"I think $100.00 a barrel is a fair price" - OPEC oil minister on where he thinks oil should be priced.
Do they just pull these numbers out of their collective asses or what? What ever happened to "market fundamentals" like supply and demand? Hey Jack, if there's no demand for oil because the global economy has tanked, then oil is worth whatever the market will bear, not whatever you think is "fair". These guys don't even realize that by artificially raising the price, that they'll just delay an economic recovery, and thus demand for oil.
This kind of volatility is what drives me to drive a car that doesn't play the Oil Game. I'm so mad at energy producers that I'm really, really trying to figure out how to get my hands on some solar panels. I consume 360-400 kWh per month of electricity for driving. If I generated that much with a solar, grid-tie system, I am essentially driving on sunshine. Of course, if I were really bitter, I'd fork out $40k for a system that generates 1400 kwh/month and eliminate my electric bill completely and be off the grid.
I see 2 silver linings in the current economic failures:
1. People have not yet reverted to their normal, wasteful driving habits. SUV sales are still down, small car, hybrid sales are still up...for those who can actually secure a car loan.
2. People are listening to these assholes at OPEC talk about raising the cost of energy in the middle of a recession when people are struggling and it's making them angry. That means that alternative energy development hasn't yet collapsed in the face of cheap gas prices.
People definitely need to understand that the market is volatile, the pundits are lousy at predicting the future, and you could get pump shock again in the near future, especially if it's a really cold winter. We need to keep pushing, keep developing, and not slack off just because gasoline prices have dropped 40%. If anything, this is a welcome breather while we come up with solutions to wean us from the petroleum tit.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
A Talk Show of My Own...
"Right, sir and then we'll need you to email us a picture of yourself" - CNN correspondent in a request for an interview.
Pfft...yeah right, get knotted.
For fun, I've sent in a few "opinions" to CNN's iReport regarding my EV and my views on the latest crop of foo- er, I mean candidates. Someone at CNN thought my views were worth airing (sincerely or for entertainment, I'll never know which) so I received a call on my cell phone. He had me right up to the point where he asked for a photo of myself. I declined, stating that I'm not the one running for President and that I love my anonymity too much. I'm not posting my picture for all the world to see, while the media twists my words into something humorous or that supports some journo's point of view. I'm pretty opinionated. My supervisor routinely suggests that I start my own "Imus in the morning" type of talk show. I'm as offensive as Imus so that's probably not too good of an idea.
My mileage has increased over the last month or so. I'm driving 15 miles per day, 5 days a week with 40 miles on 3 weekends, and 100 miles during a drill weekend. That's 520 miles per month. I'm up to 3100 miles on the new pack so far. I've been very careful to keep the batteries clean, connections tight, and keep them well watered. My fancy new hydrometer shows the electrolyte to be clear and clean and all cells in good health.
Checking individual cells is kind of a pain and I'm glad it's infrequent maintenance. You have to pop the caps off of all the batteries and stick this "turkey baster with a gauge" down into each cell. Your check how far the float rises and note the reading. An 8 volt battery has 4 cells. If one of them is dead, then the battery is out of balance with all the others. I have a total of 64 cells to check. It takes me about 20 minutes, but that's because I have to crawl around and remove the engine lid to get at the last four batteries comfortably.
You can't place a volt meter on an individual cell, so this is a way of checking the voltage chemically. It's something easy that anyone can learn in a few minutes.
The paint on my motor was flaking off so I cleaned and re-painted it with Hi-Temp black BBQ grill spray. The motor's heat cured the paint and made a durable finish. Once the weather cools, I'll place the belly pan back on the car to protect the motor and controller from the winter road salt.
Pfft...yeah right, get knotted.
For fun, I've sent in a few "opinions" to CNN's iReport regarding my EV and my views on the latest crop of foo- er, I mean candidates. Someone at CNN thought my views were worth airing (sincerely or for entertainment, I'll never know which) so I received a call on my cell phone. He had me right up to the point where he asked for a photo of myself. I declined, stating that I'm not the one running for President and that I love my anonymity too much. I'm not posting my picture for all the world to see, while the media twists my words into something humorous or that supports some journo's point of view. I'm pretty opinionated. My supervisor routinely suggests that I start my own "Imus in the morning" type of talk show. I'm as offensive as Imus so that's probably not too good of an idea.
My mileage has increased over the last month or so. I'm driving 15 miles per day, 5 days a week with 40 miles on 3 weekends, and 100 miles during a drill weekend. That's 520 miles per month. I'm up to 3100 miles on the new pack so far. I've been very careful to keep the batteries clean, connections tight, and keep them well watered. My fancy new hydrometer shows the electrolyte to be clear and clean and all cells in good health.
Checking individual cells is kind of a pain and I'm glad it's infrequent maintenance. You have to pop the caps off of all the batteries and stick this "turkey baster with a gauge" down into each cell. Your check how far the float rises and note the reading. An 8 volt battery has 4 cells. If one of them is dead, then the battery is out of balance with all the others. I have a total of 64 cells to check. It takes me about 20 minutes, but that's because I have to crawl around and remove the engine lid to get at the last four batteries comfortably.
You can't place a volt meter on an individual cell, so this is a way of checking the voltage chemically. It's something easy that anyone can learn in a few minutes.
The paint on my motor was flaking off so I cleaned and re-painted it with Hi-Temp black BBQ grill spray. The motor's heat cured the paint and made a durable finish. Once the weather cools, I'll place the belly pan back on the car to protect the motor and controller from the winter road salt.
Monday, September 01, 2008
Election Fatigue
I'm too disgusted to start off with the usual entry quote.
We've got 60-odd days until Voting Day and I'm already tired. The issues are being defined by the criteria of whichever one makes the best weapon against a campaign opponent, not whether it's a national problem or not.
I think that neither of the current presidential candidates (or their running mates) are at all a good choice but I'll make a public statement...a bet if you will, that Barack Obama will end up being the next President. When I think of how I've spent 18 years of my life in the military supporting and defending this mess we call the "United States", I just wince.
Oh, and my favorite time of year is here- Hurricane season. It's fun to watch oil and gas prices rock 'n roll to the unpredictable pathways that these storms take. We've set our critical national infrastructure up in what is essentially a lane in a bowling alley and we've put what was one of our larger cities in basically a large soup bowl. Sweet.
We've got 60-odd days until Voting Day and I'm already tired. The issues are being defined by the criteria of whichever one makes the best weapon against a campaign opponent, not whether it's a national problem or not.
I think that neither of the current presidential candidates (or their running mates) are at all a good choice but I'll make a public statement...a bet if you will, that Barack Obama will end up being the next President. When I think of how I've spent 18 years of my life in the military supporting and defending this mess we call the "United States", I just wince.
Oh, and my favorite time of year is here- Hurricane season. It's fun to watch oil and gas prices rock 'n roll to the unpredictable pathways that these storms take. We've set our critical national infrastructure up in what is essentially a lane in a bowling alley and we've put what was one of our larger cities in basically a large soup bowl. Sweet.
Friday, August 15, 2008
For Every Action, there is an equal amount of Inaction to Ensure a Zero Rate of Progress
"People should just stop driving" - quote from a CNN reader
Well, I now understand why "Rome is burning"..or at least one reason. Because we squabble ourselves into inaction. We The People have no right to be angry at Congress for not accomplishing anything meaningful in the last couple of years. I don't think we could do any better for ourselves.
Read this article: http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/ptech/08/14/electric.cars/index.html , then scroll down to the comments.
For every person who said a DIY EV conversion was a "great idea", there were 2 who said "it'll never work", "it's not practical", "it's dangerous", "it pollutes as much as a gasoline car" etc, etc.
Let me school any of you who are reading my blog as to why these people are full of crap and I'll offer web links to back me up, unlike all the uneducated naysayers who commented on the article.
1. "It'll never work" Tell that to these 2,000 people: http://www.evalbum.com/ (These are just the folks who felt like sharing, not all of them do) I drive mine every single day, 20-40 miles.
2. "It's not practical" Hey asshole, don't presume to speak for me. I can't help it that you bought a McMansion that was a 90 mile round-trip from your job. Don't penalize me because I lived within my means. My EV hauls me, my groceries, my buddies and family to 90% of places that I need to go. You're right, it's not practical for everyone, just the 80% of us who typically drive 27 miles per day. Since it doesn't work for everyone, let's make it illegal so no one can do it.
