Concept2 Indoor Rower Maintenance Tips: Cleaning the Flywheel

[@DeniseDunovant86]

Brand new rower was making a rattling noise (as if there was something loose in the flywheel) and a discussion thread landed me here. Worked like a charm! Used a vacuum and never saw anything come out, but the maddening rattle seems to be gone, thank goodness! Thank you so much for walking me through this process in such a straightforward, helpful manner.

[@crystalwest8900]

For some reason I thought this would be way more complicated and I've been avoiding it. I love this company for making everything so easy and having a video to idiot proof my process 😊

[@Ebenezer456]

Very useful, thanks! I could not believe how much dirt had accumulated in there. My drag on damper setting 10 went from 119 to 217!!

[@azophi]

Oh boy 😂

[@marco9und60]

Much simpler than expected, great Video!

[@zang9147]

Warning, failure to clean the flywheel will result in the Concept2 only lasting 40 years.

[@concept2usa]

good one!

[@theobamathellama]

Thank you this is so helpful i got a concept 2 for hire and can hear something rattling around. This video is exactly what i needed

[@concept2usa]

Glad it helped!

[@sotampacane]

My c2 hit 250 hours so it was time to clean if out. The belt was really clean so not much to do there, but the casing had more dust in it than I expected so glad I went through that blade by blade. One lesson I learned is not to turn the four screws supporting the flywheel to much. A couple of the bolts holding in the screws came loose and it gave me heartburn trying to get those back in. So next time I will remember just a few turns and not 4 of 5. Thanks for the video.

[@youtuberxdd]

Worked like a charm for my BikeErg! Thank you Concept 2!

[@knowyourhistory]

My C2 definitely had some dust in there after 4 years. Thanks for this video, it was way easier to do than i thought.

[@sotampacane]

Thank you so much for these videos. As I said when I was putting my new Model E together, the manuals the company sends out are useless in terms of being able to follow the specific steps (page 30 and 31 for those interested), so it's very reassuring to know this is a relatively simple process. I'm a long way from 250 hours of use, but in a year, I'll come back to this for sure. Well done. Suggestion to the company. Point people to these youtube videos.

[@concept2usa]

We're glad you found the video helpful!

[@jckclt]

great video, i had an issue getting everything back connected, this made it easy

[@jules-qu6xg]

Excellent video-thank you!

[@ianmurray2263]

Excellent video used this info to clean my flywheel. Cheers

[@damiendegrasse]

My gym has 5 ergs, one of them only had a drag factor of 105 with the dial set to 10! I wouldn't shut up until they bothered to service them.

[@monkeyb1820]

I just cleaned one at my gym. It was nasty. I need to do like 7 more, but it's a community center type gym. A commercial establishment may get all irate if someone started doing this. I just brought a shoprag and screwdriver with me...

[@johntait491]

Thank you for this helpful and instructive video. Cheers. 😉

[@YevheniiHloba]

thanks for this tip, saved me a lot of time)

[@HoldFastApolpgetics]

My Erg was 116 drag at 5… it’s now 76 at 7 😩… feels so heavy. Our family endured a move where I had to store is (covered) in a barn for 7 weeks. I have cleaned the vents and chain… hoping this deep clean will help. It has been a year (as I thought that was recommended for removing the metal piece). Thank you for this video!

[@BradCozine]

Did it correct the drag?

[@pelicanair2048]

Thank you Greg

[@Tsnor150]

Very helpful. TY!

[@c.trotter4416]

Good and informative

[@kumbackquatsta]

do you have videos for installing the rebuild kits you sell? you should

[@donw5641]

KISS! (keep is simple silly). Great video that I've saved for future use / cleaning.

[@Doe7251]

I took the hole 🕳 piece off then deep cleaned inside, then held it in place and screwed it back in then feed the metal back through

[@fisherguy]

Why is there no video on replacing the shock cord?

