Latest news with #JuliaMcNally
2 days ago
- Automotive
Faster isn't always better. Slow-charging EVs could have big benefits
When Julia McNally decided to buy an EV and started her research, she came across a lot of articles and ads pushing an apparent must-have accessory — a speedy home charger designed specifically for EVs. Everything was pointing me to Level 2, recalled McNally, director of climate action at Toronto Hydro. She knew that all EVs can do Level 1 slow charging, or trickle charging, from a regular 120-volt wall outlet, adding about six kilometres of range per hour (except in very cold winter temperatures, which can slow charging speeds). And she already had an outlet of those in her backyard, near the alleyway where she planned to park her new Mini EV. But more than four out of five U.S. EV owners used Level 2 for home-charging in 2023, according to market research firm J.D. Power (new window) . Using a higher 240 voltage, often needed for a stove or dryer, Level 2 chargers can add about 30 to 50 kilometres of range per hour and refill a typical EV's entire 400-kilometre range overnight. Meanwhile, Level 3, or DC fast chargers, often installed along major highways, can add 250 kilometres of range per hour (some are even faster (new window) ) and charge a battery to 80 per cent in 30 minutes. Get more with a free CBC account Comment on articles, stay in the know with our newsletters and stream more on CBC Gem. Sign In (new window) Create a free account (new window) Why faster may not be better Some experts, such as Daniel Breton, CEO of Electric Mobility Canada, have argued people "really need" Level 2 chargers at home (new window) , as it can take days to charge an empty battery to full at Level 1. But most people don't drive the hundreds of kilometres needed to empty their battery each day — and there's a downside to faster charging. You're adding cost, McNally said — potentially thousands of dollars. Installing a Level 2 charger requires a licensed electrician, she said. In Toronto, it means consulting with Toronto Hydro and the Electrical Safety Authority. And homeowners often will need to increase the size of their electrical panel, adding additional costs. But it's something more Canadians may be thinking about soon, amid Canada's zero-emission vehicle mandate (new window) , requiring that 20 per cent of cars, vans and light trucks sold in Canada be electric, hybrid or hydrogen-powered cars by next year. The goal is to reach 100 per cent zero-emission vehicle sales by 2035. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre had vowed to scrap the target if elected (new window) , but with a Liberal re-election (new window) , the target still stands. WATCH | Can northern power grids handle electric vehicles and heat?: Début du widget Widget. Passer le widget ? Fin du widget Widget. Retourner au début du widget ? Can northern power grids handle electric vehicles and heat? Electric vehicles and electric heating are expected to put a strain on northern power grids. A new study out of Yukon University offers utilities some ways to fix that. The CBC's Liny Lamberink has more. Level 2 charging isn't just more expensive and logistically difficult for individual EV owners. In some Canadian communities, the aging electrical grid may not be able to handle too much Level 2 charging at once. For example, a recent Yukon University study found that if more northerners install Level 2 chargers and electric heating, that could cause problems for transformers (new window) — a key piece of equipment in local electricity distribution networks. At the time of the study, published last December, there were only 88 EVs in all of Yukon, and half of them were plug-in hybrids. Blake Shaffer, a University of Calgary associate professor, studied the situation in his community with local utility Enmax. He previously told CBC News (new window) that electricity distribution networks would need significant upgrades in order for all EV drivers to be able to charge at Level 2. That's where the real challenge of EVs comes about, he said, noting high costs for both individuals and electric utilities. McNally says Toronto Hydro has adequate capacity for whatever EVs and heat pumps come at us. She acknowledged, however, that in cases where someone does ask Toronto Hydro for extra capacity you need to pay for the upgrades. Meanwhile, Level 1 takes advantage of wall outlets that people often already have, including residents of apartments or condo buildings. In colder parts of Canada, many parking spaces have a plug intended for block heaters. (Although tenants may have to negotiate with their landlord to use it for charging (new window) .) WATCH | This electric vehicle owner says tenants who pay hydro should be able to plug in: Début du widget Widget. Passer le widget ? Fin du widget Widget. Retourner au début du widget ? This electric vehicle owner says tenants who pay hydro should be able to plug in Renters might find themselves in uncharted legal territory if their landlord wants to make them pay for charging their electric vehicles — even if electricity is included in their lease. Many people don't need Level 2 at home Living in Toronto, McNally doesn't drive 400 kilometres a day; typically, she