FAQ - General

All EVs can plug into a regular 120V electrical receptacle, as found in virtually all homes and businesses.  This is often referred to as ‘Level 1’ charging.  No charger is required for this, virtually all EVs have the required voltage and current conversion for this built into the car.  The trouble is, the amount of electricity that can be delivered through these standard receptacles is relatively small, and the car will take a long time to charge…think in terms of charging at a rate of about 5 to 8 kms of range, per hour.
 
Using a 240V connection (often called ‘Level 2’ charging) instead (like a clothes dryer or electric stove), is at least three times faster (about 15 to 30 kms of range per hour), but a charging station (or ‘EV charger’) is required, in order to charge the EV at this voltage.
 
For most EV owners, the convenience of being able to add range more quickly, or completely charge overnight, is well worth the cost of installing a ‘Level 2’ EV charging solution … indeed for many EV drivers, it is simply necessary in order to get full utility out of the vehicle.

GROK EV Charger Services has an unparalleled team of sustainability experts and charging gurus to craft the perfect solution for your home or business. No matter how complicated your EV charging installation is, we can help.

• We offer the best service, and we proudly stand behind our work with a 3-year installation warranty. All work is done by licensed Red Seal Journeyman Electricians, who have been trained to properly install electric vehicle charging stations.
• We feature electric vehicle chargers from the top manufacturers.
• We work with all size jobs, and our prices are competitive.
• We plant a tree for each EV charger we install!
• We provide a complimentary membership to your local EV owners club.
• Finally, we are EV charging experts and will help you get the right charging solution for your needs.

Contact us today to get any additional questions answered and to let us help you select the right EV charging solution, for your home or public access space.

We’re thorough and fast, and we make everything easy. We’ll have a brief phone call with you to answer any questions and set up an appointment to look at your installation needs.

For residential installations the appointment at your home usually takes about 1/2 an hour, and within 24 hours we’ll generally send you your free quote.

If it’s a complex installation (such as multi-chargers in a commercial setting) this process may take longer as it will generally involve coordination with various people and departments, but we do everything to provide fast and reliable service that will deliver for you, both now and in the future.

Home installation will typically take a few hours, and following installation, the meeting with the inspector(s) will generally take about 1/2 an hour or less during the 3-hour window typically given by inspectors for the inspection.  Commercial installation will generally require more time.

Contact us today to get any additional questions answered and to let us help you select the right EV charging solution, for your home or public access space.

Absolutely!  We are happy to sell you the EV charger by itself.

Contact us today to get any additional questions answered and to let us help you select the right EV charging solution, for your home or public access space.

YES!  As long as your EV charging solution has been professionally designed and installed by properly trained Red Seal Journeyman Electricians (such as the GROK team), then you can be confident all electrical and structural safety requirements have been met, resulting in a safe and durable charging solution.
 
If you have any doubts about the qualifications of your EV charging solution designer or installer, then there is a chance you may end up with an unsafe situation.  We strongly recommend you only engage professionals with specific training and experience related to installing EV charging solutions, to ensure the safety of everyone.

BEVs (battery electric vehicles) run entirely on electricity stored in batteries and are recharged by plugging in at home, work or a public location. Full function BEVs are freeway capable with an operating range of 60+ miles, and generally take 6-8 hours to recharge at 220-volt power.

PHEVs (plug-in hybrid electric vehicles) run on a combination of electricity and gasoline, and have the ability to be plugged in for a charge. Their all-electric range varies by model, but generally is about 10-40 miles before the vehicle begins to operate like a regular hybrid. PHEVs are attractive because they are capable of all-electric short distance trips as well as long distance driving in regular hybrid mode.
 
Both types of vehicles can usually use Level 1 (slower, no charger required) or Level 2 (faster, charger required) charging options.

‘EVSE’ stands for ‘electric vehicle service equipment’, also informally called a ‘Level 2’ charging station. They use a 240-volt outlet. All come with the same “J connector” that allow almost all plug-in electric vehicles to connect to any charging station.

How long will it take to charge my car?

Charging speed depends on numerous factors, including:

1. State of charge when charging begins
2. Type of charger (Level 1, 2 or 3)
3. Size of EV battery

As a general rule of thumb, you can expect to gain 5 to 8 kms of range per hour from a ‘Level 1’ charger, 10 to 30 kms of range per hour from a ‘Level 2’ charger, and 70 to 200 kms of range per hour from a ‘Level 3’ DC fast charger.

The reason for the variability is because the first part of the charge (when the battery is low) happens relatively quickly, while the last 20% takes longer.

For most EV drivers, fully recharging at home overnight with a ‘Level 2’ charger is easily accomplished.

Of course this will vary, depending on how discharged the car is when you plug it in, how large the battery is, and your local electrical rates at the time of charging.
 
As an example, if you have an EV that needs 50kW put into the battery in order for it to reach full charge, and if your local electrical rate is $0.10 per kWh, it will cost 50 x $0.10 = $5.00 to fully recharge the EV.
 
Most EVs can travel about 250 – 300kms using 50 kWh, or about $5.00 worth of electricity, using the above example.

Very little. Despite being an advanced technology, electric cars are remarkably simple to maintain.

 The same is true for EV charging stations.  If installed properly and built modularly, every piece of the mechanism can be easily replaced.

‘Smart’ charging stations with online connectivity also enable remote diagnostics and repair, so you won’t be left stranded in the rare event of charger malfunction.

A “dumb” charging station just charges the car, period. And for some owners, that’s all they care about. 

A smart charging station has the ability to connect to WiFi or your smart phone and allow the owner to monitor their charging, check the power being delivered, review statistics from past charging sessions and more. This allows the owner to see exactly how much energy the car is using, so they can calculate how much the car costs to power. Without this feature, an EV owner can only guess how much the car is costing them to charge.

Some smart chargers can perform other tasks, like connecting to Amazon Alexa for voice-control of your charging, communicating with your utility so you can charge your car when the electricity provided is the “greenest” available (or cheapest, in regions with time-of-use rates), and even load-share so you can have two chargers on one dedicated circuit. Some smart chargers also permit remote diagnostics to notify you if there is a failure, and indicate what the issue may be. 

If you want options like these, or you’re kind of a data-geek, you’ll definitely want a smart charging station.