Teverun electric scooters are convenient, cost-effective, and eco-friendly. They give people a better way to travel and commute. They are also highly accessible and require less maintenance than cars.
Like cars, you need to maintain your electric scooter to ensure optimum performance. One key area you can’t afford to neglect is tire pressure.
Whether your tires are tubed or tubeless (but especially if your tires are tubed) it’s important to ensure you have the correct air pressure in your tires on every ride. Under-inflated tires can reduce your range, decrease your stopping power and can lead to flats in tubed tires. Over-inflated tires feel stiff and make cornering at high speeds unsafe.
While checking before riding may be inconvenient, improper tire inflation has significant negative effects, so we heartily recommend doing it frequently.
Tubed Tires
Like bicycle tires, tubed pneumatic tires have innertubes that can be replaced or repaired when they go flat. The most common cause of flat tires in scooters with tubed tires, like the Blade Q Pro or the Blade Mini, is what’s called a “pinch flat”. Pinch flats happen when the inner tube gets caught between the wheel rim and the bead of the tire, the inner edge that makes contact with the rim. These punctures tend to put two little holes in the innertube, which is why they’re sometimes known as “snakebites”.
Tubeless Tires
Just like the tires on your car, tubeless electric scooter tires, like those found on the Blade GT II, Fighter 11, Fighter Supreme and all the higher-performance Teverun electric scooters, lack an inner tube. They use air pressure to mount the edge of the tire against the rim.
Tubeless tires are known to hold air better than tubed tires, so they can be checked less frequently for leaks. They can also be run at lower pressures than tubed tires, and they are generally less prone to getting flats.
Some tubeless tires are “self-healing” and contain an additional layer of compound that seals up instantly around most punctures. Every Teverun electric scooter that uses tubeless tires has this self-healing feature, except for the Fighter Mini.
Because tubeless tires don’t have innertubes that can be punctured from a pinch flat, they be operated at a much lower pressure than tires with tubes. However, tubeless tires can also suffer when they don’t have enough air, becoming mushy, unstable, and unsafe to ride. Riding at low pressures can also result in uneven and premature tire wear.
4 Reasons to Ensure Your Tires are properly Inflated
1. Safety
Riding an electric scooter with improperly inflated tires can compromise your safety. Under-inflated or over-inflated tires provide less stability and make it more difficult to steer, particularly in emergency situations, and especially in wet and slippery conditions. It also results in longer stopping distances, increasing the rolling resistance and making it harder for the tires to grip the road.
A report from NBC News revealed that poor car tire pressure is responsible for 79 deaths and over 10,000 injuries yearly.
2. Tire Longevity
Tire wear is the gradual deterioration of the tire’s tread and overall condition over time due to usage—when tires make contact with road surfaces, friction, and stress cause the tread to wear down gradually. Properly inflated tires ensure evenly distributed wear to the tread
On under-inflated tires, the edges will wear faster, while the centre will wear faster on over-inflated tires.
Uneven wear patterns can negatively impact performance and longevity, potentially leading to premature flats.
Over-inflated tires will give you a harsh ride where more road vibrations and bumps are felt. While some people like the fact that under-inflated tires absorb more road vibrations, it comes at the expense of all of the improper wear. You’re much better off with high-quality suspension (luckily, all Teverun electric scooters have fantastic suspension).
3. Range
If you start to notice your typical range decreasing, the solution may be as simple as checking your tire pressure rather than attributing it to inevitable battery degradation.
Under-inflation increases the rolling resistance of your tires. This means it takes more effort (motor power and battery) to propel the electric scooter forward. A reduction of 3% in range for every 1 PSI below optimal pressure is not uncommon.
Even though there is a chance you may get a small increase in the range of overinflation, its downsides greatly outweigh its benefits.
4. Handling and performance
Proper tire pressure is essential for maintaining optimal handling and control of your electric scooter. When inflated to the recommended pressure, your tires providing the optimal contact patch with the road surface for not only optimal range, but optimal traction and stability while riding, especially when taking turns or maneuvering in various road conditions.
If you need to brake or steer quickly, low tire pressure can slow the process, leading to accidents.
Tire Pressure Tips
The recommended tire pressure range for most Teverun electric scooters is typically within 40 to 50 PSI.
If you ride frequently, check your tires once per week, or every two weeks if you have tubeless tires. If you don’t ride frequently, check the pressure and top the tires off before each ride.
To know the optimal tire pressure toi inflate your tires to, check your user manual, or the tires themselves—the recommended and maximum tire pressure is embossed on the side of the tires.
If you’re storing an electric scooter, ensure your tires are properly inflated first, and never store it if the tires are flat—this can permanently damage tubes and tires and make them unusable. Check tires and top off once a month (and make sure to keep the battery charged at around 40-50%).
If you own an electric scooter you should also have a tire pump. A bicycle pump will work just fine. If you don’t have a pump with a gauge, you can use any tire pressure gauge designed for car or bike tires to keep an eye on your scooter’s tire pressure.
Even better is an electric pump with a built-in gauge. We highly recommend a portable, battery-powered electric air pump.
Following these tips will ensure you stick to the exact tire pressure recommended by your manufacturer and don’t under or over-inflate the tires. When in doubt, follow the manufacturer’s recommended tire pressure, or the recommended tire pressure printed on the sidewall of the tire.
Perform regular checks: Make it a habit to check the tire pressure at least once a week or before embarking on a long ride.
Keep it balanced: Maintain consistent tire pressure across both wheels to promote even wear and balanced performance. If one wheel isn’t performing, it will impact the entire scooter’s performance.
Avoid extreme temperatures: Extreme heat or cold can cause fluctuations in tire pressure. Try to store your scooter in a temperature-controlled environment.
Invest in a quality tire pump: A reliable and portable tire pump is essential for keeping your tires properly inflated at all times.