When buying a mobility scooter, it is important that you get to know all of the components and what they do. Not only will this allow you to make an informed decision about which scooter to buy, and ensure that your scooter purchase has the best quality components possible, but it also gives you greater knowledge and control over your mobility scooter if something goes wrong or needs replacing. There are a great many different scooter components, but here we focus on two of the most important: the batteries and the wheels.
Electric mobility scooters have a motor that is powered by a rechargeable battery, of which there are essentially 3 types: SLA batteries, gel batteries and AGM batteries. SLA stands for “sealed lead acid”, and refers to the acid inside the battery that conducts the electrical charge. Gel batteries are a type of SLA battery that have a gel-like chemical inside them rather than a liquid. Lastly, AGM batteries, where AGM stands for “absorbent glass mat”, are very high performance batteries that recharge very quickly. recargas telcel
The amount of energy that a device draws from a power source is referred to as the amperage, or amp. High amp devices will consume energy faster than a low amp device, so mobility scooters with a low amp will generally last longer without needing to be recharged that a high amp scooter. The rate at which your scooter uses amps per hour is called the Ah rating – for the longest battery life you should look for a scooter battery with a low Ah rating.
As well as different types of batteries, there are also different types of battery chargers. Offboard battery chargers, the most common type, require that the battery is removed from the mobility scooter and placed into the charger, which is plugged in at the mains. An onboard charger can charge the battery in situ. In addition to batteries and related accessories, you should also be aware of the different types of wheels and tires available for your mobility scooter. The type of wheels and tires that you need will depend on what you will use the scooter for; if you will be mostly making short journeys on road or pavement, then you will need less hard-wearing tires than if you use your scooter more often and on rougher terrain that might increase the wear and tear of your tires.
Mobility scooter wheels generally come in 3 types; aluminum, steel or “mag” (magnesium alloy). Of these, “Mag” wheels weigh much less that aluminum or steel wheels, which allows your scooter to reach higher speeds and uses your motor much more efficiently. That said, mag wheels do tend to be a little more expensive.
For general purpose use, pneumatic tires, which are inflatable much like the tires on a bicycle, give a smooth and comfortable ride, but are not suitable if you will be traveling on bumpy or uneven ground where there is a greater risk of puncture. In this case, you might want to consider solid tires, also called puncture-proof tires, which are made of a solid piece of polyurethane and cannot be punctured.
