Zendure Superbase 500 Repair
I got the Zendure SuperBase 500 off Kickstarter a couple years ago. I used it regularly with my 12v stereo and would recharge with the provider Solar panels. Within 6 months the Superbase had lost 40% capacity. It could power my stereo for a week or two per charge, so it was well below its promised 500 cycles.
FYI, I used a Jackery Explorer 160 before and after the Superbase for the same job, same panel recharges, and it’s still trekking with no problems.
A few months later the Superbase is unusable, barely even pulling 10%. The indicator would show recharge to 100%, but it would just shut off around 90% and I’d plug it into the charger and it would start recharging from 0%.
I contacted Zendure, but the official response was that the batteries were not reasonably recoverable. This response was expected, but the situation bugged me. I was getting slightly different behaviors depending if I charged from USB C, or USB A. I also noticed that in any case, when the Superbase charged to 100% and shut off I could replug it back into the charger and sometimes it would shut off right away, other times it would charge for a few minutes more.
No matter how many times I tried to top it off there wasn’t a noticeable difference in battery life, but I wasn’t satisfied yet…
TLDR / should of lead with the conclusion: I plugged the Superbase into one of those power timers that lets you turn off the power every 30 minutes. I left it plugged in for 2 weeks and I’ve regained at least 80% of its capacity. This has been consistent for a couple recharges now.
I’m sure it does better on a single charge now, but I haven’t addressed the original defect where it will quickly lose capacity with regular charging. So I leave it on the timed charger for as long as possible. I use the solar panels for my Jackery products.
If you have a faulty power product, maybe trickle charging could be your savior too!
Post by: saturdayxiii