How To Adjust & Tighten a Treadmill Belt
Each bolt can be tightened by turning it right, one quarter turn at a time, using your wrench. Be sure to install both bolts.
You can stay in shape and lower your risk of injury when running indoors. Every gym has a variety of walking and running treadmills. Treadmill purchases for use at home have increased significantly over the last few years as well. Although it’s great for personal fitness, you must know how to properly maintain them.
What Is A Treadmill Belt & Why Is It Important?
You will have the most contact with the treadmill belt, which is also referred to as the track, the walking belt, or the running belt. Your feet will land on it as you run because it spans the top of the treadmill deck.
You have a running surface that moves with you thanks to the treadmill belt’s design, which allows it to glide over the rollers with ease. It will assist in absorbing the impact when you land, causing your joints to be significantly less affected than if you had simply hit the ground. By doing this, you can keep your body safe while using a treadmill to exercise.
How To Tighten Treadmill Belt
1. Disconnect The Treadmill
Before beginning, make certain the treadmill is completely unplugged and turned off. To ensure your safety, this is crucial.
2. Locate The Roller Bolts
Two roller bolts, one on the left and one on the right, will be located on the base of your treadmill.
3. Loosen The Bolts
By turning the bolts to the left a quarter turn at a time with your wrench, you can loosen them. To avoid damaging the belt, make sure to loosen both bolts sequentially.
4 Check The Belt
Turn both bolts on every quarter and then recheck the belt. Continue until you are able to lift the belt and fit your hand underneath.
How To Loosen A Treadmill Belt
It might be too loose if your treadmill starts to jolt or the belt starts to slip while you’re running. The belt is definitely too loose if you lift it up from the center and it rises more than 3–4 inches. After that, you must take these actions.
1. Disconnect The Treadmill
Recheck that everything is off and that all power supplies are unplugged.
2. Find The Roller Bolts
On the back of the treadmill, locate the two roller bolts.
3. Tighten The Treadmill Belt
Turn each bolt right one quarter turn at a time with your wrench to tighten it. Make sure to tighten both bolts (i.e., tighten the right bolt first, then the left bolt each time), and continue until you feel it become snug.
4. Check The Belt
The issue is resolved if the belt is currently snug enough to only lift 3–4 inches off the deck.
Reasons Why Your Treadmill Belt Might Be Slipping
Drive Belt May Be Loose
The front roller and motor are linked by a drive belt. The front roller may begin to randomly slow down and speed up if this becomes loose. Due to the treadmill belt slipping as a result, user safety may be compromised. To fix this problem, you must either tighten or change the drive belt.
Walking Belt May Be Too Loose
The most frequent cause of slipping is a walking belt that is too loose, which naturally occurs over time as the rubber stretches out. This will make the belt slip, and if it gets too loose, the treadmill might not function at all. Check to see if you can lift the walking belt higher than a few inches off the treadmill deck to determine if it is too loose. Before resuming use of the treadmill, you should tighten it if it is too loose.
The Belt Needs Lubrication
A lubricant has been applied to the underside of your treadmill belt to make it glide over the rollers. A silicone lubricant is typically used for this, which lasts for a while but eventually dries out. The belt becomes a safety hazard when the lubricant begins to dry out because it may jolt or slip while you’re using it.
You can fairly easily reapply the lubricant on your own by getting a fresh can of spray-on lubricant, taking off the treadmill belt, and applying it to the underside. To find out which lubricants are compatible with the material, make sure to check the manufacturer’s guide.
Faqs Of Treadmill Belt
Question: When you get new treadmills home or to the gym, do you need to adjust the treadmill walking belt?
Answer: Treadmill models and manufacturers obviously vary, but some may need adjusting when they’re first purchased. Others will function perfectly. The belt on your treadmill probably needs to be tightened if you are walking or running and it appears to stall, pause, or slip. If a belt fits a lighter user just fine but slips when used by a heavier user, that is another indication that it may need to be adjusted. It should be made more secure in that situation as well.
Question: What if tightening the belt on an old treadmill does not make it run better?
Answer: It’s possible that the belt on your older treadmill has stretched to its maximum length. If that’s the case, you might actually need to replace the treadmill’s walking belt and deck. Consult a certified fitness service technician in this kind of situation.
Question: A treadmill belt tension can be tightened too much.
Answer: Most definitely. When it comes time to adjusting the walking belt tension, it’s very important to not “over tighten” the tension bolts because it can cause damage to the walking belt. It’s advised to only turn the belt a quarter turn at a time. Before considering making another adjustment, test walk at about a 3.0 speed after each 1/4 turn adjustment.
Question: It seems pretty straight forward how to correct “pausing” or “slipping.” What if the treadmill belt is not centered and tightening the bolts doesn’t fix the problem?
Answer: Your belt may be out of alignment if it isn’t functioning properly even after you’ve adjusted the left and right tension bolts by 1/4 of a clockwise rotation.
The tension bolts are situated to the left and right of the rear roller, inset into the rear end caps. If the walking belt needs to be aligned from left to right, only the left side bolt should be adjusted.
The simple rule of thumb for aligning the belt is this: working from the user’s left side bolt, if you need to move the belt to the right, “tighten” the bolt (turn to the right in 1/4 turns only). The belt will be slightly moved to the right as a result. If you need to align the belt to the left, “loosen” the left side bolt (turn the bolt to the left in 1/4 turns only). The belt will be shifted left by doing this.
