FIELD NOTES / THE DRIVEWAY

Your daily drive.
In kilowatt-hours.

Home charging adds a new load to your bill. Start with how far you drive and the energy the vehicle needs from the wall, rather than the battery size or the charger’s maximum power.

Distance becomes electricity.

Average monthly charging = kilometres per month × wall kWh per 100 km ÷ 100
Billing-period charging = average monthly charging × billing days ÷ (365 ÷ 12)

Use a relevant vehicle consumption rating or energy measured by your home charger. Know whether a value measures wall energy or battery energy. Do not add a second charging-loss allowance when losses are already included. Actual consumption varies with weather, speed, terrain and heating or cooling.

The Natural Resources Canada — Vehicle fuel-consumption ratings ↗ is a starting point for comparing vehicles. This lab assumes the entered driving energy is charged at home; it excludes public charging prices, subscriptions and parking fees.

Estimate the added bill, not the entire car budget.

The lab adds charging energy to household load. Imported kWh then incur your entered energy and variable delivery rates, plus the modelled tax. Your period’s fixed delivery, administration and other charges remain at their entered amounts. If your upgrade changes your tariff or service charges, update those assumptions.

Comparing an EV with a gasoline vehicle also needs actual fuel consumption, fuel price, purchase cost, insurance, maintenance and financing. We do not infer a guaranteed saving from electricity use alone.

Power is not the same as energy.

A kW rating describes the charging rate; kWh describes the energy consumed. A faster charger can reduce charging time without reducing the energy your drive needs. Electrical-service capacity is a safety and design question, not something this bill model determines.

1. Tell a qualified electrician your vehicle, driving pattern and desired charging location.
2. Have the service and panel assessed with the home’s other loads.
3. Discuss permitted equipment, circuit requirements and any suitable load-management option.
4. Check your actual tariff before assuming charging at night is cheaper. Alberta customers do not all have the same time-of-use price structure.

For an upgrade conversation, send HAUSE your Energy Passport. Never use this calculator to size wiring or bypass an electrical assessment.