I have been monitoring my Vectrix and how much energy is draws during different phases of the process.
The part that bothers me is the draw after charging is complete. The fan is off, the lights are off, yet it is still drawing energy according to my energy meter.
According to my meter, it pulls between 58 to 59 watts and 0.6 amps.
That is the same as a light bulb (an inefficiant one) being on full time.
Yet there is no activity happening.
Anyone else ticked off about this?
interesting could be a sensor, what about an alarm system, my ebike is equipped with an alarm which moniters the bike...does the vectrix have an alarm system?
Others have reported this. The only solution right now is to use a timer. Others do ;-)
I believe that this is due to transformer losses. Any block transformer (a.k.a. "wall wart") will draw some AC power even if nothing is connected on the DC side, and I'm guessing that the internal transformer for the Vectrix charger is considerably larger than anything you'll find around the house for a consumer electronics device.
I'd love to look at the schematics to confirm, but I suspect they have a single transformer. A more power efficient design might be to have two transformers: a main one for the battery charger and another small one for control circuitry. The control circuitry could then switch power on the AC side of the main transformer and still stay alive to monitor battery levels and resume charging later if needed.
Here is a link to what I wrote previously about the standby power consumption.
(That was the start of the "Mr. Mik / Vectux" saga...)
In addition to it I can now say that the power consumption is more accurately described as 0.56A than as a wattage, because it appears to be the same independently of supply voltage.
In other words, the power being wasted is higher in countries with higher grid voltage.
The charger will of course heat up a lot more if you are on 220-240V.
Can someone explain what device will draw the same standby power irrespective of supply voltage?
The Vectrix charger is supposed to be identical worldwide except for the plug.
Mr. Mik
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There is always a way if there is no other way!
I got the timer to use with my energy meter, so I can now schedule the exact time block that my scooter charges.
I can even set it to turn on the power to the plug about 30 minutes before my morning departure time, just so it gets topped off.
My 1st program is to give it a 6 hour charging block from 10 pm to 4 am (low demand time on the grid). Also, at 10 pm I am still awake and I can verify that the charge has started.
The 2nd program is to give it 30 minutes from 7:30 am to 8:00 am, just so that I am positive it is full before I depart for work.
I did this last night and the total bill was 34 cents at 7.9 cents per kwh. I think it was a fairly good discharge yesterday. Not completely 100%, but within 2 or 3 bars of being empty.
My area does NOT have off-peak charging rates. But I am trying to work out a system that would work for off-peak. I think if EVs get more common, this will have to be standard practice for most households.
I read an article about the Tesla battery. On a standard plug 120 V 15 amp, it would take 30 hours to recharge completely.
http://www.autobloggreen.com/2008/07/06/charging-a-tesla-roadster-from-household-outlet-could-take-30-ho/
The Roadster's battery has a capacity of 53kWh. Tesla quotes a charge time of 3-3.5, but that is based on charging from a 220V 80A circuit. If, on the other hand, you plug the car into a typical outlet in your living room, you would only have 15A flowing at 110V. That's 53,000W / (110V * 15) = 32.12 hours. So if you plan to get yourself a plug-in electric car with any kind of serious range, be prepared to have an electrician install a high current outlet to charge it. At the very least you'll want a 220V/40A circuit for overnight charging in 6-7 hours.