Have you ever decided to ride your electric bike to go to the woods or to the mountains and enjoy your day, but you were surprised in the middle of the day that the battery was almost finished!
We all have gone through this experience, especially if you are with a group of friends and trying to do sprints or on a hot day.
All these situations make you think about buying a spare battery for your electric bike!
But how would you know how much battery you really need?
As a general rule, the battery you need is defined based on the type of cycling you are using whether its throttle or pedal assist
Throttle type means that you rely on the ebike motor power with minimum help from you.
Pedal-assist: Mean that you use your ebike pedal system to generate the power you will need.
In order to calculate how much battery you will need for a specific ride, there is a simple equation
Your WH battery Avarage WH Mile (this info you can get by checking your ebike screen)
For Example: if you have a 1000WH Battery and your average WH per mile is 30
This means that you can ride your ebike up to 33.333 miles So if you are going for a ride that is 20 miles in total so no need for taking your spare battery.
Some important tips:
- Use Average WH per mile from your screen for each type of cycling as we mentioned throttle riding consumes more battery than pedal assets
- your weight will affect the battery consumption so better to make sure that you get the average WH per mile for the last week
- The road on which you drive the electric bike is very important, if it is a paved road, it will give you less battery consumption, unlike if it is terrain or woods.
Check out this amazing Multimeter, I love & I think everyone should have it (Get it on Amazon From Here)
with this being said:
Now, let’s share with you the best ways to carry an extra battery for your electric bike.
As a general rule, you can carry a spare electric bike battery by mounting it on the Rear seats or using frame bags, Some electric bike riders are using Backpacks to carry their spare batteries
Check out this ebike controller I love it & I think everyone should have it for an amazing performance from ( HERE )
Ideas to use your Rear Rack to carry a spare e-bike battery
Our Recommended Rear Rack
let me first share with you some general electric bike tricks to install ebike rear rack in case you didn’t install it before
Installing A Rear Rack to your Ebike
Installing a rear rack for your electric bike has many benefits, especially if you like riding your electric bike in the woods or mountains, it really saves you a lot!
I will share the easiest electric bike tricks to install the rear rack in an easy and practical way then I will share the best ideas to use it to carry your spare battery.
What tools you should bring in for installation:
Check Out this Amazing Ebike tool kit, I love it & I think everyone should have it ( Get it On Amazon
From Here )
- Allen Key – 4mm & 5mm
- Wrench – 8 mm & 10mm
As a general rule, the Rear rack comes with four main parts
- 1-The rear rack
- 2-HW that will be used in the rear rack assembling under the ebike frame
- 3-TailLight
- 4-Bungee strap
Ebike rear rack Installation tricks
- Always install the rear rack away from the electric bike.
- When tightening the screws, use your fingers to tighten first, then use a wrench to tighten, and keep the fastening level medium strength (you may need to reinstall some things)
- When installing the rear rack on the body of the electric bike, always make sure that the large screw holes are inward.
- The last piece to be installed is the taillight
Ebike Quick-Release Rear Rack Bag:
One of the easiest and most popular ways is to buy an extra battery with the same capacity as your original battery and put it on the rear rack of your electric bike.
There, are some rear racks, comes with a quick-release bag, and there is often a place for the battery.
Using this method, you can easily use the spare battery in case the main battery is dead.
My Recommendation:
You can check this video
Using Rear Seat Packs.
You can use the rear seat packs on the electric bike to carry a spare battery.
The difference between this method and the previous method is that this method gives you more options so You can carry the spare battery with many other tools, due to the relatively large space of the rear seat packs rather than the quick release bags kit.
The disadvantage of this method is that if you have a battery that has different dimensions (long or rectangular) you will have to take this into account when buying Rear Seat Packs.
Using Ebike Frame Bags:
The most famous place that we use as bike riders to put a spare battery is the front frame of the electric bike, especially if the frame has enough space to comfortably place the frame bag.
Personally, I prefer this place because it is easy and comfortable, and I feel more control over the bike, especially if I am riding a bike in the woods or on uneven roads.
The disadvantage of this place is that it can get very dirty and also if the front tire is somewhat narrow, it will hinder the movement of the legs.
Also, if you ride your bike in places with mud, be sure to buy waterproof bags.
Note: If you have a full-suspension e-bike make sure that you still have space after the suspension system is fully compressed
Use your Biking Pack backs
This method is not to be used all the time as you will not be able to take your backpack every time you go for a bike ride.
