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Are there reasons not to use always the max level of assistance?
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I'm using an electric bicycle to go to work. My goals are:
- Not to arrive late
- Not to sweat (too much)
My bike, like most e-bikes I guess, let me choose the level of electric assistance that I wish. I understand that the range is longer with a lower level of electric assistance. But in my case, this is not relevant. My battery can take the whole commute regardless of the level of assistance.
Is there any reason I should not use always the maximum level of assistance? For instance battery or motor damages/heating/...?
electric-bike
asked 4 hours ago
Legisey
1062
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Legisey is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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up vote
1
down vote
favorite
I'm using an electric bicycle to go to work. My goals are:
- Not to arrive late
- Not to sweat (too much)
My bike, like most e-bikes I guess, let me choose the level of electric assistance that I wish. I understand that the range is longer with a lower level of electric assistance. But in my case, this is not relevant. My battery can take the whole commute regardless of the level of assistance.
Is there any reason I should not use always the maximum level of assistance? For instance battery or motor damages/heating/...?
electric-bike
asked 4 hours ago
Legisey
1062
New contributor
Legisey is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
1
I use lower level of assistance only when the battery power drops below optimal level and I had no chance to recharge it.
– Alexander
3 hours ago
@Alexander a good time to use little or no assistance is if you think the battery is a little low and you'd like to save it for a hill
– Chris H
12 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
favorite
up vote
1
down vote
favorite
I'm using an electric bicycle to go to work. My goals are:
- Not to arrive late
- Not to sweat (too much)
My bike, like most e-bikes I guess, let me choose the level of electric assistance that I wish. I understand that the range is longer with a lower level of electric assistance. But in my case, this is not relevant. My battery can take the whole commute regardless of the level of assistance.
Is there any reason I should not use always the maximum level of assistance? For instance battery or motor damages/heating/...?
electric-bike
asked 4 hours ago
Legisey
1062
New contributor
Legisey is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
I'm using an electric bicycle to go to work. My goals are:
- Not to arrive late
- Not to sweat (too much)
My bike, like most e-bikes I guess, let me choose the level of electric assistance that I wish. I understand that the range is longer with a lower level of electric assistance. But in my case, this is not relevant. My battery can take the whole commute regardless of the level of assistance.
Is there any reason I should not use always the maximum level of assistance? For instance battery or motor damages/heating/...?
electric-bike
electric-bike
asked 4 hours ago
Legisey
1062
New contributor
Legisey is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
asked 4 hours ago
Legisey
1062
New contributor
Legisey is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
asked 4 hours ago
Legisey
1062
New contributor
Legisey is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
asked 4 hours ago
Legisey
1062
asked 4 hours ago
Legisey
1062
1062
New contributor
Legisey is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
New contributor
Legisey is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Legisey is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
1
I use lower level of assistance only when the battery power drops below optimal level and I had no chance to recharge it.
– Alexander
3 hours ago
@Alexander a good time to use little or no assistance is if you think the battery is a little low and you'd like to save it for a hill
– Chris H
12 mins ago
add a comment |Â
1
I use lower level of assistance only when the battery power drops below optimal level and I had no chance to recharge it.
– Alexander
3 hours ago
@Alexander a good time to use little or no assistance is if you think the battery is a little low and you'd like to save it for a hill
– Chris H
12 mins ago
1
1
I use lower level of assistance only when the battery power drops below optimal level and I had no chance to recharge it.
– Alexander
3 hours ago
I use lower level of assistance only when the battery power drops below optimal level and I had no chance to recharge it.
– Alexander
3 hours ago
@Alexander a good time to use little or no assistance is if you think the battery is a little low and you'd like to save it for a hill
– Chris H
12 mins ago
@Alexander a good time to use little or no assistance is if you think the battery is a little low and you'd like to save it for a hill
– Chris H
12 mins ago
add a comment |Â
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
up vote
2
down vote
From a maintenance and longevity point of view it's probably not the best idea. Using more assistance puts more strain on the battery and motor. This will cause those parts to wear out quicker.
Also, the bicycle's drive train itself may suffer unnecessary wear. When starting from a stop, it's much easier on the bike (chain, sprockets, chainrings, spokes , etc) to put the bike in an easy gear and use the mechanical advantage of the gears to start yourself off without putting too much power through the drive train. However with an electric bike, it's all too easy to leave the bike in a harder gear and let the motor do a lot of work. This puts extra strain on the parts of the bike, causing them to wear out prematurely.
answered 2 hours ago
Kibbee
16.7k95190
Paragraph 2 isn't going to be very true for a hub motor though -- if you are actually lettting the motor do the work, and is more of an argument in favour of changing down.
