Problems with charging 36v Frog Battery and Magic Pie

[marckorbin]

I've been searching the board but haven't found an easy answer for my problem.

There was a "dealer" in town but he wasn't very knowledgeable, which was why I purchased from Golden Motor directly. I also have received no replies from Golden Motor regarding my email requests to them.

I purchased a Magic Pie motor(Internal Controller) with the 36v frog battery.
(Had I know the differences I would have chosen an external controller.)

The battery charger always shows full charge/disconnected.
The battery is draining but not recharging when plugged into the charger.

The green charger LED dims a little and I can hear a click when it first gets plugged in but nothing else.
I've even tried to leave the charger plugged in overnight but still no charge.

I've installed the motor and driven it with the battery over ten miles and the LED indicator on the battery has dropped from two green and one red to one green and one red. The throttle used to have the red, yellow, green LEDs lit, now it only has the red and yellow LEDs lit.

This last weekend I took the bike out and the motor speed has diminished dramatically, is this normal because of the low battery or should I be concerned about something else?

[DirtyGinge]

It sounds like your battery is not charging at all..usually when you start the charger, you hear the first click and green led, and then the green led turns red......could be a problem with the BMS in the battery......

Worst case you could temporarily fix it by charging through the discharge lead....but not recommended...

Your battery is getting flatter and flatter. so soon it won't work on the bike at all, this is why the speed is diminishing...

[marckorbin]

I was thinking the motor speed degradation might just be the draining battery. Because I'm not really familiar with this motor, thought it might be better to mention everything I noticed.

I suspected either a problem in the charger or battery, I was hoping it was the charger.

This is a new purchase, How do I get the problem diagnosed and fixed?

[Bikemad]

Hi Marc, it might just be as simple as setting the voltage switch on the charger (if it has one) to match your mains supply voltage.

There might be a simple slide switch like this:


If your charger is fitted with one, set it to the 110V setting (if necessary) by using a small screwdriver or cocktail stick etc. to slide it.

Let us know if this was the problem.

Alan
 

[marckorbin]

I wish it was, I checked it first, this is a simple charger, there is no visible switch, not even an on/off toggle.

I'm assuming it auto-switches.

[GM Canada]

The 24 and 36 volt chargers are automatic 115 or 230 volt. They do not have a switch. There is only one LED that is green when its charged and red when its charging. Do you have a meter? If not, you can buy them fairly cheap. I would suggest putting a meter on the output red and black cables coming from the battery. See what the actual voltage is. Then plug it into the charger and see if the voltage goes up at all. I suspect it will not. If it does not then it is definitely the charger. What country are you in?

Gary  

[GM Canada]

There was a "dealer" in town but he wasn't very knowledgeable, which was why I purchased from Golden Motor directly. I also have received no replies from Golden Motor regarding my email requests to them.

Curious as to what dealer this was. For you to figure out he was not knowledgeable that means you at least were able to contact him. Believe me I am learning as I go along as well, but at least I am very accessable and put effort into resolving issues.

Gary

[MonkeyMagic]

Call me a weirdo, but even try plugging it into a different power point on the other side of the house

I say this because the same charger (I have) does not work in my garage!!!!! Lol I put it down to some kind of field interference.

Anyways, try that lol hope its as easy as that!! Otherwise, check inside I think I remember there being a fuse inside, perhaps it has died or faulted in transit. Its worth a look

[marckorbin]

I'm in California, USoA. Not very knowledgeable as in didn't know much about the product line beyond his interest in selling to me, and unable to answer any of my questions regarding the motors, controllers or batteries.

I was directed to the Golden Motor website and told to contact Golden Motor directly to get my questions answered. Then, because this was purchased through Golden Motor, the dealer wasn't able to help me figure out what component is failing.
(I brought the charger in to see if it worked on a different, same model, battery, but he didn't have any in stock.)

The recharger functions the same regardless of what outlet is used. I checked the fuse, it looks good.

I'll meter it when I locate my meter, soon hopefully, I moved recently and still can't find where I've placed all my tools. I've been looking for days now, it might be in my storage unit.

[e-lmer]

Mark, where in CA?

I am in Ventura,

I have a 36V charger and a 48V charger.

[marckorbin]

I'm located in Sacramento.
I tested the battery and the charger with a meter, no change with the battery's voltage.

I think I can hear a thermal switch click in the charger when it is plugged into the outlet.

I'm curious about what the charger output for a 36 battery is supposed to be.

This one is 29.4 volts

[Bikemad]

Marc, if you're only getting 29.4V it sounds like you may have a charger for a 24V pack, as the charger for the 36V packs should have a 42V output.

Have a good look at the charger and see if there is an output voltage marked on it like the 54.6VDC on this 48V charger:



The charging voltage for the standard Lithium Manganese packs are as follows:

Chargers for 48V packs are usually marked 54.6V
Chargers for 36V packs are usually marked 42V
Chargers for 24V packs are usually marked 29.4V

I seem to recall Gary mentioning that the LiFePO4 packs use the same chargers.

Alan
 

[marckorbin]

It appears the problem is that I was sent a 24 volt charger.

Marck

[Bikemad]

Marck, send an email to tom@goldenmotor.com and briefly explain you have been sent the wrong charger. Include your order details and a copy of that photo, and hopefully he will organise to send you the correct charger for your 36V pack.

Please let us know what happens.

Alan
 

[marckorbin]

I sent out the email and included my order and billing information:

Forwarded Order Confirmation:
From: sales@goldenmotor.com
Date: June 29, 2011 09:22:14PDT
Cc: sales@goldenmotor.com
Subject: Order Received Confirmation from GoldenMotor -- 2011-06-29 pm12:22

Dear Marck,

Thank you for your order and payment received. Your order reference number is Removed for security reasons.
Golden Motor has started processing your order and the package will be delivered within 5-10 business days.
Due to safety reason, battery pack and charger (if you ordered) will be sent separately from the kit, so the goods may not arrive on the same day.

Order Detail:
======================
Item Name: 26" Rear Wheel MagicPie(Internal Controller) USB Cable(Internal) Twist Throttle No Pedelec No Battery Pack
Item Code: 26"RmIHN
Quantity: 1

Item Name: Lithium Battery Frog Pack - 36V10AH
Item Code: LFP-3610F
Quantity: 1

=============================================

From: service@paypal.com
Date: June 29, 2011 09:22:13PDT
To: Marck
Subject: Receipt for Your Payment to Golden Motor Technology Co Ltd

Transaction ID:  Removed for security reasons
Hello Marck,
You sent a payment of $834.00 USD to Golden Motor Technology Co Ltd(sales@goldenmotor.com)

Shipping details:
The seller hasn’t provided any shipping details yet.

Description            Unit price      Qty   Amount

26" Rear Wheel MagicPie(Internal Controller), USB Cable(Internal), Twist Throttle, No Pedelec, No Battery Pack
Item# 26"RmIHN   $345.00 USD   1   $345.00 USD

Lithium Battery Frog Pack - 36V10AH
Item# LFP-3610F   $269.00 USD   1   $269.00 USD

         Subtotal                                    $614.00 USD
         Shipping and handling               $220.00 USD
         Total                                          $834.00 USD
Payment   $834.00 USD
Payment sent to sales@goldenmotor.com