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Old 02-10-2024, 07:05   #1
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E-Scooter / E-bike storage & charging on board. How do you do it? Pls. Read post 1

Hi,

before someone replies here, oh no, it's to dangerous to have on board, that is not the subject of this thread.

This thread is for those people who have something like this on board or will have soon.

We just ordered an e-scooter to be a bit more mobile when on shore. This scooter has a battery which is not easily removable.

Now, to those of you who have something like this, how do you store yours and how do you charge it?

My main concern is fire safety and humidity, as they do unfortunately have big Lithium Ion batteries, rather than the much safer LiFePo4 batteries.

I recently read an article in the magazine "Der Spiegel" who tested fireproof pouches from Amazon and found most if them utterly useless despite other claims by the sellers.

https://www.spiegel.de/netzwelt/gadg...1-c66d6e163ac9

I am looking at these solutions.


1)
Built a metal box for it which, in the worst case, can be grabbed and dumped over board. Weight wise I would prefer aluminium, but it inself can catch fire if it's hot enough.
Maybe it needs to be lined with Promat?

Alternativly build a plywood box and line it with Promat?

2)
Exchange the battery for a LiFePo4?

3)
Buy or sew a fireproof pouch for the complete scooter.
As I prefer doing stuff myself. Sewing it from several layers of tightly woven heavy fiberglass cloth might work.

Possibly I could use severa fire blankets for this. They are cheap and easily available.

4)
We have a hard dinghy where it might fit into a watertight compartment.
Store it in the dinghy and have a charging cable go into it.

Generally we will only charge when awake and on-board.
I don't need the box to contain a fire very long. 5-10minutes should be long enough to react.

One more question, did you seal your scooter with Silicone to waterproof it better from sudden rain showers?
I hear many lack good waterproofing right out of factory. I'm not concerned about warranty.


Thanks for your thoughts.
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Old 02-10-2024, 08:43   #2
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Re: E-Scooter / E-bike storage & charging on board. How do you do it? Pls. Read post

This is a tricky situation.

The manufacturers of these scooters never considered the case where they might be stored on a boat in a saltwater environment. You need to think about the type of sailing that you do and whether you are willing to accept the additional risk a fire on board poses vs. simply on a sidewalk or in someone’s concrete garage.

On ships, we typically store combustibles on a rack designed for rapid deployment overboard in the event of a fire. Keeping your scooter on deck might facilitate this but also greatly increases the chances of a failure due to exposure to the elements.

You could adopt a policy similar to aviation and store it in an obvious place instead of buried in a locker. (IE cabin baggage vs checked baggage). This way you are more likely to intervene before a catastrophic failure and ensure it is being stored in a manner that is not causing it excess wear and tear. If it’s buried in a locker and something is rubbing through the battery casing on passage, you might not discover it until it’s far too late.
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Old 02-10-2024, 08:48   #3
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Re: E-Scooter / E-bike storage & charging on board. How do you do it? Pls. Read post

Quote:
Originally Posted by fregata View Post
This is a tricky situation.

The manufacturers of these scooters never considered the case where they might be stored on a boat in a saltwater environment. You need to think about the type of sailing that you do and whether you are willing to accept the additional risk a fire on board poses vs. simply on a sidewalk or in someone’s concrete garage.

On ships, we typically store combustibles on a rack designed for rapid deployment overboard in the event of a fire. Keeping your scooter on deck might facilitate this but also greatly increases the chances of a failure due to exposure to the elements.

You could adopt a policy similar to aviation and store it in an obvious place instead of buried in a locker. (IE cabin baggage vs checked baggage). This way you are more likely to intervene before a catastrophic failure and ensure it is being stored in a manner that is not causing it excess wear and tear. If it’s buried in a locker and something is rubbing through the battery casing on passage, you might not discover it until it’s far too late.
Thanks.


Good point regarding storing it not deep in a locker. We have an ideal spot for it.
On the bridgedeck close to the exit door.

The box will serve as additional footrest under the table.

Still, interesting to hear how other actually do it. There must be tons of boats with this sort of gear on-board.
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Old 02-10-2024, 09:58   #4
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Re: E-Scooter / E-bike storage & charging on board. How do you do it? Pls. Read post

my reply is not “oh no too dangerous”
ive got more than a few lithium ion devices on board…computers, emergency engine starters, mobile battery banks, speakers, etc.
but ive gone through two of these and they fail in very short time. the only fire you have to worry about is burning through money. they are just not made for marine environments. also they are very heavy and awkward to get on and off the boat. the dinghy is a nightmare.
after my second trashed escooter in 1 year, im going back to a folding bike. and that i can just throw into the rear locker without a worry.

Answers/data point
stored in rear locker , or under sprayhood or down below as a function of weather, mooring location and energy.
security: unlocked or with a bike cable
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Old 02-10-2024, 10:34   #5
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Re: E-Scooter / E-bike storage & charging on board. How do you do it? Pls. Read post

If it's prone to catching fire whilst being charged (presumably because it gets hot), wouldn't putting it in an enclosed padded bag or box make the likelihood of fire even worse?

Can they catch fire when not under charge?
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Old 02-10-2024, 10:51   #6
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Re: E-Scooter / E-bike storage & charging on board. How do you do it? Pls. Read post

Quote:
Originally Posted by Uncle G View Post
If it's prone to catching fire whilst being charged (presumably because it gets hot), wouldn't putting it in an enclosed padded bag or box make the likelihood of fire even worse?

