How to store an electric scooter in Winter in 5 simple steps

Winter is here again with us and as electric scooter owners, it’s absolutely our worst season.

No road trips, risks of damaging the electrical components, and so forth. 

Nonetheless, there is a Frequently Asked Question I keep receiving every other time, “How to store a scooter for winter?

†In today’s piece of write-up, we are going to look at the ideal electric scooter winter storage tips.

Let’s dig deeper.

1) Clean your electric scooter

It’s common sense that dirt, dust, and mud should be kept at bay when storing an electric scooter at any given time.

These have the capability of causing corroded components in the e-scooter and it’s the last wish to ride a rusty gadget after the end of the winter season. 

After cleaning your electric scooter, there are various merits you will incur such as ascertaining whether there are any damaged parts and ensuring its longevity. 

To clean an e-scooter: 

• Have a biodegradable soap for washing vehicles, a waterproof material, sponge, two towels, scooter wax, and a soft brush
• Ensure that you cover its charging port and with the help of a waterproof material, wrap it around the battery compartment. 
• Using some water, gently rinse off the dirt, dust, and mud from the entire e-scooter. Also, focus more on the tires and motor as it’s easy for debris and dirt to stick on the two.
• Take the biodegradable vehicle soap and pour some on the sponge and scrub to remove any stubborn debris after rinsing them off
• If there is still debris after scrubbing using the soap, use a soft brush such as an old toothbrush to reach where the sponge didn’t manage.
• Do some thorough rinsing to remove the soap
• Thoroughly dry the e-scooter with the help of the cleaning towels
• After you are assured that the e-scooter is completely dry, it’s time to apply the scooter wax now. This leaves your gadget not only polished but also saves its color for the entire time it’s stored. 

2) Care for the battery

Do you remember that we have told you above to ensure the battery compartment is wrapped using a waterproof material? Well, this tells you that the battery needs to be protected at all costs. 

Necessarily, the electric scooter battery is the component at the highest risk of getting spoiled should ice and snow interfere with it. 

Before you store your electric scooter for the winter, you will need to charge the battery anywhere between 50 to 75%.

More charge than this will gradually decrease its life span and when the charge is little or even 0%, the damage is ideally irreversible (plating). 

An important point to note, though, before you charge the battery is to ensure the scooter isn’t too cold or hot.

You should only and always charge your scooter battery when you are assured that the temperatures therein are room temperatures. 

A great way to ensure that you satisfy the room temperature rule is to ensure that the temperature in the room where you are charging your gadget is anywhere between 32 to 113℉ (5 to 45℃).

3) Remove the battery

Now that you have charged the battery to the optimal and in the right temperatures, there is no point in leaving it in your e-scooter.

It’s the high time you remove it from the scooter and store it independently. 

A crucial reason why you need to take out the battery is the fact that you will see if it’s in mint condition and possibly tighten any loose wires which can only be seen after taking off the battery.

This is all in the quest to have a comfy ride when the winter storm is over. 

After removing the battery, it’s the high time you understood how you can store it.

You can buy waterproof and fireproof bags tailored explicitly for storing electrical components such as a battery. 

A fireproof bag will reduce the chances of having fire incidents in your home while the waterproof bag will ensure that water, melted ice or snow won’t penetrate and damage the battery.

A good way to use the two is by first wrapping the battery in the fireproof bag then using the waterproof bag as the outer cover. 

Other than prevention against fire and moisture, these bags also help to prevent dirt from getting into the Li battery and possibly lead to the improper functioning of the battery after the winter. 

4) Stockpile your scooter now

After you tick the above boxes, it’s time to look for where exactly you can keep your electric scooter. 

Now, take your completely clean and dry electric scooter.

If you have the box in which the manufacturer delivered the gadget, put it back into the box. 

If you don’t have those boxes, don’t worry.

With or without the boxes, then it’s a good idea to have an electric scooter storage rack.

An electric scooter storage rack is a helpful accessory that ensures your ride is free from dirt, dust, and moisture. 

Even if you have your boxes, putting it in a ready-made bag is vital.

Nonetheless, if you are creative enough, you can create a DIY one and save your gadget from getting spoiled. 

After keeping the scooter in the bag, it’s now time for deciding where exactly you will store it.

Without thinking any further, these areas are out: 

• Moisture prone basements 
• Anywhere ice and snow can reach
• Heatless shed
• Near a source of heat. 

So, how do you go about storing your electric scooter and battery for winter? Take the bags with the e-scooter and battery and opt to keep it in a room that is completely dry, tidy, and with temperatures being higher than 10℃.

Even if it means storing your gadget in your bedroom, then be it!

If the bedroom is out of bounds for your beauty, just like some other electric scooter owners, you can hang your e-scooter on the wall with the help of a wall holder.

Besides, if you have an attic that is warm and moisture-free, a heated workshop, or even a warm shed, then your e-scooter should be safe right there.  

5) Monitor the battery after some time

After a month, you will need to take the battery back into the e-scooter and re-charge it to between 50 and 75%.

The reason behind this is the fact that after some time, the charge can go slightly lower than the recommended charge and if it stays without the optimal charge then damaging it is inevitable. 

Besides, as you plug in the battery, you can know if there are any problems with any component of the e-scooter and if so, you can order it in advance and fix the mishap as you await for the winter to subside. 

After charging the battery to the recommended percentage, you will need to pack it once more and wait the following month to charge it to the right percentage.

Save the battery in winter and it will make you proud after winter. 

What happens after winter?

Oh boy! The winter is imaginably over and it’s time to hit the road once more.

What you need to do is that you will need to inspect the scooter and ensure that there is no corrosion whatsoever has happened or even rusting. 

Since the chances are high that you won’t find such (assuming you followed our tips), it’s time to take the battery back and charge it to 100%.

Now switch on the e-scooter and ensure that you tighten any wires that could have become loose. 

After that, inflate the tires as some pressure could have escaped owing to lots of time without being inflated. 

In summary: How to store a scooter for winter

Knowing how to store an electric scooter for winter is crucial.

The battery is the most important component that can get damaged by the winter and as such, it deserves the most love. 

You will need to look for a place that is completely dry and warm.

Additionally, you will need to ensure that the scooter and the battery are in stellar bags to prevent any unanticipated damage. 

If you believe that you can’t help yourself from riding an electric scooter in winter, we share our tips with you in this blog post.