4 solutions to connect your electric vehicle in a condo or apartment

Are you the owner or tenant of a condo or apartment and would like to install a charging station? First of all, you should know that there are several advantageous solutions for plugging in your vehicle. Whether the solution is individual or in a network, it is certain that the installation of a charging station is an investment. Moreover, it will increase in value.

Through this blog post, the BEQ Technology team presents the best solutions for the installation of a charging station for a condo or apartment.

1. The DCC Condo solution

If you wish to install a charging station for your personal use, the DCC solution will meet your needs. This charge control system is used to avoid overloading your electrical panel, which is often limited to 100A in homes and condos.

This individual solution will allow you to charge your electric vehicle with a terminal that will be connected to your own Hydro-Quebec meter. You will be able to install a level 2 charging station of your choice as well as a DCC Condo charge controller according to the National Building Code. If you choose this option, you will be responsible for the costs related to the purchase and installation of the charging station.

ADVANTAGES OF THE DCC CONDO SOLUTION:

• Individual solution at an affordable cost
• No joint investment required for the co-owners
• Billing done directly to the Hydro-Québec account
• Easy to install
• Compatible with all models of charging stations

2. The EVduty EVCCS current sensor system solution

Always with a view to personal use, Evduty’s solution will give you optimal performance during your recharge. Like the DCC, this solution also allows you to charge your electric vehicle with a terminal that will be connected to your Hydro-Quebec meter.

This charge control system also prevents your electrical panel from overloading. This way, you will respect the building code standards in effect. This solution is only compatible with EVduty charging stations. It is therefore not possible to choose the charging station of your choice.

Since it is for personal use, you will have to assume the costs of purchasing and installing the charging station.

BENEFITS OF THE EVDUTY CURRENT SENSOR SYSTEM:

• Individual solution at an affordable cost
• No joint investment required for the co-owners
• Billing done directly to the Hydro-Québec account
• Easy to install
• Efficient load shedding system that reduces the charging speed without interrupting it

The Networked Charging Solution

If you own several condos or apartment buildings and you want to make charging available to your tenants, the networked charging solution is perfect for your project.

This solution allows access to a charging station for each person wishing to charge their vehicle at their parking space. This way, the charging stations can be easily installed and assigned. A comprehensive billing solution allows everyone to pay their charging fees and also control access to ensure that others cannot use their charging station. For billing, the union or owner sets a per-use rate or monthly rental fee.

With networked charging, it is the condominium corporation that assumes the investment of the electrical infrastructure and the costs for the purchase and installation of the charging stations. The investment is therefore reimbursed by billing the owners or tenants who use the charging station service.

THE BENEFITS OF NETWORKED CHARGING:

• User-pay model
• Service billable to the condominium owners by the property manager or syndicate
• Constitutes a source of revenue
• Information system: access control, usage reporting and billing
• Requires less space in the electrical room than DCC and EVCCS
• Single user

The community charging solution

The community charging solution consists of installing one or more charging stations in the common parking lots of a building. Again, this is a user-pay system, but this time a smaller number of charging stations can be installed since these stations will be used by several users. This will save you money on electrical installation costs.

THE BENEFITS OF COMMUNITY CHARGING:

• User-pay model
• Payment at the station by the user
• Constitutes a source of revenue
• Information system: access control, usage reporting and billing
• Allows for a larger number of users on a smaller infrastructure
• Reduced installation costs
• Multiple users

Regardless of the solution chosen for the purchase and installation of charging stations for condos, it is possible to obtain a subsidy that will cover up to 50% of eligible expenses.

Do you have questions? Would you like to evaluate the best solution for the purchase and installation of charging stations for condos or apartments? BEQ Technology is available for you.

Request a quote now, it’s easy and free!