What every new EV owner should know
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Some terms every electric vehicle owner should know
If you are new to the world of EV’s it can be a bit bewildering, you have a whole dictionary of words and acronyms you need to become familiar with. The purpose of this post is to list a some of the most common terms that will come up time and time again including on our site. I hope this helps you to better understand the world of EV technology.
AC Charger or Wall box
This refers to those charging device that are most often installed at home drawing power from your home supply. Your EV’s onboard charger will convert the AC energy to DC and charge up the EV battery. AC Chargers are typically classified as Level 1 (120 volts AC) and/or Level 2 (240 volts, AC) which means you can connect them to your standard NEMA 5-15R, NEMA 6-20R or NEMA 14-50R sockets. In a seperate section we have listed some of the most popular Level 1 and Level 2 AC wall box chargers.
DC charger or public charger
All of these terms refer to the same thing a charging unit installed in a public place such as a gas station or hotel or parking lot that can charge your EV battery usually more quickly than an AC wall box charger you have at home. This is referred to as Level 3 charging or DC fast charging. Public chargers are not free, you pay for their use and the cost of charging. The costs can vary depending on the charger so make sure your understand the cost before you connect and use public chargers. DC chargers are often called fast chargers as they can deliver 480 Volts and sometime even higher to your vehicle to significantly speed up charging.
Here is a table to show you the general differences in charging times depending on the charging type you are using.
Level 1 Charging | Level 2 Charging | Level 3 Charging |
Charging Voltage 120V | Charging Voltage 208V-240V | Charging Voltage 200-450V |
Power Output 1-1.8kW | Power Output 3-22kW | Power Output 30-360kW |
Miles per Hour 3-7 miles | Miles per Hour 10-75 miles | Miles per Hour 120-1400 miles |
Hours to Fully Charged 22-40 hours | Hours to Fully Charged 2-13 hours | Hours to Fully Charged 15min-1.5 hours |
Residential charging  | Residential / Public charging  | DC Fast Charging  |
Charging networks
Refers to companies that install charging units throughout the country in public spaces where you can drive your vehicle for charging. ChargePoint, Electrify America and Telsa Supercharger are some of the largest charging network providers in the US today. To find a local public charger smartphone apps like PlugShare present you with a map of all available charging stations in your area including Telsa Superchargers. There are various filters and options you can use to select the best and cheapest public charging option available to you.
EVSE
Electric vehicle supply equipment (EVSE) is another word for electric vehicle chargers both AC wall boxes and public high powered public DC chargers for your Electric Vehicle (EV).
J1772
Often called a J-Plug this is the standard AC charging connector in North America. It is present on virtually all EVs sold in the US. J1772 supports Level 1 and Level 2 charging and is suitable for home and public charging equipment. While charging with the J1772 connector is slower than using a DC fast charger, it is by far the most common and affordable charging connector used today.
CSS1
An emerging charging connector for new EV models, the combined charging system (CSS) or combo charging power allows all EV charging levels through one port. This connector type has the basic J1172 port on top and an additional plug-in component below. This means this single charging connector can connect to your AC charger for Level 1 or Level 2 charging in addition you can connect your EV via the CSS1 high powered DC charger to access Level3, (DC) fast charging.
NACS
Another charging connector type, it stands for the North American Charging Standard, it is Tesla’s proprietary charging connector and port: It is a unique design that combines Level 1 / Level 2 AC and Level 3 DC charging in one plug and supports up to 1 Mega Watt of power which is quite a lot of charging power. This connector offered several advantages, such as being smaller and more powerful than other commonly used connectors however, it is proprietary, meaning only Tesla vehicles currently can benefit from it.
Some additional resources you might find useful include:
