What a difference level 2 makes over 3/S! (and a battery question)

[Captain Walnut]

I know this is probably very obvious to many of you, but I am a new ebike rider and have been commuting to work (1.6 miles) for a little over a week on my CCX. At first, I was completely giving in to the temptation to go as fast as possible, both for fun and to get to work as close to my driving time as possible. But this was using up a lot more battery than I had anticipated, a little over a third which realistically feels like half since I don' want to discharge the battery too low. Today I decided to try the commute using level 2, never using 3 or S. While I wasn't going quite as fast, I still felt like I had plenty of power and speed. And interestingly, I actually preferred the performance of the bike most of the way. It felt like there was less of a noticeable lag/drag effect when I coasted, because it was not as patently obvious when the motor shut off and I started to slow. My commute took about 8 minutes longer than when using top assist levels, but used 68wh less. I went from 26.9 to 21.5wh/mi. It is worth noting that I weigh about 270, so I'm sure I tax the battery more than many riders. And perhaps this battery savings isn't all that impressive, but it is definitely pushing me in the direction of going easier on the motor and increasing my own power as I get stronger. While going 25-30mph with little effort is fun, I also want this battery pack to last. And of course I want to get some exercise as well.

By the way, I worry that my pack is already dropping a bit in capacity. I believe on my initial charge up it reached 57.8v (never got the 57.9 others have reported at full charge), now it claims to be full with 57.1-57.4v. Is this something to be concerned about? The guys at my local ebike shop said they don't obsess about 20/80, and just charge up all the way as needed. I pointed out that they are using more commonly available batteries and get a discount when they need to replace. But I still haven't bitten the bullet and gotten a Grin, and I'm generally charging overnight so it goes all the way to full. Any thoughts on this? I feel like us Juiced riders can get especially obsessive over this kind of thing, but I also want to just enjoy the bike, which I am!

Photo below is my level 3/S vs level 2 commute. By the way, I still don't really get what R does over S, I can't tell a difference (and REALLY hope I didn't get the wrong controller, that would be such a hassle).

 

[Captain Walnut]

EDIT: that's 12.6 miles commute, not 1.6!!

 

[rexel1]

EDIT: that's 12.6 miles commute, not 1.6!!

Hehe, I did think would be quicker to walk the 1.6 miles than get the bike out.

I’m not really using my CCS for commuting, mainly as my latest job I stay away from home and use a normal bike for the mile or so ride in.
Mainly using the CCS at weekends, when I first got it (this is my second ebike), I’d pretty much keep it in 3 or S for most of the journey, now though I’m pretty much in Eco mode the whole time. I find upping the power level is great when you’re feeling tired, there’s a strong wind, maybe a junction or stretch of road that’s a bit dodgy, or up very steep hills, or if a car is in my rear mirror and I’d rather get to a safer stretch of road.
It’s anazing how much more battery gives you when using the lower power levels.

I’ve recently bought a second battery for the CCS, so looking at around 140 mile range (yes, I have got a ride planned in for that long).

Overall I’d not get too worried about the battery, but the one on my other bike which was only a 468wh battery had lost 5% of capacity within the first 1000 miles. Every journey on that was 12 miles in and the same back commuting. I’d charge the battery to full overnight and it would be having battery sag around the 20 mile mark on the way home.
If you don’t need to top it to full each time then I’d say to try and keep it below a full charge.

Oh and hope you’re enjoying the bike.

I’m tempted to get a CCX next year...might be a CCXS out then though! Hoping the next iteration of the CC has room for slightly wider tyres (oh and that juiced makes shipping internationally a bit easier for us brits)


My CCS 52v battery maxes out at 57.3 on the display

 

[BrianMura]

I like "Type-R" mode, since the motor doesn't turn off as much.

Here are the levels described by Juiced:
https://support.juicedbikes.com/hc/en-us/articles/360019805091-What-are-Assist-Levels-

 

[Bruce Arnold]

Hey Captain Walnut, I appreciate the report on how your commute is going.

It's typical for these batteries to lose some of their stated capacity early on, then there is a long fairly flat plateau that lasts for several hundred recharges, then a steeper decline again towards the end of its useful life. "Useful life" is defined by most as being able to charge to only 70% of its capacity when brand new. For people that do the 80-20 charging routine, not only does that come later in the battery's life, it is also less noticeable.They've been hovering right around 70% most of the time anyway. Just to put some perspective on it.

The other thing is that the LCD display is only so accurate. The voltage read-out is more accurate than the battery graphic with the 9 bars (a very rough estimate of state-of-charge) but even so it's not meant to be a scientific instrument. Go online and get yourself a multi-meter (I used to say go to Radio Shack and get a multi-meter but...) You don't have to spend much, this one will do. Put the leads into the little holes on the battery connector -- don't worry about getting it wrong, you won't hurt the multimeter or the battery if you get them crossed -- and note the voltage. Guaranteed it won't match the LCD display.

If you want to do the 80=20 thing without the expense of a Grin Satiator, get one of those timers and plug your charger into that. At a nominal 2 amps per hour, do the math and figure out how much time the battery would have to charge to get up to 80%. Set the timer for that. Asher put up a thread about this a year or so ago, do a search for "cheap charger" or something like that. But really it isn't rocket science. I'm not knocking the Satiator, I wish I had one. But this is the poor man's Satiator.

The stock chargers from Juiced only charge to around 95%, so that may account for the discrepancy you've noticed. Even charging to 95 instead of 100% is going to lengthen battery life some.

I don't bother with putting the charger on the timer myself; I like having the excellent performance that the extra voltage gives. The difference between 80 and 95% is very noticeable. So long as I don't do anything really stupid like leaving the battery outside in freezing weather or dropping it on a concrete floor, I'm going to get many years of use out of it.

It's worth noting that I have a 48 V battery. I lust for a 52 V battery and will buy one at some point. Then I could travel in the higher level of performance all the time and might consider doing the 80-20 thing.

For a 12.6 mile commute, you'll find yourself not needing the higher levels of assist as you go (as you're already discovering), and that will add to battery life also; you won't need to charge as often. On Eco, I can get around 60 miles on a full charge, assuming I'm in no hurry, there's no headwind, and I live in an area with very few hills.