Electric Bikes - Is this SLA any good for e-bike?

I am looking at this cus it's the cheapest battery I can find. Heck 4 of them for 48 v new would only cost 88 bucks.

I am looking to add a 12v 12ah to my existing 3 to get from 36 to 48 volts - for about 4 months. After that I can afford a lithium type.

Will this work just as well for an SLA? Is there anything special about SLA's for e-bikes that would make this not a good battery?

http://www.batteryplex.com/universal.cfm/m/UB12120-F2?gclid=CMCqgpS-laUCFce7KgodbAI8og

Yeah, you'll run good.

The bike will be heavy though. I'm running EXACTLY what you are considering. 4X, 12-Volt, 12 Amp Hour, SLA batteries in series. It works very well.

Just be sure to keep your batteries full, and don't deep cycle them. Also, you should get a desulfator unit to hook up and leave on the battery, or get a charger that will desulfate the battery pack while you charge them.

Here is another one: http://www.batteryplex.com/universal.cfm/m/UB12120ZH

Same as above but the above is an " F2" and this one is a "ZH" Can anyone tell me what the difference is?

Type of connector on the terminals is the difference.
Realize tho that on the SLAs you will only get maybe 8ah worth of power out of them and best case scenario they'll last a year.
Lifepo4 is 1/3 size and weight and in the long run, will last 3x's as long for double the price.

Type of connector on the terminals is the difference.
Realize tho that on the SLAs you will only get maybe 8ah worth of power out of them and best case scenario they'll last a year.
Lifepo4 is 1/3 size and weight and in the long run, will last 3x's as long for double the price.

How are the connectors different? According to both web pages, the connector type is listed as S2 and to me they don't look any different in the pictures.3

I'm sure one is 1/8 and the other is 1/4.

Ahhh I see (said the blind man to his deaf dog with the wooden led) No problem then. Either battery will work :-) Thanks

$100 for 12ah SLAs (usable 8ah at most and probably closer to 6ah, before you hit 75% DOD) is a good deal for the very short term.

If you can wait until you have enough to buy a 48v 10ah+ Li-Poly or LiFePo4 battery, you would be saving alot of money in the long term (as well as having a lighter bike, more power and much longer distance. (Compared to an equal AH'd SLA batt).

Also realize that SLAs are usually rated at a .05c (20hr) continuous rate (that's point zero five, NOT .5).

So at 12ah, it's rated at .05c or .6 amps over a 20 hour time period..
There is something called the Peukert Effect with SLAs that diminishes their rated AH, so as you can see, SLAs are not really the best way to power an ebike.
You will be likely pulling .5c cont (6a) which will only get you 1.25 hrs worth of ride. (6 amps for 1.25 hrs = 8ah {the usable amount you get out of SLAs**)

For the same (12)AH out of Lithium based batteries, you would normally get a minimum of 1c(12a) rated output which would give you 2 hours at (6a) and you go a little faster, have a 50% larger range, and it lasts 3x's as long as comparable SLAs..
Any questions?

Heh...

Certainly, running the e-bike off Lithium is a better choice. I think Lithium batteries are about 1/6'th the weight of a lead battery.

However, if you are just getting your bike going. If you have already put a dent in your wallet buying a motor and other parts. If you just want to get your bike UP and running for the first time...

There is nothing wrong with Sealed Lead Acid batteries. I can't speak for the longevity of them yet. I have not had mine for more than a month, but they power me very well. I can easily go 20 miles and not deep cycle my batteries.

Also consider this. Most people throw out SLA batteries that don't need to be thrown out. As SLA batteries discharge, the sulfur in the battery acid will begin to crystallize on the lead plates within the battery. If these crystal deposits create a layer on the plates, the batteries will not work properly.

Get a battery desulfator. ==> http://cgi.ebay.com/Megapulse-Mk4-Battery-Conditioner-and-Desulfator-/130392888679?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&var=&hash=item641e2147a7

When you charge your battery pack with this installed, it will modulate the power flowing in, and it will blast those sulfur crystals with pulses which will dissolve them back into sulfuric acid. Those units will triple the life of an SLA battery.
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Another thing. If you are not used to working with stuff like this. Perhaps it IS best to start with a cheap battery.

While wiring up the battery pack, and installing it on my bike, I used a cheap multi-meter to check the voltage. Apparently, the cheap piece of Chinese crap didn't have a blocking diode in it.

When I touched both poles on the 48 Volt battery pack, I vaporized the post on a battery. If that would have been a Lithium battery, I'd have been pissed.

Thanks guys. Yeah i was going with the extra sla just for a short time till I can get the lithium.

Funny thing happened. One "cell" of the battery pack went out. To normal folks this is one battery out of the 3 that makes up 36v. I had to send off the bad battery to get a replacement.. battery is only a month old since I got it. Well someone offered to pay for a replacement battery localy - Nice folks. I took them up on it.. cost 48 bucks. When I get this replacement battery from my ebike kit company, I will have my 48 :-)

I have no idea why the battery failed. I was riding along then suddenly I had no power. I checked all 3 after i unhooked them from the 'pack' and this one was the only one not giving me any voltage.

Strange... Perhaps you just got an old battery, somehow?

I ordered 4, 12-Volt, 12-Amp Hour, "Power Sonic" batteries, and ended up getting generics. But they work well.

**Wonders where the hell he ordered those...*** OH, YEAH... ===> http://www.batterysharks.com/

PS - Guys, this is your queue to post links to good battery vendors here...

Heh...


Get a battery desulfator. ==> http://cgi.ebay.com/Megapulse-Mk4-Battery-Conditioner-and-Desulfator-/130392888679?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&var=&hash=item641e2147a7

When you charge your battery pack with this installed, it will modulate the power flowing in, and it will blast those sulfur crystals with pulses which will dissolve them back into sulfuric acid. Those units will triple the life of an SLA battery.
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Witt..........Being an old SLA user converted to lifepo4 last year myself I won't argue the values of ether. But I'm just not convinced of the value of these so called "desulfators". While they advertise them to do wonders for a sulfered battery from what I have read it's more of a myth or wishful thinking that you can remover the sulfer once it forms. Have you actually used one of these with success? Again I'm not arguing the point just trying to find someone with first hand info.

Bob