He Built His Own Solar-Powered E-Trike

2022 - Volume #46, Issue #1, Page #38

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Charles Danczyk can’t walk like he used to due to arthritis, so he made himself an e-trike. Not only can he get out to the mailbox more easily, but an old solar panel keeps the batteries charged.
“I bought two adult-sized trikes at a farm auction for $5 and converted one to an e-trike,” says Danczyk. “I used an auger motor and three 36-volt batteries from an old electric feed cart.”
Rather than wire the motor to the batteries through an off/on switch, he used a surge protector with multiple outlets and a plug-in cable.
“To go in reverse, I just turn the plug 180 degrees,” says Danczyk.
Initially, he mounted the motor behind the seat but moved it to the front to reduce the potential for flipping the trike over backward. For the same reason, he mounted a battery to each side of the seat and only one behind.
The only purchase needed was a new small pulley for the motor to reduce rpm’s and increase torque. The small pulley drives a large pulley with a small sprocket to its side, also salvaged from the feed cart. No. 41 roller chain runs from it to the old pedal sprocket that he modified.
“I needed a heavy-duty drive sprocket to handle the torque and was going to buy one, but they cost a lot,” says Danczyk. “I had a couple of old bike sprockets laying around, so I welded two together. I had to be careful, so I didn’t warp them by overheating.”
To further reduce speed, Danczyk mounted a small sprocket on the side of the drive sprocket. No. 41 roller chain runs from it to the rear axle.
Danczyk replaced the original seat with an old chair he had laying around. “It is more comfortable, and the way I mounted it, it lets me lean into a curve,” he says.
With the combination of pulleys and sprockets, Danczyk slowed the e-trike’s speed to a little more than walking speed. For high speed, he uses power from three batteries. Cutting back to two batteries drops the e-trike into a lower speed.
Danczyk had originally purchased his 14 by 25-in. solar panel to keep tractor batteries charged. It has proven more than sufficient for the e-trike.
“It’s like finding free gas,” he says.
With a total investment of only $12, Danczyk’s e-trike is better than free gas. “A new electric trike would have cost me around $30,000,” he says. “My idea was to see how cheaply I could make it.”
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Charles Danczyk, Box 159727 Cty. Rd. C, Mosinee, Wis. 54455 (ph 715-693-4386).

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He Built His Own Solar-Powered E-Trike FARM HOME Miscellaneous Charles Danczyk can’t walk like he used to due to arthritis so he made himself an e-trike Not only can he get out to the mailbox more easily but an old solar panel keeps the batteries charged “I bought two adult-sized trikes at a farm auction for $5 and converted one to an e-trike ” says Danczyk “I used an auger motor and three 36-volt batteries from an old electric feed cart ” Rather than wire the motor to the batteries through an off/on switch he used a surge protector with multiple outlets and a plug-in cable “To go in reverse I just turn the plug 180 degrees ” says Danczyk Initially he mounted the motor behind the seat but moved it to the front to reduce the potential for flipping the trike over backward For the same reason he mounted a battery to each side of the seat and only one behind The only purchase needed was a new small pulley for the motor to reduce rpm’s and increase torque The small pulley drives a large pulley with a small sprocket to its side also salvaged from the feed cart No 41 roller chain runs from it to the old pedal sprocket that he modified “I needed a heavy-duty drive sprocket to handle the torque and was going to buy one but they cost a lot ” says Danczyk “I had a couple of old bike sprockets laying around so I welded two together I had to be careful so I didn’t warp them by overheating ” To further reduce speed Danczyk mounted a small sprocket on the side of the drive sprocket No 41 roller chain runs from it to the rear axle Danczyk replaced the original seat with an old chair he had laying around “It is more comfortable and the way I mounted it it lets me lean into a curve ” he says With the combination of pulleys and sprockets Danczyk slowed the e-trike’s speed to a little more than walking speed For high speed he uses power from three batteries Cutting back to two batteries drops the e-trike into a lower speed Danczyk had originally purchased his 14 by 25-in solar panel to keep tractor batteries charged It has proven more than sufficient for the e-trike “It’s like finding free gas ” he says With a total investment of only $12 Danczyk’s e-trike is better than free gas “A new electric trike would have cost me around $30 000 ” he says “My idea was to see how cheaply I could make it ” Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Charles Danczyk Box 159727 Cty Rd C Mosinee Wis 54455 ph 715-693-4386

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