recharging the battery

[oulisee]

Do I need to disconnect the controller from the battery every time I recharge the battery?

[Helgeo]

Just turn the power off with the key before charging. That will disconnect the controller from the battery.

[oulisee]

Just turn the power off with the key before charging. That will disconnect the controller from the battery.

I don't have a GM battery - mine doesn't have a soft switch.

[e-lmer]

The battery charger charges the battery pack by applying a higher voltage
than the no load voltage of the pack.  If any current is running through
the controller it will make the charger think the pack is still drawing current,
and conclude that the battery pack is not full yet, leading to overcharge and
possible damage to the pack.

Depending on the controller, the over-voltage could be bad for it, and
it can't be good for the battery indicator.

I vote yes, disconnect the controller when charging.

I purchased a heavy duty (50A) SPDT  switch that connects the battery to
either the charging plug or the speed controller plug.

[TheKid]

Just add a switch on the positive wire between the battery and controller. Wire your battery as follows:

Positve from battery: inline fuse. From there, splice the battery wire, black switch wire and positive wire to the charger connector. The red switch wire goes to the positive side of the power connector on the controller. You could reverse the switch wires if you want to.

Negative from battery: Black wire from the battery gets spliced to two wires. One to the negative wire to the charger connector, one to the negative side of the power connector on the controller. It doesn't matter what kind of switch you use, but if it's out in the open, a key switch is recommended so nobody could mess with it. It's a good idea to have a switch for the controller, to prevent battery drainage. It should be turned off whenever the bike isn't being used.

[Bikemad]

It doesn't matter what kind of switch you use

If the switch is fitted on the main power cable, it must be capable of switching the maximum current drawn by the speed controller/motor or the switch contacts will burn out!

It should also be a greater rating than the fuse rating.
(If using a 40 Amp fuse, the switch should be rated for 40 Amps (or more) continuous duty)

Alan
 

[TheKid]

Another option is a spdt switch. When switched to the controller side, even if you connect the charger, the current won't go anywhere. When switched to the charger side, the current can only go to the battery.