Also, it can be a bit dangerous, in the event of a fall from the bike, there is a risk that your back will be hit by the backup battery, even though most backpacks for cycling are largely protected from the back.
The good side of this method is that it saves you the trouble of removing the extra battery every time you park your bike in parking lots to protect it from theft.
Other options to increase your cycling time.
1-The Most and the first option for you to increase your cycling time is to maintain your e-bike battery health
(you can check HERE my complete guide to keeping your ebike battery Healthy )
2-Replace your old battery with a higher capacity one
If you have a battery with a small capacity, you may only need to change the battery for a larger battery and the problem will be over.
But what if the manufacturer for this model does not offer higher types than what you have?
In this case, you have two solutions.
The first solution is to buy a spare battery of the same capacity OR to buy a battery with a larger capacity with an adjustment in the design.
I will show you some Ebike tricks that may be useful for you.
First, check the manual of your controller if it will handle the new battery or not.
Second use the Triangular shape battery 52 Volt this kind of battery comes with a bag designed specially to fit on almost every ebike frame.
Remove your old battery and place the new triangular battery BUT I should mention here that this battery also comes with a standard socket anti-spark TX90 connecter which is different than the socket shape that is connecting the battery to the controller on your bike, So you will need to get an adapter that converts the TX90 to battery-controller
Once you got the battery connected to the ebike frame correctly you can enjoy your new battery that will increase your speed & your range
Higher Voltage= More Speed
Higher AH = Range
3-Get Dual Battery ebike
I know that this option may not be suitable for all cyclists due to the high price of two-battery bikes, but it may be useful for professionals or people who have the ability to pay more than 2000$.
The good thing about this type of electric bike is that the design is more streamlined and gives you Freedom to use the front or rear space of the bike.
4-Try Self Charging Electric bike.
Self-charging electric bikes may be a good option for you if you are used to riding your ebike downhill
Most models of bikes that are charged by pedal or by riding downhill are in my opinion a revolutionary technology that will change the world.
I should mention that there are a few types of self-charging electric bikes that you can rely on But the disadvantage of these types is that their price is high.
(Read Also, Can I Leave my ebike On Charge Overnight?)
5-Electric Bike Solar Charging
If you do not want to carry a lot of weight on the electric bike or you want to have a temporary solution in case of emergence. Charging using solar energy is one of the best solutions.
Companies are now competing greatly in improving the speed of charging electric bicycles through solar energy,.
which may reach to charge a 48-volt battery in four hours.
check the below video for more information.
6- Using your Pedal Assist system or PAS:
using Pedal will help you increase your cycling time as you will not replay on the battery.
What are the advantage & disadvantages of carrying a spare ebike battery?
In total, the advantage of having a spare battery is the extension in the battery capacity & the balance. while the disadvantages are spare battery can be stolen & will make ebike heavier also, it costs to buy it individually
Advantages :
Extend your battery range by doubling the battery capacity
Balance: adding the spare battery to the rear rack will help to add more balance to your ebike
Disadvantages
Weight: As a general rule, the weight of the battery is about seven pounds in general on average, and it may reach thirteen pounds and increase according to the increase in capacity.
The higher the weight, the higher the battery consumption, which means that when you carry an extra battery, you will increase the consumption of the battery used
Theft: When you carry a spare battery, you increase the risk of theft when you park in public places
Price: One of the disadvantages of carrying a spare battery is the high price of the battery when purchased individually
How to connect two batteries with different amps at the same time?
One good thing you might think about to give yourself more battery range is to have two batteries connected at the same time to do this you will need a dual battery connector.
Note: you can only mix between two batteries that have different amps but voltages have to be the same.
I will leave you with the below video made by Boltenebiks this video explains how to use it & also different ways to carry a spare ebike
battery.
Conclusion:
As a whole, you can carry a spare electric bike battery by using the Rear seats, frame bags, or using electric bike Backpacks.
| A place to Carry your spare battery | Tools Required |
| Ebike Rear Seat | Rear Seat Normal Bag |
| Ebike Rear Seat | Quick Release Rear Bag |
| Ebike Frame | Ebike Fram Bag |
| On Your Back | Biking Pack backs |
How to increase your ebike cycling time?
As a general rule, you can increase your Cycling time by:
- Keep your battery healthier
- You can replace your battery with a higher-capacity one.
- Get A dual Battery ebike
- Try Self-charging ebike
- Use electric bike solar charging systems.
