Which Gear Can I Choose For My Ebike?

Emmanuelle Chatel August 27, 2021 No Comments Uncategorized

Gearing can be sometimes overlooked when purchasing an ebike in comparison to the power of the motor or the size of the battery. However, as is the case on a regular bike, it will make your ride easier and more enjoyable when riding hills in addition to optimizing your battery usage.

On your Furo X or Aventa your computer will detail your PAS (Pedal-Assist System) level which can be changed using the controls on the left, and on the right shifter, your controls for your mechanical gears.

Using gears on an electric bike is very similar to using them on a regular cycle and allows you to adjust your pedalling effort. The 9 speed Shimano cassette offers a large number of gears and will help you to maintain a comfortable cadence regardless of the gradient you are tackling along with increasing your cycling efficiency.

Low gears are for easy climbs and where there is more resistance. You will want to shift to higher gears by clicking the shifter on the handlebars to increase your speed on the flat or downhill – this will allow you to pedal slower, but with more force. Lower gears mean the motor must work harder and use more power, whereas the higher the gear the more leg power you will have to put in to supplement the battery putting less strain on the motor. For example, when approaching a hill you will want to go for a low gear level for the motor to do the work.

You will want to shift gears and change pedal-assist to match your speed and terrain. Take some time to play around with shifting and see how it feels to ride in different gears to find the cadence you are the most comfortable with. Note that a low cadence will drain power quicker. Make sure you spin rather than grind and always anticipate shifting gears before the terrain changes and remember to keep pedalling when changing gears in order for the chain to move from one gear to the next.

While your pedal-assist sensor provides you with 5 different levels of assistance – from eco to sport mode. When you start rotating the pedals, the motor will smoothly give you the selected power. Unlike mechanical gears, you can change the level of electric assistance while at a standstill. If you are pedalling and reach the top motor speed, the power will fade out and require leg power to keep going at those speeds.

Many riders keep their bikes in a low pedal-assist system in addition to the gears to maintain a certain level of exercise and not entirely relying on the motor to do the work, therefore using less energy from the battery. It will also work if you aim for longer rides where you will want to get the most out of your battery.

Maintenance is key when you are using your bike regularly. To get the best of your gears and chain, ensure to maintain them! A lubricated and clean chain is essential for keeping your bike’s drivetrain running smoothly. Check that no dirt or dust has built up as this could disrupt the shifting systems.

What Is The Correct Tyre Pressure?

Emmanuelle Chatel February 2, 2021 No Comments Uncategorized

Riding your electric bike with the right tyre pressure is very important. It will play a huge part in your comfort and safety on the road and affect your tyres grip and rolling resistance. Several factors will determine what pressure you should be riding at. We explain below how to find the right settings for our electric bikes and scooter range.

Why is the correct tyre pressure important on a bike?

Riding with the correct tyre pressure makes a big difference to your own comfort and your bike’s performance. The ideal pressure is going to depend on a variety of factors including the rider’s weight, road conditions and the width of the tyres.

Heavier riders will benefit from more tire pressure and lighter riders may prefer lower pressure.

Thinner tyres will need more air pressure than wider ones. As the latter can feel more comfortable at lower and still remain safe.

Finding the sweet spot is about finding a balance between getting the best grip level and rolling resistance level.

Grip

A lower tyre pressure means the tyre makes more contact with the ground that it is rolling over. It will result in a greater grip level and allow a smoother ride but a higher rolling resistance. Whereas an over-inflated tyre will reduce the grip, the rolling resistance and will feel faster. A tyre at lower pressure is also able to absorb more of the bumps on the road than a tyre at a higher pressure which will transmit the impacts to the rider and will affect the quality and comfort of the ride.

Rolling resistance

Rolling resistance is simply the friction between the tyres and the road. It is affected by how much contact with the surface the tyre provides, so the greater the friction, the harder your motor will need to work to achieve the same speed. An over-inflated tyre can also increase rolling resistance as the tyre ends up bouncing up on the surface rather than travelling smoothly. The rolling resistance is determined by the accumulation of several factors like the tyre pressure, the type of tyre used and the road conditions.