3. "It's dangerous" No shit. So was sailing to America. So was landing on the moon. So is stepping outside and taking a deep breath. Gasoline is dangerous. So is your hydrogen fuel cell car. It might sound grandiose to compare an EV to the space shuttle, but the risk vs. gain is just as vital in our current situation. The reward totally justifies the risk, and the risk is minimal. The risk of sticking your head in the sand and wishing we could go back to the '50's is much more dangerous.
4. "It pollutes as much as a gasoline car" Another myth. Study after study shows that an EV powered by coal-fired electricity is still 2/3 cleaner than a gasoline powered car. Why? Because it's more efficient. EV's use less energy to do the same thing. They use less because they don't waste energy as heat, noise and friction. Because currently there is still enough spare capacity available that the power plant isn't burning any extra coal to charge my car. See:
http://edition.cnn.com/2008/TECH/ptech/07/23/electriccars.grid.ap/index.html#cnnSTCText
And if you're still feeling guilty about your carbon footprint, feel free to install enough solar panels on your home to offset the amount of kilowatt hours that your car is using. Typically, 300kwh/month. You don't HAVE to make electricity from coal and you don't HAVE to get it all from your local utility. Stop being such a bunch of pussies. Spend some money on something meaningful instead of Madden '09 for your Xbox 360.
5. "All those batteries will cause worse pollution than gasoline cars" Another bullshit myth. Has anyone been tracking scrap metal prices lately? Lead, nickel, copper, steel and iron (the main components in most batteries) are going at record prices. We'll do the same thing with EV batteries that we've been doing for years: Recycling them. Every time you turn in your old, dead car battery at the auto parts store for a new battery, the old one is recycled. You don't really think that the auto parts store is just tossing it in the dumpster do you? It's worth money to them! Hell, people STEAL batteries for money. 97% of a lead battery is reused. Read here:
http://www.environment.gov.au/settlements/publications/chemicals/hazardous-waste/lead-acid-fs.html
In conclusion, don't be stupid all your life. Too many people have "let perfection become the enemy of good". What that means is, people refuse to adopt a new way of doing things because it's not absolutely positively perfect. Since no one can agree on a single, new way to do everything, everyone wants to sit around, bitch and do nothing.
The single best reason to go EV is just "because I want to, and you can't stop me". If you don't like it, feel free to pass me in the left lane.
Well, I now understand why "Rome is burning"..or at least one reason. Because we squabble ourselves into inaction. We The People have no right to be angry at Congress for not accomplishing anything meaningful in the last couple of years. I don't think we could do any better for ourselves.
Read this article: http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/ptech/08/14/electric.cars/index.html , then scroll down to the comments.
For every person who said a DIY EV conversion was a "great idea", there were 2 who said "it'll never work", "it's not practical", "it's dangerous", "it pollutes as much as a gasoline car" etc, etc.
Let me school any of you who are reading my blog as to why these people are full of crap and I'll offer web links to back me up, unlike all the uneducated naysayers who commented on the article.
1. "It'll never work" Tell that to these 2,000 people: http://www.evalbum.com/ (These are just the folks who felt like sharing, not all of them do) I drive mine every single day, 20-40 miles.
2. "It's not practical" Hey asshole, don't presume to speak for me. I can't help it that you bought a McMansion that was a 90 mile round-trip from your job. Don't penalize me because I lived within my means. My EV hauls me, my groceries, my buddies and family to 90% of places that I need to go. You're right, it's not practical for everyone, just the 80% of us who typically drive 27 miles per day. Since it doesn't work for everyone, let's make it illegal so no one can do it.
3. "It's dangerous" No shit. So was sailing to America. So was landing on the moon. So is stepping outside and taking a deep breath. Gasoline is dangerous. So is your hydrogen fuel cell car. It might sound grandiose to compare an EV to the space shuttle, but the risk vs. gain is just as vital in our current situation. The reward totally justifies the risk, and the risk is minimal. The risk of sticking your head in the sand and wishing we could go back to the '50's is much more dangerous.
4. "It pollutes as much as a gasoline car" Another myth. Study after study shows that an EV powered by coal-fired electricity is still 2/3 cleaner than a gasoline powered car. Why? Because it's more efficient. EV's use less energy to do the same thing. They use less because they don't waste energy as heat, noise and friction. Because currently there is still enough spare capacity available that the power plant isn't burning any extra coal to charge my car. See:
http://edition.cnn.com/2008/TECH/ptech/07/23/electriccars.grid.ap/index.html#cnnSTCText
And if you're still feeling guilty about your carbon footprint, feel free to install enough solar panels on your home to offset the amount of kilowatt hours that your car is using. Typically, 300kwh/month. You don't HAVE to make electricity from coal and you don't HAVE to get it all from your local utility. Stop being such a bunch of pussies. Spend some money on something meaningful instead of Madden '09 for your Xbox 360.
5. "All those batteries will cause worse pollution than gasoline cars" Another bullshit myth. Has anyone been tracking scrap metal prices lately? Lead, nickel, copper, steel and iron (the main components in most batteries) are going at record prices. We'll do the same thing with EV batteries that we've been doing for years: Recycling them. Every time you turn in your old, dead car battery at the auto parts store for a new battery, the old one is recycled. You don't really think that the auto parts store is just tossing it in the dumpster do you? It's worth money to them! Hell, people STEAL batteries for money. 97% of a lead battery is reused. Read here:
http://www.environment.gov.au/settlements/publications/chemicals/hazardous-waste/lead-acid-fs.html
In conclusion, don't be stupid all your life. Too many people have "let perfection become the enemy of good". What that means is, people refuse to adopt a new way of doing things because it's not absolutely positively perfect. Since no one can agree on a single, new way to do everything, everyone wants to sit around, bitch and do nothing.
The single best reason to go EV is just "because I want to, and you can't stop me". If you don't like it, feel free to pass me in the left lane.
Tuesday, August 05, 2008
Too Good To Last (Again)
Still nothing clever to quote. My acquaintences have been quite bland lately.
I haven't had an EV failure, but the oil bubble has finally popped and fuel prices are deflating fast. This will drag out my return on investment on my battery pack considerably.
Based on the last two oil spikes, in '70 and again in the '80's, I'm sure that we as a nation haven't learned a thing and that America will soon return to it's "regularly scheduled program" of SUV's, excess and American Idol.
What a drag. I'm sorry for all the pain that recent energy prices have caused (especially low income folks) but there was real motion on energy development, and an increase in consciousness. I thought I was finally going to witness my country stepping into the 21st century.
Now, I'll be re-labeled as a non-conformist crackpot instead of a forward-thinking individual and resume my normal place in society.
Ah well.
I haven't had an EV failure, but the oil bubble has finally popped and fuel prices are deflating fast. This will drag out my return on investment on my battery pack considerably.
Based on the last two oil spikes, in '70 and again in the '80's, I'm sure that we as a nation haven't learned a thing and that America will soon return to it's "regularly scheduled program" of SUV's, excess and American Idol.
What a drag. I'm sorry for all the pain that recent energy prices have caused (especially low income folks) but there was real motion on energy development, and an increase in consciousness. I thought I was finally going to witness my country stepping into the 21st century.
Now, I'll be re-labeled as a non-conformist crackpot instead of a forward-thinking individual and resume my normal place in society.
Ah well.
Sunday, August 03, 2008
No Ill Effects...
No quotes today, I'm in a hurry.
I've installed a blower motor to send cooler air over the motor controller in the hot summer months. I'd like to make a "Y" splitter to send some cooler air over the motor brushes as well. The car continues to run without problems. I add water to the batteries every couple of months and scrub the green fuzz off of the battery terminals. I've driven some long commutes to my Navy reserve center.
I bought a quality battery hydrometer to check the condition of the individual cells. All batteries check out fine. The electrolyte is clear and clean indicating that the plates are not shedding any active material. So far I have 2300 miles on the new pack. I'm aiming for 10k-14k miles on this pack.
With gas around $4.00/gallon, I'm saving about $80.00/month, recuperating the cost of one new battery per month. Fuel prices are falling, so my advantage is slipping. I have no intention of abandoning the project if fuel prices fall however.
I've installed a blower motor to send cooler air over the motor controller in the hot summer months. I'd like to make a "Y" splitter to send some cooler air over the motor brushes as well. The car continues to run without problems. I add water to the batteries every couple of months and scrub the green fuzz off of the battery terminals. I've driven some long commutes to my Navy reserve center.
I bought a quality battery hydrometer to check the condition of the individual cells. All batteries check out fine. The electrolyte is clear and clean indicating that the plates are not shedding any active material. So far I have 2300 miles on the new pack. I'm aiming for 10k-14k miles on this pack.
