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Battery Charge
Posted: Fri Jul 19, 2019 10:20 am
by Kcblair
Hello guys. Is it normal for battery to completely discharge, after setting idle for 10 days ? Battery was fully charged, when I last rode this bike . Thanks. KB
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Fri Jul 19, 2019 10:45 am
by Velocomp
How old is your unit?
Complete discharge of a full battery in 10 days is not normal unless:
1. the unit is old, or
2. the battery has not been properly maintained (like any rechargeable battery device, PP battery should be periodically charged full every 4 weeks).
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Fri Jul 19, 2019 11:04 am
by Kcblair
The unit is new, purchased in Apr 2019. I charge after every ride. Last rode bike that PP is installed on Jul 9, rode today, pushed start button, nothing. Continued with ride, plugged into PC and charging now. Light flashing red. What is rechargeable battery device ?KB
Edit:what is not properly maintaining a rechargeable battery device , sorry , I was a little confused. Once the battery is recharged, it is left on a particular bike, stored in my climatic controlled bike room. KB
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Fri Jul 19, 2019 2:46 pm
by FrankH
John,
I asked the same question over a year ago,
https://velocompforum.com/viewtopic.php ... 301#p24301
Your reply indicated that discharging in 10 days is normal, now you seem to be saying it should last at least four weeks
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Fri Jul 19, 2019 5:19 pm
by Velocomp
My response in the prior post did not have a time frame. My response was:
"PP will slowly discharge when not used. It is fine to keep it connected to a USB charger when not in use."
If PP is fully charged it will take about 3 weeks for its battery to fully discharge. NOTE: new PowerPod V3 takes about 3 months...
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Fri Jul 19, 2019 5:21 pm
by Velocomp
Kcblair wrote: ↑Fri Jul 19, 2019 11:04 am
The unit is new, purchased in Apr 2019. I charge after every ride. Last rode bike that PP is installed on Jul 9, rode today, pushed start button, nothing. Continued with ride, plugged into PC and charging now. Light flashing red. What is rechargeable battery device ?KB
Edit:what is not properly maintaining a rechargeable battery device , sorry , I was a little confused. Once the battery is recharged, it is left on a particular bike, stored in my climatic controlled bike room. KB
Please provide the serial number of your unit.
When you charge PP, its red light will flash while charging. When the battery is fully charged the light will go out.
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Fri Jul 19, 2019 6:26 pm
by Kcblair
Hello John,
Ser nbr is : 02-28-19-08-04-0C-B0-00-03-00-93-03-BE-7F-10-13
Yes, that's what the unit does while charging and is completed. KB
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Fri Jul 19, 2019 6:44 pm
by Velocomp
Kcblair wrote: ↑Fri Jul 19, 2019 6:26 pm
Hello John,
Ser nbr is : 02-28-19-08-04-0C-B0-00-03-00-93-03-BE-7F-10-13
Yes, that's what the unit does while charging and is completed. KB
You have one of our newer circuit boards. If your unit is fully charged, then when in storage you should get well over 2 months of slow discharge. Note that this assumes the unit is NOT used...it is just sitting in storage.
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Fri Jul 19, 2019 7:00 pm
by Kcblair
Thanks John,
Should I , after the PP is fully charged, give it 5 clicks, to ensure it is off ? KB.
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Fri Jul 19, 2019 8:55 pm
by Velocomp
Kcblair wrote: ↑Fri Jul 19, 2019 7:00 pm
Thanks John,
Should I , after the PP is fully charged, give it 5 clicks, to ensure it is off ? KB.
You can do this if you wish. Note, however, that PP will turn itself off after 20 minutes of inactivity.
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Sat Jul 20, 2019 11:36 am
by Kcblair
Thanks John, for your assistance . Ill keep tabs on this and charge the night before using .KB
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Wed Jul 31, 2019 1:38 pm
by Psycho Mike
Here's another question on the topic. - Power bricks / blocks.
Several of them have the ability to charge at different currents (i.e. 1A and 2A) thanks to the different phones on the market. Is there any limitation on what the PP will accommodate? I've got a multi-day cycling trip coming up and I'll need to use a block to recharge my Garmin and PP.
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Wed Jul 31, 2019 2:17 pm
by Velocomp
No limitation...
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Fri Mar 13, 2020 7:47 pm
by Charcoal007
Hi,
I have a powerpod v3 purchased in April 2019.
I’ve noticed that when I charge the unit using a power outlet the unit is set to recalibrate.
Is this normal?
I would prefer it not to be in recalibrate mode. Can this be changed?
When I charge through PC USB port this doesn’t happen.
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Fri Mar 13, 2020 10:17 pm
by Velocomp
Hmm...this should not happen. Make sure that when you plug your PP in that you aren't press-holding the button for 12 seconds. This would force a new cal ride.
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Wed Mar 18, 2020 7:45 am
by Charcoal007
Thanks,
I'm sure that I didn't press the power button when charging.
I might have messed up the pairing with my head unit and accidently forced a calc ride to start.