What if I pump my tyres too much or too little?

If you overinflate your tyres, you run the risk of blowing the inner tube and too little pressure can cause pinch flats, this can also potentially damage the tire and the rim.

What is PSI?

PSI is a unit of pressure expressed in pound-force applied to an area of one square inch. It stands for Pounds per Square Inch.

What pressures do you run in FuroSystems models?

Every bike tyre comes conveniently with the minimum and maximum advisable pressure details on its side. Those values must neither be exceeded nor undercut since values outside of that scope can cause damage. The ideal pressure value is in the middle of those limit values but can vary greatly between riders as body weight and baggage will impact the tyre pressure.

How often should I check the pressure?

Tyres pressure naturally goes down over time as the inner tubes are permeable so we recommend checking your tyres pressure at least once a week or before every ride if you don’t go out that often to inspect whether the tyres have lost any air and need a quick top-up.

Pumps

For your pre-ride safety checks we recommend using a floor pump with an integrated pressure gauge so you can accurately pump to the optimum pressure and avoid over-inflating a tyre. Make sure your pump has a Schrader valve for a perfect air seal. You also want to go for a solid built model for durability.

While a mini-pump is your best bet for on the road inflation. Its small format makes it easy to store and carry in your bag alongside your puncture repair kit. It requires more work and usually doesn’t have a pressure gauge but you can get a rough estimate by squeezing the tyre with your thumb and forefinger.

The Essential Bike Tools To Look After Your Electric Bike

Emmanuelle Chatel January 15, 2021 No Comments Uncategorized

Bike maintenance is a vast topic but most essential tasks can be worked through easily with a few standard tools to keep your electric bike running smoothly. Having the right tools at your disposal will make the task much easier, and can ensure you that the job has been done safely. We have compiled a list of equipment that will get you started on your bike’s general maintenance at home!

Allen Key Set

An absolute essential in every cyclist’s home toolbox, Allen keys most likely will be the tools you use the most. It will let you go through the majority of repairs on your electric bike. The keys come in a variety of sizes and shapes. An L-shape set allows a versatile use and reaches when tightening/loosening bolts. (most commonly used are 4mm,5mm,6mm)

Wrench/Spanner

Handy and multipurpose, a wrench key is also essential for tyre repairs and maintenance. It securely holds the nut to prevent spinning when loosening or tightening the bolt to the correct level of tension. Adjustable wrenches are versatile and practical for repair on the road. (Commonly used are 15mm, 10mm, 9mm for the Furo X and 17mm for the Aventa model)

Phillips screwdriver

You will need a Phillips screwdriver to make adjustments on your bike and fit accessories.

Bike Multitool

With a good cycling multitool, you will be equipped for most eventualities! It usually includes a range of tools such as different sized Allen keys, Torx keys and screwdriver heads. Multi-tools can vary from minimal tools containing the bare essentials to more comprehensive sets including pretty much everything you need.

Puncture Repair Kit

Puncture repair kits usually include tyre patches, glue, valve hose, sandpaper to repair a punctured tyre. Ensure to keep your kit in your saddlebag should you need it on the road for an unexpected puncture. Also, we do recommend keeping a spare inner tube.

Pump

We recommend using a pump with an integrated pressure gauge so you can accurately pump to the desired air pressure. Make sure the pump has a Schrader valve for a perfect air seal.

Lubricant

GT85 is one of the best sprays to have in your cupboard. Versatile and multi-purpose spray, it will come in handy for chains, cables, levers, gears and derailleurs. Note that you should not use WD40 as it’s primary use is as a solvent or rust dissolver.

A set of tyre levers

Inexpensive and another toolbox essential, tyre levers are designed specifically for removing your tyres off the wheels without causing damage in the process and will make the job much easier

Brush set

A collection of brushes will help with cleaning the mud and dirt that can be in hard to reach places

Microfibre Cloth

A handy one for your post-ride cleanup! Super absorbent and soft, microfiber cloths will easily eliminate blemishes and absorb all the excess moisture when you wipe down your bike.

Virtual shopping experience: Have you tried it yet?

