How to Maintain an Electric Skateboard

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Written By Pro Skater

I am Pro Skater, and love to have more and more Skater boards. Also reviewing all these and writing blog as an expert skater.

Why should you care about the maintenance of your electric skateboard? Just as a sports car needs to be taken to a garage from time to time for deep servicing or a simple oil change, the same applies to an electric skateboard.

Regular maintenance is important if you want to use your skateboard for a long time. Regular maintenance increases the life of the electric skateboard and its performance. Bad weather, such as rain, also impacts the condition of your electric skateboard. So, maintenance is necessary before, during, and after the rain.

As a skateboard contains many important components such as wheels, motor, battery, bearings, and grip tape, it might be difficult for a novice skater to clean them. In this article, we will focus on the basic cleaning procedures for an electric skateboard. After reading this article, you can give maintenance to your skateboard without safety hazards.

Contents

Electric Skateboard Maintenance Tools

There are some useful tools you might need to clean your electric skateboard. These tools help you to perform maintenance more efficiently and effectively. Here is a list of tools that you might need to prepare before starting with the maintenance of your board.

  • Flat-Head Screwdriver
  • Sockets and Wrench
  • Cleaning Solvent
  • Heat Gun or Air Blower
  • Toothbrush & Stanley Knife
  • Fine Sandpapers
  • Cotton Cloth
  • Motor Oil

Cleaning

The first maintenance step is to brush off the dirt on your board. You can use an old toothbrush or a steel brush for this procedure. Like a nail-biting person, you should hold your electric skateboard tightly and brush it from top to bottom.

After brushing, you must remove all the dust using a cotton cloth or compressed air. If there are stains on your board, such as chewing gum, you should heat it with a heat gun or air blower and take them out with a Stanley knife.

Battery

The battery is an expensive part of your electric skateboard. So, when doing cleaning, you should take good care of it. First, remove the battery from your electric skateboard. And then put the battery into a bag of rice to absorb moisture that may have accumulated inside it. If your skateboard comes with lithium-ion batteries, you can also use dry-powder gas to eliminate moisture in the battery compartment. Try to put the battery at a temperature of 10-30 ℃ to prevent condensation.

Grip Tape

Grip tape becomes dirty because of dust and oil. So you will need to remove all dust from it with a cotton cloth or compressed air, and then you can clean it using a solvent. The toothpaste is a good alternative for cleaning the grip tape. Be careful not to wipe the damp cloth over the grip tape while cleaning, as this can harm it. If your grip tape is damaged, you can also use a grip tape sticker to cover the damaged area. But changing the grip tape can be a good alternative.

You can order a new grip tape or grip tape sticker from Amazon. Setting a new tape is not difficult, but it takes good care of all the components. It would help if you had a heat gun or hair dryer for heating the grip tape. And then, you need to press it carefully with your fingers or a flathead screwdriver before sticking it on the board. If you are uncomfortable with this process, you can ask a professional to handle it.

Wheels

Wheels are also an important component of a skateboard to maintain. If you want to maintain your wheels, take them off the electric skateboard. You can use a toothbrush to get rid of dirt and dust from the wheel. To remove the stubborn stains, you should use a steel brush or wire brush.

You must be careful while using these tools as they may damage rubber tires and hub motors. If there is any damage (such as deformation), you should immediately replace them with new ones before continuing with other procedures in this maintenance guide.

After brushing all the dust off, you have to put some concentric circles onto your wheels so that you can check whether there are any damages inside the wheel or not.

Motor

It is difficult to clean a motor yourself, but be patient enough to try if you care about your board’s performance and longevity. We need to clean motors mainly because they become rusty because of rainwater and salt. Before riding in the weather, be sure your electric skateboard is waterproof.

As the first step, you should take off the screws of the motor and then open it using a wrench or socket wrench. Now, you need to clean all the dirt inside with some cleaning solvents. If you find any rust (such as iron), you should use a steel brush to remove it.

Bearings

It is also recommended to maintain your bearings if they are making noise while riding your board or becoming less smooth than before. You can choose three different procedures according to the condition of your bearings:

  • Replace- Replace damaged bearings with new ones.
  • Clean Bearings- Clean dirty bearings with some solvent and then replace them after drying up completely.
  • Dry Bearings- Drying up wet/oily bearings under the sunlight.

Trucks

The skateboard trucks are another most important part that should be regularly maintained. If you want to maintain your trucks, first of all, remove them from the board. And then you should clean all the dirt inside and outside them carefully with some cleaning solvents.