With gas around $4.00/gallon, I'm saving about $80.00/month, recuperating the cost of one new battery per month. Fuel prices are falling, so my advantage is slipping. I have no intention of abandoning the project if fuel prices fall however.
Friday, July 04, 2008
The real operating cost
"Kill-a-What? What's that? No dude, Kill-a-Watt" -discussion at work.
A Kill-a-Watt is a meter that you can buy which will tell you how much power any particular appliance in your house is using. You can calculate how much money something costs you for a day, a week, or a year. It's cheap and simple. The only limitations are that it's 110 volts only, and 15 amps maximum.
Guess what? My car's onboard charger draws 16 amps. The meter was very cheap so I plugged it in and babysat the affair until the bulk phase was over and the amps dropped off for the finishing phase. I didn't care if it melted down, I just didn't want to start a fire. The car has a bigger impact than I thought but it's still better than $4.09/gallon.
If I drive every day, the car uses 300 kwh (kilowatt hours) per month. My May electric bill was 1001 kwh, so the car was 1/3 of that. I pay .10 cents/kwh. That's $30.00/month, driving 20-40 miles a day.
Let's compare that to my DeLorean that gets 23 mpg combined city/hwy. 30 hwy.
20 miles a day for 30 days: 20 X 30=600 miles.
600 miles / 23 mpg= 26 gallons of fuel at 4.09/gallon, is $106.00
Yikes.
And yes, I probably drive 20 miles on the weekends too. All that errand running, grocery shopping, etc. Hell, it's more if you factor in my 98 miles of driving to and from my reserve unit in Baltimore once a month. So is it cheaper to operate? Yeah, now that gas prices are crazy. If the oil bubble pops, it might not be.
Now I have to recoup the cost of those damn batteries I bought. $1245.00 total, $83 each and I bought 15 of them.
A savings of $76.00 a month...that'd be 16 months.
Should be cake right?
A Kill-a-Watt is a meter that you can buy which will tell you how much power any particular appliance in your house is using. You can calculate how much money something costs you for a day, a week, or a year. It's cheap and simple. The only limitations are that it's 110 volts only, and 15 amps maximum.
Guess what? My car's onboard charger draws 16 amps. The meter was very cheap so I plugged it in and babysat the affair until the bulk phase was over and the amps dropped off for the finishing phase. I didn't care if it melted down, I just didn't want to start a fire. The car has a bigger impact than I thought but it's still better than $4.09/gallon.
If I drive every day, the car uses 300 kwh (kilowatt hours) per month. My May electric bill was 1001 kwh, so the car was 1/3 of that. I pay .10 cents/kwh. That's $30.00/month, driving 20-40 miles a day.
Let's compare that to my DeLorean that gets 23 mpg combined city/hwy. 30 hwy.
20 miles a day for 30 days: 20 X 30=600 miles.
600 miles / 23 mpg= 26 gallons of fuel at 4.09/gallon, is $106.00
Yikes.
And yes, I probably drive 20 miles on the weekends too. All that errand running, grocery shopping, etc. Hell, it's more if you factor in my 98 miles of driving to and from my reserve unit in Baltimore once a month. So is it cheaper to operate? Yeah, now that gas prices are crazy. If the oil bubble pops, it might not be.
Now I have to recoup the cost of those damn batteries I bought. $1245.00 total, $83 each and I bought 15 of them.
A savings of $76.00 a month...that'd be 16 months.
Should be cake right?
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Not a drop to drink...
"Gasoline everywhere, but not a drop to drink"
I'll be honest. When I embarked on this "mode" of transportation, I never in my wildest nightmares imagined that I would be so right, and that the cost of fuel would skyrocket to nearly $4/gallon and in such a short time. I'm not saying "nyah nyah" or "I told you so". I feel for people who can't afford to drive to work or to the doctor. I'm watching the American middle class disintegrate into people who drive their SUV's to the food bank. Truly bizarre.
That said, we have proven on world-wide news, that we are stupid people. Otherwise intelligent, educated people snared in crooked mortgages they can't afford, driving vehicles that they can no longer afford to operate, to jobs that are too far away. No savings, no Plan "B". Just indignation that someone didn't protect them from themselves. My friends and neighbors just shake their head at me in wonder now. One co-worker commented, "You really saw this coming didn't you?" I was honest and told him that I didn't. Worse, we have the nerve to send the President to Saudi Arabia to ask for a "fix" like a meth addict.
Ok, enough soap-box. I have mounted my ammeter shunt instead of letting it flop around in the motor compartment. All new batteries are installed, and I've been VERY gentle while I'm in the break-in period. No more than occasional 10 second bursts of 120 amps, normal acceleration of 100 amps, and cruising at 80 amps. I still make speed, but it takes longer to get there.
I still love the car. I enjoy driving it. It barely impacts my electric bill. I'll be taking it to the Virginia "Bug Out" to show in the "special interest" category.
I'll be honest. When I embarked on this "mode" of transportation, I never in my wildest nightmares imagined that I would be so right, and that the cost of fuel would skyrocket to nearly $4/gallon and in such a short time. I'm not saying "nyah nyah" or "I told you so". I feel for people who can't afford to drive to work or to the doctor. I'm watching the American middle class disintegrate into people who drive their SUV's to the food bank. Truly bizarre.
That said, we have proven on world-wide news, that we are stupid people. Otherwise intelligent, educated people snared in crooked mortgages they can't afford, driving vehicles that they can no longer afford to operate, to jobs that are too far away. No savings, no Plan "B". Just indignation that someone didn't protect them from themselves. My friends and neighbors just shake their head at me in wonder now. One co-worker commented, "You really saw this coming didn't you?" I was honest and told him that I didn't. Worse, we have the nerve to send the President to Saudi Arabia to ask for a "fix" like a meth addict.
Ok, enough soap-box. I have mounted my ammeter shunt instead of letting it flop around in the motor compartment. All new batteries are installed, and I've been VERY gentle while I'm in the break-in period. No more than occasional 10 second bursts of 120 amps, normal acceleration of 100 amps, and cruising at 80 amps. I still make speed, but it takes longer to get there.
I still love the car. I enjoy driving it. It barely impacts my electric bill. I'll be taking it to the Virginia "Bug Out" to show in the "special interest" category.
Monday, April 07, 2008
Idiot Proofing
"Insert clever comment here"
Sorry. No one's said anything memorable, or witty of late.
It's often said amongst us EV'ers that one of the biggest barriers to production electric vehicles is idiot-proofing these cars. Even though it's quite easy to kill yourself or others with a gasoline powered car, electric vehicles hold a special fear in the American public's eyes. Aside from hazard-proofing them, the cars need to be self-destruction proofed so that the owners don't slag their motors, controllers and battery packs.
I haven't done any of this to my car but I've been wanting to. I've learned that my charger has a built-in relay that I can use to power a dummy light to keep me from driving off with the cord plugged in. I also want to dial down my motor controller to keep me from accidentally hammering my batteries with too heavy an amperage load. It'll be beneficial for the motor too.
I also abhor the way the builder wired in the DC-DC converter and the controller pre-charge circuit. I'm going to buy a terminal board and properly screw all this stuff down......IF the warm weather ever finally gets here.
I've replaced 10 of 16 of my damaged batteries so far. I only drive very gently on low speed roads. Once they're all replaced, I'll be back on the major highways.
Sorry. No one's said anything memorable, or witty of late.
It's often said amongst us EV'ers that one of the biggest barriers to production electric vehicles is idiot-proofing these cars. Even though it's quite easy to kill yourself or others with a gasoline powered car, electric vehicles hold a special fear in the American public's eyes. Aside from hazard-proofing them, the cars need to be self-destruction proofed so that the owners don't slag their motors, controllers and battery packs.
I haven't done any of this to my car but I've been wanting to. I've learned that my charger has a built-in relay that I can use to power a dummy light to keep me from driving off with the cord plugged in. I also want to dial down my motor controller to keep me from accidentally hammering my batteries with too heavy an amperage load. It'll be beneficial for the motor too.
I also abhor the way the builder wired in the DC-DC converter and the controller pre-charge circuit. I'm going to buy a terminal board and properly screw all this stuff down......IF the warm weather ever finally gets here.
I've replaced 10 of 16 of my damaged batteries so far. I only drive very gently on low speed roads. Once they're all replaced, I'll be back on the major highways.
Joke's On Me
"What's this solid crap?" -My comment after seeing metal chunks in my battery hydrometer.
That comment marked the very rapid failure of my battery pack. I managed to get 7,000 miles from them before I killed 'em. That's not very good for those of you who are wondering. Here's the how and the why:
1. In the early months of last year, I had no instruments and I was operating on the false premise that these golf cart batteries were good for loads up to 300-400 amps. Wrong-O. 8 volt golf cart batteries are good for steady currents of 120 amps and bursts of 180.
