Tacx Flow Calibration

bikerjoe said:

Just bought a tacx flow and tried it out last night, but I couldn't seem to get the calibration working. Just wanted to check if it was me or the unit.

Anybody got the flow and had problems? I had seen from the setup instructrions, that (after setting in weight etc), the speed should appear in the calibration when pedaling, but nothing appears in there?

Everything else works when using the turbo, speed, cadence, power etc, but just cant seem to calibrate it? Any ideas?

The Flow manual says:

[INDENT]Setting calibration value of brake unit
Differences in brake operation may occur under the following
circumstances: Changing the roller pressure against the tyre,
Changing the magnetic forces and differences in mains voltage.
The Flow's standard brake unit calibration is set at 0. Although not
essential, this setting can be changed to give a more personalised
power reading. To optimise the Flow's calibration we recommend
cycling for at least three minutes to enable the brake unit to warm
up.
After setting the trip use CALIB will appear in the display.
Calibration will start by pressing the key. SPEED will appear at
the top and at the bottom you will see three lines. Start cycling
until STOP appears in the display, at which point your speed will
have exceeded 30 Km/h. The Flow will measure the deceleration
of the rear wheel at the moment at which you stop. CALIB will
appear once again in the display and at the bottom you will see
the measured calibration value (fig.13). A positive number means
that the brake unit brakes faster than the standard set value.
A negative number means that the wheel carries on for longer
and braking is weaker. On completion, use the MODE button
to return to the start-up window.
If the calibration has gone wrong because, for example, you
started to cycle whilst measuring was taking place, ERROR will
appear in the display. By pressing the key calibration is started
again and the value is set at 0 again by using the key.[/INDENT]

Previously, you need to have entered the setup by:

[INDENT]To get to the settings window press the SET and MODE keys
simultaneously until the countdown counter in the display reaches
0.[/INDENT]

Hope this helps
C

Used my Flow for the first time yesterday.

Followed the instructions and had no problem.
The question about calibration I have is, do you always try to calibrate to zero or does it not matter whether it's -2 or +4 as the machine compensates?

What I get when I go into the calibration part is no speed coming up?

bikerjoe said:

What I get when I go into the calibration part is no speed coming up?

That's correct, keep spinning faster, actually over 30 km/h, then stop when the readout says stop.
So the trick is spin like crazy watching the screen.
Hope this helps.

DesFlurane said:

Used my Flow for the first time yesterday.

Followed the instructions and had no problem.
The question about calibration I have is, do you always try to calibrate to zero or does it not matter whether it's -2 or +4 as the machine compensates?

The machine will adapt its power calculation algorythm based on this calibration value. A positive value will raise the power readout values. Negative calibration will lower it.

Problem is that 90% of the time, the Flow overestimates power being generated anyway. And in the same time, power calibration tests often end up being positive (especially if done within the first 20min of the workout). Therefore, conducting a calibration test will often worsen Flow's power calculation even more.

That is why I always leave it to Zero (by pressing the down arrow instead of the up arrow).