In the previous installment of the ongoing desk treadmill experiment (linked below), I mentioned that the circumstances of the treadmill I use today was probably not what the sane person would have done.
Rather I honestly had no intention of starting this experiment this year. Instead this experiment was a result of being in the right place at the right time and keeping the spirit of tinkering alive.
Right Place
With my “Always Tinkering” mindset, I was browsing the marketplace one weekend and decided to browse the offerings for treadmills. More of a fluke than anything I found a listing for an Under Desk Treadmill at the price of $0 with a description that it turns on but displays an error.
Couple Indicators Here:
- The treadmill turns on and responds to power
- It displays an error message
I could work with that. So I told my wife about the potential - (She rolled her eyes and laughed at my wacky ideas but supports me) - and set off to pick it up.
Troubleshoot
My daughter and I picked up the unit, which was left out for us, and we hauled it home and took stock of what we had. It had all of the pieces which was useful. Remote control which is standard on desk treadmills - failsafe cutoff sensor and a power cord.
The unit did power on and when you pushed start would respond for a short period of time before cutting power to the motor. Error messages were helpful as I could just lookup the error codes.
Come to find out - there was a loose connector inside the main electronics that needed to be seated better:
After seating that and applying a new seal of hot glue, the motor was spinning and I could stand on it and walk.
Success!
Maintenance
As you would imagine - something that has been sitting unused for a period of time (and stored who-knows-where) would require some maintenance. Some silicone grease/oil (?) which is standard for belts was applied and the belt itself was tensioned to the manual specification.
Modifications
With all of that done, I had to address one other item - the audible indicator for operation. This beeper/buzzer made an ear-piercing beep on every operation. I had to find a way to turn it off as it both cause my dog some distress AND would not suffice for operation during meetings or other work.
Looking around the main board, I found it and the two solder points and took a gamble that removing the beeper would result in operational use without any issues.
Findings? success! Please note that this modification is not recommended for everyone as it will now not audibly indicate when it is beginning to start, pause, or stop. I take very explicit steps between use to turn the device off at the main power switch.
Recommendations
This unit is the Sunny Health and Fitness SF-T7945. It’s been functioning well for me and I don’t have a real comparison to make against others currently.
It fits nicely under my desk but not as small as some of the fold-up units available on the market today.
What is next?
Stay tuned for the next treadmill post - as the fun doesn’t stop here! When it comes to fitness data - I love understanding what is happening and aggregate data over time. Also I’ll be highlighting a critical missing capability of the treadmill market and what we can do about it.
See you next time!