There are books out there like "Convert It" by Michael Brown
and Build Your Own Electric Vehicle by Bob Brandt.
For conversions we use these basic cookbooks before trying
to re-invent the wheel.

In all cases use lots of fuses. There are few DC rated circuit
breakers eg made by Heinnemann and Square D, but breaker
are expensive and bulky. A fuse on the Battery + and another
on the B- and one in the middle of the pack especially between
parts of the pack in front and rear of the vehicle. A 6 volt golf cart
battery can deliver ~2000 amps short circuit so the fuse must open
the short circuit safely with out the fuse blowing up. There have
been few nasty experiences over the years that are best avoided.
Best bet is to buy your fuses and fuse holders from an ev conversion
shop so you'r not trying to learn the technical ropes wrt which fuse
to use... For ease of disconnection, use an Anderson cable connector
you can unplug thebattery from the motor and controller when working
on it.

Wear safety goggles and even a face shield when working around
batteries. ]\

Empty your shirt pockets and even other pockets to get rid of coins
and keys, etc that could fall onto a battery or into a circuit.

Have an eye wash bottle handy with the special wash liquid...
get this at a safety supply store. Make sure the liquid is warm...
ideally body temperature because cold eye wash liquid forces
your eyelids closed as a natural reaction to cold and that makes
things worse.

Wrenches; wrap the handles in about 4 layers of electrical tape
so that a wayward handle cannot touch another post or ground
if it slips.

Orient the batteries and cables so that lugs and lug nuts have
room to swing a wrench.

Never allow your body to touch a negative and a positive terminal
simultaneously. If you are going to touch the positive, then first
ensure the negative is isolated from any ground and wear DRY
rubber soled shoes...... ideally CSA electrically certified safety
boots.... but being dry and that includes not being sweaty is
very important.

You need to plan your electrical work and every move you make
treat itas special so keep your wits about.

If you have a large battery pack and you need to reach over to
work in the middle, empty your shirt pockets first.

Cover the parts of the battery you don't need to work at with
pieces ofplywood to reduce your exposure.

Don't drink or leave metal pop/beer cans around to fall into
the battery.

If you need to wear prescription eye glasses, get the CSA
electrically approved frames that electricans wear. Wear a
strap so your glasses don't fall off as you work.

Best to work with a friend who would be your safety person
if something should happen.

Keep kids and other distractions away.

Don't leave a stack of batteries out in the open where
people/kids could inadvertently do something wrong. eg.
cover with a heavy sheet of plywood.

If you want to see the battery for show/tell then cover it with
1/4 inch plexiglass you can cut with a jigsaw to fit over the
box and screw it to the frame...

The other thing is keep the drive wheels off the ground using
jack stands and use a 30 amp in the traction battery circuit for first
time testing of the circuits. ... and even safer to use a much lower
volts not the full traction battery to test your circuits especially the
safety cut-offs and the pot box. 30 amps is enough to run the ev
on jack stands and less damage is done if a 30 amp fuse blows
vs a 500 amp fuse and it could cost
~50 to $100 for a 500 amp fuse if you need to replace it.

This is about it in a nutshell. There are electrical safety courses
available through www.ESA.ca. although mostly for residential wiring.

Battery websites may have safety info too.

Eric Jelinski M.Eng P.Eng
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