Electric bikes have become more popular in the past year and if you have been thinking of buying one in Nigeria, then you have likely been doing your research. And while it’s easy to get caught up in all of the specs, features, and prices of the vast amount of electric bikes currently in the market, there are some simple questions that you might have when it comes to owning an e-bike.
Table of Contents
- How to Charge Your Electric Bike in Nigeria
- Other Places to Quickly Charge Your E-bike
- Charge Your E-Bike in Your Car
- Carry Spare Battery
One such question is: How do you charge an electric bike in a country like Nigeria? Well, the answer is simple.
How to Charge Your Electric Bike in Nigeria
According to Electric Bicycle Planet, charging an e-bike is quite the same as charging any other appliance in your home; you remove the battery pack from the bike, make sure that the battery is switched off, and then connect the charging pack to an electrical outlet and then to the battery itself.
The actual charging times can vary depending on how large the battery is, however, it typically takes anywhere from three to six hours for a full charge. Just note that the first 80 per cent charges quicker than the last 20 per cent due to the battery’s cooling efficiency.
Any electric bike that you purchase will come with a charger that matches the battery. Most e-bike chargers will have a red light to signify that the battery is still charging and a green light that will notify you when it is full. Luckily, you don’t need to worry about overcharging, as the charger has a fail-safe feature built in to prevent it from doing so.
Other Places to Quickly Charge Your E-bike
While it’s easy to charge your e-bike at home as you can just remove the battery from the bike and charge it, or even charge it while it’s on the bike, you might be wondering what you can do if you need to charge it while you’re out and about. In those cases, e-bike Pursuits recommends that you remove the battery and charge it in the office while you’re at work or maybe even at a friend’s home.
However, if you’re not at work or near a friend, then you can charge the battery in a public place. Also, if you happen to be near a bike shop, then they are usually pretty supportive of e-bike riders and will let you charge at their shop. There’s an added benefit if you shop there as well.
Charge Your E-Bike in Your Car
While it’s not the most ideal charging situation, it is possible to utilize your car to charge your e-bike. Just keep in mind that a typical e-bike battery can draw about 90 watts of power which might end up draining the car battery quickly. Ebike Pursuits recommends getting a DC to AC power inverter that transforms the voltage from 12 volts to 110V and keeps your car running while charging the battery.
Carry Spare Battery
If everything else fails, then you can always just buy a spare battery to keep with you when you ride, that way you can just install the charged-up one if the battery power gets low or ends up dying. Of course, carrying a battery around could prove to be cumbersome in most situations, but it’s the quickest and easiest solution to replenishing the power on your electric bicycle in a pinch.
Conclusion
Considering the hike in the price of fuel in the country and the inability of most Nigerians to afford hybrid or electric cars, buying an e-bike could be an alternative to reducing how much you spend on fuel monthly.