Emmanuelle Chatel November 17, 2020 No Comments Uncategorized

As England plunges into its second lockdown, tough new restrictions have come into place. To comply with the new rules we have had to suspend test rides for our customers. We understand that purchasing a new bike without trying it can be frustrating so we decided to enhance the customer shopping experience. This is where augmented reality can make a difference.

AR brings the showroom to your home(room!)

We’ve now introduced a great new feature for you to explore, an Augmented Reality tool that is integrated into our website. The AR technology provides you with an immersive shopping experience to visualise the product directly from the comfort of your home. Using your device’s camera, AR technology supplements reality by superimposing computer-generated elements. Displayed in real size, they can explore our electric bikes and scooters and their features from all angles to help in the decision-making process.

Nothing will replace a real test ride or speaking to a person when browsing products, but virtual shopping gives our customers the opportunity to collect more insights to become familiar with the product before making a purchase.

Using AR aligns with Furosystems’ commitment to innovation but most importantly to continue to develop the online customer experience across online assets. The new feature is available on the devices via the AR icon displayed.

Bike Insurance? Does your electric bike need insurance?

Emmanuelle Chatel September 29, 2020 No Comments Uncategorized

Whilst ensuring your electric bike is not compulsory in England, there are numerous reasons to consider insuring your new ride. It is highly recommended to find a suitable policy in the event that you have an accident, which leaves you and your bike with a public liability cover as well as protection against theft and damage.

Keep your investment safe

Purchasing an electric bike is a significant investment you want to protect. There are different policies available on the market and you might want to shop around for the coverage that is right for you.

Assuming your home insurance policy provides the right cover is risky as you may only be covered while the bike’s at home. It is worth checking how much cover you are likely to receive as there are some strict conditions and limitations. Whereas specialist electric bike insurance policies often offer higher amounts of cover.

Electric Bike Insurance Cover

There are different policies available and factors you should consider when comparing ebike policies to find the coverage that is right for you:

Theft
Accidents and vandalism
Third-party liability insurance
Replacement cycle hire
Cycle rescue
Personnel accident
Other riders cover
Cover for accessories

Tips to prevent your electric bike from theft

Bike thefts reported to BikeRegister rose by 48% in June, compared to last year, so here are some tips to prevent your electric bike from being stolen in the first place:

Register your bike online
Invest in a high-quality lock
Protect your bike with an ImmobiTag identification chip
Store your bike in a secure location covered by CCTV
Unlock and remove your battery when you lock it up
Secure your bike in a different location every day
Don’t leave it parked in public for long periods of time
Failing to protect your bike adequately can also result in your insurance protection being invalidated.

The cost of specialised electric bike insurance is generally affordable but will vary depending on your policy and the add-ons that your policy offers to increase your coverage. Being on the safe side is always best as the damages you may be responsible for in the case of an accident can be significant.

Find more information about our UK theft and damage insurance packages here

Can you take an electric bike on a plane?

Eliott Wertheimer March 16, 2020 No Comments Uncategorized

Ebiking holidays are growing in popularity with many people taking to the pathways and trails of Europe for some sightseeing and adventure. If you own an electric bike, you’ve likely considered such a trip; flying to Spain or France to enjoy the wonderful cycling routes they have to offer. However, taking your electric bike on the plane with you won’t be as easy as you’d hope. Here we discuss the problems you’ll run into when trying to take an electric bike on a plane and ways to get around them.

In short, the answer is no: you can’t take an electric bike on a plane. It’s all because of the battery. Any rechargeable lithium battery larger than 100Wh is prohibited from being taken onto a plane.

Some airlines may allow batteries that are up to 160Wh, but you’ll need to ask for permission in advance. The reason being that lithium batteries can be a fire hazard; if their shell were to be damaged or overheat, the battery could short-circuit and cause a spark. Lithium is highly flammable, so this spark could set it on fire and could even cause a small explosion. Of course, most modern lithium-ion batteries are designed in a way so as to prevent such issues. However, aviation security cannot take any chances.

