My Hub is starting to occasionally make a clunking noise, which got me to wondering: Is there any periodic maintenance that I should have been doing since I started using the Hub? Nothing much in the manual that came with it and there doesn’t seem to be an easy way to break into the innards of the Hub. Any suggestions?
Thank you,
John
Welcome back to Forums! I am Nelson from Zwift Support.
We recommend this article with simple maintenance routine for the Hub to keep it running smoothly and prevent issues like clunking noises: wipe down the Hub after each ride with a damp cloth, inspect your bike’s mounting and cassette weekly for wear or looseness, lubricate your drivetrain every 2–4 weeks, check for firmware updates monthly, and inspect for rust or damage on the Hub and flywheel every few months.
If your smart trainer is still under warranty and you need assistance regarding the noise, feel free to contact us so we can take a look.
They don’t publish any repair or maintenance information about the Hub. They do still offer a compatible freehub body in the Cog & Click upgrade kit, so if the freehub dies, you can replace that. That’s a possible cause of a clunking noise. Belts and bearings are industry standard parts so those are things you could get from an automotive or industrial supplier, but I think those are less likely causes of a clunking noise. In the US, the Hub has a 1 year warranty, but in the UK/EU it has a 2 year warranty, so if there’s any chance it’s under warranty I would get in touch with support ASAP.
Of course other mechanical problems with the bike or how it’s mounted on the trainer could cause noises such as a loose thru-axle, worn Cog, worn chain, etc. Those are things that a bike shop could diagnose if you take the bike and trainer in for evaluation.
Thank you for the ideas. My Hub is well out of warranty so I am on my own. I have had two bikes on the Hub, both with relatively fresh cassettes and chains and the noise occurred with both. I am still a QR guy, and that it as tight as I can get it. You make a good point about the freehub; I will check out the replacement on Zwift’s website. For laughs, I might pull the freehub off and re-grease it and see if that helps (the incredible number of watts I am averaging per ride might be taxing on the drivetrain 
).
I decided to get a Cog (& virtual shifting) and haven’t had that issue since switching. This leads me to conclude that the freehub was the issue. Fixing it for $50 plus getting virtual shifting wasn’t a bad deal.