Battery Maintenance Guidelines

The battery supplied with your bike comes with a warranty of 1000 full charge cycles or 2 years (whichever comes first). A full cycle is charging the battery from its lowest charge level to a full charge and back again.

The expected lifespan of a Lithium-Ion battery is between 2-4 years. After 4 years, you should replace your battery and responsibly dispose of your used one following the latest UK government guidelines.

Never leave your battery without charge. Never fully discharge your battery of power, nor leave it in a discharged state for any period of time. If a battery has been left for an extended period of time without use (more than a few days), you should check the charge of the battery and charge to a minimum of 50% capacity accordingly, maintaining this level of charge throughout its storage. Upon checking the charge level of a battery, if no charge is displayed it must be considered damaged and immediately replaced. Do not attempt to charge your battery in the event of no charge after a period of storage.

Rechargeable Lithium-Ion batteries will gradually lose their capacity to hold charge over time. This loss of capacity cannot be reversed. As the capacity reduces, the expected range of the bike will decrease. If your bike is achieving less than 80% of the range you could achieve at the time of purchase, it is time to replace your battery.

You should only ever use VOLT-approved batteries on your Electric Bike. The use of any unapproved third-party batteries will void your warranty, and could be very dangerous.

If a lithium Ion battery cell is damaged, it can cause a chemical reaction which generates heat. This reaction can spread between power cells within the battery casing and cause significant damage. This is called thermal runaway. The temperature generated during thermal runaway is often in excess of 800c – easily enough to start a fire with surrounding combustible items. It is very hard to extinguish cells whilst in a thermal runaway condition, and the chemical reaction generally has to run its course before they can be put out. The cells are housed in a protected metal casing, which generally would prevent the battery itself combusting in the event of thermal runaway, however the temperature of the metal casing could cause other items near to the battery to smoulder or catch fire.

The fumes generated by lithium Ion batteries during thermal runaway are toxic and dirty, and should be avoided.

In the event of thermal runaway, make the areas surrounding the battery safe by removing any combustible materials and immediately call the emergency services to assist in the safe extinguishing of the battery. Advised techniques for extinguishing a thermal runaway include: placing the battery into a bucket of sand, or onto a concrete surface such as a patio.

- DO NOT put it near any other combustible items.

- DO NOT pick it up without flame retardant gloves, because you could be injured by a chemical burn.

- DO NOT use water or a fire extinguisher, both actions may exacerbate the chemical reaction.

Always wear a respirator to avoid inhaling the fumes when near a battery undergoing thermal runaway.

Once outside stand clear and let the chemical reaction burn out.

The first time you use your bike, you should observe the route that you have taken, the power-assist mode that you have selected and how much charge was required to complete your journey. This can then be used as a guide to compare your batteries capacity as it gets older.

You should carefully monitor the performance of batteries that are coming towards the end of their ‘Expected Lifespan’ (2-4 Years or 80% of original range).

It is important to replace your battery when:

- The battery run time drops below about 80% of the original run time.

- The battery charge time increases significantly.

After 2 years, VOLT recommend taking your battery to your local bike shop for a full capacity check. This prevents the need for estimating the 80% level.

After riding in wet weather, always remove the battery from your bike and wipe down, with a dry cloth, the area around the contacts and terminals on the battery and bike.

Only use the correct VOLT approved charger for your battery. The charger will display a green light to indicate that the battery is fully charged or a red light whilst charging.

Never leave your battery unattended whilst charging.

Charge your battery in a safe and fireproof environment away from combustible materials.

You can charge the battery whilst it is still on the bike.

Once the charge is complete, always disconnect the charger from the battery and from the mains power supply. Never leave your battery charging unattended/overnight.

When charging your battery, always follow the below process:

- Turn off mains power supply

- Connect charger to mains power supply

- Connect charger to battery

- Turn on mains power supply.

When fully charged (light on charger will go green):

- Turn off mains power supply

- Wait for light on charger to go off

- Disconnect charger from battery

- Disconnect charger from mains power supply.

If you notice whilst charging your battery that it takes longer than normal to charge, please disconnect your battery immediately and take it to a VOLT dealership to get tested. A longer than normal charge time can indicate damage to cells, and can be dangerous.

The charger will naturally warm up during the charging process, it is normal to reach as much as 40 degrees celsius above the ambient room temperature. Anything above this please immediately turn off the mains power and stop charging. If this happens, take your battery and charger to a VOLT dealer to be tested.

For your safety, it is extremely important that you follow the instructions below.

Never attempt to access the internal workings of the battery. This includes the removal of the top and bottom cap. Any attempt to access the internal components will void your warranty.

If the battery has any signs of damage, immediately dispose of it in accordance with the battery disposal advice of your local council.. Do not attempt to use or charge it.

Damage can include but is not exclusive to;

- Dents or cracks to the casing

- Damage to the terminals, damage to the ON/OFF controls

- Any form of leakage from the battery

- Water damage

- Rust or copper oxidisation on terminals

- Damage to the charging connection point on the battery etc.

If the battery has been dropped, this can cause significant internal damage to the cells. If dropped the battery should be disposed of in accordance with the battery disposal advice of your local council and replaced.

If you notice any fluid leaking from the battery, move the battery outside, do not touch any of the fluid, contact VOLT’s Technical Department and responsibly dispose of the battery in accordance with the battery disposal advice of your local council.

If you come into contact with any battery fluid, immediately wash your hands or affected area with water for at least 15 minutes.

In case of eye contact with fluid, do not rub eyes. Immediately flush eyes thoroughly with water for at least 15 minutes, lifting upper and lower lids, until no evidence of the fluid remains. Seek medical attention.

Always keep your battery away from children.

When storing your battery, you should follow the instructions below:

- Store the battery at approx. 30-50% charge. (2 LED’s displayed)

- Never leave your battery completely empty of charge for periods of more than a few hours. This can cause permanant damage to the cells which can result in thermal runaway.

- Store your battery in an area where, in the event of thermal runaway, the smoke generated by this will not cause harm to people or animals.

- Charge the battery to approx. 50% of capacity every 1-2 months as

the battery will discharge slowly whilst not being used.

- Store the battery away from any combustible materials (paper, wood, cardboard etc).

- Store battery between -10°C and 25°C

- Do not store battery in direct sunlight

- For safety, battery should not be stored in or near any living quarters

For day to day battery storage you can either leave your battery overnight on your bike, or in a dry, safe area with no combustible materials or items near the battery.

Wherever you store your battery it is essential that in the unlikely event of thermal runaway, the smoke generated by this will not cause harm to people or animals.

When disposing of your battery, you should always do so through a registered battery recycling organisation or through your local councils published disposal methods. If you are unsure of who to use, you can contact VOLT for assistance.

Where possible, disposed batteries should be fully discharged and the battery connection ports should be covered with electrical tape.

If you have any questions that are not answered by the guidelines in this manual, please contact VOLT.