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[valnar]

I saw a topic on this from 2016 and wondered if things improved.

Does anyone know of a timer you can use to set the charging on an electric bike from an outlet?  Zero's new charging recommendation is not to leave it plugged in at 100% all the time, so ideally I would start around midnight and stop at 7am, or whatever it needs.

Is there something out there that can handle the high load for that long?

[NEW2elec]

I don't think most of the timers will last very long at the amps a Zero pulls.
The new SRF will be able to be charged to any SOC you want but for now the other models can't.
As most of the EEs on here will tell you the charge to 80% recommendations are for "best" practice for the longest battery life.
You wouldn't want to leave it at 100% for like 6 months as it stresses the cells but the bike does need to go to 100% at least now and then to balance the cells.

Zero says plug it up charge it to 100% and unplug it.  So doing that say the night before you go for a ride is fine.

[Mudface]

I use a timer that allows 3000W on my Empluse R, works great.
Pulls about 10 Amps at 240Volts.

[Doug S]

I've been using mine since September 2015 and it hasn't missed a beat yet:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00435KOUY/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Here in California, and I think most places, there are higher rates at certain times, and I don't want to charge then. This keeps me from doing that without having to think about it.

[Richard230]

My daughter's 2014 S has been charged to 100% and left there for most of its life, including three years plugged in 24/7.  That has had no measurable impact on its battery pack, although the charger did die an early death. 

My guess as to why Zero changed their charging recommendation for not keeping the charger connected to power all of the time is to lower the risk of a having a fire while charging as happened to a few of their 2012 models and has been happening all over the world with cell phones, hover boards, electronic cigarettes and other similar devices.  I bet it was a call made by their liability insurance carrier or their product liability attorneys.   

[DonTom]

My guess as to why Zero changed their charging recommendation for not keeping the charger connected to power all of the time is to lower the risk of a having a fire while charging as happened to a few of their 2012 models and has been happening all over the world with cell phones, hover boards, electronic cigarettes and other similar devices.  I bet it was a call made by their liability insurance carrier or their product liability attorneys.   

That's been my guess as well. I wish they would say the reason for the 60%.

The question I have is which is best for the battery, 60% or  fully  charged.


-Don-  Reno, NV

[valnar]

So basically any heavy duty 15-amp timer would be okay?

[Doug S]

So basically any heavy duty 15-amp timer would be okay?

Yah. No need to overthink. Just find one rated for 15A continuous and you'll be fine.

My guess as to why Zero changed their charging recommendation...

They didn't just change their recommendation. At some point my firmware got "upgraded" and now it won't stay charged if I leave it plugged in. We had a week of rain, then I was out of town for Memorial day weekend, and Tuesday when I got on the bike it was only at 90% SoC. Drives me crazy.

[DonTom]

They didn't just change their recommendation. At some point my firmware got "upgraded" and now it won't stay charged if I leave it plugged in. We had a week of rain, then I was out of town for Memorial day weekend, and Tuesday when I got on the bike it was only at 90% SoC. Drives me crazy.

Could that be an SOC indication issue  on a normal fully charged battery? Did you measure your battery voltage when it was at 90% for a while?

-Don-  Reno, NV

[Doug S]

Could that be an SOC indication issue  on a normal fully charged battery? Did you measure your battery voltage when it was at 90% for a while?

No, I haven't measured battery voltages or anything, but when I got home on Tuesday, I was at 37%, when I'm usually at 45-50%. It ran just about 10% low at all my milestones all day. I'm pretty sure it's real.

[Curt]

Within reason, I tend to take the high road and not accommodate charging patterns to the EV's convenience or the manufacturer's, especially as we enjoy good battery warranties. I'll plug in if I need a full charge the next day, or otherwise if the charge is less than 60%, and will not unplug until ready to ride or if going on vacation. That's it.

EV manufacturers need impetus to create self-protecting battery and charger systems and to improve algorithms via firmware update. I'll take advantage of the long battery warranties of today, and my intuition that the battery is far more likely to blow suddenly than to degrade over time.

The FX draws only 650W. I'll try plugging it into a TP-Link HS105 (1500W) switch controlled through Alexa and by button. Then I can charge off-peak midnight to 8am using an Alexa algorithm (such might also solve Doug's 90% problem). And it would be easy to disconnect at high current without sparking a connector.

[DonTom]

No, I haven't measured battery voltages or anything, but when I got home on Tuesday, I was at 37%, when I'm usually at 45-50%. It ran just about 10% low at all my milestones all day. I'm pretty sure it's real.

The only two ways I can think of to see it's real is to either measure the voltage at the highest charge you can get indicated or ride the bike  at a 0 SOC until the bike goes dead.  Measuring the voltage is easier than being stuck with a dead battery.

Just turn the bike on and check the voltage on the two large pins of the Anderson Connector that is above the motor.

But it is probably easier on mine because I have a Y cable permanently installed on my bikes making it easier to get to the connections on  my Zeros.  I just measured my battery  voltage on my DS ZF 6.5 in the middle of typing this message. Mine now reads 117.2 VDC at 100% SOC. A little higher than I expected, but it was just charged to full last night. If your voltage is close to that, at the highest SOC you can get indicated,  it means your battery is NOT why your SOC is reading low.

-Don-  Reno, NV