TerraCycle makes some great products for our trikes. With the ever increasing popularity of electric motorized trikes having a way to mount the battery is crucial. It is not desirable to mount a heavy battery up high on a trike as it raises the trike’s center of gravity considerably and effects the handling and therefore safety of the trike. Keeping the battery mounted down low and out of the way is important. TerraCycle offers some solutions … some specifically made for certain trike and battery brands and others which aremore less generic. Actually as far as I can tell from their webpage they only have kits for Catrike and ICE (rigid rear) and (suspended models) at this time.

They do offer a highly configurable mount so chances are pretty good they can help a guy (or gal) out with their battery mounting problem. When ordering one needs to specify what trike (brand and model) as well as e-motor system and battery they have so TerraCycle can send the correct spacers needed for the specific kits or to help them in getting you a mounting bracket which will work on your trike. This mount is rated at a maximum of 15 pounds. I had one of them break and my expensive battery went tumbling down the middle of the road. My battery weighed about 14 pounds. Terracycle replaced it for me. I always use extra support holding up the mount so that it doesn’t bounce around with the battery’s weight on it. I use a leather belt suspended from the trike’s frame up above. I also use a rubber tarp strap.

I said that keeping the battery mounted down low is important as far as the trike’s center of gravity. This is quite true, however, the downside of mounting the battery down low is that it is then very vulnerable to getting water, mud, slush and whatever else flung up on it. I presently have my battery down low, but I am seriously considering mounting it up on the rear luggage rack somehow as my battery is getting so messed up for all kinds of stuff being flung up on it. I don’t like that. When I first got my electric motor pedal assist kit I had the battery located in the rear rack and I didn’t have any issues with handling. The battery certainly stayed a whole lot cleaner up there and it was a lot handier to get to it. Some manufacturers of e-motors offer a special rear luggage rack designed to hold their battery. Unfortunately most of these rack mounted batteries are not very powerful so the cruising range they offer is limited.

A larger battery can be mounted on top of a rear luggage rack, but then the luggage rack can’t be used for a trunk bag. Panniers can still be used. I sure will miss my trunk bag if I end up mounting my battery on top of the rear rack. Keep in mind adding the weight of the battery that high on the trike will raise the trike’s center of gravity making it tip over easier. It is best to mount the battery down as low as you can on the frame so that the handling is not effected. I have has two of these batteries mounted above the rear wheel and my trike would tip over easily when I was not seated on it.

The battery can also be mounted on the boom. However, that is a lot of weight sitting on the boom and the boom was never intended to carry weight like this so I don’t know how wise it is to do this. I am not saying that it won’t hold it okay. I just don’t know. It will have an effect on the handling and therefore I would have to advise against it. A well designed and engineered trike is designed for maximum handling and safety. We can easily mess things up when we modify it.

The Beatles said it all in one of their songs … “we can work it out” … and when we do it will most certainly help us to …

ENJOY THE RIDE & KEEP ON TRIKIN’