– Chris H
41 mins ago
It will depend on the type of system you are dealing with. I've heard that broken spokes are much more common with hub drive bikes.
– Kibbee
34 mins ago
you may even have heard it from me! though the load on the spokes of a rear hub wheel from a standing start is going to depend only on the overall torque after all gearing, or effectively on the acceleration. So if maximum assistance means you accelerate harder, that stresses the spokes more, but if it means you accelerate the same by pedalling more gently, the spokes won't be under more stress (I've always blamed the unsprung mass and big flanges/ bad angles myself -- and badly-built wheels)
– Chris H
20 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
2
down vote
Assuming you have a good quality electric assist bike from a major manufacture. The manufacturer provided the max assist setting, so they intend for it to be used. It's a safe bet the bike is built to take the max assist torque without sustaining damage or accelerated wear. If the manufacturer believes sustained use of max assist will affect the bike, it will say so in the manual, so check that.
The one thing I'd be mindful of is battery life. General advice for laptops, phones and other portable devices is that deep discharge and heat degrade batteries are shorten their lifespans. If your commute is short and the battery capacity is adequate for max assist both ways that should not be a problem. I'm not sure about how discharge rates affect battery life - if I find info on this I'll update this answer.
Otherwise I say go ahead and use max assist. Yes, more torque and speed will wear bearings, chain etc proportionally faster, but using the assist is what you bought the bike for, right?
answered 2 hours ago
Argenti Apparatus
25.4k23067
add a comment |Â
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
up vote
2
down vote
From a maintenance and longevity point of view it's probably not the best idea. Using more assistance puts more strain on the battery and motor. This will cause those parts to wear out quicker.
Also, the bicycle's drive train itself may suffer unnecessary wear. When starting from a stop, it's much easier on the bike (chain, sprockets, chainrings, spokes , etc) to put the bike in an easy gear and use the mechanical advantage of the gears to start yourself off without putting too much power through the drive train. However with an electric bike, it's all too easy to leave the bike in a harder gear and let the motor do a lot of work. This puts extra strain on the parts of the bike, causing them to wear out prematurely.
answered 2 hours ago
Kibbee
16.7k95190
Paragraph 2 isn't going to be very true for a hub motor though -- if you are actually lettting the motor do the work, and is more of an argument in favour of changing down.
– Chris H
41 mins ago
It will depend on the type of system you are dealing with. I've heard that broken spokes are much more common with hub drive bikes.
– Kibbee
34 mins ago
you may even have heard it from me! though the load on the spokes of a rear hub wheel from a standing start is going to depend only on the overall torque after all gearing, or effectively on the acceleration. So if maximum assistance means you accelerate harder, that stresses the spokes more, but if it means you accelerate the same by pedalling more gently, the spokes won't be under more stress (I've always blamed the unsprung mass and big flanges/ bad angles myself -- and badly-built wheels)
– Chris H
20 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
2
down vote
From a maintenance and longevity point of view it's probably not the best idea. Using more assistance puts more strain on the battery and motor. This will cause those parts to wear out quicker.
Also, the bicycle's drive train itself may suffer unnecessary wear. When starting from a stop, it's much easier on the bike (chain, sprockets, chainrings, spokes , etc) to put the bike in an easy gear and use the mechanical advantage of the gears to start yourself off without putting too much power through the drive train. However with an electric bike, it's all too easy to leave the bike in a harder gear and let the motor do a lot of work. This puts extra strain on the parts of the bike, causing them to wear out prematurely.
answered 2 hours ago
Kibbee
16.7k95190
Paragraph 2 isn't going to be very true for a hub motor though -- if you are actually lettting the motor do the work, and is more of an argument in favour of changing down.
– Chris H
41 mins ago
It will depend on the type of system you are dealing with. I've heard that broken spokes are much more common with hub drive bikes.
