What will the Rain do to my Electric Bike?

Most systems are pretty good about holding up in the rain. The hub motors that I know of are sealed and are not affected by just rain. I suppose if you let them set in a tub of water, it just might get wet inside.


I live in Southern California and not confronted with that problem as much as some, but I live near the ocean and the fog rolls in at night, if I leave my bike outside, it will get just as wet as if I left it out in the rain.

Most wire terminals have a plastic insulator and give a certain amount of protection. On some systems the controller might be affected by the moisture but you don't want to wrap them in plastic or in any way seal them from getting ventilation. They can get hot and need to ventilate.

If you have a thumb throttle, a plastic sandwich bag works to keep the water out.

An old trick for protecting connections under wet conditions is nail polish, clear or colored, what ever you prefer. Even if the terminals are enclosed in plastic, a certain amount of moisture can enter where the wire enters the terminal insulator. If this appears to have a large gap, silicone sealer, available in a tube at almost any hardware store is probably your best bet.

Moisture on any exposed connection can cause corrosion and corrosion causes resistance. The result of this is usually intermittent or permanent loss of power or signal and be difficult to locate.

For some people, there is a certain joy about riding in the rain

In any case, while riding a bike in the rain, electric or not, be especially careful. The roads are slippery and visibility is limited to you and everyone else.