New EV owner - how to deal with charging multiple EVs at home?

[BeeBee]

Hey all EV noobie here!

Me and my husband have 2x MachE's on order, and we're looking at which home charger we want. Do we need to buy more than one charger to support 2 EVs?
Thanks for the help!

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[Pioneer74]

If both need to be charged at the same time you'll need 2 chargers. If you can rotate between the two, buy 1.

Get one rated for 48 amps on a hardwired 60 amp circuit if you rotate between the 2.

 

[bshaw]

Grizzl-e Duo -- one charger with two cables.
https://grizzl-e.com/product/usa/duo/grizzl-e-duo/

If you are installing a new electrical run, consider putting the outlet and charger on the ceiling of your 2-car garage.

 

[glenthompson]

A lot more at issue here. If you're subject to time of use rates, having two chargers lets you charge both during low price periods. If not, then a single charger might suffice depending on schedules and distances driven. Would it be enough to charge one car one evening and the other the next? Depending on where we drive I only charge every 3 to 4 days. Is your electrical panel capable of supporting two chargers?

 

[dmastro]

We have three EVs at home and take turns charging with no issues.

 

[Garbone]

We have 2 cars but one charger. We drive between 1k and 2k a month combined so one charger works well enough. We usually just charge on weekends.

One thing we have to deal with is our house is old and has a long narrow driveway so we have to park nose to tail. I put a rubber speed bump at the optimal stop location for the forward car so the charge cable can reach either cars port. Our Emporias 24 foot cable is nice.

 

[fg78nc]

We have three EVs at home and take turns charging with no issues.

agree, have 4 and one charger is sufficient.

 

[MachLovin]

Hey all EV noobie here!

Me and my husband have 2x MachE's on order, and we're looking at which home charger we want. Do we need to buy more than one charger to support 2 EVs?
Thanks for the help!

Even before deciding a charger.. or multiple chargers, probably best to have an electrician take a look at your panel and determine what it can support. For example, you may have a 100amp electrical panel, and only enough room and amps to support 1 charger. You may have a larger panel.. just throwing out an average number... Where i live houses built years ago had much smaller panels than the ones they install in new builds. Also, if both of you are not commuters and both drive long distances each day, I don't 'see why you would need 2.

Hope this helps. =)

 

[bp99]

We have two EVs. Rarely do both need to be charged on the same day. We just share the single charger and don't do the plugin in every day thing. Just as needed about 1-2 times a week per car. Having a 48A charger does help though. on the few occasions we've both needed to charge, the faster rate helps get enough charge on one before bed time to swap to the other.

 

[RickMachE]

We have 2 cars but one charger. We drive between 1k and 2k a month combined so one charger works well enough. We usually just charge on weekends.

One thing we have to deal with is our house is old and has a long narrow driveway so we have to park nose to tail. I put a rubber speed bump at the optimal stop location for the forward car so the charge cable can reach either cars port. Our Emporias 24 foot cable is nice.

agree, have 4 and one charger is sufficient.

We have two EVs. Rarely do both need to be charged on the same day. We just share the single charger and don't do the plugin in every day thing. Just as needed about 1-2 times a week per car. Having a 48A charger does help though. on the few occasions we've both needed to charge, the faster rate helps get enough charge on one before bed time to swap to the other.

I park my vehicles in a garage. Moving them around to charge would piss me off.

 

[RickMachE]

Hey all EV noobie here!

Me and my husband have 2x MachE's on order, and we're looking at which home charger we want. Do we need to buy more than one charger to support 2 EVs?
Thanks for the help!

First, check with your electric utility. Some sell discounted chargers. Some provide rebates.

I have two EVs, and two chargers that share a circuit.

1) I bought two Juicebox 48 chargers. Roughly $650 each.

2) My electrician wired ONE 60amp circuit.

3) The JB software includes LOAD SHARING, basically balances the demand as you see fit. Equal, or give Bob's car more because he drives more per day.

4) My utility company provided two $500 rebates, so my net cost for chargers is now $300.

5) My electrician charged $1,200, so my out of pocket cost is $1,500.

6) Federal Government provides a 30% tax credit, reducing that $1,500 to $1,050. In other words, the chargers really cost me $210 total.

 

[bp99]

I park my vehicles in a garage. Moving them around to charge would piss me off.

I have no issues with charging either car on their own sides with a 23' charging cable.

 

[TheVirtualTim]

I own two Mach-E's ... BUT ... my electric utility offers a special plan for EV charging which gives me the best rate *if* I install a 2nd electric meter dedicated to EV charging. But that means I also have a 2nd service panel. It's 125 amp service. This means I can charge two cars at 48 amps simultaneously. But my situtation is probably not very common.

HOWEVER ...

There are several chargers on the market that use WiFi to communicate and can do "power sharing".

Wallbox Pulsar Plus
EnelX JuiceBox
Clipper Creek

You can install multiple chargers on the SAME circuit. E.g. suppose you have a single 40 amp or 48 amp circuit. When you connect a car, the charger checks to see if any other charger is currently charging. If NOT then you get the FULL capacity of the ciruit. But if another charger IS in use it will tell the other charger to cut the charger rate (e.g. to half) and start charging the newly connected car also at half -- so you don't overload the circuit.

As soon as one of the cars completes charging, it notifies the other charger that it can have full capacity of the circuit.

Not ALL WiFi connected smart-chargers do this. For example, I have a ChargePoint Home Flex ... it doesn't support this. It's really just a software feature ... there's no reason they couldn't implement a software upgrade to make this possible ... but so far only a few charger brands do this.

 

[RickMachE]

I have no issues with charging either car on their own sides with a 23' charging cable.

I would have no issue on cable reach. However, the Lightning fills the bay completely. You cannot walk around it without opening the garage door. To pass the cable over it, you'd have to hang it from the ceiling and have a way to get it across the bays.

I thought about it for 10 seconds, and said "for an additional ~$95 (cost of 2nd charger and 2 connectors), what the hell am I doing?"

 

[BeeBee]

If you are installing a new electrical run, consider putting the outlet and charger on the ceiling of your 2-car garage.

I love this idea! I hadn't thought to install the outlet and charger anywhere other than the wall, but this might work nicely for us.

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