Most EV drivers do 80-90%(Opens in a new window) of their charging at home, so installing a top-notch charger is a no-brainer for those looking to improve the battery-powered driving experience.

Although YouTube is full of instructional installation videos for brave DIYers, most people hire an electrician for the job. Electrical work is dangerous and complicated, and burning down your house is a lot more expensive than hiring a pro. Plus, an installation team will walk you through the process, from choosing a charger to permitting and final touches.

To see the process firsthand, I contacted Qmerit(Opens in a new window), the company Chevrolet uses to offer installations(Opens in a new window) for new Chevy Bolts. They connected me with Kapital Electric(Opens in a new window) to do a ride along in the Chicago suburbs. Here's what we saw along the way, and what you can expect if you get an electric vehicle hookup in your own home.

"The installation process has come a long way in the last several years—much like the EVs themselves," says Tracy Price, Qmerit CEO. 

Most Home Installations Are Level 2 Chargers

There are three types of EV chargers available today: level one, two, and three. Each charges faster than the previous level, and requires more energy.

• Level one chargers plug into a standard wall outlet (120V), and often come with the vehicle at purchase (besides Teslas, as of earlier this year). They do not require an electrician, or any installation in general. Just plug in. Unfortunately, they are slow, often taking 10 or more hours to recharge the typical car battery. But if you mostly run quick errands around town with occasional multi-hour trips, a level one charger is the cheapest option.

• Level two chargers are a big upgrade, as charging takes half the time (4-5 hours). Almost always, home charger installation involves a level two. Level two chargers often require adjustments to your home's electrical system, such as installing dedicated circuits and outlets. You'll also find these chargers in public parking lots, like at the grocery store or a restaurant.

• Level three (or "DC fast chargers") are the quickest (30-60 minutes), but they are publicly owned. You'll find them at highway rest stops, for example. Fast charging (including Tesla Supercharging) also requires an immense amount of energy that will rapidly degrade any EV's battery if plugged in daily.

Popular Level 2 Home Chargers

You can acquire many level two chargers yourself, or, if you hire an electrician, use one they have in stock. The electricians we spoke to most commonly install the following chargers:

• Tesla Wall Connector(Opens in a new window) ($400)

• Tesla J1772 Wall Connector(Opens in a new window) ($550) for non-Tesla EVs

• WallBox Pulsar Plus(Opens in a new window) ($650-$700)

• JuiceBox(Opens in a new window) ($669-$739)

• Chargepoint(Opens in a new window) ($749-$919)

• Loop(Opens in a new window)

Amazon(Opens in a new window) has a wide variety of options as well. Note the length of the charging cord before you buy—usually around 20 feet—to ensure it will reach from the wall to your car's port. Chargers also come with a mobile app that allows you to view charging status.

Installing Chargers for a Tesla and Volvo EV

For the job I observed, Kapital Electric installed two units in the same garage: one for Lucci, who recently purchased a blue Tesla Model Y, and one for her daughter's Volvo XC Recharge. The installation took a full day, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., with three electricians. A week before the install, though, Lucci and Don Butler, VP at Kapital Electric, hashed out a few things over the phone:

• Home Electrical Capacity. Lucci's 100A panel was enough to accommodate the two chargers, given the other appliances in the house and the fact that the chargers can regulate power consumption.

• Charger Choice. Lucci decided on two Tesla chargers: a Tesla Wallbox and the newest Tesla charger that works on non-Teslas (for the Volvo). The benefit of using two Tesla products is their ability to "talk" to each other to monitor and manage power supply to both vehicles so they don't exceed the home's capacity. Wallbox (Opens in a new window)and JuiceBox(Opens in a new window) also do this, Butler says.

• Wiring Details. The garage is detached from the home, so they mapped the route from the panel's location in the home and into the garage.

• Permits. Kapital Electric acquired the permits for the construction, which involves proving the home's panel has enough capacity for the proposed install.

Step 1: Route Wire From the Panel to the Garage

For the chargers' power supply, the team set up wiring between the home's electrical panel and the garage. It went from the panel in the basement, into the ceiling, and out the back of the house through a newly drilled hole. Then, they dug a trench to hide the wire in the lawn. Finally, they drilled a hole in the garage wall and fed the wire through.

Step 2: Place and Connect Chargers

Once the wiring was in the garage, they ran it along the bottom edge of the wall and into a splitter box. This forked the wires in two, one route going to the first charger, and the other running along the ceiling and down a wall into the second charger.

Step 3: Configure, Connect to Wi-Fi

Once the chargers were installed onto each wall and powered on, a few setup steps were required. Tesla chargers, like other brands, come with quickstart guides, which include codes for each charger. The electricians scanned the QR code, pulled up an app where they could configure them, and connected to Wi-Fi.

Wi-Fi connectivity helps the chargers communicate, or manage the power supply between the two vehicles and the home's overall load. When both cars are plugged in, they will charge at a lower rate. Once one car is unplugged, the remaining charger will increase its power until the other car is fully recharged.

And that's it! Lucci now has two chargers, and likely an increased home value.