Can they catch fire when not under charge?

Good question, no idea.
Still, how do other folks actually store theirs? Can't imagine everyone just turning a blind eye on it.
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Old 02-10-2024, 10:55   #7
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Re: E-Scooter / E-bike storage & charging on board. How do you do it? Pls. Read post

Quote:
Originally Posted by Uncle G View Post
If it's prone to catching fire whilst being charged (presumably because it gets hot), wouldn't putting it in an enclosed padded bag or box make the likelihood of fire even worse?

Can they catch fire when not under charge?
Yes they can although we are now violating the TOS of the OP.

Yes, lithium-ion batteries can explode even when they are not under charge, though it is less common. Several factors can cause this:

1 Boats are bangy places. A knock can damage batteries leading to short circuit and fire.

2. These things are cheap as sugar and the tech is just not industrial or marine. poor quality controllers can cause things to fritz.

3. Boats are ***HOT*** . These things are not designed for the kind of heatba locker under the sun receives. Just heat can cause them to explode.
TRUE STORY: this summer i was unable to charge my escooter from mid June to end of August (when it died) because the heat sensor shut off input. They are not chargeable in tropical or summer conditions as the automatic shutoff is there to prevent fire.

4. Rust. There isnt a marine grade component in any of these products. Salt gets everywhere. Corrosion can easily short circuit the battery causing it to meltdown.

Conclusion: they dont have to be in charge to explode.
But mine has never exploded. Nor has any other lithium ion device i have on board. but they are just not designed for the heat and salty humidity of a boat.
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Old 02-10-2024, 11:39   #8
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Re: E-Scooter / E-bike storage & charging on board. How do you do it? Pls. Read post

Make sure that if it catches fire, and burns it wont put a hole in the boat

If you can mount the scooter hanging over the water, maybe hanging off the davits with the rope wrapped around the battery so that when it burns the whole scooter safely falls into the water.

I use a bicycle and pedal power. I think it is safer and better for exercise.
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Old 02-10-2024, 12:12   #9
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Re: E-Scooter / E-bike storage & charging on board. How do you do it? Pls. Read post

Thanks everyone so far.

BUT WHAT DO THOSE PEOPLE WHO ACTUALLY HAVE EBIKE OR ESCOOTER ON-BOARD DO ABOUT FIRE RISK?
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Old 02-10-2024, 12:14   #10
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Re: E-Scooter / E-bike storage & charging on board. How do you do it? Pls. Read post

Quote:
Originally Posted by Franziska View Post
...
Good point regarding storing it not deep in a locker. We have an ideal spot for it.
On the bridgedeck close to the exit door. ...

If the battery does catch fire, and it is next to the exit, is there another way out of the boat?
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Old 02-10-2024, 12:17   #11
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Re: E-Scooter / E-bike storage & charging on board. How do you do it? Pls. Read post

Quote:
Originally Posted by dannc View Post
If the battery does catch fire, and it is next to the exit, is there another way out of the boat?
Yes, there is. In our case the foredeck hatch.

It's a small boat 35ft.
We thought about a folding bike but the form factor to store it does not work for us, and we don't store stuff on deck.
The long folded format of the scooter is easier to store in our case.

The scooter will be firmly stored that it can not bounce around, but yet can be removed quickly if needed.
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Old 02-10-2024, 12:33   #12
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Re: E-Scooter / E-bike storage & charging on board. How do you do it? Pls. Read post

What about 1 or 2 x manual (kick along) scooters. They are cheap, light, easy to store and amazingly efficient.
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Old 02-10-2024, 12:43   #13
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Re: E-Scooter / E-bike storage & charging on board. How do you do it? Pls. Read post

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Originally Posted by Tupaia View Post
What about 1 or 2 x manual (kick along) scooters. They are cheap, light, easy to store and amazingly efficient.
The dice has been rolled we have already ordered the scooter.

It's our only means of shoreside transport when there is no proper public transport and sometimes this means going several miles to a supermarket or similar. Not something I would want to do with a kickboard, especially not on a gravel road (we hardly ever go into port or marina).
The scooter we get has double suspension, and, we only get one due to space, cost and weight constraints.

Still I'm waiting for others who have this kind of gear on board. I'm sure there are quite a number who do.
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Old 02-10-2024, 16:13   #14
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Re: E-Scooter / E-bike storage & charging on board. How do you do it? Pls. Read post

Franziska hi

Dont have one on board yet but have just visited a couple of scooter manufacturers in Shenzhen looking to arrange a supply for a business venture.

Some of the newer scooters have quick clip battery packs (and covers) allowing battery to be removed or swapped out - means you can go further faster carrying a second battery. Also means you can remove the battery for storage/charging in a smaller fireproof container even if you only have the one.
So scooter can be stored below deck with battery outside in a sealed box. If your new scooter doesnt have quick change battery its often not that difficult to change to such even with batteries in the foot tray
and it may be easier to take both ashore separately
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Old 02-10-2024, 16:25   #15
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Re: E-Scooter / E-bike storage & charging on board. How do you do it? Pls. Read post

We had a scooter and didn’t worry about fire risk. Kept it in a sail bag in the cockpit while coastal cruising, then put it away in a storage locker forward when we moved to an area where it’s not useful. Lasted about a year before corrosion wrecked all the controls and charging. Not replacing it.
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