only covers 600 kilometres in an entire month. So she knew that Level 1 charging was probably good enough for her needs. That's not unusual — even outside Canada's largest city. Shaffer studied the driving and parking habits of 129 EV drivers in Calgary from December 2021 to December 2022. (While that was during the tail end of the pandemic, Statistics Canada reports very similar commute times in Calgary in 2022 and 2024 (new window) .) The study found 29 per cent of drivers only ever needed Level 1 charging (new window) because they drove very little relative to the time they were parked. Another 53 per cent could use Level 1 most of the time, but might need to visit a public Level 2 or fast charging station up to once per month to top off their battery. WATCH | Canada needs more charging stations to hit EV targets: Début du widget Widget. Passer le widget ? Fin du widget Widget. Retourner au début du widget ? Canada needs more charging stations to hit EV targets Experts say Canada needs hundreds of thousands more charging stations to support electric vehicle targets, but it's unclear who's in charge of building them. The City of Vancouver estimates that the average driver can meet their daily driving needs in under four hours using a Level 1 charger and in about 45 minutes using a Level 2 charger (new window) . Either of those is plenty of time if people have a place to park and charge overnight. Level 1 can even work for drivers in rural communities. Rob van Adrichem lives in Prince George, B.C., and got an electric car this past summer. He only has Level 1 charging at home, but tops up at Level 2 chargers at the park or the library in town if he needs to. I'm finding Level 1 is no problem, he said. I think people get scared off on Level 2s because they think it's going to be thousands of dollars and I don't know that it's always necessary. Is it a tenant's right to charge an EV at their rental? (new window) Ali Mohazab is co-founder of a startup called Parkizio Technologies that helps people such as apartment dwellers access electricity for charging. He said people thinking about switching to an EV may imagine doing a variation of what they did with their gas car: driving to empty and then going to a gas station and filling the entire tank — something they're forced to do because they don't have a gas pump at their home. Mohazab said that gas mentality may not allow people to see that with an EV, every parking opportunity is a charging opportunity and it doesn't matter if you charge faster so your battery is full at 1 a.m. instead of 8 a.m. when you leave for work — you can just leave it plugged in overnight. He added, If you kind of look at your car as a, you know, cell phone with wheels, then it really makes sense. McNally has found that she doesn't even need to charge every day, even at Level 1. I charge about once a week, she said. Couldn't be easier. But how can you tell if Level 1 will be enough for you? Level 1 is probably enough for most people, Mohazab says, except those who drive all day for work, such as Uber drivers. McNally suggests this rule of thumb: If you drive less than 60 kilometres a day, you are probably just fine with the regular plug that is already at your house. She recommends that new EV owners start with Level 1 to keep things cheap and simple. Start there, see how it works, learn your patterns — and then if you really want Level 2, you can add that cost later. Emily Chung (new window) · CBC News
CBC
08-05-2025
- Automotive
- CBC
Who needs Level 2 EV charging? Drivers share their experiences
Social Sharing Many EV owners could have access to cheap and easy charging at home with an ordinary power outlet, we reported last week. That's called Level 1 charging. It adds about six kilometres of range per hour, and is typically cheaper and easier than installing a faster charger. But some people say they do need Level 2 charging, which uses a special charger and higher voltage to add 30 to 50 kilometres of range per hour. We heard from EV drivers across the country who shared their experiences. Here are things they suggest considering. How much you drive — and availability of public chargers Julia McNally, director of climate action at Toronto Hydro, had suggested Level 1 will probably work for someone who drives less than 60 kilometres per day. We heard from some readers who may commute less than that, but need Level 2 charging at home because they take long trips without EV infrastructure nearby. Marlon Hagerty, who lives outside Thunder Bay, Ont., commutes 22 kilometres to work each way. But he said his family often takes 400-kilometre round trips to the cottage. There's no public Level 2 or 3 charging on en route, so they need to fully charge their car before leaving. Waiting for his car to charge to full at Level 1 isn't practical, he wrote, but he added, "I think if there is great Level 3 [public fast-charging] infrastructure in the future, then yes, Level 1 at home should be less of an issue." WATCH | Electric vehicle owners struggle to find charging stations: Electric vehicle owners struggle to find charging stations 1 year ago Duration 2:06 The size of your EV or battery Just as larger gas-powered vehicles consume more gas per kilometre, larger EVs