2. The winter here was very cold and dry. I ended up on a drive where I underestimated my range and really drew the pack voltage down past the minimum point. The result was dead battery cells scattered through out the battery pack. How could I tell? All the battery voltages were really weird so I used a battery hydrometer to check the electrolyte levels in the individual cells. A battery hydrometer has a weighted needle in it and a graph on the side. Where ever the needle floats to indicates how much charge that cell has. Lots of cells read "zero". I also sucked up a lot of metal bits. The metal is...was active material that was shed from the battery plates while I was pulling 350 amps from the batteries. Yummy...... so "don't do that".
An 8 volt battery has 4 cells. 2 X 4 = 8 volts. A single dead cell makes the battery 6 volts. Or, 8 volts with a lot less capacity if you prefer. I had dead cells in nearly every battery. My range shrank to 15 miles on the best of days.
I knew my ignorance of proper care would catch up to me. I was expecting to only get 10,000 miles from the batteries...but I didn't quite make it.
There is a correlation between how deep you discharge lead-acid batteries versus how many charge/discharge cycles you get from them. If you only discharge them 5%, then you get 1,000's of cycles from them. That can be years of life. If you drag them down to 80% discharged every time, you'll get about 800 cycles. If you hammer them down past the 80% safety threshold, then you lose even more cycles...600, 400, 200....until you might kill them in just a couple of months. Also, if you discharge lead batteries at rates they weren't designed for (which was my primary mistake), you'll have the same effect.
Ok, so I learned the expensive lesson. My cost/benefit analysis says that in the 13 months I drove the car, and the average cost of gasoline versus the cost of the batteries, I broke exactly even. Well...not exactly. I didn't recoup the cost of electricity which was probably only a couple hundred dollars. Half of my charging was done at the local mass transit parking garage for free.
So...I'm still not financially or technically ready to upgrade to Lithium Iron Phosphate batteries so I've settled on flooded golf cart batteries again. This time I've really cheaped out and bought Energizer 8 volt batteries from Sam's Club. How's this for global economy: The batteries are made by a Mexican company for Johnson Controls which then sells them to Energizer who slaps their label on them and sells them exclusively at Sam's Club. About the thing that makes me feel good about these batteries is the one year warranty. I've been in touch with technical support at Johnson Controls and they "assure" me that these batteries are durable and dependable.
I'm hoping that my increased knowledge will help me keep these batteries alive for 10,000 miles or better. Forewarned is forearmed they say...
Why did I buy a cheaper, maybe questionable replacement battery? Because the price of "commodities" has shot up in the last several months. The batteries I had were $83.00 each. Now they're $100.00 each. Trojan, the Cadillac of golf cart batteries are $140-180 EACH. The Energizer batteries were $74.00 each.
I'm hoping that the higher and faster that gas prices climb, the quicker I'll recoup the cost of my less expensive battery pack (and the cost of the car). Fuel prices are $1.00 per gallon higher than they were over the last year of driving with my old pack. It's all about cost/benefit analysis.
That comment marked the very rapid failure of my battery pack. I managed to get 7,000 miles from them before I killed 'em. That's not very good for those of you who are wondering. Here's the how and the why:
1. In the early months of last year, I had no instruments and I was operating on the false premise that these golf cart batteries were good for loads up to 300-400 amps. Wrong-O. 8 volt golf cart batteries are good for steady currents of 120 amps and bursts of 180.
2. The winter here was very cold and dry. I ended up on a drive where I underestimated my range and really drew the pack voltage down past the minimum point. The result was dead battery cells scattered through out the battery pack. How could I tell? All the battery voltages were really weird so I used a battery hydrometer to check the electrolyte levels in the individual cells. A battery hydrometer has a weighted needle in it and a graph on the side. Where ever the needle floats to indicates how much charge that cell has. Lots of cells read "zero". I also sucked up a lot of metal bits. The metal is...was active material that was shed from the battery plates while I was pulling 350 amps from the batteries. Yummy...... so "don't do that".
An 8 volt battery has 4 cells. 2 X 4 = 8 volts. A single dead cell makes the battery 6 volts. Or, 8 volts with a lot less capacity if you prefer. I had dead cells in nearly every battery. My range shrank to 15 miles on the best of days.
I knew my ignorance of proper care would catch up to me. I was expecting to only get 10,000 miles from the batteries...but I didn't quite make it.
There is a correlation between how deep you discharge lead-acid batteries versus how many charge/discharge cycles you get from them. If you only discharge them 5%, then you get 1,000's of cycles from them. That can be years of life. If you drag them down to 80% discharged every time, you'll get about 800 cycles. If you hammer them down past the 80% safety threshold, then you lose even more cycles...600, 400, 200....until you might kill them in just a couple of months. Also, if you discharge lead batteries at rates they weren't designed for (which was my primary mistake), you'll have the same effect.
Ok, so I learned the expensive lesson. My cost/benefit analysis says that in the 13 months I drove the car, and the average cost of gasoline versus the cost of the batteries, I broke exactly even. Well...not exactly. I didn't recoup the cost of electricity which was probably only a couple hundred dollars. Half of my charging was done at the local mass transit parking garage for free.
So...I'm still not financially or technically ready to upgrade to Lithium Iron Phosphate batteries so I've settled on flooded golf cart batteries again. This time I've really cheaped out and bought Energizer 8 volt batteries from Sam's Club. How's this for global economy: The batteries are made by a Mexican company for Johnson Controls which then sells them to Energizer who slaps their label on them and sells them exclusively at Sam's Club. About the thing that makes me feel good about these batteries is the one year warranty. I've been in touch with technical support at Johnson Controls and they "assure" me that these batteries are durable and dependable.
I'm hoping that my increased knowledge will help me keep these batteries alive for 10,000 miles or better. Forewarned is forearmed they say...
Why did I buy a cheaper, maybe questionable replacement battery? Because the price of "commodities" has shot up in the last several months. The batteries I had were $83.00 each. Now they're $100.00 each. Trojan, the Cadillac of golf cart batteries are $140-180 EACH. The Energizer batteries were $74.00 each.
I'm hoping that the higher and faster that gas prices climb, the quicker I'll recoup the cost of my less expensive battery pack (and the cost of the car). Fuel prices are $1.00 per gallon higher than they were over the last year of driving with my old pack. It's all about cost/benefit analysis.
Tuesday, January 01, 2008
The Right Tool for the Job
"The thing is so reliable, that it's almost boring." -Me to a curious onlooker.
I haven't made many entries of late because there's really not much to tell. I drive the car every chance I get. I travelled 5,200 miles in 2007, starting at the beginning of March on through to December. 2 full months of that, I did not drive the car because I was out of town on business otherwise I'd probably be up to 6,000 miles.
One improvement that I just made was to install the proper sized motor controller for my battery pack. I have been using a controller rated for 72-120 volts, but I've been feeding 128 volts to it, which is risky. I met a gentleman in the online EV community who has a car with a 96 volt pack but his controller is bigger, rated at 96-144v. So basically, he was at risk of his controller just shutting down if he ever dipped below the minimum voltage and I was at risk of blowing mine up by exceeding my maximum voltage. We arranged a swap plus a little cash on my part. So, as the title says- the right tool for the job, for both of us.
I've taken to driving the car for longer distances. I now drive 28 miles (one way) to my military reserve center and I plug it in when I arrive. It's ready to go by the time I'm done at the end of the day.
It's winter now and the cold weather really plays havoc with my lead acid batteries. My range has dropped to a very cautious 25-30 miles. I feel that my battery charger would really benefit from the optional temperature compensation probe. It lets the charger know the ambient temperature and compensate by altering the charging algorithim. Simply put: It charges the batteries a little more when it's cold out and a little less when it's hot out. It's better for the life of the batteries.
As the batteries age, they are beginning to require more water. I used to add distilled water every 3 months. Now it's every month and a half. It's not a big deal and water is cheap. It's merely an observation.
I enjoy driving the car immensely and I've loaded it up with Sirius satellite radio and a new GPS that I received for Christmas. I've shown the car at some vintage VW social meets and the car is always met with wide acceptance.
I haven't made many entries of late because there's really not much to tell. I drive the car every chance I get. I travelled 5,200 miles in 2007, starting at the beginning of March on through to December. 2 full months of that, I did not drive the car because I was out of town on business otherwise I'd probably be up to 6,000 miles.
