E-bikes and elevators

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whattteva@reddit

Lectric bikes are fine. The whole system (not just the battery) is certified to UL2849.

You may want to pay attention to weight limits though if you have a beast cargo bike like the XPedition and a few people.

But cheap batteries will catch fire whether on elevator or not.

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Inciteful_Analysis@reddit

No, no bikes are fine on an elevator. Because if it catches on fire, you have no chance of escape.

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whattteva@reddit

You have no chance of "escape" when there is an emergency on an aircraft other than relying on your pilot, does that mean no one should go on an aircraft anymore?

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Inciteful_Analysis@reddit

Aircraft are still safer than driving over a long distance. You cannot travel nearly 3000 miles in a single day via car.

Elevators have fairly simple alternatives.

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whattteva@reddit

Hauling a 50 lbs bike up to third floor dwelling everyday multiple times a day have simple alternatives? Do tell me.

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Inciteful_Analysis@reddit

It's called stairs. Workout. Get a lighter bike.

Carry the battery on the stairs and the bike (without battery) in the elevator.

Load the bike into an unoccupied elevator on the ground floor and take the stairs to retrieve it at the destination floor.

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whattteva@reddit

Uh ok.... That's something you should tell the OP then. Your answer here should really be on the top level!!!! We really need to showcase your genius to the world!!!!!!

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Inciteful_Analysis@reddit

You've offered no solutions other than to ignore the risk.

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whattteva@reddit

There is no need for a solution. Everything is a risk tradeoff. Nothing is ever 100% safe unless you completely avoid living.

You can go out tomorrow and get hit by a bus, doesn't mean you should stop going out.

The bike he's planning to get is certified not just with the batteries, but the whole electrical system is certified. The risk of it catching fires in elevators is likely far less than the risk of you dying in a car crash, yet we still get in our cars everyday.

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Inciteful_Analysis@reddit

If he wants to assume the risk on an elevator, that's his choice.

He doesn't have a right to bring an ebike onto an occupied elevator.

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whattteva@reddit

Lol I don't know what elevators you're riding, but the ones in my buildings are barely big enough just for the bike, let alone other people.

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auld-guy@reddit

I've owned 4 Lectric bikes for over 4 years. None of them have caught fire. I doubt the elevator causes battery fires.

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Inciteful_Analysis@reddit

The point isnt the low probability. It's that you are dead if it catches on fire in an elevator.

Your four batteries that haven't caught fire dont justify this risk.

Of course the elevator doesnt cause battery fires. Are you trying to be cute?

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whattteva@reddit

You're missing the point of the post. The OP is asking if it's safe on elevator explicitly because there's a video that went viral of a guy carrying a battery that caught fire as soon as he entered an elevator and people started spreading this bogus lie that an elevator is somehow hazardous to batteries and will make them spontaneously combust.

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Inciteful_Analysis@reddit

There's zero evidence that OP is stupid enough to think that elevators cause batteries to ignite.

His well-founded fear is that if one does ignite on an elevator the consequences are disastrous.

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Wants-NotNeeds@reddit

Additionally, UL certified or not, damaged and abused batteries are a fire hazard.

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whattteva@reddit

That has nothing to do with the OP concern about elevator.

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steellz@reddit

There's a lot of crazy comments, if you don't buy your ebike off Amazon you're fine... people are buying cheap ass e-bikes and then wondering why they're exploding. At least display some common sense here

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TurboBunny116@reddit

Why wouldn't it be safe?

What kind of question is this?

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Prize-Reflection-932@reddit (OP)

I saw a video of an e-bike catching on fire in an elevator and I’m now scared 😭

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Hungry_Orange666@reddit

Dude on that video was trying to go downstairs with battery already hot and smoking.

Third floor is so short ride that it's isn't issue, just don't use elevator if your battery starts acting during charging.

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JG-at-Prime@reddit

If you don’t abuse the battery you should have no problem.

I saw those videos too. In the one with the guy carrying the upright silver battery; he 100% knew that there was something wrong with that battery.

E-bike batteries don’t just randomly explode. That battery would have been hot a. f. It would have been hot enough that he would not have to able to hold it by the sides.

Even just waiting for the elevator he put it down really gingerly across the door so it was away from him.

I actually have a battery that is in the same “silverfish” style case that the guy in the video had. The thin aluminum sides are great at conducting heat. There’s no way he didn’t know that the battery was blazing hot.

The correct course of action would have been to stay outside with the battery in a fire resistant area until it cooled down and was no longer a threat.

By hustling that thing into the elevator while he knew that battery was super hot and likely experiencing thermal runaway he basically sealed his own fate.

***

As long as you are careful not to abuse the battery this is unlikely to happen to you.

Warm = okay.

Hot = not okay.

Making noise = not okay.

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TurboBunny116@reddit

So don't go in that elevator.

FFS

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Inciteful_Analysis@reddit

No, it is not. Because if it goes into thermal runaway, you and everyone on that elevator will almost certainly die. And if you don't, you face hospitalization and lifelong diseases.

If you choose to ignore this, have the decency to not bring your bike onto an elevator occupied by others and putting them at risk.

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auld-guy@reddit

Right! And what if the cable breaks?!? You're all dead as pancakes! Just stay out of elevators. Take the stairs! Wait...you could fall down the stairs...

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Inciteful_Analysis@reddit

Elevators dont drop to the ground floor if the cable brakes. They have catch mechanisms. They have a nearly flawless track record despite being ubiquitous.

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Inciteful_Analysis@reddit

If you want to use an elevator to carry your bike up, wait for an empty elevator. Load your bike, press your floor button, and exit the elevator before the door closes.

Promptly use the stairs to greet your bike at the destination floor. Almost no one above lobby level will be going up so its unlikely that the elevator will stop at another floor.

If you live on the 2nd floor you can do this going down as well. If you live above the 2nd floor, you run the risk of the elevator stopping at other floors on the way down.

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urlond@reddit

Depends on the place you're renting. Some buildings wont allow the Ebike battery to be stored inside the building because the risk of fire if it happens to go in flames. Ask who ever you're renting from if it's okay then go from there. I know people will bitch about Cellphones and such also can catch fire but most Cellphones batteries are not sketchy compared to some Ebike batteries.

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Inciteful_Analysis@reddit

Regardless of building policy, you should not take an ebike into an elevator.

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RedGobboRebel@reddit

I'd highly suggest something lighter so you have the option of the stairs incase the building won't allow it in the future. Aventon Soltera 3, Velotric Tempo or T1, Ride1Up Roaster. I've owned and worked on many Lectric XPs, and honestly they were solid bikes and well supported by the company. But they are monsters as far as weight and overall size. They are very difficult to move around or lift folded. And really take up more room then you think. They are not a good fit for someone on a 3rd floor.

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Laserdollarz@reddit

I've seen that one video from China