How worried should I be about keeping an eMountainBike in my apartment?
Apologies in advance if this question irritates some people or if the topic has been beaten to death, but last week, I bought my first ever eMountainBike, an Amflow PL, and since then I’ve been going down a rabbit hole with battery fire risk and am considering returning it. I live in an apartment in New Jersey, and am feeling quite paranoid about the potential of the battery catching fire while storing or charging it indoors.
I understand that the probability is very low, especially with a UL certified (by TUV) bike like the Amflow. However, I think I would be less concerned if I wasn’t using it for mountain biking, which commonly involves crashes, rock strikes, etc. Best practices say that if you crash or drop the bike, you should have the battery inspected by a certified bike shop.
All of this makes me feel like I wouldn’t be able to sleep at night if I struck a rock near the battery or crashed the bike. Plus, unless the bike comes with a removable battery, getting it inspected every time the frame takes an impact seems like a huge burden (or risk if you choose to not have it inspected).
Am I overthinking all of this, or are my concerns somewhat legitimate considering the potential repercussions if the battery were to catch fire in my apartment, which would certainly cost me, but potentially also my neighbors?