October 2012
My wife is very ill in hospital and I have been riding in the mornings to take my mind off it before visiting her in the afternoons.
Wednesday 10 October 2012
Garmin Heart Rate Monitor
I have had my Garmin 800 for some time now - just about over 2 years I think. In that time I have had the first heart rate monitor swapped under warranty and now the replacement one has failed in the same way. Its not that it doesn't work, it's just that it doesn't work "properly". The failure seems to occur after about 8 months of use (or at least 8 months of my use which is 4-5 rides per week and 60-100 miles/week). Both straps have failed after this time.
This is the strap and transmitter:
There are 3 main failure modes:
1) it doesn't read anything (although the main unit acknowledges the presence of the HRM)
2) it will sort of read something but only very low values, suggesting that I am an elite athlete cycling 50 miles barely breaking 90bpm, or
3) it reads mega high (>200bpm) suggesting I should be dead!
Here is an example of a typical failure mode:
And here is a "proper" trace over a similar route (approx 29 miles at about 17.0-17.5mph average speed):
This is much more realistic at a typical average of about 150bpm with short excursions to 170bpm maximum).
Now I don't need a HRM and I don't use it for training or anything like that, but I like to look at the data and see how hard I was actually working vs. how hard I felt I was working. And also having got one I'd like it to be working.
So back to the first HRM. Having bought the Garmin 800 from good old Wiggle, I sent it in for a swap, and for whatever faults others think Wiggle have, their returns and warranty policy and support is second to none (PC World take note), and they replaced the HRM - both the strap and transmitter unit without quibble.
Off I rode for another 8 months or so and then the symptoms occur again. Its really irritating as the HRM is about £35-£45 a time. Its the strap that fails not the transmitter unit. I am wondering whether its possible to cobble up some sort of repair by replacing the contact patches with another conductive material and actually wire up a conductor to the poppers for the transmitter unit. That's a dark winter's evening project I think.
A search of the internet reveals that my issue is not uncommon. Some suggestions are to use the Polar WearLink+ strap but I have no other evidence to support this. There is seemingly a maintenance process to follow to wash the strap which I did use for the 2nd unit but did not add anything to the life of the strap
What is worse is that when it works it works really well and is very comfortable to wear. Even worse is that Garmin don't just sell that strap alone, you have to buy the strap and transmitter increasing the cost significantly.
Come on Garmin - either get the strap to last or sell it on its own
This is the strap and transmitter:
There are 3 main failure modes:
1) it doesn't read anything (although the main unit acknowledges the presence of the HRM)
2) it will sort of read something but only very low values, suggesting that I am an elite athlete cycling 50 miles barely breaking 90bpm, or
3) it reads mega high (>200bpm) suggesting I should be dead!
Here is an example of a typical failure mode:
And here is a "proper" trace over a similar route (approx 29 miles at about 17.0-17.5mph average speed):
This is much more realistic at a typical average of about 150bpm with short excursions to 170bpm maximum).
Now I don't need a HRM and I don't use it for training or anything like that, but I like to look at the data and see how hard I was actually working vs. how hard I felt I was working. And also having got one I'd like it to be working.
So back to the first HRM. Having bought the Garmin 800 from good old Wiggle, I sent it in for a swap, and for whatever faults others think Wiggle have, their returns and warranty policy and support is second to none (PC World take note), and they replaced the HRM - both the strap and transmitter unit without quibble.
Off I rode for another 8 months or so and then the symptoms occur again. Its really irritating as the HRM is about £35-£45 a time. Its the strap that fails not the transmitter unit. I am wondering whether its possible to cobble up some sort of repair by replacing the contact patches with another conductive material and actually wire up a conductor to the poppers for the transmitter unit. That's a dark winter's evening project I think.
A search of the internet reveals that my issue is not uncommon. Some suggestions are to use the Polar WearLink+ strap but I have no other evidence to support this. There is seemingly a maintenance process to follow to wash the strap which I did use for the 2nd unit but did not add anything to the life of the strap
What is worse is that when it works it works really well and is very comfortable to wear. Even worse is that Garmin don't just sell that strap alone, you have to buy the strap and transmitter increasing the cost significantly.
Come on Garmin - either get the strap to last or sell it on its own
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