One improvement that I just made was to install the proper sized motor controller for my battery pack. I have been using a controller rated for 72-120 volts, but I've been feeding 128 volts to it, which is risky. I met a gentleman in the online EV community who has a car with a 96 volt pack but his controller is bigger, rated at 96-144v. So basically, he was at risk of his controller just shutting down if he ever dipped below the minimum voltage and I was at risk of blowing mine up by exceeding my maximum voltage. We arranged a swap plus a little cash on my part. So, as the title says- the right tool for the job, for both of us.
I've taken to driving the car for longer distances. I now drive 28 miles (one way) to my military reserve center and I plug it in when I arrive. It's ready to go by the time I'm done at the end of the day.
It's winter now and the cold weather really plays havoc with my lead acid batteries. My range has dropped to a very cautious 25-30 miles. I feel that my battery charger would really benefit from the optional temperature compensation probe. It lets the charger know the ambient temperature and compensate by altering the charging algorithim. Simply put: It charges the batteries a little more when it's cold out and a little less when it's hot out. It's better for the life of the batteries.
As the batteries age, they are beginning to require more water. I used to add distilled water every 3 months. Now it's every month and a half. It's not a big deal and water is cheap. It's merely an observation.
I enjoy driving the car immensely and I've loaded it up with Sirius satellite radio and a new GPS that I received for Christmas. I've shown the car at some vintage VW social meets and the car is always met with wide acceptance.
Sunday, September 16, 2007
Contact!
"MMmmph! Damn, that tingles!" -me catching some current from a battery terminal.
Yeah, I've started wearing rubber gloves now. I also disconnect the battery pack in more than one place when I work on the car.
I've suffered yet another component failure after the motor controller and it's the same old song: An old, and weathered part that probably outlived it's projected life-span. Luckily it was minor and relatively inexpensive.
The "main" contactor is a big, multi-hundred amp relay that connects the battery pack to the motor controller when you turn the key. It is both a safety and security device. The contactor that failed is the "Albright" brand. The terminals and large contacts are open to the air, and this allows corrosion, circuit resistance and commutation (sparking) to occur. A lot of EV'ers use these and they are durable but I don't like them. The moving, high-current parts are exposed to the elements and that just seems dumb.
I took a page from my Comuta Van days and bought a new Kilovac sealed contactor for the same price. It's a simple grey cylinder. The magnetic coil and the large contacts are permanently and totally sealed. The main contacts are also submerged in a sort of oil so every time you turn the key on and the contacts close, there is no arcing, sparking or commutation. They are rated for 1 million open/close cycles and something like 900 amps. It should last forever.
Installing it was a pain in the a$$. I had to remove the belly pan that protects the motor and everything else hiding in the engine bay. I had to use an angle grinder to cut away the old contactor bracket and drill mounting holes for the new contactor. Not difficult, just tedious.
And, once again I'm on the road. It's September now and the temperature has dropped as if someone threw a switch. Everything is cool and happy and I'm up to 3,200 miles so far.
I figure I'll get 7,000-10,000 more miles from these batteries.
Yeah, I've started wearing rubber gloves now. I also disconnect the battery pack in more than one place when I work on the car.
I've suffered yet another component failure after the motor controller and it's the same old song: An old, and weathered part that probably outlived it's projected life-span. Luckily it was minor and relatively inexpensive.
The "main" contactor is a big, multi-hundred amp relay that connects the battery pack to the motor controller when you turn the key. It is both a safety and security device. The contactor that failed is the "Albright" brand. The terminals and large contacts are open to the air, and this allows corrosion, circuit resistance and commutation (sparking) to occur. A lot of EV'ers use these and they are durable but I don't like them. The moving, high-current parts are exposed to the elements and that just seems dumb.
I took a page from my Comuta Van days and bought a new Kilovac sealed contactor for the same price. It's a simple grey cylinder. The magnetic coil and the large contacts are permanently and totally sealed. The main contacts are also submerged in a sort of oil so every time you turn the key on and the contacts close, there is no arcing, sparking or commutation. They are rated for 1 million open/close cycles and something like 900 amps. It should last forever.
Installing it was a pain in the a$$. I had to remove the belly pan that protects the motor and everything else hiding in the engine bay. I had to use an angle grinder to cut away the old contactor bracket and drill mounting holes for the new contactor. Not difficult, just tedious.
And, once again I'm on the road. It's September now and the temperature has dropped as if someone threw a switch. Everything is cool and happy and I'm up to 3,200 miles so far.
I figure I'll get 7,000-10,000 more miles from these batteries.
Wednesday, July 04, 2007
Built for me, not for you
"My EV, as it sits is not commercially viable"- me to co-worker
Why is that? I'll be blunt.
The average American consumer is greedy, lazy, demanding, and unwilling to make any sacrifice for the common good. A quick look at the cars on today's highways will make it painfully obvious. Even in a brand-new chassis, no one will settle for a spartan commuter car that eschews luxuries like A/C, power-everything and a DVD player for the baby in the back even if the return on investment means a 60 mile round-trip commute without gasoline.
Plus, my car lacks safeties that a commercial EV should have.
1. Emergency Stop. Hey gas cars don't have one, why should mine? Because people today enjoy litigation. A big, red Panic button to kill all power is a must.
2. Motor temperature gauge or dummy light. I found the temp sensor wires. I just need to attach a light. This'll keep Joe Lunchpail from roasting his motor.
3. Charging Cord Idiot Safety: This is a relay that will prevent the car from turning "on" when you turn the key if the charging cord is still plugged in. This'll keep you or Wifey from driving away with the cord still attached. I've never done this even once but I'd like to install one anyway.
I have an EV for me. Now I want to build one for "you". And to that end, I've purchased another 1974 VW Beetle with a straight body and a siezed engine. I'm going to pull out all the stops on this one. All the safeties, quality components, larger motor and controller, lights and gauges. Disc brakes all the way 'round. Beefed up suspension.
It's time to get out of this tiny townhouse and buy a house with a garage and maybe a workshop area. I'm up for sale and my bid on a house was accepted. I just need to sell my townhouse now....
Anyone looking for a townhouse that's centrally located to DC, Baltimore and Annapolis??
Why is that? I'll be blunt.
The average American consumer is greedy, lazy, demanding, and unwilling to make any sacrifice for the common good. A quick look at the cars on today's highways will make it painfully obvious. Even in a brand-new chassis, no one will settle for a spartan commuter car that eschews luxuries like A/C, power-everything and a DVD player for the baby in the back even if the return on investment means a 60 mile round-trip commute without gasoline.
Plus, my car lacks safeties that a commercial EV should have.
1. Emergency Stop. Hey gas cars don't have one, why should mine? Because people today enjoy litigation. A big, red Panic button to kill all power is a must.
2. Motor temperature gauge or dummy light. I found the temp sensor wires. I just need to attach a light. This'll keep Joe Lunchpail from roasting his motor.
3. Charging Cord Idiot Safety: This is a relay that will prevent the car from turning "on" when you turn the key if the charging cord is still plugged in. This'll keep you or Wifey from driving away with the cord still attached. I've never done this even once but I'd like to install one anyway.
I have an EV for me. Now I want to build one for "you". And to that end, I've purchased another 1974 VW Beetle with a straight body and a siezed engine. I'm going to pull out all the stops on this one. All the safeties, quality components, larger motor and controller, lights and gauges. Disc brakes all the way 'round. Beefed up suspension.
It's time to get out of this tiny townhouse and buy a house with a garage and maybe a workshop area. I'm up for sale and my bid on a house was accepted. I just need to sell my townhouse now....
Anyone looking for a townhouse that's centrally located to DC, Baltimore and Annapolis??
Easy Cruising
"So, did you drive the electric car today?"- my boss
Sigh...he asks me this nearly every day. For lack of anything more interesting to say I guess.
The fact is, I've had to make some costly repairs over a short period of time to this car. When it runs, it runs perfectly. It's not like a gas powered car that might run poorly but still run. With this thing, it's all or nothing. If these kinds of repairs become recurring events, then it means one of a few things:
1. The drivetrain and power systems are poorly designed.
2. The technology just isn't "there" yet.
3. The user (me) isn't operating the car properly.
Hey, if an electric car seems to be a bad concept, I'll admit it but I'm not ready to call it quits yet.
The batteries, charger and motor controller are all new. The only big-ticket item left to fail is the motor. I've re-examined it and I don't think that's likely. Why did 3 of 4 expensive items fail?