A fire in the cargo hold could spread unnoticed and there’s a good chance that it will come into contact with other highly-flammable items such as aerosols and nail varnish. This is obviously a huge problem on a plane. And it happens more often than you’d imagine. In fact, between January 2006 and January 2020, there were 268 incidents involving lithium batteries on planes – that’s more than one every month!

This regulation, however, allows for most personal items, such as phones, laptops, and cameras, to be taken on planes. The problem is that electric bike batteries tend to be a minimum of 300Wh – our smallest electric bike, the Etura, is 313Wh. Therefore, they’re banned from being flown on commercial planes.

Alternatives to flying with an electric bike

Your hopes of taking your electric bike with you abroad shouldn’t be dashed just yet; there are ways of getting around the issue.

Rent a battery once you arrive

A popular option is to remove the battery and fly with what is essentially just a normal bike. Once you’ve arrived, you can source a battery to use for the duration of your trip. There are a couple of things to consider here. Firstly, do your research before you fly and make sure you can actually find a lender. It’s not the most common of services, so be sure to check. If you’re flying to a popular cycling destination then your chances of finding a lender will be significantly higher. Secondly, you need to ensure that the battery is compatible with your particular electric bike. Unfortunately, there’s no such thing as “one size fits all”, so you’ll need to do some research here too.

While this may seem like a lot of effort, it’s going to be significantly cheaper than hiring an entire ebike for your trip. Biking trips can last several days, even weeks, so hiring fees for an electric bike can be pretty steep.

Ship your battery separately

In some circumstances, it’s possible to send your bike’s battery to your destination, but it will come with a hefty fee. Certain couriers, such as FedEx and UPS, provide detailed information on how your battery must be packaged and how to go about sending it abroad. For example, it must be declared as “Dangerous Goods” and labelled as being suitable for cargo aircraft only. It must also be packaged in such a way that it is protected against short-circuiting. It can be quite a hassle, but if you’re really set on taking your own battery with you, there is a way.

Use another form of transport

If it’s possible, the best option may be to use an alternative mode of transport. For example, there are no restrictions on taking electric bikes on ferries. You can take the ferry from the UK to mainland Europe, places like France or Belgium, and then continue the rest of your journey by car (or by ebike!). This does limit the number of destinations you can choose from, but it may save you a lot of hassle.

Don’t let these regulations discourage you from the electric bike experience. We’re firm believers that parts of the world are best seen by bike, and electric bikes provide the assistance you need to conquer inclines that you otherwise might not be able to. Our Furo X is a powerful ebike, boasting a 314Wh battery, which can also be folded for easy transportation. It’s one of the most powerful folding ebikes you can buy and is perfect for any occasion. Get in touch with us if you have any ebike-related questions.

New addition to the FuroSystems family: the lightest and most compact electric folding bike in the world

Eliott Wertheimer August 22, 2019 5 Comments Uncategorized

After a year of research, design and development effort, it is with great pleasure that we would like to announce the launch of the FuroSystems eTura.Weighing in at 12kgs fully equipped, it is one of lightest electric bikes in the world with no compromise on power, range or fun. Its removable battery delivers over 315Wh of energy, while its motor is rated at a continuous 200W with a power boost of up to 400W when sensing the need for acceleration or climbing thanks to a clever integrated power controller.

Its onboard computer is seemless and intuitive while its low weight and small size make it perfect to disappear under your desk or in small cupboards.

We are proud of this one and invite you to have a look at its features and benefit from a significant 30% pre-order launch discount.

Discover the eTura here

How to Determine the Real Range of an Electric Scooter and its Battery

Eliott Wertheimer May 15, 2019 2 Comments Uncategorized

Before jumping into the Physics of it, you can access our online calculator here to determine the range of an electric scooter battery.Batteries are the lifeblood of any electric vehicle. They are not only their most expensive individual component of a vehicle, but they also define their range and performance. How are they characterised and what do their specifications mean for you, the rider?

Typically batteries are defined by 3 basic specifications, Voltage (V), Amp-hours (Ah) and Watt-hours (Wh).

Let us start by describing Voltage and Amps. Voltage and Amperage are characteristics of electric systems that can easily be understood by using the analogy of water flowing in a pipe. Voltage is akin to water pressure, the more voltage the more ‘pressure’ there is in the current. The Amperage is akin to the flow rate, or the amount of water that is flowing through the pipe. The more Amperage, the more current is ‘flowing’.

