Whether you use solar panels and are looking to check out the best electric bike solar charger options or use a battery to power up your ride, charging your ebike while camping has never been easier. E-bikes are the new trend in the recreational sports market, and everybody’s been dying to get their hands on one of them.
If you’re out camping you may, or may not have access to charging ports, but you shouldn’t let that stop the fun. Alternative e-bike charging methods now are not only easily available but also affordable. Read about how to charge your e-bike off-grid while camping below.
Can You Charge an E-bike While Camping?
You can charge an E-bike anywhere if you have the right equipment, which means doing so while camping is a possibility too. There are a lot of options for charging your e-bike off the grid. The most common of these is to use a battery, but you can even build an off-grid charging station at home. This system will prove more efficient and eco-friendly.
Overall, being off-grid may be a big source of stress for e-bike riders given the general lack of reliable power sources, but charging isn’t an issue. You can find a lot of temporary and permanent charging solutions for your bike.
What Will You Need to Start Charging Your E-bike While Camping?
An inverter is a basic need for charging your e-bike on a camping trip. E-bikes need AC (Alternating Current) to charge, while batteries and solar panels both provide DC (Direct Current). An inverter is needed to convert DC to AC, or you can seriously damage your bike.
For an off-grid solar charging station, you’ll need a battery bank and solar panels. Your solar panels should have a combined wattage equal to your bike’s needs, in addition to a battery bank to store the charge. A 24v battery bank works best, given that E-bikes have either a 24v or 52v lithium-ion battery.
A 24v, 1000w pure sine wave inverter—which will stabilize the current from your power source and make sure it doesn’t damage your bike—will cost you at least $250. You’ll be able to get a 12v battery bank for about $200-$400, and a solar panel will cost you about $150 if not more.
How to Charge an E-bike While Camping?
You can charge your E-bike while camping with just an inverter and your bike’s charger. If using a battery, simply attach the inverter to the battery after hooking it up to any available power source, and your bike’s charger to the inverter. Your bike should start charging immediately.
However, if an off-the-grid power station is what you’re interested in, here’s what you need to do. First, attach as many solar panels as your bike needs parallel to each other. Attach your battery bank to the panels and let it charge. Once the bank is full, simply connect your bike’s battery to the bank when it starts to decline.
Conclusion
Charging an e-bike while camping is very easy to do, even if there are no power sockets in sight. As long as you have an inverter and a power source such as a solar panel, you can charge your e-bike almost anywhere.
However, if you like renewable sources of energy and drive an e-bike often, an inverter with an off-grid charging system may be better for you. It may be more time-taking and expensive to set up, but it has a lot of long-term benefits.
