ElectricMotorcycleForum.com
Makes And Models => Zero Motorcycles Forum | 2012 and older => Topic started by: rotoiti on April 21, 2012, 09:43:22 AM
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I got the quick charger as a part of my Zero DS deal but I am finding no good use for it. When I arrive home I am charging overnight and the bike is ready to go in the morning. I guess if I rode in the AM and emptied "the tank" then had a lunch break while the bike was quickcharging then I could go riding in the PM as well but so far this hasn't happened yet.
Did you get a quick charger for your Zero and are you using it?
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No, I held off to see whether I'd need it. So far I haven't. I'd think it's most common use case would be while out on a longer-distance ride with a stop or two, but I'd also think it might be hard to find 2000 watts of power to plug both chargers in at once.
If I had to charge mid-trip, say because my work commute was so long, I might get one just to make sure I got the charge I needed to get home.
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I should get mine the next week :) the quick charge is probably more useful for longer trips -which, I'm planning in doing- than for a regular use (overnight charge).
As soon as you start going further you will definitely find a good use for it ;)
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As soon as you start going further you will definitely find a good use for it ;)
Oh, I don't doubt it. But I still wonder how people are going to find over 15A of power in most places, at least public ones. Many 120V outlets in the US are on 15A circuits, or if they are on 20A ones they are shared with other loads. I'd definitely be checking those places I was planning to charge up to make sure they could support my >15A load.
If I end up doing longer rides on weekends and don't want to wait overnight for the charging, I'll probably get a second charger. I can overcome the load issue at home.
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I got the quick charger with my XU, but I haven't used it yet. I will need to use it at a half-way point on the homebound commute as charging at work is not an option.
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I see...sorry CliC, I would only need around 8-9A as we enjoy 220V in Spain...
Yes, 15A continuous could be challenging (our std. plugs/cables, normally support 16A max. also)
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I see...sorry CliC, I would only need around 8-9A as we enjoy 220V in Spain...
Yes, 15A continuous could be challenging (our std. plugs/cables, normally support 16A max. also)
Ah, OK. I sometimes forget this is an international forum :-[
"Enjoy" is true. I was in Germany last year and use what I believe was the most powerful steam iron I've ever encountered in the hotel, courtesy of the 220V mains. We have 220V here in the US for larger appliances and such, but 220V receptacles aren't common.
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Never mind...Not a lot of guys from Europe in this forum I'm afraid. You may consider me 50% american ;D
I have been travelling for more than 12 years to the US on regular bases, and the 120V always raised a lot of questions...I guess changing all the lines to a higer voltage would be a bit challenging/expensive...We did it here quite a long time ago...
Anyway, the good news is that mostly of the electronic devices are dual voltage ;)
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I also got a second charger for my zero DS 2011.
I plan on installing it on the motorcycle.
I already made the connector adaptor to match the anderson connector of the actual battery.
Usually it is not really difficult to find two different 120V ac outlet neat the gouvernment buildings, or shopping centers, or many public building since they most fo the time are individually connected and have their own circuit breaker.
But what i wonder is if these delta Q charger are insulated.. let say you connect one charger to a circuit that is on the L1 and the other charger to another outley that is on the L2 phase... IN these case i just hope that the input and output of these cahrger are insulated to avoid short circuit thru L1 and L2 with the common output connections!
Doc
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If the QuiC chargers employ switchmode power supplies, which they almost surely do, the DC buses will be isolated from the AC circuitry, so you should be OK. I suspect (but haven't checked) that they are also isolated from the bike's frame.
UPDATE/CORRECTION: I was just looking at the spec sheets for Manzanita Micro's chargers, and they are NOT Isolated -- negative side of the input diode bridge is connected to the negative side of the output. I'd have to check the QuiC charger to be sure.
That said, even if you use two chargers powered from different phases of a single 3-phase supply, or different 110V legs of a single typical 220V supply, you should be alright, as long as the outlets are wired properly. Having a small meter handy to verify this prior to plugging the second one into the bike probably wouldn't hurt, though.
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I got mine awhile back and love it. I don't use it on a daily basis, but I've made several runs to locations at the edge of the range of the bike. When both chargers are working the bike charges at about 2 bars per 45 minutes, so you can charge back up to 80% in three hours from a completely empty pack.