivers don’t let their EV’s battery go under 30 or 40%, so this type of charger works okay for those people.
Level 2 charger
It runs at 240-V. Since it’s usually permanently wired, you need space to have one of these at home.
Level 2 chargers are compatible with any EV that has a J-plug installed, and they’re mostly seen in public EV charging stations and top out at 12 kW.
L2 recharges a standard EV battery to 100% in around 8 hours.
Level 3 chargers (DCFC)
DCFC stands for “Direct Current Fast Charger.” They charge an EV battery directly, unlike L1 and L2 chargers. L3 runs on 480-V or 1000-V, depending on the brand.
They require a lot of space to install them. That’s why they’re found in public charging stations, typically around highways.
It’s the fastest on the market and starts on 50 kW up to 400 kW. A standard EV battery can get refueled to 80% in less than 60 minutes.
The best app you must know if you drive an EV
If you are planning to own an Electric Vehicle, it is important to know the services that many companies have to offer. For example, EVCS is one of the most distinguished in the area and has an app that lets you find the nearest EV charging station.
Besides the app, EVCS offers a subscription plan that lets you recharge your EV as many times as needed in one month.
Another thing to have in mind is that they also own lots of the chargers offered, for example, in the West Coast Electric Highway. It’s one of the best EV charging apps since it lets you search by address or zip code, and remembers your payment methods.