If there are any rusts, use a steel brush to remove them completely. You can also change rusted bolts or nuts with new ones. As trucks become rusty because of rainwater and salt, you should remove rust properly before applying oil to them.

ESC

An electric skateboard’s electronic speed controller (ESC) is very sensitive, and you should be careful while maintaining it. So, as the first step, unplug the battery and take ESC off the board properly. You should clean its exterior with a toothbrush and carburetor cleaner. After drying up the ESC, plug in the battery and apply throttle quickly to check whether there are any problems or not. If the problem still exists, you should take your board to a professional to prevent it.

Deck

The deck is also one of the most important parts of your board that require regular maintenance. You can clean your deck’s dirt with cleaning solutions or a toothbrush. If your skateboard is a bit dirty, use a wet towel instead of a solvent/toothbrush. After cleaning up completely, applying some wax on the surface is recommended to maintain its quality and beauty. And remember that don’t press too hard while using any tools for cleaning because it can damage all-electric skateboard components.

Adjust bolts & screws

Once you are done with the maintenance procedure, it is time to check whether all bolts and screws are tightened or not. In case they are loose, tighten them accordingly. Some electric skateboard models come with preinstalled pillow block bearings; therefore, they don’t require any assembling before riding. Now, it’s time to put your wheels on your board and make necessary adjustments if needed.

Charger

You should regularly check your charger if it is working properly or not after using it for 4 weeks or a month. This does not mean that your battery will not be charged at all since the ampere of different chargers and the mAh of batteries might differ. In this case, you have to charge new batteries first before riding an electric skateboard. If you feel that your battery life has become less than before, don’t forget to replace it immediately with a new one without thinking about its cost.

5 Maintenance Tips for Your Electric Skateboard

How to Maintain an Electric Skateboard

These are some useful tips for maintaining your electric skateboard properly. The better you maintain the board, the longer it can work so that you won’t have to give a replacement for old batteries and components after using your board for a few months or weeks.

  1. Make sure you use your electric skateboard as much as possible because the more you ride it, the more active and useful components you get used to.
  2. You should charge your battery properly after using it each time and not let it discharge completely before recharging again.
  3. Don’t leave your battery outside (or in a wet place) for a long time, and make sure that there is no water or dampness inside batteries.
  4. After riding, you should wipe all dirt from the deck, motor case, wheels, or bearings with some cleaning solvents.
  5. Do not forget about motors’ ventilation too since they can be filled up with dust easily, which can cause serious damages such as overheating.

Electric Skateboard Maintenance Video

If you are still facing any issue while maintaining your electric skateboard and are looking for a video guide, this will be helpful. He covered everything that we told in our article.

There are some useful tools you might need to clean your electric skateboard. These tools help you to perform maintenance more efficiently and effectively. Here is a list of tools that you might need to prepare before starting with the maintenance of your board.

  • Flat-Head Screwdriver
  • Sockets and Wrench
  • Cleaning Solvent
  • Heat Gun or Air Blower
  • Toothbrush & Stanley Knife
  • Fine Sandpapers
  • Cotton Cloth
  • Motor Oil

Cleaning

The first maintenance step is to brush off the dirt on your board. You can use an old toothbrush or a steel brush for this procedure. Like a nail-biting person, you should hold your electric skateboard tightly and brush it from top to bottom.

After brushing, you must remove all the dust using a cotton cloth or compressed air. If there are stains on your board, such as chewing gum, you should heat it with a heat gun or air blower and take them out with a Stanley knife.

Battery

The battery is an expensive part of your electric skateboard. So, when doing cleaning, you should take good care of it. First, remove the battery from your electric skateboard. And then put the battery into a bag of rice to absorb moisture that may have accumulated inside it. If your skateboard comes with lithium-ion batteries, you can also use dry-powder gas to eliminate moisture in the battery compartment. Try to put the battery at a temperature of 10-30 ℃ to prevent condensation.

Grip Tape

Grip tape becomes dirty because of dust and oil. So you will need to remove all dust from it with a cotton cloth or compressed air, and then you can clean it using a solvent. The toothpaste is a good alternative for cleaning the grip tape. Be careful not to wipe the damp cloth over the grip tape while cleaning, as this can harm it. If your grip tape is damaged, you can also use a grip tape sticker to cover the damaged area. But changing the grip tape can be a good alternative.