[@kirankarunan4083]

I know it's probably not necessary and overkill for the user. But does the factory have torque specs for the frame bolts on a RowErg? I could not find any online or in the manual. If someone already had torque wrenches, it would be easier to follow the torque specs and check them. Than to approximate it. Thank you.

[@archiecunningham1941]

I WISH I’d watched this before I removed the entire housing of all my rowers! So much quicker this method!! 😂🤦🏻

[@ufcgspfan1]

I just got mine 2 days ago and it has small black spots on the silver flywheel. Is that normal to see?

[@concept2usa]

Hello, if you send an email with a photo to [e-mail] our team can take a look and best assist.

[@LewisBeckman]

Would you say a clean outlet perf (as opposed to dirty) will produce improved scores on the PM?

[@concept2usa]

It will change the drag factor, allowing for more range in what you set the damper/drag at, but if the drag is 135 for instance, you will produce the same result with the same output. The Drag Factor is the best check you can do for consistency.

[@sotampacane]

@@concept2usa Very interesting. At the Y, I have to use the damper at 9 to get to a decent drag factor. On my new Model E it's between 5-6 to get to that 135-140 range.

[@georgeservian9383]

Is the process the same on older models? I have a C.

[@islanpeterson]

I realized just recently that the fan cage band has some points of rust. I think that the region I live, close to the coast, may explain this after only 6 months. Is there something I could do to prevent the rust to spread all over it? I just removed it and cleaned it with a dry rag, but I was wondering if it would be recommended to use some protection fluid or something.

[@adventuremanintheclouds8968]

A light coat of gun oil will protect it and is safe for the plastic.

[@MrAustinjeff]

What about oiling the chains? Recommended?, if so what type of oil?

[@Simon-xi8tb]

20w oil, synthetic or mineral. Or chain lube for motor bikes.

[@maubunky1]

I use a super clear and refined sewing machine oil and it seems to work. It's called Universal Sewing Machine Oil in Zoom Spout, Lily White Oil Stainless. It has no strong icky smell like 3 in 1 oil has. I learned to also use this oil on my leather brake pads on my indoor spin cycle. I think Concept just recommends putting some oil on a clean rag and pulling the chain through the oily spot on the rag throughout the whole length of the chain (as completely/far out of the housing as you can). I haven't seen them drip oil into the chain links directly, as tempting as that might be.

[@monkeyb1820]

I just cleaned one at my gym and it was way too nasty to clean like this. I took off the round cover and had to hand wipe and pinch a lot of dustbunnies. Tbh, as long as you're going through the hassle, I'm not sure why someone would not take off that cover.

[@moussaouiaabdi78]

Does rowing burn fat or build muscle?

[@monkeyb1820]

both

[@jimvick8397]

Yes

[@arthuratkinson5727]

What is the best way to clean the monorail

[@concept2usa]

Wipe the monorail with a cloth or non-abrasive scouring pad after use. You can use soap and water or any glass cleaner. Do not use mineral acids, bleach or coarse abrasives.

[@HEMI5PNTSVN]

You’re not going to get it clean that way! You need to take the front off to get all the dust buildup and a scribe to get the thick dust trapped behind the blades.

[@susigan]

how to take off rust?

[@gottmituns1938]

Rustoleum makes "Rust Dissolver" that should work well. It is readily available for $10-12 per quart. I haven't used that brand but it has phosphoric acid as the active ingredient, which I have used, and it works great. Other options are soaking it in vinegar or making a citric acid soak out of ordinary citric acid from the grocery store. The latter is very popular and effective. Just search 'citric acid rust' if interested.

[@gpk7683]

Now all I need is my machine n

[@fit-with-eaz2627]

541

[@Dongseoksohn]

I have a cat, and her hair is ruining my C2....

[@maubunky1]

Does the cat hair get into the flywheel housing? My daughter brought home 2 rescue cats recently and there's lots of hair on the carpet and in the wall ventilation duct grilles and louvers. One is short hair black and the other is a long hair black cat so I can't see where the hair is going into the rower yet.