– Kibbee
34 mins ago
you may even have heard it from me! though the load on the spokes of a rear hub wheel from a standing start is going to depend only on the overall torque after all gearing, or effectively on the acceleration. So if maximum assistance means you accelerate harder, that stresses the spokes more, but if it means you accelerate the same by pedalling more gently, the spokes won't be under more stress (I've always blamed the unsprung mass and big flanges/ bad angles myself -- and badly-built wheels)
– Chris H
20 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
2
down vote
up vote
2
down vote
From a maintenance and longevity point of view it's probably not the best idea. Using more assistance puts more strain on the battery and motor. This will cause those parts to wear out quicker.
Also, the bicycle's drive train itself may suffer unnecessary wear. When starting from a stop, it's much easier on the bike (chain, sprockets, chainrings, spokes , etc) to put the bike in an easy gear and use the mechanical advantage of the gears to start yourself off without putting too much power through the drive train. However with an electric bike, it's all too easy to leave the bike in a harder gear and let the motor do a lot of work. This puts extra strain on the parts of the bike, causing them to wear out prematurely.
answered 2 hours ago
Kibbee
16.7k95190
From a maintenance and longevity point of view it's probably not the best idea. Using more assistance puts more strain on the battery and motor. This will cause those parts to wear out quicker.
Also, the bicycle's drive train itself may suffer unnecessary wear. When starting from a stop, it's much easier on the bike (chain, sprockets, chainrings, spokes , etc) to put the bike in an easy gear and use the mechanical advantage of the gears to start yourself off without putting too much power through the drive train. However with an electric bike, it's all too easy to leave the bike in a harder gear and let the motor do a lot of work. This puts extra strain on the parts of the bike, causing them to wear out prematurely.
answered 2 hours ago
Kibbee
16.7k95190
answered 2 hours ago
Kibbee
16.7k95190
answered 2 hours ago
Kibbee
16.7k95190
answered 2 hours ago
Kibbee
16.7k95190
16.7k95190
Paragraph 2 isn't going to be very true for a hub motor though -- if you are actually lettting the motor do the work, and is more of an argument in favour of changing down.
– Chris H
41 mins ago
It will depend on the type of system you are dealing with. I've heard that broken spokes are much more common with hub drive bikes.
– Kibbee
34 mins ago
you may even have heard it from me! though the load on the spokes of a rear hub wheel from a standing start is going to depend only on the overall torque after all gearing, or effectively on the acceleration. So if maximum assistance means you accelerate harder, that stresses the spokes more, but if it means you accelerate the same by pedalling more gently, the spokes won't be under more stress (I've always blamed the unsprung mass and big flanges/ bad angles myself -- and badly-built wheels)
– Chris H
20 mins ago
add a comment |Â
Paragraph 2 isn't going to be very true for a hub motor though -- if you are actually lettting the motor do the work, and is more of an argument in favour of changing down.
– Chris H
41 mins ago
It will depend on the type of system you are dealing with. I've heard that broken spokes are much more common with hub drive bikes.
– Kibbee
34 mins ago
you may even have heard it from me! though the load on the spokes of a rear hub wheel from a standing start is going to depend only on the overall torque after all gearing, or effectively on the acceleration. So if maximum assistance means you accelerate harder, that stresses the spokes more, but if it means you accelerate the same by pedalling more gently, the spokes won't be under more stress (I've always blamed the unsprung mass and big flanges/ bad angles myself -- and badly-built wheels)
– Chris H
20 mins ago
Paragraph 2 isn't going to be very true for a hub motor though -- if you are actually lettting the motor do the work, and is more of an argument in favour of changing down.
– Chris H
41 mins ago
Paragraph 2 isn't going to be very true for a hub motor though -- if you are actually lettting the motor do the work, and is more of an argument in favour of changing down.
– Chris H
41 mins ago
It will depend on the type of system you are dealing with. I've heard that broken spokes are much more common with hub drive bikes.
– Kibbee
34 mins ago
It will depend on the type of system you are dealing with. I've heard that broken spokes are much more common with hub drive bikes.
– Kibbee
34 mins ago
you may even have heard it from me! though the load on the spokes of a rear hub wheel from a standing start is going to depend only on the overall torque after all gearing, or effectively on the acceleration. So if maximum assistance means you accelerate harder, that stresses the spokes more, but if it means you accelerate the same by pedalling more gently, the spokes won't be under more stress (I've always blamed the unsprung mass and big flanges/ bad angles myself -- and badly-built wheels)
– Chris H
20 mins ago
you may even have heard it from me! though the load on the spokes of a rear hub wheel from a standing start is going to depend only on the overall torque after all gearing, or effectively on the acceleration. So if maximum assistance means you accelerate harder, that stresses the spokes more, but if it means you accelerate the same by pedalling more gently, the spokes won't be under more stress (I've always blamed the unsprung mass and big flanges/ bad angles myself -- and badly-built wheels)
– Chris H
20 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
2
down vote
Assuming you have a good quality electric assist bike from a major manufacture. The manufacturer provided the max assist setting, so they intend for it to be used. It's a safe bet the bike is built to take the max assist torque without sustaining damage or accelerated wear. If the manufacturer believes sustained use of max assist will affect the bike, it will say so in the manual, so check that.