You can order a new grip tape or grip tape sticker from Amazon. Setting a new tape is not difficult, but it takes good care of all the components. It would help if you had a heat gun or hair dryer for heating the grip tape. And then, you need to press it carefully with your fingers or a flathead screwdriver before sticking it on the board. If you are uncomfortable with this process, you can ask a professional to handle it.

Wheels

Wheels are also an important component of a skateboard to maintain. If you want to maintain your wheels, take them off the electric skateboard. You can use a toothbrush to get rid of dirt and dust from the wheel. To remove the stubborn stains, you should use a steel brush or wire brush.

You must be careful while using these tools as they may damage rubber tires and hub motors. If there is any damage (such as deformation), you should immediately replace them with new ones before continuing with other procedures in this maintenance guide.

After brushing all the dust off, you have to put some concentric circles onto your wheels so that you can check whether there are any damages inside the wheel or not.

Motor

It is difficult to clean a motor yourself, but be patient enough to try if you care about your board’s performance and longevity. We need to clean motors mainly because they become rusty because of rainwater and salt. Before riding in the weather, be sure your electric skateboard is waterproof.

As the first step, you should take off the screws of the motor and then open it using a wrench or socket wrench. Now, you need to clean all the dirt inside with some cleaning solvents. If you find any rust (such as iron), you should use a steel brush to remove it.

Bearings

It is also recommended to maintain your bearings if they are making noise while riding your board or becoming less smooth than before. You can choose three different procedures according to the condition of your bearings:

  • Replace- Replace damaged bearings with new ones.
  • Clean Bearings- Clean dirty bearings with some solvent and then replace them after drying up completely.
  • Dry Bearings- Drying up wet/oily bearings under the sunlight.

Trucks

The skateboard trucks are another most important part that should be regularly maintained. If you want to maintain your trucks, first of all, remove them from the board. And then you should clean all the dirt inside and outside them carefully with some cleaning solvents.

If there are any rusts, use a steel brush to remove them completely. You can also change rusted bolts or nuts with new ones. As trucks become rusty because of rainwater and salt, you should remove rust properly before applying oil to them.

ESC

An electric skateboard’s electronic speed controller (ESC) is very sensitive, and you should be careful while maintaining it. So, as the first step, unplug the battery and take ESC off the board properly. You should clean its exterior with a toothbrush and carburetor cleaner. After drying up the ESC, plug in the battery and apply throttle quickly to check whether there are any problems or not. If the problem still exists, you should take your board to a professional to prevent it.

Deck

The deck is also one of the most important parts of your board that require regular maintenance. You can clean your deck’s dirt with cleaning solutions or a toothbrush. If your skateboard is a bit dirty, use a wet towel instead of a solvent/toothbrush. After cleaning up completely, applying some wax on the surface is recommended to maintain its quality and beauty. And remember that don’t press too hard while using any tools for cleaning because it can damage all-electric skateboard components.

Adjust bolts & screws

Once you are done with the maintenance procedure, it is time to check whether all bolts and screws are tightened or not. In case they are loose, tighten them accordingly. Some electric skateboard models come with preinstalled pillow block bearings; therefore, they don’t require any assembling before riding. Now, it’s time to put your wheels on your board and make necessary adjustments if needed.

Charger

You should regularly check your charger if it is working properly or not after using it for 4 weeks or a month. This does not mean that your battery will not be charged at all since the ampere of different chargers and the mAh of batteries might differ. In this case, you have to charge new batteries first before riding an electric skateboard. If you feel that your battery life has become less than before, don’t forget to replace it immediately with a new one without thinking about its cost.

5 Maintenance Tips for Your Electric Skateboard

These are some useful tips for maintaining your electric skateboard properly. The better you maintain the board, the longer it can work so that you won’t have to give a replacement for old batteries and components after using your board for a few months or weeks.

  1. Make sure you use your electric skateboard as much as possible because the more you ride it, the more active and useful components you get used to.
  2. You should charge your battery properly after using it each time and not let it discharge completely before recharging again.
  3. Don’t leave your battery outside (or in a wet place) for a long time, and make sure that there is no water or dampness inside batteries.
  4. After riding, you should wipe all dirt from the deck, motor case, wheels, or bearings with some cleaning solvents.
  5. Do not forget about motors’ ventilation too since they can be filled up with dust easily, which can cause serious damages such as overheating.

Electric Skateboard Maintenance Video

If you are still facing any issue while maintaining your electric skateboard and are looking for a video guide, this will be helpful. He covered everything that we told in our article.

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