Take Care of Your E-Bike Battery and it Will Take Care of You

While your attention may be more on your coming bike trip or the destination or adventure you are planning. Your e-bikes battery needs just as much attention because with a happy battery, your E-bike will be nothing more than a somewhat heavier manual pedal-powered bike or to paraphrase an old-saying ‘No foot, no Horse.’ 

While its understanding that you want to have a full charge for your next biking trip never keep your battery on the charger overnight. Overcharging your battery is a good way to shorten that battery’s life span.

Another tip, while it may be customary to keep an old- fashioned 10-speed bike in a shed with the lawn mower, that would not be proper or safe with an E-bike with its battery attached.  A lithium-ion needs to be kept in a Goldilocks-zone when it comes to temperature and humidity.  If you do store your bike outdoors, always remove the battery and bring it indoors. An e-bike battery should be kept between 32-104 degrees Fahrenheit.  During Winter, the freezing temperatures will drain your battery and, in the Summer, the temperature of an outdoor shed can easily rise about 104 degrees. Especially if it’s a metal shed.  Keeping your battery indoors will also ensure that it will be safe from conditions like leaking roofs and high moisture for extended periods of time.

On some E-bikes, the battery can be difficult to move from its cradle. Instead of using your hand and pounding it loose from the bike, use a tiny bit of Dielectric grease on the battery’s terminal connection before you put the battery on the bike.  It will ease frustration on your part and possible internal damage to the battery caused by pounding the battery.

The charging is easy enough. Connect the battery charger to the battery and wait for the indicator to read full. On some chargers the light will turn from red to green to indicate charging is complete.  The best way to lengthen your batteries life is to charge it to no more than 80%.  An important tip: In order to avoid risk of a fire, never leave a lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery unattended.

With proper care your E-bike battery can last up to ten years.