Creative methods of charging the bike to say 50% after a ride

[Motophyllic]

Does anyone have any creative methods of charging the bike to say 50% after a ride? When I get back I throw it on the charger and bring it up to 100%. It may be a couple days or a couple weeks before I get back to it. I’d rather it not sit there at 100%, but I certainly don’t want to leave it at 10%.

 

[Redwolf]

The easiest is to plug it in and hang out with it until it reaches about 50%. Or alternatively, set a timer to remind you that it's time to stop the charger after a bit, guessing at when half charge has happened. But I don't have any simple suggestions for performing this automatically. If you want complicated and elaborate, well then I can come up with a few ideas...

 

[TCMB371]

This is a feature i mentioned in the 2019/2020 wish list thread. If we can get our hands on the software, it's one feature i'd like to develop.

As of now, i just use my cellphone and set a timer based on the SOC, knowing the charging rate. Its usually about 30 minutes for every 1/6 SOC.

 

[Philip]

Does anyone have any creative methods of charging the bike to say 50% after a ride? When I get back I throw it on the charger and bring it up to 100%. It may be a couple days or a couple weeks before I get back to it. I’d rather it not sit there at 100%, but I certainly don’t want to leave it at 10%.

I have one of these:

Century Indoor 24-Hour Mechanical Outlet Timer, 3 Prong, 2-Pack

I do not set the exact current time on this timer. I set the pins 2 hours apart. You can also set some pins 1.5 hours or 2.5 hours apart, etc. Then, when you want to charge, you spin the wheel until one of the ON pins clicks. Then press the green button on the yellow thingie on the charger's power cord and start charging the bike. That's it, you're done.

The timer's wheel will keep spinning, and in exactly 2 hours it will turn the charger off. It will keep spinning after that, but it will not be turning the charger back on because for that you'd have to press that green button on the charger's power cord again.

 

[leeo45]

I have a method that doesn't require any technology. On the rare occasion that I think the bike will be unused for a couple of weeks, I let it charge to 100% and balance the cells, then I ride it to the grocery store and run some other errands until it is down to about 60%. One of the advantages of a street legal EXR.

 

[Rix]

I have a method that doesn't require any technology. On the rare occasion that I think the bike will be unused for a couple of weeks, I let it charge to 100% and balance the cells, then I ride it to the grocery store and run some other errands until it is down to about 60%. One of the advantages of a street legal EXR.

This is EXACTLY how I prep my charge for short term storage and reduced winter use.

 

[Motophyllic]

Thanks guys! I’ve been charging it fully and running the soc down for storage. I guess when we get our hands on the software, we’ll add that charge limit

 

[Redwolf]

I'm having trouble understanding the need to store a machine that deserves to be ridden daily...?

 

[Philip]

Hey, some of us have more than one Alta. They do deserve to be ridden daily, but one at a time.

 

[Motophyllic]

Until I connect them together and have a 100hp quad, I have to agree with Philip; 1 at a time

 

[autohog]

Wonder how meticulous the dealers are about battery storage for the bikes that are sitting on the floor

 

[Redwolf]

Wonder how meticulous the dealers are about battery storage for the bikes that are sitting on the floor

The dealers I spoke with in my area before I bought mine didn't really seem to know how to charge the bikes at all, or have any useful knowledge regarding the bikes at all.

 

[autohog]

I fear the majority are sitting at dead zero month after month.

 

[Rix]

I'm having trouble understanding the need to store a machine that deserves to be ridden daily...?

I can clarify this, when I stated "short term storage", I meant 1-2 weeks without riding. Never any longer than that.

 

[Rix]

I fear the majority are sitting at dead zero month after month.

This is why I wish we had some kind of voltage indicator. One can tell alot about a battery by how much volt sag there is when getting on the throttle. When I picked up my bike, it was on the floor at 100% charge and had 5.8 miles on the OD. Don't have any idea how long it set like that. But, the way she runs, I suspect my battery is in great shape.

 

[Redwolf]

I can clarify this, when I stated "short term storage", I meant 1-2 weeks without riding. Never any longer than that.

Those must be some of the saddest weeks of the year...

 

[Redwolf]

I fear the majority are sitting at dead zero month after month.

Somehow I have a feeling that these batteries are more resilient than it sounds like... I think we may be creating our own set of worry beads.

 

[snydes]

Somehow I have a feeling that these batteries are more resilient than it sounds like... I think we may be creating our own set of worry beads.

I agree. I doubt any bikes are sitting totally dead in dealerships and while storing the bike at 50-60% is considered best practice, storing at 100% isn't going to be the end of the world either.

 

[Rashid510]

Should not have issues keeping the bike SOC above 90%. My SM was sitting on the dealer floor for over a year without any issues to the pack or systems. These packs are much more capable than per say a Zero pack which has a BMS that causes the packet cells to fluctuate.

 

[Rix]

Those must be some of the saddest weeks of the year...

It is. And this year I may have more than that. Next month I have total knee replacement surgery. I am told I could be down for 12 weeks to 6 months, that means I can only ride on the road and dirt roads for a bit.