Cheers
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Sat Oct 10, 2020 11:53 am
by awoodburn
Does the rechargeable battery eventually deteriorate so it won’t hold charge - my charger flashes red for about 20mins and then goes off but the unit won’t function for more than 2hrs before going flat . This is similar to some of my garmin after while where they won’t take a full charge
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2020 9:52 pm
by Velocomp
Please email
technicalsupport@velocomp.com for next steps.
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Wed Dec 08, 2021 4:35 am
by Zoltan
Velocomp wrote: ↑Fri Jul 19, 2019 5:19 pm
My response in the prior post did not have a time frame. My response was:
"PP will slowly discharge when not used. It is fine to keep it connected to a USB charger when not in use."
Unfortunately I dont know the type of rechargable battery inside PP (or previous products like Newton), thus I have just an idea to be confirmed or rejected.
I have read that it is a good solution to keep some types of rechargable batteries in really cold places even in a refrigerator, PROVIDED they are properly sealed in order to avoid moisture.
Sidenote: since in case of PP and it is true for any Velocomp products we speak about not rechargable batteries, but devices with these batteries inside, and these devices are designed for outdoors usage even with potetial rain, moisture cannot cause a corrosion of the batteries inside.
So my idea, or rather question is that is it OK to put and keep PP (or Newton in my case) to the refrigerator between two rides in order to decrease the daily extent of discharge? As an alternative solution to keeping it connected to a USB charger?
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Wed Dec 08, 2021 11:10 am
by Velocomp
Zoltan wrote: ↑Wed Dec 08, 2021 4:35 am
So my idea, or rather question is that is it OK to put and keep PP (or Newton in my case) to the refrigerator between two rides in order to decrease the daily extent of discharge? As an alternative solution to keeping it connected to a USB charger?
I have read nothing in the literature that says that rechargeable batteries will discharge more slowly if they are cold.
That said, I would be uncomfortable putting our PMs in a refrigerator between rides:
1) After removing the device from the refrigerator and putting on the bike outdoors, there is the possibility of condensation inside the device, on the circuit board. Not good...
2) For the best stability of power measurements, it's best if the unit is operated at outdoor temperatures
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Thu Dec 09, 2021 12:48 pm
by lorduintah
A simple web search on rechargeable lithium battery storage or handling - I found plenty of information and nothing suggested storing them in the refrigerator.
One comment found:
Most battery manufacturers do not recommend storing batteries in the fridge. While the cooler temperature might lengthen the battery life, the moisture from inside the refrigerator could damage the battery in other ways. ... This precaution will help keep the high humidity inside a fridge away from the batteries.(and other internal electronics as John mentioned.)
To add to this:
Store the PP in a cool dry place - best around 59 Degrees F or room temp is adequate. But not hot, which will degrade the battery.
It appears that the PP is designed with an internal limit to charging (limited trickle charge) so that you can leave them connected to a USB charger, but that is a waste of resources.
The internal PP battery holds a charge for quite some time - granted the Newton probably is an older generation technology.
Tom
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Fri Dec 10, 2021 1:19 pm
by Zoltan
lorduintah wrote: ↑Thu Dec 09, 2021 12:48 pm
A simple web search on rechargeable lithium battery storage or handling - I found plenty of information and nothing suggested storing them in the refrigerator.
One comment found:
Most battery manufacturers do not recommend storing batteries in the fridge. While the cooler temperature might lengthen the battery life, the moisture from inside the refrigerator could damage the battery in other ways. ... This precaution will help keep the high humidity inside a fridge away from the batteries.(and other internal electronics as John mentioned.)
To add to this:
Store the PP in a cool dry place - best around 59 Degrees F or room temp is adequate. But not hot, which will degrade the battery.
It appears that the PP is designed with an internal limit to charging (limited trickle charge) so that you can leave them connected to a USB charger, but that is a waste of resources.
The internal PP battery holds a charge for quite some time - granted the Newton probably is an older generation technology.
Tom
https://m.greenway-battery.com/news/Sto ... -1424.html
“ Storing rechargeable batteries in the refrigerator is an alternative to trickle-charging. By keeping NiMH batteries at temperatures below freezing, the self-discharge rate can be reduced to about 1-3 percent each month. ”
Since Newton discharges fully in 10-21 days when it is switched off, if there is a NiMH battery inside then theoratically there is a chance to win a lot with cooling
Note: I started my original question with making it clear that I have no knowledge about the type of batteries within Newton or PP.
But since lithium is much much better than NiMH or NiCd as regards self-discharging rate I would not be surprised if Newton has not lithium inside, but some nickel-based battery.
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Fri Dec 10, 2021 1:39 pm
by Velocomp
The likely source of drain in your Newton is related to the much older design of its circuit.
We made circuit design changes in PP V4 that substantially reduces battery drain when the unit is off.
Re: Battery Charge
Posted: Sat Dec 18, 2021 2:34 pm
by Zoltan
Out of pure curiosity, and on my own responsability I put my beloved Newton into our freezer set to -16 C degrees (3.2 F). I applied triple seals in order to create a robust shield.
The daily discharge rate dropped down to 3-3.3%points. I can’t specify more exact number, because I am not sure about the exact time of its putting in.
I don’t say at all anybody should follow me. It was just a piece of fun for me.