Upgrading from 36V to 48V

[freshforce]

Hey guys,

Here's my situation, starting October, I will be biking to and from work - 20 miles total. I'm located around Boston, MA and there aren't many hills I will be climbing. I have an AmpedBikes kit on a mountain bike with a 36V 10ah Ping battery. I have gone 22 miles with this pack (top speed 15 mph, average speed 12.4 mph) but would like the increase in speed to get there and back faster. I believe the battery won't be able to get me back home without dying going 20 mph and I can't charge it at work. I would like to upgrade the battery to 48v 10ah but not sure if it's an easy task if I were to just buy more cells. Should I attempt to sell my fairly new 36v 10ah pack here and just buy another Ping battery?

I'm also not sure how shipping these batteries work. If I sell in the US, is this less of a problem? Thanks for any helpful input!

 

[Russell]

Do you have their geared or direct drive motor. 15 mph for a top speed on 36V is slow for either, especially if you have the DD motor.

-R

 

[Russell]

On my bikes to average 20 mph with light-moderate effort requires about 18 Wh/mile. So to be conservative let's say 20 Wh/mi for 40 mile round trip would be 800 Wh capacity at a minimum. To make sure you don't drain the battery completely you'd want more like 1000 Wh, or a 48V/20Ah battery.

The standard Amped Bike controller should handle 48V with no problem.

-R

 

[freshforce]

I have direct drive and can achieve 20-22 mph without pedaling on 36v. I had the European Limiter activated to test if 20 miles was even possible to earlier this week but would prefer the speed to get home faster. I think I have gone 15-18 miles without attempting to conserve my battery.

 

[Russell]

I have direct drive and can achieve 20-22 mph without pedaling on 36v. I had the European Limiter activated to test if 20 miles was even possible to earlier this week but would prefer the speed to get home faster. I think I have gone 15-18 miles without attempting to conserve my battery.

Oh ok, that sounds right. It's too bad you can't charge at work because a 48V/20Ah LiFePO4 battery is rather bulky...and expensive.

-R

 

[bionx 1954]

Have you considered adding another 36v pack. If you connect another 10A pack you would double your range and put less stress on your battery. Also you may increase you speed because as your single battery runs down it means less speed, but with 36V 20A battery you should be able to maintain top speed a lot longer. If you go to a 48v yes you would have a speed increase. A 48v 10 A is still only 480 watts, 36 V 10 A is 360 watts, 36v 20 A is 720 watts. So if you are using 20w/mi. 480 w =24 mi. 720 w = 36 mi.

 

[freshforce]

Have you considered adding another 36v pack. If you connect another 10A pack you would double your range and put less stress on your battery. Also you may increase you speed because as your single battery runs down it means less speed, but with 36V 20A battery you should be able to maintain top speed a lot longer. If you go to a 48v yes you would have a speed increase. A 48v 10 A is still only 480 watts, 36 V 10 A is 360 watts, 36v 20 A is 720 watts. So if you are using 20w/mi. 480 w =24 mi. 720 w = 36 mi.

I have but I want the speed to get home faster. Thanks for all the input everyone. I'm going to purchase a Cycle Analyst and try to do some more testing. Will update soon on what may work for me.

 

[dogman dan]

36v 20 ah should be easily able to go 20 miles, at 20 mph. I've gotten 30 miles at 18 mph from them, and 22 miles riding 25 mph.

Lots of starts and stops will be a problem, and on really cold days you may need to slow to close to 15 mph. Or if you have a bad headwind.

But you should be able to do your commute by buying another 36v 10 ah ping. You don't need the speed of 48v, just unplug that limiter and get another 10 ah of 36v.

If you are new to ebiking, you will be able to learn to ride more efficiently by riding with a wattmeter. Learn to pull less leaving the stop signs in particular. Pedal hard that first 20 feet, with less throttle, then ramp up to cruise speed. While cruising, set the throttle to about 15-16 mph, and pedal with medium effort to get to 18-19 mph.

 

[dnmun]

carry a lightweight extension cord and charger too if your range is in doubt. like the ones for indoor use with two 18AWG wires. try to find a long one maybe 20' just in case you need to plug in somewhere to charge in an emergency if your range is too close to call. i carry 250' of extension cords in my ZENN car. have only had to use about 50' of it so far, 3 times. all the people i asked were glad to help me get charged up again. got to proselytize EVs too.

 

[bionx 1954]

Check ES for sale new 36V 10 A Ping located in Maine 320.00 US shipped

 

[freshforce]

-Update on my situation-

I have purchased a Cycle Analyst V2 and it has helped me tremendously to gauge my Ping battery. My 18.4 miles round trip uses roughly 276 watts, (15 watts per mile) give or take, out of the estimated 360 watts I have available on my 36v 10ah battery. So I will not be buying a new battery, probably, 48v 10ah ping, unless something happens to this one. I've done 4 trips so far (total 73.6 miles) from home to work and back and I am pleased with the configuration that I have. Thanks everyone for your input and suggestions. It was greatly appreciated!

 

[SolidGoldSpork]

I have this same geared "stealth" rear wheel kit and a ping 36v battery. How are you adjusting the controller? I don't have a cycle analyst, but I'm feeling like I'm not maxing the speed. I get about 15-17mph if I'm not pedaling. How are you getting this kit to put out 25mph? That's right where I want to be. Is there a way to tune the controller?