NEW IN-THE-FIELD E-BIKE CHARGING SYSTEM

Danehunter

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Joined
Sep 15, 2012
Messages
2,923
Location
Mojave Desert, Nevada
Recently I purchased an adjustable controller to work with my off Grid TREK 220 watt solar blanket. I also bought this from OTG. It comes with cables and the correct Anderson plugs for connecting to the blanket and correct plug for my bike's batteries. Rene, the owner of Off Grid TREK, makes these controller/cable units for this purpose. I know of no other source for this kind of setup. BTW, this is a Canadian small business.
At around $250. it's not cheap but I'm not saving for our daughters' inheritance either!

This controller, cables and the 220 watt solar blanket fits into one of my panniers and weighs around 14 pounds total. I can lay out (and stake down) the solar blanket, hook up the controller and plug it into my bike in about 5 minutes. On a partly cloudy Nevada day it charged my bike's two 52 volt batteries from 65% to 90% in 2 1/2 hours. My bike fortunately has a single FRAME-MOUNTED PLUG that charges both batteries simultaneously. (It's patented for E-Cells bikes only.)
So now I can stay away from my SUV for a few days and camp to hunt. Luckily I'm also an UL backpacker and, even with water for 3 days, my camping load itself is only 40 pounds. It's also great for exploring Nevada's many ghost mining towns and mines.

This setup, with solar blanket and controller is not a cheap date but, with my lithium iron phosphate BLUETTI AC200 MAX "solar power center" I can also run my home's 2 refrigerators constantly in a power outage.
 
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Wow, it sounds like you've got a really impressive setup there! You've put together a robust and versatile system for powering your adventures and keeping your home running smoothly. Kudos to you for your ingenuity and resourcefulness.
 
Thanks. Although it is a somewhat "spendy" setup It is versatile and makes the most of the E-CELLS e-mountain. bike's usefulness. Plus, one can't help, when perusing YOUTUBE, seeing all the "prepare" channels and they always recommend having a reliable power source.
I really wish I knew how to divert my rooftop solar DC electricity to an inverter to use when the power is off, I should look into this. It probably involves an expensive "Power Wall" from Tesla.
 

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