Tips and Tricks: How to Stay Out Of the Escooter Mechanics Shop

    We’ve all been there. Riding away on your escooter and then ‘POP!’ Your tire is flat! As good as a mechanics shop can be, it's one of those places you never want to go. There are different riding tips that can help you stay out of the mechanic's shop. Whether it’s riding over debris or staying out of water, just a couple small things can help you stay out of the mechanics shop and keep your escooter in the best shape.

Speed Bumps

    Speed Bumps seem miniscule on an escooter, as you’re never going fast enough for them to really affect you, plus, they’re made for cars anyways! However, speed bumps can be bad for your wheels. Depending on the size of the speed bump, it can impact your tires by forcing air out. The worst ones I know of in Dubai are the speed bumps on The Walk in the Marina. They’ve popped a couple of my tires before. To avoid flat tires from speed bumps, try and avoid them by riding on the sidewalk of roads with a ton of speed bumps, or if that isn’t possible, go over speed bumps slowly. From personal experience, once I figured this one out, I haven’t had a popped tire since. 

Road Debris

    Road debris is another big one to avoid on the road when you see it. It’s not the biggest deal if you run over some glass or something else in the road, tires are actually pretty durable. Most of the time, nothing will happen to the wheel, and you can keep riding on. Sometimes, however, something can get lodged in the wheel and pop your tube. This is an especially bad fix, as this will lead to a full tire and tube replacement. Your tires are especially vulnerable to debris penetration when traveling at high rates of speed. If you see anything on the road, make sure to try your best to avoid it. If it’s unavoidable, don’t worry, as most likely nothing will happen, however, try to minimize the chances for debris entering your tire.

Puddles

    Try your best to avoid all puddles. This one you really need to avoid, as if the electrical components get wet, your scooter will not work. I know this is Dubai, and rain is infrequent, but when we got the big rainstorm earlier this month, ScootUp had tons of water damage related repairs. These repairs can take tons of time and are also extremely expensive as it can lead to multiple electrical components needing replacement. I strongly recommend against riding through puddles even if your scooter is rated as waterproof. Waterproof is not the same as water resistant, so water can still get into your scooter and mess with electrical components. So, if it’s raining or wet outside, you should consider calling a taxi or driving as you don’t want a water damaged scooter. 

    Curbs

    Some escooters have good suspension, allowing for smoother rides. The suspension also allows escooters to go off of curbs without having to dismount first. I won’t knock anyone doing this, as not having to dismount before going off of a curb is extremely convenient. I do this all the time on my Inokim. Technically speaking, this is bad for your tires. The force of your scooter hitting the ground after going off speeds up the process of your tires going flat by a significant amount. There are ways to mitigate damage despite this. First of all, try to go off the curbs slowly. Going fast off a curb can lead to an increased amount of damage and can destabilize you. Secondly, if there is a walkway, use it. This will help keep your tires in tip top shape.

Store Your Escooter Indoors

    Escooters are meant for the outdoors, however it is best to keep yours inside when not in use. Storing your escooter outside can lead to all sorts of issues with the degradation of metal components in the scooter. If you are not a frequent user of your escooter, this is especially important, as leaving your scooter outside without using it for long periods of time can cause the battery to spoil. If you live in an apartment, keep your scooter in the bike room, or somewhere cool and dry. If you’re in a house, make sure to keep it in the garage as this minimizes the degradation of the electrical components. 

Charging Your Escooter

    The battery is the most important component of your escooter as it puts the e in escooter. To stay out of the shop, it does require a bit of care. Mainly, just make sure to not let your scooter die completely, and not to overcharge it. When your scooter dies, it completes a full charge cycle which puts wear and tear onto your battery. Just make sure to plug it in when you leave for somewhere and keep it charged. On the flip side, don’t overcharge it as this can kill your total amount of battery time. Make sure to unplug your scooter when fully charged rather than keeping it plugged in. 

Listen to the Load Limit

    Make sure to always follow your scooter's load limits. Going over the load limit can be detrimental to your escooter. It puts extra pressure onto your tires and can mess with components in the suspension if your scooter has suspension. This, however, isn’t a massive concern as almost all scooters come with relatively high load limits. You can even put multiple people on an escooter and be under the load limit with some scooters. Just make sure to buy an escooter that fits your load bearing needs and follow them, as going over the limit can degrade a scooter pretty quickly. 

     Well, that's it! These are just a couple of tips I’ve discovered after riding escooters. There are tons more other things you can do, but these were the biggest I could think of. Do not be overwhelmed! You don’t have to follow any of these perfectly. If you ride over debris or forget to unplug your escooter before falling asleep, it will still ride fine. Every escooter will have to go into a mechanics shop at some point, for a tune up or to replace a part, so don’t fret if your escooter has to go. These are just a couple of tips to prolong the time in between your trips to the mechanic's shop.