The Amps being akin to how much water is flowing, the Amp-hours (Ah) are therefore akin to how much water there is in the tank. 1 Ah is basically the ‘amount of electricity’ equal to 1 Amp of flow for 1 hour.

FuroSystems Battery Range Water Analogy

If a battery were simply a water tower, the Voltage is the water pressure (height of the tower) and the Amp-hours is the amount of water in the tank.

Now, how does all this relate to the range of an electric vehicle (electric bike, electric scooter)? The range is directly proportional to the amount of energy stored in the battery. The total energy capacity of a battery is defined in Watt-hours (Wh). Just like Amp-hours, a battery with 1 Wh capacity can provide 1 Watt of power for 1 hour.

You can easily calculate the Watt-hours (Wh) from the Voltage (V) and the Amp-hours (Ah):
Wh=V x Ah

And therefore, the range a battery can provide is directly linked to its Voltage and its Amp-hours. It is a common misconception that a battery’s capacity is measured with Ah. The capacity of a battery is actually measured by Wh which is equal to V x Ah. This means that a 48V battery with 8.8AH capacity (48×8.8 = 422Wh) is actually much larger and will provide longer autonomy than a 24V battery with 12AH (24×12 = 288Wh).

FuroSystems Battery Range Water Analogy Part 2

To sum up, whenever you want to compare batteries with regards to range, ensure you are not comparing Ah or V. You should be comparing Wh. And the Wh can easily be calculated from V x Ah.

FUZE – Live Tracking of 2nd Batch (Orders After 3rd of April) Now Available

Eliott Wertheimer May 9, 2019 No Comments Uncategorized

The manufacturing of our 1st batch (orders on or before the 3rd of April) is now complete and is getting ready to ship. Thanks to a high volume of orders and factory upgrades we were able to improve the specs of the FUZE further and free of charge, but at the expense of a few weeks delay. The manufacturing of the 2nd batch has now started and we are working our hardest to minimize the accumulated delay. Currently, delivery is planned for the end of June – beginning of July and our progress can be tracked through this page: 2nd Batch Live Tracker.Our top priority is the delivery of an outstanding product in terms of quality and performance to price ratio. We are choosing to spend more time on detail manufacturing at the expense of a slight delay. We fully understand if at any point you decide that the pre-order route is taking too long for you and will, therefore, accept and process immediately any cancellation and refund requests.

We thank you for your support and your trust in our mission! Please don’t hesitate to contact us here shall you have any questions.

FUZE First Batch Delivery Update

Eliott Wertheimer May 2, 2019 No Comments Uncategorized

We created the FUZE to bring you a truly high performance electric scooter at an affordable price. Towards this goal, once realizing economies of scale thanks to factory upgrades and a significant amount of orders, we decided to increase the power of the FUZE to 750W from its original 600W and its battery capacity to 422Wh from 315Wh without any increase in price. This translates to better acceleration, climbing, a higher top speed at full charge and 50% more range.

However, we underestimated some of the issues and delays we would encounter in ordering, manufacturing and retrofitting these new components to the FUZE. Similarly, this being our first batch and in order to ensure that all scooters are of impeccable quality we progressively upgraded their industrial finition as we built them.

Consequently, delivery of the first batch is currently delayed by about 3 weeks and we expect to deliver around the end of May / beginning of June. We would like to offer our most sincere apologies for this unforeseen delay and are truly working our hardest to reduce it as much as possible.

In a matter of transparency and optimal communication, we have created this live tracking page which will display the exact status of the FUZE batch until delivery.

In addition, in order to make sure that we reduce any inconvenience caused by this delay, the form at the end of the tracking page will allow you to notify us with new late delivery instructions. You are also free to require a cancellation and refund at any time (usually processed same day) shall your FUZE be now arriving too late.

What we can promise is that once we get it to you, you won’t regret the wait!

On behalf of the FuroSystems Team, we thank you for your patience and your trust in our mission.

Tag: FuroSystems