EV charging in condos and multi-unit buildings

EV charging in a condo or apartment building is as much a governance and planning question as an electrical one. The building's electrical capacity is shared and limited, parking stalls may be owned or assigned in different ways, and someone has to decide who pays for the infrastructure and the electricity. Buildings that plan for everyone from the start, with an electrical assessment and a building-wide approach, almost always do better than those that approve one charger at a time.

Why one-at-a-time installs cause trouble

When the first owner asks for a charger, the simplest answer is to let them run a circuit from the nearest panel to their stall. That may work for the first few. But each one uses up capacity in the panel and the service, often with no record, and the circuits run in different ways through the parkade. Eventually, a later owner is told there is no capacity left, or the building has to undo earlier work to install a proper system. Early adopters end up with the best access, which can lead to disputes.

A building-wide plan avoids that by looking at the whole parkade, deciding how capacity will be shared, and setting the rules before the first charger goes in.

Start with an electrical assessment

The assessment answers the questions that every later decision depends on:

• How much spare capacity the building's service and parkade distribution have, based on measured demand or a load calculation
• How many stalls could be served with and without load management
• Where a new EV panel or feeder could go, and the routes for conduit through the parkade
• The cost of making some or all stalls "EV-ready", meaning capacity and wiring are in place so a charger can be added later
• Whether a service upgrade would be needed for full build-out, and roughly when

In BC, many strata corporations are now required to obtain an electrical planning report on a schedule set by provincial regulation. Other provinces do not have the same requirement, but the same kind of report is good practice anywhere.

Choosing a model

Individual installs under a policy

Owners who want a charger apply, pay for their own installation and sign an agreement covering electricity costs, maintenance, insurance and removal. The board sets technical rules: certified equipment, a licensed contractor, a permit, a defined connection point, and a cap on how much capacity each install may use. This suits buildings expecting only a few chargers, but the capacity limits from the assessment still apply.

Building-wide EV-ready infrastructure

The corporation installs a new EV panel or panels, conduit and wiring to every stall, or to a large share of them, usually with load management. Owners then add a charger when they want one, often from an approved list so it works with the management system. This gives fair access, makes the most of the building's capacity and avoids a tangle of one-off circuits, but it needs funding, often from the reserve fund, a special levy or the owners who opt in. See reserve fund studies and capital planning for how projects like this fit into long-term plans.

Shared chargers

Some buildings install a few shared chargers in visitor or common stalls, operated by a charging network that bills users directly. This can work alongside either model, especially for residents without an assigned stall.

Paying for electricity

Charging adds electricity cost to the common account unless it is measured and recovered. Common approaches:

• Networked chargers that measure each session and bill the user through an app or account
• Submetering each EV circuit, where permitted by provincial rules, and billing owners periodically
• A flat monthly fee, which is simple but may not reflect use
• Connection to the owner's own suite meter, which is sometimes possible where the suite panel is close to the stall, but is rarely practical in larger buildings

Measurement for billing can be subject to federal measurement rules and provincial regulation of utility resale. Check what applies before choosing a billing method.

Approvals and provincial rules

The rules for how a condominium or strata corporation approves changes to common property, and what owners can require, are set by each province:

• British Columbia has amended its strata legislation to make it easier to approve EV charging infrastructure, and requires electrical planning reports for many strata corporations.
• Ontario condominium law includes a process for owners to apply to install EV charging, with requirements for how the corporation must respond.
• Alberta and other provinces handle it under their general condominium legislation and the corporation's own bylaws.

Details, deadlines and vote thresholds change over time. The board should get advice from its condominium lawyer or manager on the current rules, and record decisions properly.

A typical case

A sixty-unit condominium has received three requests for chargers in a year, and the board expects many more. Rather than approve them one at a time, it commissions an electrical assessment. The assessment finds that the service has modest spare capacity in winter, enough for a few chargers at full output but enough for most of the stalls if charging is managed. The board presents two options at a general meeting: a written policy for individual installs, capped at a small number, or a building-wide EV-ready project with a new managed EV panel and conduit to every stall, paid for through a combination of reserve funding and a connection fee from owners who opt in. Owners choose the building-wide project. The early adopters' requests are folded into it, so nobody installs a circuit that has to be removed later, and every owner knows they can add a charger when they buy an electric vehicle.

Common mistakes

• Approving early installs with no capacity plan, so later owners are shut out
• No written agreement covering electricity, maintenance and removal when a unit is sold
• Chargers from many different makers that cannot be managed together
• Circuits run without permits, or tied into panels with no spare capacity
• Ignoring the winter peak when calculating spare capacity
• Forgetting fire separation, sprinkler and ventilation details when routing new wiring through the parkade

How ehZee can help

Our EV charging design service can prepare the electrical assessment, help the board compare models, and design a building-wide or policy-based approach, including load management and billing-ready equipment. We present the findings in plain terms so owners can make an informed decision.

Common questions