mikejkay Posted April 13, 2014 Share Posted April 13, 2014 How do people charge their bikes if they are "off grid"? Is it possible to connect to the alternator output of the engine so that the battery charges while driving? Can the output from a solar panel be used? I presume that I would need a 14.5v DC supply. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hallii Posted April 13, 2014 Share Posted April 13, 2014 Use the mains charger via an inverter, the mains charger is a smart charger and it charges the lithium cells so they are not damaged. I can charge our two batteries using solar (2x 80w) in sun without affecting my leisure batteries (2 x 110amp) at all. Even without any solar input there is plenty of power to charge the batteries and still run everything else (TV, pump, light etc). Charging your bike batteries from anything other than a proper charger could mean problems, including fire. If you use lead acid rather than Lithium cells then charging from a 12 to 13.8v directly may be possible but I have no experience of this. H Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikejkay Posted April 13, 2014 Author Share Posted April 13, 2014 Hallii - thanks for the info. I feel a bit of a mug. I had assumed that electric bikes ran on 12v batteries. It seems that 24v is more usual. No problem, I have a 1500w inverter and I am about to fit a 120w solar panel. Just seems inefficient to use the inverter to provide 240v AC and then a charger to provide low voltage DC. With your bikes, how long does a full charge last? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted April 13, 2014 Share Posted April 13, 2014 These days most popular e bikes a 36volt system Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hallii Posted April 13, 2014 Share Posted April 13, 2014 mikejkay - 2014-04-13 2:17 PM Hallii - thanks for the info. I feel a bit of a mug. I had assumed that electric bikes ran on 12v batteries. It seems that 24v is more usual. No problem, I have a 1500w inverter and I am about to fit a 120w solar panel. Just seems inefficient to use the inverter to provide 240v AC and then a charger to provide low voltage DC. With your bikes, how long does a full charge last? It depends on how much they are used, I tend to charge them after each use so anything from 1 hour to about four hours for a flat battery. I also considered it inefficient to keep stepping up and down with the lecccy supply and tried to find a 12v charger, it seems no such thing exist! H Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thebishbus Posted April 13, 2014 Share Posted April 13, 2014 Hi . My wife's electric bike battery is 36 volt 9ah. When charging with the mains adapter trough the inverter, the inverter draws about 4 amps from the battery. We charge in the evening when the sun is weak, so the solar panel is not charging very much, but the next day our 120 watt solar panel will top our leisure batteries back up to full charge again . Brian B.. ps It takes about 3 hours to charge the bike battery when it's low charge red light is on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gocro Posted April 13, 2014 Share Posted April 13, 2014 Our chargers use 1.2A and 0.33A. Nearly all batteries are 24 or 36 volts so easily charge on the road or in strong sunlight with 100 watt panel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikejkay Posted April 13, 2014 Author Share Posted April 13, 2014 Gocro - via an inverter? or directly in some way? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gocro Posted April 13, 2014 Share Posted April 13, 2014 Have to use an inverter as the chargers are 'intelligent' and regulate the charge to maintain the batteries in best condition. Batteries are around £250 for 9 AH, £500 for 18AH so worth looking after. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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