eBike Flat Tire Prevention and Fixing Methods

One thing that comes up quite often when people are looking for electric bikes is: What do you do when you get a flat tire? eBikes have some different components than regular bikes and changing a flat tire can be a different experience on an eBike vs a regular bicycle. In this video we’re going to be discussing the different options you might have if you end up in this scenario!

0:00 What do you do when you get a flat tire on an electric bike?
3:10 How do I change a flat tire myself? What tools do I need?
3:50 Tools needed to change an eBike wheel
7:50 Changing an eBike tire without a bike stand
12:40 How do I prevent getting a flat on my eBike?
14:50 Best tire pressure to prevent flat on bike
17:45 Inspecting tire on eBike to prevent flat
19:50 Flat prevention - Tannus tire liners
21:10 Going tubeless to prevent flat tires on an eBike
22:00 Adding tire liners to prevent flat tires on an eBike

#Flattire #ebike #ebikes #electricbikes

Sync ID: MB01OPIL6AWAPAY

[LairdDavidson]

Just had a flat on my ebike with Kevlar lined tyres. Riding down a nice clean road when a rusty two inch nail somehow went straight through the brand new tyre, terrible luck, had to wheel it back home and take the car to work.

Easy to fix the next day. Didn't take the wheel off just pulled the inner tube out, pumped it up, found the leak and patched it.

I have Kevlar lined Schwalbe Fat Sam tyres on my mountain bike but thorns still get through them. I'll look into liners.

You mentioned throwing a punctured tube away rather than fix it. I guess that's smart for a bike shop as it's quicker and makes more money but for the rest of us doing our own repair is cheap and easy.

[monowheeling]

Regarding replacing the tube: it's really important to look for the cause of the flat. Otherwise there is a good chance the new tube will get punctured right away too.

[pennyroyal]

Great video and suggestions Chris.

I own a small store with a basement. In winter there are between 6 and 10 friends' bikes stored there. In early spring I do basic tune-ups on all the bikes. It keeps my (limited) skills tuned up but gets them up and riding as soon as weather permits. These people are casual riders who do zero maintenance. No tire inflation, no checking brakes, no tightening bolts, no chain cleaning, nothing. This spring one bike was missing a rack mounting bolt. I asked the person about it and they said, "yeah, it was rattling for some reason, " but never pursued the cause of the rattling.

[MoPoppins]

I didn’t even think to connect inner tube thickness with frequency of tire inflation, but that totally explains why I don’t have to add air to my tires much, anymore, after changing my tubes to ones that are apparently 80% thicker than the cheap, stock/classic ones.

Makes a HUGE difference! Much more peace of mind when you don’t have to be as vigilant, since I hate having to babysit my things.

[Gregoriob]

After several flats installed Schwalbe marathon plus. Since then ride everywhere with no problems at all. They are a godsend. Anyone who says a layman can change a rear tire flat on an electric bike is being a bit optimistic. This is the one major drawback to ebikes as far as I know.

Another point, when you change a flat ensure you know the cause of the flat. Fixing the tube with the glass/tack/thorn still in the tire is a real problem as you'll be changing the tire all day long.

Finally, in addition to the thickness comment, the quality of the rubber is also a key issue. The new Schwalbe tires have much better quality rubber that fights flats.

Overall lots of good information.

[RB-sroc]

I've had success with Tannus although I did get one flat from a finishing nail which embedded itself all the way into the tread. It was sharp enough that I think it would have gone through just about anything. Tannus helped because it took about a full 3 days, after I discovered the nail, for it to leak down to about 10 psi - at which time I added some air and rode it to my shop. Tannus advertises that you can ride on a flat at slow speed. But the unexpected benefit of the Tannus liners is a barely perceptible suspension effect I get on my commuter which does not have suspension.

[ecoworrier]

I worry about getting a flat with my back wheel (SuperDelite Rohloff) or my wife's back wheel (enviolo automatiq on a Tern HSD S+) because I have no clue how to take off the wheel or replace it. They both have carbon belts and automatic shifting on the internal hubs. It would be great if you could cover this in a video. These things are getting more common and I have not seen a video on this

Its partly thanks to your reviews that we bought those bikes and we are super happy with them. Thank you!

