Here's The Difference Between Level 1 And Level 2 Charging in Electric Cars

When you buy an electric car, the best way to ensure that it will always be juiced up when you need it is by installing a home charging station. And while most EV manufacturers offer you the choice to install it wherever you want, it gets confusing when they ask which one among the two options you wish to install at your place - Level 1 or Level 2. Today, we're going to dispel all your confusion and doubts about this topic by telling you the exact difference between Level 1 and Level 2 charging that's offered mainly in the US.

What's a Level 1 charger?

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Using a Level 1 charger is a slower method of charging your electric car. It's hence also the cheaper choice between the two. However, an advantage is that it fits into the normal 120V electrical outlet that's present in US homes. That means it's a simple wall outlet with a cable that connects to your battery and charges it whenever you want. A Level 1 charger can typically deliver just 1.4kW of power. Using such a charger leads to an average battery getting 7.2kms of range every hour. That means a typical battery will take around 20 hours to get charged fully. You will have no other option than to keep the car battery on charging for the entire night to ensure that it's always topped up.

What's a Level 2 charger?

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A Level 2 charger is a much bigger apparatus. Moreover, it needs to be professionally installed at your place of dwelling. This extra effort will net you huge benefits as well. Level 2 chargers are 240V in nature and can deliver 6.2 to 7.6kW of power. This translates to incredibly fast charging speeds. You can extract an average of 51kms of range through just one hour of charging. Considering a regular-sized battery of an EV, it will be fully charged in about 4 to 8 hours thanks to a Level 2 charger.

Which one is right for you?

It all depends on the kind of usage you put your electric car through. If you use it for daily commutes to work that won't burn much of your battery life, you will most probably manage multiple commutes on a single charge. In such a case, having a Level 1 charger can suffice as you can keep topping up its charge to ensure that you don't run out of juice. Or you can simply, charge your car over the weekend when it's not in use.

But if your lifestyle involves going on unexpected long trips, you better opt for a Level 2 charger. Imagine finding out that you need to leave for a faraway destination in a few hours and there are no charging stations on your way there. That's where a Level 2 charger will come in handy, allowing you to quickly top up your battery before you leave.

Now that you know the difference between Level 1 and Level 2 charging, you can make your choices accordingly.