Electric Bicycle Maintenance Schedule
Specifically for Bikes Converted with the E-BikeKit™ Conversion System
All bicycles require regular maintenance to ensure safety and performance. Electric bikes or e-bikes converted with the E-BikeKit Conversion System require even more care since they will usually be ridden farther and faster than a conventional bicycle.
Keeping your new E-bike safe and reliable with scheduled care is easy. The list below outlines what you need to do and how often you need to do it to keep your new electric bike running smooth and safe. This list is intended for average riders and daily commuters. Ultimately the level of care should coincide with the amount of miles ridden and the conditions of those rides. The harder you ride, the more you have to care for your bike if you want it to last.
Your hub motor wheel has been hand-built in the USA by a professional wheel builder with experience building wheels with hub motors for electric bike conversions. Every E-BikeKit wheel has been properly tensioned and stress tested during the building process. This ensures that your new E-BikeKit wheel will be true, round and perfect out of the box.
IMPORTANT: Initial “Wheel Tune Up” – Highly Suggested
Spokes will stretch and wheels will settle and loosen within the first 50-100 miles. This is normal and expected.
It is highly suggested that you schedule a “wheel tune up” within your first 50-100 miles of riding on your new wheel. Your local bike shop should be able to service your hub motor wheel, tightening spokes and ensuring the wheel is round and true. The extra torque of a hub motor stretches spokes. This is expected within the first 50-100 miles of riding. The initial wheel adjustment is most important. Subsequent “wheel tune-ups” are recommended every 3 months or 400 miles, whichever comes first.
Prior to Every Ride:
- Check your wheels, especially your hub motor wheel(s) before and after every ride to be sure the spokes are tight and the wheels are solid.
- Check your fork dropouts and your axle hardware and torque arm. Everything should be tight and secure.
- Ensure you have proper pressure in your tires – under-inflated tires are hard on wheels. Higher tire pressure will increase the range of an electric bike by rolling with less resistance.
- Check you brakes, cables and wiring – with the battery on test the e-brakes / be sure no wires or cables are hanging loose on the bike. Wires should be tidy internally, inside a bag or attached to the frame with zip ties.
- Check your cranks, pedal and derailleur.
- Make sure your battery is charged and secure and that all connections are tight.
After Every Ride:
- Look over tires for any damage or puncture objects
- Turn off your battery or disconnect your battery from the controller.
- Clean the bike and ensure all the parts are clear of dirt and debris
Once a Month:
- Completely clean the bike, including the drivetrain if necessary.
- Inspect tires for wear; rotate or replace if needed.
- Inspect and lubricate brake levers, derailleur and all cables.
Inspect and check for looseness in the:
- rear rack mounting bolts
- battery rack mounting bolts – use thread lock on these if necessary
- battery rack sliding plate – bend edges downward to ensure snug fit to EBK LiFePO4 Packs
- e-brake/brake and derailleur cable anchors
- shifter lever mounting bolts
- e-brake/brake mounting bolts – do not alter brake centering
Every Three Months:
- Inspect frame and fork for paint cracks or bulges that may indicate frame or part damage; pay particular attention to all frame joints.
- Visually inspect for bent components: seat post rack or double rear rack, seat rails, seat post, stem, handlebars, chain rings, crank arms, brake calipers and brake levers.
- Visually inspect all your connectors and connections. Make sure all connectors are rust free and show no signs of corrosion or burning.
Every Six Months:
- Inspect and readjust bearings in headset, non-electric hub, pedals and bottom bracket (if possible; some sealed cartridge bearings cannot be adjusted, only replaced)
This maintenance schedule is recommended for ensuring your e-bike remains safe and reliable. If you are uncomfortable performing any of the recommended maintenance on your electric bike you should consult a professional for assistance.
Take care of your electric bicycle and it will take care of you
The oil spill in the gulf; what can be said about it? It’s a horrible disaster; 11 men lost their lives and the environmental damage is catastrophic.
For Jeff Bernards, e-assist saved cycling
Friday, May 4th, 2012For Jeff Bernards, e-assist saved cycling
Originally posted by Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor) at www.bikeportland.org on May 3rd, 2012 at 12:31 pm
(Photos © J. Maus/BikePortland)
Chronic foot pain threatened to make cycling unbearable for 56-year old southeast Portland resident Jeff Bernards. Now, after installing an electric-assist kit on his bike, he’s riding again. And loving it.
Bernards is a veteran of local bike events. Years ago he started the “Get Lit” program to give out free bike lights to those in need (the program has since been taken over by the Community Cycling Center). He also loves leading bike tours. He’s taken a group of Portlanders on a three week bike tour in Death Valley, California and he’s led numerous overnight bike trips to Oxbow Park. More recently, Bernards has worked tirelessly to get a ban on studded tires on the Oregon ballot.
This man never quits, and his feet have paid the price.
Then about six years ago, while leading a bike tour around Mt. Hood, Bernards suffered an overuse injury on his foot due to some awkward pedaling on a long climb. He was later diagnosed with plantar fasciitis. The pain subsided for years, he says, but when his studded tire ban effort ratcheted up, he found himself walking all over town gathering petition signatures.
“When we got the Studded Tire Initiative signature sheets I hit the streets hard, too hard,” Bernards shared.
All that walking re-ignited his plantar fasciitis. Walking has been painful for him since December and since then he’s been driving almost everywhere. “I basically haven’t bike for four months.”
Bernards had never ridden an e-bike until a recent trip to Paris, where he rented one on a whim from a bike shop to visit the sites. He loved being able to keep up with auto traffic. In what he calls “the most dangerous city” he’s ever biked in, the power of the e-bike made him feel, “a little less vulnerable.”
When he returned to Portland, Bernards did some research on e-assist kits and ended up at The eBike Store in north Portland. With the help of e-bike expert and owner of The eBike Store, Wake Gregg, Bernards ended up purchasing a 350 watt, geared front-hub motor kit from a company called eBikeKit.
Bernards decided to upgrade to a 48 volt, 20 amp hour battery to go with the motor and he had a custom battery case made. The battery was about $700; but it’s good for 3,000 charges and Gregg says it will get about 30 miles each charge. Bernards figures he spent about $1,200 total on the system.
He picked up the bike last week and, judging from his smile and his first impressions, it was worth every penny.
“I went to the hardware store last night and filled my panniers with stuff,” Bernards told me via email yesterday, “Then I hauled it home, without the car, which I would have taken before I had the new e-bike.”
With its powerful battery, the bike really has some pick up (I gave it a whirl myself through the streets of Old Town last week and it was quite a thrill). Bernards sees it as “an affordable electric car,” especially when he attaches his trailer for extra cargo capacity.
And for those purists who still look down on electric-assisted bikes; Bernards says, “Hey, we’re all getting older. Last year at this time, I just finished riding 700 miles from Death Valley to San Diego. Less than a year later, I could hardly walk.”
— Is that thing legal? I thought you might ask. Read our post from August 2010, E-bikes, the law and you for more on the legality of e-bikes.
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