[benbencom]

The knot you want for suspending a bike with a rope is called a "trucker's hitch". It's designed to secure cargo by letting you put tension on a rope with mechanical advantage and then tie it off without losing the tension. I've used it to work on my own bike before. It's a very useful knot to know.

[willgo]

... in addition to carrying the necessary tools, patch, spare tube, pump, etc ... a pair of nitrile gloves is nice to have when dealing with a greasy chain and dirty wheel. They also work well as glove liners when riding in cold/wet conditions

[Bombatta]

Great video. I am a huge advocate of having a "transit backup". All modern buses now have bike racks that can handle most non-cargo bikes. All you need to carry is a prepaid transit pass with a couple of buck on it. This is a particularly useful for people who commute by bike.since it allows you to get to work on time and deal with the flat after.

[pacificbob]

As a senior just getting back into biking after almost 3 decades, getting a flat tire is my main worry. I'm not nearly as strong or dexterous as I used to be and my electric bike is quite a bit heavier. Your suggestions are certainly food for thought. I am currently looking for an inexpensive bike carrier for my car. I'd instead just take my e-bike to a bike shop and know it is being repaired properly. I don't know if regular bike shops will service an e-bike. Thank you for your videos; they are informative and helpful.

[nwr]

I own a set of the Handlebar Jacks. Great little gadget. Worked great while I worked on my Specialized Como 4.0.

[mikesl]

Just to add that riding an electric bike means you do not have to worry about the extra weight of heavy duty tyres so avoid light protection tyres

[christill]

All my bikes came with Schwalbe tyres. Super Moto X, Marathon Racer and Delta Cruiser and never had a puncture on any of them.

I don’t need tubeless and it’s not worth the hassle for me. Even with regular tubes I’m fine. And if / when I need to replace them, I’ll likely get those new Schwalbe Aerothan tubes which seem to be a great step forward, according to what Schwalbe says anyway. No reason to disbelieve them.

[ioanc]

I hoped you'd give more tips on how to fix e-bike rear hub motor wheel flat tyres. Those can be nightmarish, because it can be very hard to remove the wheel (due to torque pushing it into the drop-out) -- but you can use a 10mm spanner to free it. The wheel is very heavy due to the motor. Placing it back can be very tough, because the inner washers between the fork and the motor tend to fall off and the space is very tight. The oily chain is horrible too, you need disposable clothes (oil won't wash easily) and should really wear vinyl gloves to avoid getting yourself black. I could only re-place the wheel with the bike upside down, scratching the cockpit a lot along it (fortunately it survived). I rode a bit without one of the inner washers (and I had to NOT fully tighten the nuts, because then the wheel wouldn't spin), which bent the derailleur. Trying to re-place the wheel while using a bike stand was impossible for me, due to gravity working heavily against me.

[robjackson]

Chris. Nice comprehensive video. I've gone to Tannus liners on my Supercharger and I'm going to put them on my wife's e-bike too. They're not always as easy to install as the video on the Tannus website shows. I've had problems putting them on by myself and have ended up going to the local Tannus dealer to have them installed. I think they are worth the investment. Hopefully I'll never ever have to deal with another flat tire. I'm heading to Moab in 2 weeks and I'll see how they handle the trails out there.

[emielep]

Have a repair set with you. Most punctures are easy to fix yourself.
My school teached us how to fix a tire and so did my parents. Just like learning to ride it, I learned very young on how to fix a tire.

The new tires are tighter these days and harder to remove without a tool.

[Digital.Done.Right.]

I went tubeless last summer on my Super Delight and have not looked back. Many flats before that and since none. The rolling feel is smooth and the occasional check and refill is really simple. I would not go back to tubes.

[affordablelaw]

I grew up in the 60s riding my bike in the country (where I lived) and I think my tires were goathead magnets. After lots of tube patches I started lining the tires with several layers of newspaper, and it worked quite well. Really cheap solution (there weren't any others back then).

[bkanegson]

Been using "Armor Dilloz" in all my PEV tires lately, . No flats since adding the stuff, and no changes to handling characteristics of the e-bikes or e-scooters to which I've added it.