5 Steps to Preparing for an Electric Vehicle Home Charger

When you’re ready to get a taste of the BMW electric performance, you will need to prepare your home for an electric vehicle near St Louis first. Get your electric vehicle charging station all set up in just 5 steps when you follow BMW of West St Louis’s guide below! Get started now, so you can enjoy the thrill of an electric car on the Ballwin roads.

1. Decide on a Charging Type (AKA Charging Level)

Most home car charging systems are either Level 1 or Level 2. Learn a bit more before deciding which one you should get for your garage:

• Level 1 EV charging often takes days to fully charge an electric car.
• Level 2 EV charging often takes several hours to fully charge an electric car. You can often get between 60-200 miles of range in just 20-30 minutes with Level 2 DC charging, though. For this reason, most people intermix daytime “top-off” charging with overnight charging.

2. Ready Your Garage

Clean out your garage and get everything organized. Make sure there’s space for the electric vehicle charging station before you take delivery! That way, when it’s delivered, you can install it and use it as soon as possible.

3. 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 the amperage rating will be printed on your main circuit breaker.

Find out how much electrical energy you consistently use in your Ladue house by performing a self-assessment of your electricity use before you install an EV charging system. You do not want to overload your electric distribution panel.

4. Hire an Electrician

Next, hire an electrician. You can discuss any concerns you have about your power consumption and adding EV charging. You can also have them install a dedicated 240-volt plug or add a hardwired circuit back to the power panel. This tends to cost a couple of hundred dollars but 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.

5. Buy Your Charger & Have it Installed

Purchased your EV charger and once it arrives, have a professional electrician install it for you.

Contact BMW of West St Louis to Learn More!

Feel free to learn more about your options when it comes to BMW electric vs. hybrid models. If you choose one of the plug-in hybrid models available, you will still need to set up a home charging station in Manchester. Contact us for more information!