consume more electricity per kilometre. Louis-Guillaume Rigaud of Ottawa owns a Kia EV9, a larger SUV with three rows of seats, which he drives 50 kilometres per day. Even in ideal temperatures, he says, it took nine or 10 hours to fully charge with a Level 1 charger — and far longer when the temperatures were very cold or very hot. "My own experience in the first three months of ownership before I installed the Level 2 charger was that this wasn't sustainable and forced me to visit additional charging stations at much greater cost," he wrote. Your parking situation and the local climate Level 1 charging can get slow in low temperatures — something to consider if you live somewhere with cold winters and have outdoor parking. Jim Holtom lives in Kanata, Ont., in a 10-unit condo building with Level 1 charging. "It works fine [even in winter] because the indoor parking is heated," he said. But his cottage near Lindsay, Ont., also only has Level 1 charging, and he parks outdoors. That's OK for 10 months of the year, he said. "But in January to February, Level 1 charging can struggle.…The battery must be sufficiently warm to be charged. Most of the Level 1 charge current goes to heating the battery." He estimates cold temperatures can cut Level 1 charging speed down to 1.5 to three kilometres of added range per hour of charging or even close to nothing, if it's cold enough. "I can confirm that when evening temperatures dip to -20C, you can pretty much give up on charging using L1.... Level 2 chargers provide more power so that more power is available to heat the battery," he said. "A Level 2 charger can keep a car parked outside fully charged all year long." WATCH | Do EVs lose more range in the winter than gas vehicles?: Do EVs lose more range in the winter than gas vehicles? 3 years ago Duration 2:05 Time-of-use electricity rates Some regions have cheaper electricity rates at certain times — usually late at night. For example, Ontario residents on the "ultra-low overnight" rate are charged 2.8 cents/kWh of power between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m., compared to 28.4 cents/kWh between 4 p.m. and 9 p.m. Some readers who drive longer distances said this helps a Level 2 charger pay off, since they can't fully charge within the low-rate window with a Level 1. Brandon Pinkney of Gads Hill, Ont., wrote that he drives about 60 to 100 kilometres per day, and thinks he could get by with Level 1 charging if he started using it earlier at a higher electricity rate. But a Level 2 charger lets him start at 11 p.m. and still be fully charged in the morning. "This roughly results in 1/3 the energy cost vs Level 1, and will fully pay for my Level 2 charger and install within a year or two of ownership," he wrote. What to take from this? Consider how much you drive, whether you have indoor or outdoor parking, the size of your vehicle and local electricity rates when deciding if you need a Level 2 charger.
CBC
01-05-2025
- Automotive
- CBC
Faster isn't always better. Slow-charging EVs could have big benefits
Social Sharing When Julia McNally decided to buy an EV and started her research, she came across a lot of articles and ads pushing an apparent must-have accessory — a speedy home charger designed specifically for EVs. "Everything was pointing me to Level 2," recalled McNally, director of climate action at Toronto Hydro. She knew that all EVs can do Level 1 slow charging, or "trickle charging," from a regular 120-volt wall outlet, adding about six kilometres of range per hour. And she already had one of those in her backyard, near the alleyway where she planned to park her new Mini EV. But more than four out of five U.S. EV owners used Level 2 for home-charging in 2023, according to market research firm J.D. Power. Using a higher 240 voltage, often needed for a stove or dryer, Level 2 chargers can add about 30 to 50 kilometres of range per hour and refill a typical EV's entire 400-kilometre range overnight. Meanwhile, Level 3, or DC fast chargers, often installed along major highways, can add up to 250 kilometres of range per hour and charge a battery to 80 per cent in 30 minutes. Why faster may not be better Some experts, such as Daniel Breton, CEO of Electric Mobility Canada, have argued people "really need" Level 2 chargers at home, as it can take days to charge an empty battery to full at Level 1. But most people don't drive the hundreds of kilometres needed to empty their battery each day — and there's a downside to faster charging. "You're adding cost," McNally said — potentially thousands of dollars. Installing a Level 2 charger requires a licensed electrician, she said. In Toronto, it means consulting with Toronto Hydro and the Electrical Safety Authority. And homeowners often will need to increase the size of their electrical panel, adding additional costs. But it's something more Canadians may be thinking about soon, amid Canada's zero-emission vehicle mandate, requiring that 20 per cent of cars, vans and light trucks sold in Canada be electric, hybrid or hydrogen-powered cars by next year. The goal is to reach 100 per cent zero-emission vehicle sales by 2035. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre had vowed to scrap the target if elected, but with a Liberal re-election, the target still stands. WATCH | Can northern power grids handle electric vehicles and heat?: Can northern power grids handle electric vehicles and heat? 5 months ago Duration 2:33 Level 2 charging isn't just more expensive and logistically difficult for individual EV owners. In some Canadian communities, the aging electrical grid may not be able to handle too much Level 2 charging at once. For example, a recent Yukon University study found that if more northerners install Level 2 chargers and electric heating, that could cause problems for transformers — a key piece of equipment in local electricity distribution networks. At the time of the study, published last December, there were only 88 EVs in all of Yukon, and half of them were plug-in hybrids. Blake Shaffer, a University of Calgary associate professor, studied the situation in his community with local utility Enmax. He previously told CBC News that electricity distribution networks would need "significant" upgrades in order for all EV drivers to be able to charge at Level 2. "That's where the real challenge of EVs comes about," he said, noting high costs for both individuals and electric utilities. McNally says Toronto Hydro has adequate capacity for "whatever EVs and heat pumps come at us." She acknowledged, however, that in cases where someone does ask Toronto Hydro for extra capacity "you need to pay for the upgrades." Meanwhile, Level 1 takes advantage of wall outlets that people often already have, including residents of apartments or condo buildings. In colder parts of Canada, many parking spaces have a plug intended for block heaters. (Although tenants may have to negotiate with their landlord to use it for charging.) WATCH | This electric vehicle owner says tenants who pay hydro should be able to plug in: 6 months ago Duration 3:25 Renters might find themselves in uncharted legal territory if their landlord wants to make them pay for charging their electric vehicles — even if electricity is included in their lease. Many people don't need Level 2 at home Living in Toronto, McNally doesn't drive 400 kilometres a day; typically, she only covers 600 kilometres in an entire month. So she knew that Level 1 charging was probably good enough for her needs. That's not unusual — even outside Canada's largest city. Shaffer studied the driving and parking habits of 129 EV drivers in Calgary from December 2021 to December 2022. (While that was during the tail end of the pandemic, Statistics Canada reports very similar commute times in Calgary in 2022 and 2024.) The study found 29 per cent of drivers only ever needed Level 1 charging because they drove very little relative to the time they were parked. Another 53 per cent could use Level 1 most of the time, but might need to visit a public Level 2 or fast charging station up to once per month to top off their battery. WATCH | Canada needs more charging stations to hit EV targets: Canada needs more charging stations to hit EV targets 1 year ago Duration 1:59 The City of Vancouver estimates that the average driver can meet their daily driving needs in under four hours using a Level 1 charger and in about 45 minutes using a Level 2 charger. Either of those is plenty of time if people have a place to park and charge overnight. Level 1 can even work for drivers in rural communities. Rob van Adrichem lives in Prince George, B.C., and got an electric car this past summer. He only has Level 1 charging at home, but tops up at Level 2 chargers at the park or the library in town if he needs to. "I'm finding Level 1 is no problem," he said. "I think people get scared off on Level 2s because they think it's going to be thousands of dollars and I don't know that it's always necessary." Ali Mohazab is co-founder of a startup called Parkizio Technologies that helps people such as apartment dwellers access electricity for charging. He said people thinking about switching to an EV may imagine doing a variation of what they did with their gas car: driving to empty and then going to a gas station and filling the entire tank — something they're forced to do because they don't have a gas pump at their home. Mohazab said that "gas mentality" may not allow people to see that with an EV, "every parking opportunity is a charging opportunity" and it doesn't matter if you charge faster so your battery is full at 1 a.m. instead of 8 a.m. when you leave for work — you can just leave it plugged in overnight. He added, "If you kind of look at your car as a, you know, cell phone with wheels, then it really makes sense." McNally has found that she doesn't even need to charge every day, even at Level 1. "I charge about once a week," she said. "Couldn't be easier." But how can you tell if Level 1 will be enough for you? Level 1 is probably enough for most people, Mohazab says, except those who drive all day for work, such as Uber drivers. McNally suggests this rule of thumb: "If you drive less than 60 kilometres a day, you are probably just fine with the regular plug that is already at your house." She recommends that new EV owners start with Level 1 to keep things cheap and simple. "Start there, see how it works, learn your patterns — and then if you really want Level 2, you can add that cost later."
