Early hours this morning I had to drag 3 people out of a house fire as we had yet another ebike charging fire that's 4 iirc in a couple of months on my watch in my station area alone so God knows what they are like nationally, so make sure it's a quality one and only charge it when you are in and awake would be my advice if you have to charge it indoors
What sort of eBike?
Full fat eeb:
-Will destroy drivetrains
-Will kill wheels
-Eats rear tyres and brake pads
-The motor will die and all the electrics, make sure you buy a new one with a good warranty!
-Rides like you have big boots and ski gloves on
Half Fat Eeb
-Rides like a normal bike with a bit of assistance
-The motor will die and all the electrics, make sure you buy a new one with a good warranty!
-Doesn't kill components like full fat.
Early hours this morning I had to drag 3 people out of a house fire as we had yet another ebike charging fire that’s 4 iirc in a couple of months on my watch in my station area alone so God knows what they are like nationally
wow - that’s quite a lot! Any idea what sort of e-bike? Production ones or home conversions etc.
I wonder what the national statistics are…
I haven't owned an ebike (yet) but have heard from pretty much every owner of one I've met. That there will be a point where it'll break and can take a while to get parts to fix it, so don't sell all your bikes to buy one.
I still want one but am not quite ready for one yet.
I dont I'm afraid oceanskipper they've been too badly damaged in the subsequent fires, the one in the early hours this morning the frame was in two bits the top and down tube were both broken, and parts of the battery were ejected all over it was in the kitchen but hot bits of battery set the basement and the living room on fire as well as the kitchen
Wear and tear on consumables, especially drivetrain components for those who ride in turbo all the time and don’t like changing gear very much.
That'll be me. Everywhere on turbo, and we're now 14 months on and no sign yet of the chain/cassette needing changed.
That said, I'm swopping it to a 10spd drivetrain(currently 12) so I'm not doing the change chain regularly thing and just going to wear it to death.
Because Im in turbo all the time i am quite low down on the block, so even if it does begin to slip, i can drop down to something like tour and just utilize the larger cogs further up.
So at least a year on turbo, and i admit you forget to change the gears because for the most part you dont really need to.
Early hours this morning I had to drag 3 people out of a house fire as we had yet another ebike charging fire
I would suggest these are your bottom end bikes, bought online or from the cheapest sources.
I would think the majority here would purchase bikes at a level of Fox 36/38 forks and shocks and medium to high end spec parts. Top of the range Bosch and shimano motors and charging with chargers that retail at over 100 quid.
£5-7K, not £599 from the shopping channel.
.
A word on cost outlay - motor/battery
Each time you charge it stick £2 in a tin. Once you've got to 500 charges theres money there to buy a new battery or motor.
I take it this is from personal experience ?.
Early hours this morning I had to drag 3 people out of a house fire as we had yet another ebike charging fire
Exactly why I have a timer, in the garage and daytime only. Too many of these here in Germany as the ebike population is massive.
only charge it when you are in and awake would be my advice if you have to charge it indoors
I'd say thats solid advice.
My wife used to be a Buidling Surveyor working for an insurance company. She's been to a few house fires.
We don't have anything running whilst wer're asleep, washing machine, dishwasher, bike lights charging etc.
What are peoples thoughts on charging in a cold garage? I like the idea of a timer in the garage for when we're at work in the day...but not even sure hat's a great idea.
So at least a year on turbo, and i admit you forget to change the gears because for the most part you dont really need to.
You must be riding some pretty shit trails* if that's the case.
*Or just on the road.
Only thing that wears at an accelerated rate for me is brake pads and tyres.
Then again I use the full range of gears on it instead of putting excess strain on everything.
One motor change in 2.5 years on my Kenevo.
Snapped the input shaft on it.
Have to say, i never run mine on turbo or really outside eco or eco+, it gets too twitchy in turbo for my liking as it always feels too light front end.
As for living with ebikes, it's a tool for doing stuff with, it's why i have a normal bike that i use more these days, the biggest thing is working the right balance, use the ebike too much, my legs struggle to do hills on the normal bike, use the normal bike too much, i start using the ebike well below it's ability.
So basically it's just planning what you do and when, same with charging, i never charge it overnight or out of sight, thermal runaway is a very low risk on well made appliances, which most mid to high end ebike are in the mountain bike world, the £1000 ebikes are that price for a reason, i'd be more wary of where and when i charged them if i had one!
Bought my ebike to aid my recovery for a knee problem.
As my knee has improved over the last few months I've used less assist and now ride in eco unless I'm out on my own which I'll use tour+ mode.
Never used turbo and I've even switched the power off for a couple of miles to see how my knee reacts.
Looking back I wish I'd gone for one of the lighter ebikes as the full fat cube is overpowered.
Still using my 'normal' Hardtail once a week as well.
Charge in the garage and unplug after a few hours but recently brought the battery inside due to cold weather.
I take it this is from personal experience ?.
Yep and the rest of our group as well. For me 50 to 60nm is more than enough.
this thread is not helping my resolve to wait until the new year to buy an eBike. Not one bit.
Off to see what xmas deals are about on emtbs.
Blimey, people really do seem to put a lot of thought/worry into charging things. In 3 years of eebing, I come home, I hose it off, I plug it in & forget about it until the next time I ride it.
I’ve done full power, then to an SL, now back to a full power & probably wouldn’t bother with an SL again, unless it was my only bike, which it wouldn’t be in reality.
My KSL was a good bike to ride down stuff, but in reality, it weighed 21.something KG with a shock that didn’t want to blow up every five minutes, with decent wheels/tyres. My full power bike weighs 23kg. The Kenevo was a bit better downhill, but Eco was like riding a normal bike & didn’t get much more elevation than I can on a normal bike, therefore pointless. Trail was ok, but not great range & Turbo you could flatten the battery in about 45 minutes trying to keep up with people in Tour/Trail on full power bikes.
Maybe the newer ~60nm / 450Wh bikes are the sweet spot at low 20kg’s with decent geometry, I’d need to ride one to be sure, but I’m not convinced when there are now full power Bosch equipped bikes at that weight (and controls that don’t look like a 5 year old designed them).
Maybe the newer ~60nm / 450Wh bikes are the sweet spot at low 20kg’s with decent geometry
my 2019 focus is nearly this - 22kg 70nm 375wh. funny how things progress. using a phone i can tune the assitance lower for more range / less bonkers assistance. i`ve got a second 375 battery for mega full fat capability!
the good think about full fat and a decent battery is the ebike uplift i can give the kids. that has been amazing for me and the kids.
If you can’t lift a 25kg ebike over a gate or stile, then you really are a dweeb. Do you even lift bro?
I don’t mind admitting that I can’t lift my RM Altitude over a 1.60 metre high gate - not and actually lower it down the other side too.
I’m officially a dweeb then, it seems.....
@hobnob I presume all the people who have had house fire due to lithium batteries had that same experience until they didnt
Edit.. it wouldn't put me off one but I'd charge it as I described, I also use my tumble dryer the same way and that is also due to going to countless dryer fires in the last 20 years
