Notes

EV Charging Stations For The New Generation of Electric Automobiles
In the start, arranging for the charging station installation will undoubtedly be area of the purchasing procedure for buying your first Electric Vehicle (EV). All approved chargers by the many manufacturers will undoubtedly be compliant with SAE J1772 standards for electric vehicles and electrical connectors.

You won't manage to buy the car unless you are willing to install a charging station your house. Consumers who buy the Nissan Leaf will undoubtedly be necessary to use their exclusive contractor, AeroVironment, for installing the home chargers. They may be able to install their very own charging equipment if they sign a waiver.

The Chevy Volt will come standard with a 110 volt charger that may enable you to charge directly out of your home wall outlet. For Volt customers who prefer to have a 240 V rapid charger installed, SPX service solutions may be the exclusive contractor for the installation of their rapid charging station.

There is a big difference in the vehicles range because of the size of their battery packs. Chevrolet considers the Volt to become a hybrid vehicle that may be plugged in. GM describes the car being an extended range EV (electric vehicle) with a smaller battery. The LEAF is strictly electric with a much bigger battery pack that is 2-3 times the size of the Volts. The Chevy Volts 16kwh battery will most likely only ever use 8 kw of it. The Leaf will include a 24 KWh battery, but will most likely need to use 80-90% so as to increase the battery life. To be able to fully charge the LEAF, it will need to be plugged into a 110v outlet for the whole day. It is expected that the cost to install a Level II home charging unit will run about $2,200.

Because the Nissan LEAF and Chevy Volt are anticipated to be the first cars that will require the installation of a Level 2 home charger until 2012, it is expected that the demand for home charging units will remain low, unless a surprising amount of first owners choose to have the rapid chargers professionally installed.

Now there are a number of companies entering the charging station market. AeroVironment was the initial company to devote itself to developing and building Level II home charging units. https://xovacharging.com/ won the contract from Nissan was probably since they were the first one with something to offer. The majority of the other companies which are developing and building charging stations focused on industrial units for commercial and municipal installations. However that is changing as the first mass market electric vehicles are finally ready to launch.

Below are the existing companies that manufacture Electric Vehicle Charging Stations

ECOtality- ETec

Now called ECOtality THE UNITED STATES, ECOtality has been producing electric charging stations for quite a while. Industrial equipment such as for example forklifts purchased electric charging technology for some time. They will have used their experience to advertise the Minit-Charger for both residential and commercial charging applications. The EV Project that is managed by ECOtalty is seeking to install a large number of charging stations over the next year in the 5 states where the EV's will first be released. ECOtality also installs stations created by other manufacturers. ECOtality builds both level I and level II chargers but will not make fast DC charging equipment. ECOtality has introduced a new line of commercial and home Level II charging stations. It really is believed that the brand new stations-designed by global industrial design firm, frog design-will help update their conservative image.

SPX

SPX has been selected by Chevrolet to function as exclusive service provider for the purchase and installing the Chevy Volt 240 Volt rapid home charger. SPX will facilitate every part of the purchase and installation of the rapid chargers that may charge the Volt in approximately 4 hours. The SPX team will advise homeowners on the requirements to upgrade their electrical service to accommodate the house charging system and can even assist them in taking the necessary steps to qualify for reduced electric utility rates.

AeroVironment

AeroVironment was chosen to function as exclusive home charging installation contractor for the Nissan LEAF. Despite the fact that AeroVironment is mostly known for residential installations, they are mostly of the companies that sell both Level II and fast charging DC chargers for commercial use. AeroVironment is a more developed company that developed unmanned aircraft for the military for several years. The company was in charge of the charger for the Impact, the precursor to the GM EV1 built in the 1990's. They also developed the charging stations for the EV1, so it is only natural that they would manufacture the new versions of charging stations.

Coulomb Technologies

Coulomb technologies is one of the better known EV charging manufacturers. Coulomb is rapidly building out their membership Charge Point network that may allow their members to pull up to some of their stations and begin charging immediately. Currently almost all of the 300 stations they will have installed are Level I, nonetheless they have now begun installing Level II chargers aswell.

Clipper Creek

A less popular company, Clipper Creek has been selling chargers for many years. The design of their equipment is not as modern and sleek as some of the newer styles. Their chargers are geared more towards fleet installation instead of residential or businesses. Clipper Creek has made it popular that their products could be installed anywhere. They handle the house charging installations for the Tesla Roadster. These charging stations are meant for Level II charging only and can be found in a number of configurations to meet their customers' needs.

General Electric

The newest entrant in the EV charging station market is GE. They just introduced their new Watt Station charger. The initial release is intended primarily for commercial installations, but you can find plans to introduce a residential version later this season. The Watt Station is well known because of its attractive design. Legendary designer Yves Behar may be the genius behind the sleek design of the Watt Station. It is also the initial model that incorporates Wi-Fi smart technology.

PEP Stations

A little known company called PEP has begun dealing with Ford to create rugged robust charging stations that can handle rough usage. These units are architectural in design with a concrete base and stainless steel top. These units are primarily marketed to commercial and municipal installations. This obscure company does not have any background, so their quality remains to be seen. The designers used top quality automotive grade components, so that they are built to be robust.

Better Place

Better Place is well known for battery switching techniques. They will have now begun installation of vehicle charging stations in Israel and Denmark. Up to now they don't really have any plans to market their units for residential use. We mention them here because they may change their technique to offer residential charging options.

Leviton

Leviton is really a huge and popular electrical supply company. They're along established company with a lot of service technicians. Leviton is including a 10 year guarantee on the "Evr-green" home and commercial charging stations. The Leviton Evr-Green charging stations can support both Level I and Level II charging and will integrate with Charge Point charging stations. Leviton in addition has introduced a standard installation method this is the industry's first pre-wired plug in system for his or her Level II chargers. This system will enable consumers to create their homes "plug in ready" before they purchase any electric car. This prewired system has a starting price of significantly less than $200, not including installation and is intended to lower installation costs and reduce installation times. The prewired kits must be installed by an installer certified by Leviton, but after the system has been installed, the Level II charging station can later be easily added by the buyer.
Website: https://xovacharging.com/