Vado SL charging error

[rideallday]

Uh, I was charging my Vado SL 4.0 for only the 3rd time today off the normal 110v outlet in my garage and received a charging error (blinking red). The charger itself was quite hot, so I immediately unplugged it and powered down. The manual says to 'discontinue motor support' and see the dealer.

has anyone experienced this? Is this really something I need to have checked with the dealer or can I ride it normally?

I have ridden the bike a total of 50-60 miles.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

If that continues, you shall see the dealer. The risk of fire is not worth of stalling things.

 

[rideallday]

If that continues, you shall see the dealer. The risk of fire is not worth of stalling things.

It worked itself out. The charger was overheating and just needed to cool down. It was rather warm today so the ambient temperature in my garage was a contributing factor. I just charged it up again now and things are back to normal.

 

[ActionJackson]

It worked itself out. The charger was overheating and just needed to cool down. It was rather warm today so the ambient temperature in my garage was a contributing factor. I just charged it up again now and things are back to normal.

+ 45°C ambient is max charging temperature in the manual. Perhaps the added heat of the charge cycle exceeded some limit on a thermal breaker? It would be nice to know internally that is true.

 

[jodi2]

Yes, the SL charger is the hottest thing we ever had. I mean, the hottest charger we had in nine years of several e-bikes... ;-)
I don't know why (the charger is not slow, but also not that fast and quite big, not that tiny/stuffed). But the heat of the housing is terrifying. It's ok, if you just charge for 30 minutes or if it's freezing around the charger. But a full charge cycle in summer is terrible. We charge in the garage and all our chargers lay there on a wooden shelf. I never worried about that before, with the SL charger I do... :-(

 

[Art Deco]

Yes, the SL charger is the hottest thing we ever had. I mean, the hottest charger we had in nine years of several e-bikes... ;-)
I don't know why (the charger is not slow, but also not that fast and quite big, not that tiny/stuffed). But the heat of the housing is terrifying. It's ok, if you just charge for 30 minutes or if it's freezing around the charger. But a full charge cycle in summer is terrible. We charge in the garage and all our chargers lay there on a wooden shelf. I never worried about that before, with the SL charger I do... :-(

No fan I assume? Better set one up to blow that heat away @jodi2 ... and maybe some metal on that wood shelf.

 

[kahn]

Yes, the SL charger is the hottest thing we ever had. I mean, the hottest charger we had in nine years of several e-bikes... ;-)
I don't know why (the charger is not slow, but also not that fast and quite big, not that tiny/stuffed). But the heat of the housing is terrifying. It's ok, if you just charge for 30 minutes or if it's freezing around the charger. But a full charge cycle in summer is terrible. We charge in the garage and all our chargers lay there on a wooden shelf. I never worried about that before, with the SL charger I do... :-(

I am going to have to check the temperature of mine next time I charge.

 

[ActionJackson]

Yes, the SL charger is the hottest thing we ever had. I mean, the hottest charger we had in nine years of several e-bikes... ;-)
I don't know why (the charger is not slow, but also not that fast and quite big, not that tiny/stuffed). But the heat of the housing is terrifying. It's ok, if you just charge for 30 minutes or if it's freezing around the charger. But a full charge cycle in summer is terrible. We charge in the garage and all our chargers lay there on a wooden shelf. I never worried about that before, with the SL charger I do... :-(

Every lithium battery or device I have I charge on or in a piece of aluminum or stainless. The bike itself is charged in our apartment building’s underground garage which is equipped with a halon system and actually is very cool even in summer (my car says 24°C on start). Personally I was surprised at the size of the Specialized charger brick given its power specification. If you were charging in a hot garage, even below 45°C , it’s not good for the battery.

 

[BioWheel]

I keep a small fan in the garage and just point it at the charger when charging the Vado. Keeps the charging brick a lot cooler to the touch and to me - that's got to be a good thing. Haven't had an issue in 90F plus temps.

 

[jodi2]

The temperatures here are totally normal/ok for a Li-Io battery and the charging speed is not that fast, about 0.5 C. The SL charger is the hottest one I ever saw and no one else ever needed a cooling fan. But I will place it on some kind of metal or stone/ceramic plate.

 

[rideallday]

I've reconfigured my setup so the charging block is on concrete now, and there's a fan close by to help it stay cool. Thanks for all of the tips everyone, it's good to know others have noticed the same thing.