What is EV charger load sharing and why all property owners should know about it
All properties, whether they’re a house, office building, apartment, or large commercial complex, have a maximum limit of electricity or electrical load they can access from their utility’s infrastructure. Property owners must balance all the major electrical systems within their property to make sure they do not exceed that limit, risking blowing fuses and losing power. These electrical systems include things like elevators, security systems, major appliances, as well as the daily electrical needs of residents and tenants plugging into outlets. All these electrical demands add up and with EV ownership rising quicker than ever, property owners are turning to companies like Chargie for load sharing capabilities to ensure their electrical load is optimized.
What is EV Charger Load Sharing?
EV charger load sharing or load management technology regulates the power outputs of EV charging stations, ensuring the electrical load limitations are never exceeded. As chargers start to get used, Chargie’s load management software automatically calculates and distributes power across the active charging stations to avoid exceeding load maximums. The example below shows how this typically works at properties.
Example:
Each Level 2 charger shown below can provide up to 40A of charging power. With load sharing, up to 4 chargers can be connected to a single 40A circuit breaker without exceeding the 40A power limit. As drivers come and go the load sharing technology automatically redistributes power to the active charging stations.
What are the benefits of load sharing EV charging stations?
The primary benefit of installing EV charging stations with load sharing or load management technology is being able to install charging stations without exceeding the property’s maximum load allocation. However, property owners are discovering even more benefits to load sharing.
Dynamic Power Rerouting
With load management technology, the network actively tracks how many chargers are being used and regulates station power accordingly. Because of this feature, property owners are able to install more chargers on the same circuit.
Reduces Parking Wars
Load sharing allows properties to install up to four chargers on a circuit that would have previously only supported one charger. This means more charging stations across the property and fewer drivers fighting over spots to charge.
Beneficial for Older Properties
In most cases older properties have outdated electrical systems that would need costly upgrades to install EV charging stations at full power. With load sharing, the chargers can be regulated to set limits ensuring the existing system can handle the electrical demand.
Cheaper and Easier to Expand
It’s cheaper and easier to add additional chargers to an existing installation with load sharing capable chargers vs. chargers that do not have the ability to load share. Load sharing chargers can be regulated to compensate for the additional chargers being added to the system and require less, if any, infrastructure upgrades to the property. Many property owners make the mistake of installing dumb (unnetworked and non-load share capable) chargers because they are a more cost-effective option upfront, but realize too late they’re much more expensive to upgrade, regulate, and expand down the road.
The Chargie network is built for property owners
Chargie’s EV charging network was created with property owners in mind. Our founders come from decades of experience owning and managing multifamily and commercial properties, and truly understand the needs of the industry. With over 15,000 stations installed across 1,000+ properties, Chargie’s turnkey installation makes it easy for property owners to get charging stations installed. Reach out to a speak with an EV charging expert and receive a free property assessment.
