Hey all eBike travelers,
I just went through the process of working this out, although it was relatively pricy as I am. traveling between Europe and Indonesia, I'm sure it'll be far more price competitive for inter Europe, US, Australia etc travel.
So, firstly, I't possible to send your 500/700W battery (mine is s Specialized) across borders and have it get there by air in a few days.
The things you need to know:
1. You need to get from your bike manufacturer the MSDS datasheet for the battery
2. You then need to find a Packing company who manages Dangerous Goods.
3. You give them the information so they are happy to pack and label as per the regulations
4. Once that's done, you find yourself a courier who will then send it for you.
Sounds simple, right?
Well, here's a bit more detail and the companies I used in Europe:
I used Volanpack who were super amazing. The box is much bigger than the battery, but for all the right reasons apparently. So initial battery size, 60x7x9cm approximately and 3.8kg. Final box was 58x38x44cm and 6.11kg.
To be honest, I didn't get the datasheet for my exact battery, however someone posted a Levo 500W one here in the forum and I transparently sent them that, saying mine is basically the same, just the 700w version. Clearly what they were looking for was enough, so they took it on. The packing company will give you a Shippers Declaration for Dangerous Goods document (x 3) that you'll need to give to you courier.
With the courier, I used FedEx, only because they could handle it all the way, including customs on the other end, so I know I paid probably far more than I needed, but peace of mind after going down this rabbit hole for a week.
There's a 2 part process for finding a courier, firstly I needed to email their dangerous goods (DG) department to have them clear that they would courier it for me. I initially got turned down by DHL, but in hindsight, I didn't know what I did when speaking to the next ones. The primary thing they wanted to know was that the battery was packed and labeled correctly by an authorised DG packaging company. To be honest, I asked the guys at FedEx who they'd recommend and they pointed me in the direction of Volanpack, else I'd still be bumping around I recon.
Once the DG department gives you the go-ahead, then they will quote you and send it. The courier company said these batteries get sent via air all the time, so don't listen to all the stuff about it needing to go via land or sea. Maybe that's applicable for other batteries but not for the eBike one I sent.
Costs: Packing - $100 / Courier from EUROPE to ASIA $600
Here are a few pics of the final product (boxed up), labeling and declaration doc as an FYI
Good luck on your biking travels
I just went through the process of working this out, although it was relatively pricy as I am. traveling between Europe and Indonesia, I'm sure it'll be far more price competitive for inter Europe, US, Australia etc travel.
So, firstly, I't possible to send your 500/700W battery (mine is s Specialized) across borders and have it get there by air in a few days.
The things you need to know:
1. You need to get from your bike manufacturer the MSDS datasheet for the battery
2. You then need to find a Packing company who manages Dangerous Goods.
3. You give them the information so they are happy to pack and label as per the regulations
4. Once that's done, you find yourself a courier who will then send it for you.
Sounds simple, right?
Well, here's a bit more detail and the companies I used in Europe:
I used Volanpack who were super amazing. The box is much bigger than the battery, but for all the right reasons apparently. So initial battery size, 60x7x9cm approximately and 3.8kg. Final box was 58x38x44cm and 6.11kg.
To be honest, I didn't get the datasheet for my exact battery, however someone posted a Levo 500W one here in the forum and I transparently sent them that, saying mine is basically the same, just the 700w version. Clearly what they were looking for was enough, so they took it on. The packing company will give you a Shippers Declaration for Dangerous Goods document (x 3) that you'll need to give to you courier.
With the courier, I used FedEx, only because they could handle it all the way, including customs on the other end, so I know I paid probably far more than I needed, but peace of mind after going down this rabbit hole for a week.
There's a 2 part process for finding a courier, firstly I needed to email their dangerous goods (DG) department to have them clear that they would courier it for me. I initially got turned down by DHL, but in hindsight, I didn't know what I did when speaking to the next ones. The primary thing they wanted to know was that the battery was packed and labeled correctly by an authorised DG packaging company. To be honest, I asked the guys at FedEx who they'd recommend and they pointed me in the direction of Volanpack, else I'd still be bumping around I recon.
Once the DG department gives you the go-ahead, then they will quote you and send it. The courier company said these batteries get sent via air all the time, so don't listen to all the stuff about it needing to go via land or sea. Maybe that's applicable for other batteries but not for the eBike one I sent.
Costs: Packing - $100 / Courier from EUROPE to ASIA $600
Here are a few pics of the final product (boxed up), labeling and declaration doc as an FYI
Good luck on your biking travels