The Rise of the Electric Garage

For decades, the garage was the place where we parked the car, stored holiday decorations, and wondered where that missing screwdriver went. Today, things are changing.

Garages are becoming workshops, home gyms, storage spaces and increasingly, personal fueling stations for electric vehicles. And while plugging an EV into a standard household outlet technically works, anyone who has waited impatiently for a vehicle to charge knows there is a big difference between “it works” and “it works well.”

That is where Level 2 charging comes in. A standard Level 1 charger uses a typical 120-volt household outlet. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, Level 1 charging generally adds about 2–5 miles of driving range per hour. Level 2 charging uses approximately 240 volts and can typically add around 10–30 miles of range per hour, depending on the vehicle and charging equipment.

That difference can completely change the ownership experience. But here is something homeowners sometimes overlook: installing an EV charger is not simply a matter of mounting a box on the wall and plugging it in.

An experienced electrician needs to look at the electrical system as a whole.

What size is the home's electrical service? How old is the panel? Is there enough capacity? What other major electrical loads are operating in the home? Where will the charger be located? What size circuit does the particular EVSE require? These questions matter because an EV charger can become one of the larger continuous electrical loads in a home.

In fact, the Department of Energy notes that residential Level 2 charging requires a dedicated electrical circuit and typically operates from a 240-volt supply.

Here’s the part I’ve learned after more than 30 years in the electrical trade: never judge an electrical system by what you can see on the wall. A panel may appear to have plenty of empty spaces, but empty spaces do not automatically mean the electrical service has unlimited capacity. The real question is whether the system can safely handle the additional load. That is why a professional installation should begin with an evaluation, not a drill.

At Big Sky Electric Corp., we install customer-supplied EV chargers with the appropriate dedicated circuits, wiring, protection and code-compliant installation practices. More importantly, we evaluate the home's existing electrical system before adding the load.

And there is another interesting piece to the EV story: charging at home is expected to become increasingly important. The Department of Energy reports that the majority of EV charging is expected to occur at homes and workplaces, with Level 1 and Level 2 charging projected to handle about 80% of EV charging needs by 2030.

As for resale value, the story is promising—but homeowners should be careful with sweeping claims. Zillow's analysis of more than 3.1 million home sales found that listings mentioning an EV charging station sold about 9.5 days faster than comparable listings, although that does not mean every home with a charger will sell faster.

So, is an EV charger just another garage accessory? Not anymore. For many homeowners, it is becoming part of the home's electrical infrastructure and potentially part of the home's appeal.

The future may be electric. But from an electrician's perspective, the most important part of that future is making sure the electricity gets there safely, properly and intelligently.⚡

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