How to Maintain Your Treadmill

A key component to creating quality workouts long term is ensuring that general cleaning and maintenance is regularly performed. In just a few minutes you can have your treadmill tuned up and ready for more miles. This guide will show you how to ensure optimal working condition.

1. Tighten Your Bolts And Screws

Overtime, your treadmill bolts and screws may become loose from the impact vibrations of your treadmill workouts. To ensure safety and proper working condition of your treadmill, it is important to inspect the bolts and screws to see if they have become loose. Perform this check about once a month or sooner if you are a high mileage user. If a bolt or screw is loose, simply use the tools provided for the initial treadmill assembly.

2. Maintain Your Running Deck

After every workout, wipe down your running belt with a damp cloth to remove any dust or sweat that could have accumulated during your workout. This will prevent any sticky residue from meeting any of the treadmill’s movable parts.

Make sure that your belt is aligned properly on your treadmill. Unaligned belts can be subject to uneven wear and even tearing if they rub against the frame of your treadmill improperly. Treadmills can have unique alignment adjustment processes, so it’s best to refer to your user manual on how maintain proper alignment. However, many treadmills have adjustments that can easily be modified with an Allen wrench. You can make alignment adjustments by turning your Allen wrench clockwise and counterclockwise to get your desired adjustment.

3. Lubricate Your Treadmill

Properly lubricating the running deck is necessary to prevent treadmill failure. Treadmills are designed to support movable parts. But constant movement can cause unnecessary friction, which can damage parts. Most treadmills require to be lubricated every six months or 150 miles, whichever comes first.

You can lubricate your treadmill by raising the running belt on one side and wiping the exposed portion of the running deck with cloth and applied lubricant. Silicone-based sprays often work as the best lubricant for treadmill.

4. Rest Your Motor

If you are running so that belt in your wardrobe can fit, you may need to give the running belt on your treadmill a break. The treadmill belt is constantly in motion, and that can be a heavy mechanical task for any motor. We recommend powering your treadmill off for at least 10 minutes for every 2 hours of use to prolong the life of your motor.

5. Clean Your Area

One of the easiest maintenance tips is something that hardly involves your treadmill: cleaning the surrounding area. Watch for humidity, dust, or anything that can easily be lodged into the treadmill, especially underneath the equipment. Vacuum frequently around the treadmill to prevent dust accumulation. Keep the frame of the treadmill clean. You’ll want to use a cleaning solution that will not only reduce the spread of harmful bacteria, but also prevent the metal from becoming contaminated.