1. The batteries were 5 years old. That's old for lead batteries. I consider that to be "routine".
2. The charger was exposed to water. Duh. Let's see how the new one lasts now that it's sealed up.
3. Controller failure...this is the only one I don't have an obvious, concrete reason for. I can safely say that it was old. Maybe 10 years old. It didn't have a heat-sink installed on it so it was probably good and hot sometimes which isn't good for it. I installed a heatsink a week before it died which is too little, too late. There's also no forced air cooling. Most worrying...it's rated for 120 volts and I'm running 128 volts. The "pre-charge" system should protect it from premature failure but only time will tell. I have no idea of the quality of the rebuild. It's just a magic "black box" that's all sealed up against weather so I couldn't examine it. I'm betting that Flight Systems did a good job though.
I've driven for over a month since my last repair with no hassles. It's July 4th and I'm celebrating my independence from oil cartels, terrorists and Eco-Nazis. I've only fueled up my DeLorean once or twice since March. Just operating the car has not been "inconvenient" or required many changes in my day-to-day life. The act of plugging in doesn't really take any time or energy. Planning my trips to ensure enough energy or access to a plug has become second nature, much like a gas car owner plans trips to maximize fuel efficiency.
I guess if I have one real complaint about the car, it's that it is slow to accelerate. A more powerful controller and a slightly larger motor would fix that easily but it's more $$$ so I'm sticking with what I have. The top speed of 70+ mph suits me fine.
Sigh...he asks me this nearly every day. For lack of anything more interesting to say I guess.
The fact is, I've had to make some costly repairs over a short period of time to this car. When it runs, it runs perfectly. It's not like a gas powered car that might run poorly but still run. With this thing, it's all or nothing. If these kinds of repairs become recurring events, then it means one of a few things:
1. The drivetrain and power systems are poorly designed.
2. The technology just isn't "there" yet.
3. The user (me) isn't operating the car properly.
Hey, if an electric car seems to be a bad concept, I'll admit it but I'm not ready to call it quits yet.
The batteries, charger and motor controller are all new. The only big-ticket item left to fail is the motor. I've re-examined it and I don't think that's likely. Why did 3 of 4 expensive items fail?
1. The batteries were 5 years old. That's old for lead batteries. I consider that to be "routine".
2. The charger was exposed to water. Duh. Let's see how the new one lasts now that it's sealed up.
3. Controller failure...this is the only one I don't have an obvious, concrete reason for. I can safely say that it was old. Maybe 10 years old. It didn't have a heat-sink installed on it so it was probably good and hot sometimes which isn't good for it. I installed a heatsink a week before it died which is too little, too late. There's also no forced air cooling. Most worrying...it's rated for 120 volts and I'm running 128 volts. The "pre-charge" system should protect it from premature failure but only time will tell. I have no idea of the quality of the rebuild. It's just a magic "black box" that's all sealed up against weather so I couldn't examine it. I'm betting that Flight Systems did a good job though.
I've driven for over a month since my last repair with no hassles. It's July 4th and I'm celebrating my independence from oil cartels, terrorists and Eco-Nazis. I've only fueled up my DeLorean once or twice since March. Just operating the car has not been "inconvenient" or required many changes in my day-to-day life. The act of plugging in doesn't really take any time or energy. Planning my trips to ensure enough energy or access to a plug has become second nature, much like a gas car owner plans trips to maximize fuel efficiency.
I guess if I have one real complaint about the car, it's that it is slow to accelerate. A more powerful controller and a slightly larger motor would fix that easily but it's more $$$ so I'm sticking with what I have. The top speed of 70+ mph suits me fine.
Idle Times
"The Navy is all about coitus interruptus"- me to a shipmate
My controller failure happened the day before I shipped out for a few weeks of sleep-deprivation, er, I mean duty with my unit. I spent the time wondering how I'd come up with enough scratch to pay for a new controller. It's very frustrating to put my life on hold to go play sailor/soldier. 4 more years until retirement.
When I got back, I found a half-dozen "wanna-be" controller contraptions on the internet. Most of these people didn't even respond to my email. Someone recommended a couple of companies to rebuild my Curtis 1221B- Flight Systems Industrial Products and Logitech systems down in Tejas.
I opted for Flight Systems because they were physically closer. The cheerful woman on the phone quoted me $500.00 for a rebuild. I took a gamble and mailed it off. A week later, it was returned to me in brand, spanking new condition. I installed it in 15 minutes and was back in action.
EV repairs are simple compared to conventional car repairs but they can be more costly. The question is, how frequent are these repairs? How will the equipment hold up?
My controller failure happened the day before I shipped out for a few weeks of sleep-deprivation, er, I mean duty with my unit. I spent the time wondering how I'd come up with enough scratch to pay for a new controller. It's very frustrating to put my life on hold to go play sailor/soldier. 4 more years until retirement.
When I got back, I found a half-dozen "wanna-be" controller contraptions on the internet. Most of these people didn't even respond to my email. Someone recommended a couple of companies to rebuild my Curtis 1221B- Flight Systems Industrial Products and Logitech systems down in Tejas.
I opted for Flight Systems because they were physically closer. The cheerful woman on the phone quoted me $500.00 for a rebuild. I took a gamble and mailed it off. A week later, it was returned to me in brand, spanking new condition. I installed it in 15 minutes and was back in action.
EV repairs are simple compared to conventional car repairs but they can be more costly. The question is, how frequent are these repairs? How will the equipment hold up?
Go/No Go
"Maybe Flight Systems can help you"- email
On into April and early May I drove without a problem. Every chance I got. I believe for an alternative to be mainstream, it has to stand up to consumer abuse and it has to fill a void without a whole lot of upheaval in a person's routine and it has to be safe. "Safe" is a relative term. Idiots are clever people and I've seen time and time again that you can't "Idiot Proof" a product. Someone will always find a way to use something "in a manner other than directed" and hurt themselves.
Nevertheless, my EV could use a few minor safety upgrades that the average consumer should have. I'll get to that later though. I've got a whole new problem to wrestle with.
In early May, I was 3 miles from home at a traffic light waiting to go. The light turned green, I depressed the go-pedal and the car moved- all of 3 inches and stopped. NOW what the hell is wrong?
I hit the hazard lights and pushed the car to the side of the road. 1100 lbs. of lead is freakin' heavy.
I was right next to a gas station (oh the irony) so I just kept pushing until I was in the parking lot. I pulled out the only real tool you need for an EV- my trusty multi-meter. With a little book-learning, any numbskull can isolate an EV failure. You might not be able to fix it right there, but you can figure out what's wrong.
Symptom: Motor fails to run.
1. Is the pedal sensor sending the control signal to the motor controller?
a) Set meter to Ohms and check for 0-5k Ohms on the pedal wires. Yep. Next:
2. Are all battery cables still connected? This is a simple visual check. Yep. Next:
3. Is the main contactor (which connects the battery to the motor controller when you turn the key) working? Click, click. Yup. Plus, I measure 128 volts going into the motor controller.
Ok, so you have power. Power is going into the magic controller. The pedal sensor IS telling the controller what to do. Is the magic controller awake and sending any power to the motor??
4. I put my meter on the magic controller outputs and there was nothing, nada. So the controller is dead. This took me 10 minutes. It's just like figuring out plumbing. Where does the "water" stop flowing? Goes-inta's and Goes-outa's.
Yay. Simple. Except Magic Motor Controllers cost anywhere from $1200 to $2500 dollars.
Frick.
On into April and early May I drove without a problem. Every chance I got. I believe for an alternative to be mainstream, it has to stand up to consumer abuse and it has to fill a void without a whole lot of upheaval in a person's routine and it has to be safe. "Safe" is a relative term. Idiots are clever people and I've seen time and time again that you can't "Idiot Proof" a product. Someone will always find a way to use something "in a manner other than directed" and hurt themselves.
Nevertheless, my EV could use a few minor safety upgrades that the average consumer should have. I'll get to that later though. I've got a whole new problem to wrestle with.
In early May, I was 3 miles from home at a traffic light waiting to go. The light turned green, I depressed the go-pedal and the car moved- all of 3 inches and stopped. NOW what the hell is wrong?
I hit the hazard lights and pushed the car to the side of the road. 1100 lbs. of lead is freakin' heavy.
I was right next to a gas station (oh the irony) so I just kept pushing until I was in the parking lot. I pulled out the only real tool you need for an EV- my trusty multi-meter. With a little book-learning, any numbskull can isolate an EV failure. You might not be able to fix it right there, but you can figure out what's wrong.
Symptom: Motor fails to run.
1. Is the pedal sensor sending the control signal to the motor controller?
a) Set meter to Ohms and check for 0-5k Ohms on the pedal wires. Yep. Next:
2. Are all battery cables still connected? This is a simple visual check. Yep. Next:
3. Is the main contactor (which connects the battery to the motor controller when you turn the key) working? Click, click. Yup. Plus, I measure 128 volts going into the motor controller.
