End of season battery partial drain

[Gordon71]

I think I waited too long to do my final ride of the season to bring my battery down to 70-80 percent for storage. Thinking of raising it on my pulley lift and then engaging the throttle
until it shows 4 out of five bars. Can anyone think of a reason that is a bad idea? Thanks.

 

[Gionnirocket]

Storage charge is typically 40% to 60%
No issue with throttling your way there other than it's time consuming. If you ride it in the cold it'll drop SoC more quickly than a normal summer ride

 

[6zfshdb]

The main reason not to do this is just the unnecessary wear on the motor, internal gears (if any) and bearings.

What type battery is it? what does the discharge connector look like? If you can safely access the contacts, a simple discharge rig can be made using a lamp with an incandescent bulb.

Many batteries use spade connectors that can be accessed by cutting the plug in half on an old extension cord:

Insert the plug halves into the battery and plug the lamp into the extension cord. The higher the bulb wattage, the more current it will draw.

If you're careful, you may be able to use this idea with other battery connectors as well.

 

[Gordon71]

The main reason not to do this is just the unnecessary wear on the motor, internal gears (if any) and bearings.

What type battery is it? what does the discharge connector look like? If you can safely access the contacts, a simple discharge rig can be made using a lamp with an incandescent bulb.

Many batteries use spade connectors that can be accessed by cutting the plug in half on an old extension cord:

View attachment 203092 View attachment 203093

Insert the plug halves into the battery and plug the lamp into the extension cord. The higher the bulb wattage, the more current it will draw.

If you're careful, you may be able to use this idea with other battery connectors as well.

Thanks. The bike is a 2020 Rad Rover ST. I wouldn't think it would be any more wear on the motor than riding it although it would take longer. I could do it in shifts.

 

[Gionnirocket]

I think the motor wear under such minimal load would be negligible.... That said under such minimal load it'll take a while.
Unless you're snowed in... I'd dress warmly and just go for a ride.

A little more difficult for me to use the light bulb method as my battery disconnects output when not installed on the bike. The safety feature can be defeated but that's another set of jumpers to make up.

 

[Gordon71]

I think the motor wear under such minimal load would be negligible.... That said under such minimal load it'll take a while.
Unless you're snowed in... I'd dress warmly and just go for a ride.

A little more difficult for me to use the light bulb method as my battery disconnects output when not installed on the bike. The safety feature can be defeated but that's another set of jumpers to make up.

It's pretty sloppy right now. These rural roads in my small town on the coast of Maine are narrow with shoulder drops as deep as 6 inches in places. I might hold off and hope for a dry day after predicted rain washes away the few inches of snow we have now. Right now I'd get sprayed with sand and a bit of slush every time a car passed me.

 

[Gionnirocket]

It's pretty sloppy right now. These rural roads in my small town on the coast of Maine are narrow with shoulder drops as deep as 6 inches in places. I might hold off and hope for a dry day after predicted rain washes away the few inches of snow we have now. Right now I'd get sprayed with sand and a bit of slush every time a car passed me.

Yeah that doesn't sound like fun.
I guess a third alternative would be to set the bike up inside as an exercise trainer