How to Take Care of Your E-Rickshaw Battery

 

E-Rickshaws are slowly proving to be the new way to transport goods and people in some parts of India. This is mainly because of the advantage that it runs on a battery and keeps you from visiting a fuel station ever again. E-rickshaws are also an eco-friendly alternative to local transportation.

Battery is the most important component in an e-Rickshaw because that is what fuels it. If you forget to take care of the battery in the e-Rickshaw you are in for trouble and you definitely don’t want to push the vehicle. It is highly advised to keep your e-Rickshaw batteries up-to-date and have regular check on them.

Here is everything you must remember while taking care of e-Rickshaw Batteries.

Fixing the battery:
Battery should be firmly fixed in battery holding cradle ensuring that the cable clamps fit tightly and properly on the terminals. Loosely held batteries bounce and vibrate causing damage to the container and plates. Don’t use cardboards or thermocol, etc. to fix the battery. Please keep the battery tray clean and use rubber pad for keeping the batteries at the time of installation to prevent electrolyte leakages/electrical (earth) during vibration.

Connections:
The series wire connection of the batteries should be minimum of 8 mm otherwise it will affect the performance of the battery in the long run. Wire should be properly welded or soldered with the thimble.

Charging the battery:

• We need to charge the batteries through high quality constant current and constant voltage branded chargers only. CCV (Close circuit voltage) needs to be maintained at 63.5 in a 48V system.
• Charging of battery depends on the input voltage of the main line. Lower the input voltage higher is the time required to make the battery fully charged.
•  Improper/ incomplete charging of battery will affect the life and performance of the battery. As a result this leads to the premature failure of the battery in the near future.
• Do not use manual charger which charges more than 15 Amps and does not have any auto cut-off facility as it will reduce the life and performance of battery to half (50%) in comparison to the battery charged through automatic charger.

Precautions for re-charging:
At the time of re-charging the batteries fitted in the e-rickshaw ensure that the seat covers are raised and vent plug should be half open to allow the passage of excessive gasses. Inflammable articles like candle, matches, cigarettes, etc. should not be kept or placed near the battery at the time of charging.

Battery Water level check and top-up:

• Distilled water must be topped before the charging and not afterwards. Never use acid for topping up the battery. 
• Water should be topped up after every 10-12 days. While topping up please remember that water level does not cross the maximum.
• Wet top cover leads to self-discharge and affects the mileage.
  

Battery rotation:

 

The four batteries should be rotated on monthly basis as 1st to 4th and 2nd to 3rd and so on. This will increase the performance and life of the batteries.

Seating limit- Avoid Overloading:

 

 

Battery performance and mileage depends on the load of the e-rickshaw which includes the extra accessories. Maximum 5 people (or as per the stipulated limit for the vehicle) should board the vehicle including the driver for optimum performance.

E-rickshaw Maintenance:

 

E-rickshaw should have periodic maintenance for proper mileage. Please check the brake jam of the tyre as any obstruction to the free rolling of the tyre will reduce the mileage. Air pressure of the tyre should be checked every day as less air pressure affects mileage.

Accessories and devices:
Any accessories should be connected through converter only as direct connection to single battery will create the excess discharge of the batteries and in the long run it will become defective.

Please remember acid should not come in close proximity to the battery terminals. Battery terminals should be regularly cleaned and smeared with Petroleum jelly (Vaseline) The battery must be cool down before using in the e-rickshaw since after charging, the batteries are at higher temperature.