The one thing I'd be mindful of is battery life. General advice for laptops, phones and other portable devices is that deep discharge and heat degrade batteries are shorten their lifespans. If your commute is short and the battery capacity is adequate for max assist both ways that should not be a problem. I'm not sure about how discharge rates affect battery life - if I find info on this I'll update this answer.
Otherwise I say go ahead and use max assist. Yes, more torque and speed will wear bearings, chain etc proportionally faster, but using the assist is what you bought the bike for, right?
answered 2 hours ago
Argenti Apparatus
25.4k23067
add a comment |Â
up vote
2
down vote
Assuming you have a good quality electric assist bike from a major manufacture. The manufacturer provided the max assist setting, so they intend for it to be used. It's a safe bet the bike is built to take the max assist torque without sustaining damage or accelerated wear. If the manufacturer believes sustained use of max assist will affect the bike, it will say so in the manual, so check that.
The one thing I'd be mindful of is battery life. General advice for laptops, phones and other portable devices is that deep discharge and heat degrade batteries are shorten their lifespans. If your commute is short and the battery capacity is adequate for max assist both ways that should not be a problem. I'm not sure about how discharge rates affect battery life - if I find info on this I'll update this answer.
Otherwise I say go ahead and use max assist. Yes, more torque and speed will wear bearings, chain etc proportionally faster, but using the assist is what you bought the bike for, right?
answered 2 hours ago
Argenti Apparatus
25.4k23067
add a comment |Â
up vote
2
down vote
up vote
2
down vote
Assuming you have a good quality electric assist bike from a major manufacture. The manufacturer provided the max assist setting, so they intend for it to be used. It's a safe bet the bike is built to take the max assist torque without sustaining damage or accelerated wear. If the manufacturer believes sustained use of max assist will affect the bike, it will say so in the manual, so check that.
The one thing I'd be mindful of is battery life. General advice for laptops, phones and other portable devices is that deep discharge and heat degrade batteries are shorten their lifespans. If your commute is short and the battery capacity is adequate for max assist both ways that should not be a problem. I'm not sure about how discharge rates affect battery life - if I find info on this I'll update this answer.
Otherwise I say go ahead and use max assist. Yes, more torque and speed will wear bearings, chain etc proportionally faster, but using the assist is what you bought the bike for, right?
answered 2 hours ago
Argenti Apparatus
25.4k23067
Assuming you have a good quality electric assist bike from a major manufacture. The manufacturer provided the max assist setting, so they intend for it to be used. It's a safe bet the bike is built to take the max assist torque without sustaining damage or accelerated wear. If the manufacturer believes sustained use of max assist will affect the bike, it will say so in the manual, so check that.
The one thing I'd be mindful of is battery life. General advice for laptops, phones and other portable devices is that deep discharge and heat degrade batteries are shorten their lifespans. If your commute is short and the battery capacity is adequate for max assist both ways that should not be a problem. I'm not sure about how discharge rates affect battery life - if I find info on this I'll update this answer.
Otherwise I say go ahead and use max assist. Yes, more torque and speed will wear bearings, chain etc proportionally faster, but using the assist is what you bought the bike for, right?
answered 2 hours ago
Argenti Apparatus
25.4k23067
answered 2 hours ago
Argenti Apparatus
25.4k23067
answered 2 hours ago
Argenti Apparatus
25.4k23067
answered 2 hours ago
Argenti Apparatus
25.4k23067
25.4k23067
add a comment |Â
add a comment |Â
Legisey is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.
Legisey is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.
Legisey is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.
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1
I use lower level of assistance only when the battery power drops below optimal level and I had no chance to recharge it.
– Alexander
3 hours ago
@Alexander a good time to use little or no assistance is if you think the battery is a little low and you'd like to save it for a hill
– Chris H
12 mins ago