Ok, so you have power. Power is going into the magic controller. The pedal sensor IS telling the controller what to do. Is the magic controller awake and sending any power to the motor??
4. I put my meter on the magic controller outputs and there was nothing, nada. So the controller is dead. This took me 10 minutes. It's just like figuring out plumbing. Where does the "water" stop flowing? Goes-inta's and Goes-outa's.
Yay. Simple. Except Magic Motor Controllers cost anywhere from $1200 to $2500 dollars.
Frick.
The big toaster
"I still don't think you understand how it works"- vendor email
After my onboard charger's spectacular death, I began researching alternatives. The vendor of my original charger is a private individual who builds them in his own shop, no assembly line, no "customer service" department. I emailed back and forth with him for a while and gave up on him.
First of all, he's convinced that everyone who buys his product is an idiot and that if his charger fails, it's automatically the fault of the user. I can understand how he came to be this way. After all, he constantly gets email and phone calls from people who don't know what a voltmeter is. I -understand- how he got to be this way, but I don't -condone- that attitude. Basically what I got from him is that he's too busy building new units to repair mine anytime soon. At $1550.00 for a new one, I started looking for a cheaper, simpler alternative.
The Zivan NG3 charger is "EV's for Dummies". It's built in Italy. You send the vendor your battery specs and they program it for you. You install it in your car and that's it. No adjustments, no hassle. I picked the 110 volt 15 amp version. It'll charge the car more slowly but I can plug in to any 110 VAC outlet and not worry about tripping someone's circuit breaker. This means flexibility. After all, when you look around, just how many 220 volt laundry dryer outlets do you see around? Not many.
My new charger arrived in a week. It cost me $950. Yes, the price of EV components sucks but they're supposed to last a long time. IF you design the car correctly that is. I made damn sure that the cowl vent was sealed up tight before I put the new charger in. No more rain water intrusion. The new charger doesn't have some of the features of the old one like multi-voltage inputs, adjustable amperage output, blah blah blah. I never used those features anyway. Still, this charger is very "smart". It's computerized and automatically turns off based on the battery's condition, not just a timer, it can tell if the battery pack is disconnected, it will shut off on an over voltage or under voltage condition from the wall AC voltage or the battery DC voltage. It has a single LED and gives a variety of beep codes to help you understand what's going on.
In the EV photo album, it seems to be one of the more popular choices. You can check all the other cars that use the Zivan charger here: http://www.austinev.org/evalbum/index.html
I've been running it since the beginning of April without a hitch. Just plug it and forget it, like a big toaster.
After my onboard charger's spectacular death, I began researching alternatives. The vendor of my original charger is a private individual who builds them in his own shop, no assembly line, no "customer service" department. I emailed back and forth with him for a while and gave up on him.
First of all, he's convinced that everyone who buys his product is an idiot and that if his charger fails, it's automatically the fault of the user. I can understand how he came to be this way. After all, he constantly gets email and phone calls from people who don't know what a voltmeter is. I -understand- how he got to be this way, but I don't -condone- that attitude. Basically what I got from him is that he's too busy building new units to repair mine anytime soon. At $1550.00 for a new one, I started looking for a cheaper, simpler alternative.
The Zivan NG3 charger is "EV's for Dummies". It's built in Italy. You send the vendor your battery specs and they program it for you. You install it in your car and that's it. No adjustments, no hassle. I picked the 110 volt 15 amp version. It'll charge the car more slowly but I can plug in to any 110 VAC outlet and not worry about tripping someone's circuit breaker. This means flexibility. After all, when you look around, just how many 220 volt laundry dryer outlets do you see around? Not many.
My new charger arrived in a week. It cost me $950. Yes, the price of EV components sucks but they're supposed to last a long time. IF you design the car correctly that is. I made damn sure that the cowl vent was sealed up tight before I put the new charger in. No more rain water intrusion. The new charger doesn't have some of the features of the old one like multi-voltage inputs, adjustable amperage output, blah blah blah. I never used those features anyway. Still, this charger is very "smart". It's computerized and automatically turns off based on the battery's condition, not just a timer, it can tell if the battery pack is disconnected, it will shut off on an over voltage or under voltage condition from the wall AC voltage or the battery DC voltage. It has a single LED and gives a variety of beep codes to help you understand what's going on.
In the EV photo album, it seems to be one of the more popular choices. You can check all the other cars that use the Zivan charger here: http://www.austinev.org/evalbum/index.html
I've been running it since the beginning of April without a hitch. Just plug it and forget it, like a big toaster.
Saturday, March 31, 2007
Great Balls 'o Fire
"Do I still have eyebrows?" -me
As I dissected the E-bug it became very obvious to me that the car was only driven and not "maintained". At least not the electric-drive portion. Dry batteries, non-functional instruments, and some questionable segments of wiring and that wasn't all.
The charger needed adjustments to properly charge the new batteries I had finally installed. I still wasn't sure that I had set it right or even if the charger was working properly. I opened the trunk and noticed a wetness on top of the charger. I looked up and noticed that the trunk vent wasn't properly plugged and that the charger lives right beneath it. Shhhhhhh!!!t. But it's all puddled on top and none has gone into the charger which is not weather proof. So I mopped it up and vowed to fix the vent.
A couple of days later I'm convinced that the charger isn't shutting off after finishing the charge like it should. No wonder. Water probably got into it at some point in the last 2 years before I owned it. After changing some settings, I plugged the car in to see if things work right. Nothing. I didn't hear the sound of the cooling fans spooling up. I pop the trunk and see the power breaker is off. Well I must have left it that way while making adjustments. I flipped it on.
For a brief second I heard a zzzzzZZZZZZZZTTT and saw a white light inside. I didn't dare touch it for fear of shock and then a ka-POW! and a hot, white ball flew out at me. Sniff....wow. So that's what plasma smells like.
The freaky thing? The charger still worked. It still won't turn off automatically though. It's an unknown quantity so I'm done with it. The next day I started researching replacement battery chargers.
As I dissected the E-bug it became very obvious to me that the car was only driven and not "maintained". At least not the electric-drive portion. Dry batteries, non-functional instruments, and some questionable segments of wiring and that wasn't all.
The charger needed adjustments to properly charge the new batteries I had finally installed. I still wasn't sure that I had set it right or even if the charger was working properly. I opened the trunk and noticed a wetness on top of the charger. I looked up and noticed that the trunk vent wasn't properly plugged and that the charger lives right beneath it. Shhhhhhh!!!t. But it's all puddled on top and none has gone into the charger which is not weather proof. So I mopped it up and vowed to fix the vent.
A couple of days later I'm convinced that the charger isn't shutting off after finishing the charge like it should. No wonder. Water probably got into it at some point in the last 2 years before I owned it. After changing some settings, I plugged the car in to see if things work right. Nothing. I didn't hear the sound of the cooling fans spooling up. I pop the trunk and see the power breaker is off. Well I must have left it that way while making adjustments. I flipped it on.
For a brief second I heard a zzzzzZZZZZZZZTTT and saw a white light inside. I didn't dare touch it for fear of shock and then a ka-POW! and a hot, white ball flew out at me. Sniff....wow. So that's what plasma smells like.
The freaky thing? The charger still worked. It still won't turn off automatically though. It's an unknown quantity so I'm done with it. The next day I started researching replacement battery chargers.
Sunday, March 25, 2007
Not a Drop to Drink...
"Why don't you just start a used car lot?" - Friend
When I first bought this EV, I was told outright that the batteries were dead and needed replaced. The current range on these batteries: 2 miles.
As I was storing cash to replace the pack, I figured I'd at least check them out. Just for fun, I popped a cap off of a battery. Bone dry. Dry? Wait a sec... I popped all 4 caps on all 16 batteries and every single cell was bone-dry. No wonder it only goes 2 miles.
Well hell, distilled water is only .75 cents per gallon so I bought 4 gallons and added it to the batteries. In the end it took a total of 11 GALLONS of water to properly electrolyze the batteries. Talk about neglect.
Now for the scary part...charging. I had no idea what would happen if I tried to charge these severely abused batteries. Nothing? Explosion? Thermal runaway? A fire? I plugged the car in for 10 minutes and unplugged it. I touched every battery and interconnecting cable and nothing was hot. I resumed charging in 30 minute intervals for a few hours. Eventually I was confident and just let the charger finish.
The moral? Be kind to your batteries. Keep them clean and keep them hydrated.
