Contents
How to Fix an Electric Scooter Flat Tire (Prevention Tips)
Electric scooters with pneumatic tires occasionally experience flat tires. While this is never nice, it is a reality of life. Although there is always a chance of a flat tire, I have established a checklist of a few easy measures that go a long way to preventing flat tires on electric scooters after years of using my Xiaomi M365 Pro, which is infamous for flats.
And fortunately, you can patch or minimize the damage if your scooter does have a flat tire.
Stop riding your scooter as soon as the tire becomes flat. Your rims will get permanently damaged if you ride with a flat tire. Take your scooter to a shop for repairs or try one of numerous DIY solutions to remedy the flat.
Let’s look more closely at the causes of flatness, their frequency, and the specific steps that may be taken to reduce or even completely eradicate them.
Why do flats exist?
Your scooter might get a flat tire for a number of reasons.
The first one is when a piece of sharp debris cuts a tire. Any anything that pierces the inner tube qualifies, including sharp and hard objects like glass, nails, and wood.
Strong impacts are the second factor that causes flats to occur. This may occur, for instance, if you bike quickly over rocky terrain or strike a sidewalk.
The third one involves applying more pressure on the tire than it can withstand. This typically occurs to older, worn-out tires that have been subjected to some abuse over time. They are frequently under-inflated as too, considerably increasing the likelihood of having a flat.
You must make sure that your tires are inflated to the proper tire pressure in addition to the aforementioned requirements. Tires with either an excessive or inadequate air pressure can quickly become flat.
Improper tire installation is the last and least common cause. 99% of the time, your scooter will be installed correctly when it arrives. Simply make sure the tire is mounted correctly if you or a professional replaces it.
What percentage of electric scooters have flats?
One of the most prevalent sorts of scooter defects is flat tires, which are still rather common in electric scooters with air-filled tires. For tires made of inner tubes, this is especially true. On average, you can get a flat with any widely used scooter every six months.
Additionally, there are two types of air-filled tires:
- inner-tube
- tubeless
Inner-tube scooter tires increase the likelihood of a flat. Tubeless tires are less typical than inner-tube tires.
Flats are less frequent in scooters with larger, patterned tires or in scooters built for off-road use. These versions are made to withstand more abuse on unforgiving surfaces, so you won’t experience a flat due to a microscopic piece of broken glass on the sidewalk.
Models with sturdy tires avoid flats. However, solid tire scooters have a lot of drawbacks and might not always be the best option. Below, we’ll look at these trade-offs and determine whether a solid-tire concept makes more sense.
Flats happen occasionally, so you shouldn’t become alarmed if one does. Let’s look at how to handle them.
How can an electric scooter’s flat tire be repaired?
For some models, this procedure might be incredibly difficult. Sometimes you have to take apart a lot of the components surrounding the wheel in order to remove the tire. Perhaps removing or installing the tire is really difficult or calls for equipment that you don’t have.
Consider the second approach, which involves repairing the tire without removing it, in such situation.
Bringing your scooter to a mechanic is the third strategy.
Let’s look more closely at the first two techniques.
The procedure for replacing (or patching) an inner-tube tire after it has been punctured.
The Allen key that came with your scooter or a universal multitool with an Allen key are the tools you’ll need
Wrench
- tire jacks
- soap for cleaning dishes and water
- set-aside glue (unless using a new tube)
- tire repair (unless using a new tube)
- tire blower
Before beginning:
Keep in mind to store anything you take out in a secure location. If you lose a screw or other significant component, you will need to buy a replacement and wait for delivery—not pleasant! When I’m doing something similar, I just purchase a plastic box and place everything inside of it.
Do not forget how everything seems and feels. Additionally, take multiple photographs. When you are finished, you must ensure that everything is in the same order.
Take notice of the wheel’s pattern’s directions. Reposition it so that it faces the same way.
Start by letting out any air that might still be in the tire. To deflate it, unscrew the valve and use the Allen key to press inside.
You’ll need to proceed by removing the plastic wheel covers on several models. When you initially purchased your scooter, it should have come with the proper Allen wrench key; use it for this.
Then, in order to remove the wheel, you must first loosen the surrounding bolts on all sides. For this, a wrench will do.!
How can flat tires be avoided?
Despite the fact that changing a flat might be simple (and even enjoyable if you love working with your scooter), it can nonetheless be a pain.
You need to maintain a healthy maintenance schedule while also using a few extra tips to prevent flats as much as possible.
Simple guidelines to avoid flat tires
Check your tires for damage on a regular basis. Clear out and clean any garbage or material that has gotten into or around the wheels.
tires:
- Avoid cycling in rainy weather because water pushes tiny particles between the tire and the tube and makes debris attach to wheels more easily.
- No matter how low the sidewalk is, ride with your complete body. If you must pass a hump, slow down and bend your knees. Never leap.
- best longboard for pumping
- best electric skateboard under 300
- best longboard for sliding
- How to change longboard bearings
- How to get a boosted board
CONCLUSION
Consider purchasing a scooter with solid tires if you frequently get flats despite trying various techniques to strengthen your air-filled tires.
Some situations and locations are simply too demanding for the typical air-filled tires. Small particles of trash and garbage are common in cities and are harsh on the ordinary 8.5-inch tire.
But there are a lot of drawbacks to solid tires. You will have extremely unsteady rides, low traction, fewer modification choices, and occasionally inferior performance as a whole.
It’s also not like you can just buy one set of reliable tires and be good to go. Solid tires deteriorate with time, sometimes even more quickly than pneumatic ones
Check out our comprehensive solid vs. pneumatic tire comparison guide to find out more about the various tire types and how they stack up against one another.
It’s a good rule of thumb to only consider purchasing a solid-tire scooter or switching out your air-filled tires with solid ones if you’ve experienced more than three flat tires in a calendar year.
Leave a Reply