Now here's a story for you...
I was browsing the ev photo album website: http://www.austinev.org/evalbum/ when I found a shiny red Bug named "Reba". Closer inspection showed that this HAD to be my car. Every little wiring and construction detail matched my car. I emailed the guy and he confirmed it. The batteries in the photo were the same ones still in the car. They were about 5 years old. At least a year past the normal lifespan. I took the chance to ask the builder some questions about the car:
1. Why 8 volt batteries instead of 6v? Doesn't this shorten the range a lot? Or does it?
2. I found a lot of other converted Beetles in the website. All of the 8 volt conversions claim to get a longer range and higher speed than yours. Why is that?
3. Why do I have to hit the toggle on the dash before I turn on the car? What are the household lightbulbs under the hood for?
He responded with some interesting answers:
1a. 6 volt batteries made the car a total slug. 8 volt batts gave it enough "umph" to keep up with traffic.
2a. The other people are overly optimistic about their cars. He was being brutally honest under his driving conditions and habits for range and speed.
3a. The Curtis 1221B controller is only rated for 120 volts total. The car has 128 volts total. This is overdriving the controller. When you first turn on the key, the inrush of current to the controller capacitors is beyond it's rated limit. The toggle charges the capacitors through the lightbulbs which are acting as resistors. This is much more gentle and within the controller's rated limit. The lightbulbs glow briefly and die out indicating that you're ready to drive. It takes about 3-5 seconds. If I had a 1231 model, I could get rid of all this pre-charging nonsense.
I was still skeptical about the choice of 8 volt batteries but I figured he knew better so I decided to stick with them. I found a distributor in Delaware who would deliver for free. Since Delaware has no sales tax, this was an added bonus. I researched 8 volt batteries and this is what I came up with in terms of cost and quality:
1. Sam's Club: 8v (110 min) Energizer- $63.00/ea Quality: Worst.
2. Trojan T-875- (117 min) from $134-114/ea depending on distributor. Quality: Best.
3. Trojan T-890- (132 min) from $144-159/ea depending on distributor. Quality: Best.
4. US Battery 8VGC- (121 min) $89.00/ea from Tri-State Battery Quality: Excellent.
5. Astro-lite Power Master (121 min) $83.00/ea from Tri-State Quality: Unknown.
Now the Astro-Lite is actually a Dekka battery from East-Penn manufacturing. Dekka batteries are often used by EV'ers and claim to be excellent quality at an affordable price so I bought these. The salesman could have just pushed Trojan's on me and made more money but he stated that these are excellent batteries that would give me performance and save me money.
Here's hoping.
When I first bought this EV, I was told outright that the batteries were dead and needed replaced. The current range on these batteries: 2 miles.
As I was storing cash to replace the pack, I figured I'd at least check them out. Just for fun, I popped a cap off of a battery. Bone dry. Dry? Wait a sec... I popped all 4 caps on all 16 batteries and every single cell was bone-dry. No wonder it only goes 2 miles.
Well hell, distilled water is only .75 cents per gallon so I bought 4 gallons and added it to the batteries. In the end it took a total of 11 GALLONS of water to properly electrolyze the batteries. Talk about neglect.
Now for the scary part...charging. I had no idea what would happen if I tried to charge these severely abused batteries. Nothing? Explosion? Thermal runaway? A fire? I plugged the car in for 10 minutes and unplugged it. I touched every battery and interconnecting cable and nothing was hot. I resumed charging in 30 minute intervals for a few hours. Eventually I was confident and just let the charger finish.
The moral? Be kind to your batteries. Keep them clean and keep them hydrated.
Now here's a story for you...
I was browsing the ev photo album website: http://www.austinev.org/evalbum/ when I found a shiny red Bug named "Reba". Closer inspection showed that this HAD to be my car. Every little wiring and construction detail matched my car. I emailed the guy and he confirmed it. The batteries in the photo were the same ones still in the car. They were about 5 years old. At least a year past the normal lifespan. I took the chance to ask the builder some questions about the car:
1. Why 8 volt batteries instead of 6v? Doesn't this shorten the range a lot? Or does it?
2. I found a lot of other converted Beetles in the website. All of the 8 volt conversions claim to get a longer range and higher speed than yours. Why is that?
3. Why do I have to hit the toggle on the dash before I turn on the car? What are the household lightbulbs under the hood for?
He responded with some interesting answers:
1a. 6 volt batteries made the car a total slug. 8 volt batts gave it enough "umph" to keep up with traffic.
2a. The other people are overly optimistic about their cars. He was being brutally honest under his driving conditions and habits for range and speed.
3a. The Curtis 1221B controller is only rated for 120 volts total. The car has 128 volts total. This is overdriving the controller. When you first turn on the key, the inrush of current to the controller capacitors is beyond it's rated limit. The toggle charges the capacitors through the lightbulbs which are acting as resistors. This is much more gentle and within the controller's rated limit. The lightbulbs glow briefly and die out indicating that you're ready to drive. It takes about 3-5 seconds. If I had a 1231 model, I could get rid of all this pre-charging nonsense.
I was still skeptical about the choice of 8 volt batteries but I figured he knew better so I decided to stick with them. I found a distributor in Delaware who would deliver for free. Since Delaware has no sales tax, this was an added bonus. I researched 8 volt batteries and this is what I came up with in terms of cost and quality:
1. Sam's Club: 8v (110 min) Energizer- $63.00/ea Quality: Worst.
2. Trojan T-875- (117 min) from $134-114/ea depending on distributor. Quality: Best.
3. Trojan T-890- (132 min) from $144-159/ea depending on distributor. Quality: Best.
4. US Battery 8VGC- (121 min) $89.00/ea from Tri-State Battery Quality: Excellent.
5. Astro-lite Power Master (121 min) $83.00/ea from Tri-State Quality: Unknown.
Now the Astro-Lite is actually a Dekka battery from East-Penn manufacturing. Dekka batteries are often used by EV'ers and claim to be excellent quality at an affordable price so I bought these. The salesman could have just pushed Trojan's on me and made more money but he stated that these are excellent batteries that would give me performance and save me money.
Here's hoping.
The "new" older EV
"Wow...this is so much better" - me
After examining possible donor vehicles, I concluded that for my budget and engineering skills, going backwards would move me forward. Old Volkswagens make excellent conversions due to their simplicity, and access to open spaces for battery layout. I really wanted something sporty like the Bradley GT II sports car kit or a Karman Ghia but I needed something that seats 4 and Karman donors are rare and usually in very rough shape.
When I found this Beetle already converted for only $2500.00 I saw it as a chance to get my 4-seater and have my work done for me. It also gives me a chance to examine the engineering in case I decide to repeat the creation in a Karman Ghia later.
As you can tell from the picture, it's kind of anti-climactic. Unless you're a classic Beetle fan of course. These cars have survived for decades because of their sturdy engineering, their simplicity and practicality. Parts are plentiful and CHEAP. Aftermarket parts are available everywhere.
Here are the stats as it was when I bought it:
1. 128 volt system. 16, 8 volt golf-cart batteries (up from the paltry 72 volts of the old Comuta Van)
2. PFC 20 onboard charger from Manzanita Micro technologies. The charger alone is worth $1550.00. It can utilize any input power from 60 volts to 240 volts AC. It can output 12 to 360 volts DC at up to 20 amps. It's small and mounts onboard.
3. A heater! Thank God... It has a 1500w ceramic heater. It only runs when the car is plugged in but it makes for a cozy car in the morning and the heat usually lasts until I arrive at my destination.
4. DC to DC converter. This is an upgrade over using a heavy marine battery to power the 12v stuff like headlights, horn, etc. The converter taps the total battery pack and steps it down to 14 volts. This keeps the headlights bright, the wipers snappy and the horn good and loud. The SEVCON converters were built for underground mining cars so they're easily tough enough to withstand automotive use. It's also small and light and mounts under the back seat. It draws very little amperage and doesn't really affect your total range. It also prevents uneven discharge from tapping the traction pack at mid-point to get your 12 volts because you're tapping the total pack.
5. Advance DC 6.7" motor. This is actually a bit on the small side but I find that the car is fast enough. An 8" motor would have been better.
6. Curtis 1221B motor controller. Same as the Comuta Van. I'm actually 8 volts over it's limit but there's a fix for that. I'll explain later.
7. Instrumentation. 3 analog meters. 1 for 12 v systems, a 400 amp ammeter to show consumption, and a traction voltage gauge that reads up to 300v DC. The ammeter has failed and needs replaced.
The pans are solid and not rusted. I intend to paint everything with POR15 rust preventative just in case.
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