How to Center a Treadmill Walking Belt that is Off Center 

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Thank you very much for your positive comment!

Thank you very much for your positive comment!

Thank you very much for your positive comments! I will keep your suggestions in mind in our new videos.

Thank you very much for your positive comments!

Thank you very much for your positive comment!

Thank you very much for your positive comment!

Thank you very much for your positive comment!

Happy to help!

Came back to this video after 2 years and it’s helped again haha 😂, thank you 😊

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Thank you!

We're glad it helped. This video has been around for years and it has helped so many people.

I am not sure exactly what you mean by "not working properly" but I will assume you are having issues with the belt slipping or stopping on footfall. I always check the drive belt first with this symptom, so make sure that is not the issue first (with the motor hood off, momentarily force the belt to stop while watching the front roller. If the roller stops when the belt stops, the drive belt is loose. This can also happen due to over-lubrication or because the belt being is a bit loose for the friction involved after lubrication. If you are confident you didn't saturate the deck and belt, try tightening the belt by a very small amount. I wouldn't recommend doing that too much as overtightening the belt is detrimental to belt life.

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Some treadmills have a bolt through the axle of the front roller similar to the bolt in the rear roller. You can use that bolt to adjust the rollers' alignment to the frame. This may be your issue. This also happens due to a belt being bonded together at the seam at an angle. You can see that by watching the belt while its moving and the edge will move abruptly closer or farther from the side edge as the seam moves around the front roller.

@@sportsmith I didn't like the lubrication method of squirting lube through a long tube under the belt and then running the belt to "spread it around evenly". So, I took my new treadmill apart. Took the front/motor cover and rear covers off. Once I loosened the tension bolts on the rear roller, then I could slide the belt to the center at the front and rear. Since I lost count of the turns to loosen the belt, I loosened them fully and then could squirt some silicone fluid under the belt and use a sponge on a stick tool to spread it around evenly. Now, I've got to tighten the belt. I'll start at five turns and work my way up until there's no slippage.

Glad it helped!

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I have seen this happen from a machine being off level. Make sure the machine is level and does not shift of flex during use. Also, Check the deck support/bushing system. You could have one corner damaged that is causing extra flex on one side of the deck during the weight shift of normal use.

To increase tension and not affect the alignment tighten the rear roller bolts exactly the same amount to move the rear roller farther from the deck. Make small adjustments and check again.

prob got dust

If you are referring to one of the rear roller screws, you should be able to use something to pry back on the roller on the side with the bolt missing just enough to loosen the opposite screw without bending or damaging it so that it is just through the roller axle. Then you can use the same tool to pry back on the roller enough to get the bolt started again. (Make sure to thread it through the axle before letting go of the pry tool). At that point, you can tension the belt again slowly, using small equal turns on each side. Keep in mind as the belt gets tighter it will begin to get off-center if it is not adjusted equally so be ready to start the sequence in the video again.

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It's an Allen wrench (also known as a hex key). www.google.com/m?q=Allen+wrench

If you are worried about over-tensioning the belt, loosen the side it is traveling away from. That should help the belt settle in place just as well as if you tighten the side it is traveling toward. Also, something else to keep in mind with this type of symptom is that an off-level machine can cause this, as well as, broken deck bushings and or hardware so inspect those closely. I have even ran into a broken frame weld that cause the machine to flex a bit, so have someone watch the frame while it is being used for movement (from ground level).

@@sportsmith thank you! I'm going to check it out this weekend. I can always get the belt centered, then I tighten it down and it's good for a few minutes, then it starts sliding to the right until it's rubbing. Something in there is probably broken, possibly the bushings. First I'll make sure it's level, it is an old house with some uneven floors, plus it's on shag carpeting, and that might make it sit weird

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Mine has 2 on the back (rear) side, and one on the front. You have to remove the lid that's on top of the motor unit to access that. Maybe on your treadmill it's on the front. Or it's in the back but underneath. Have seen that too. Then you have to put the entire walking part up like when you're putting it away. Good luck.

I do not have experience with the underdesk treadmills. However, Strictly from experience with this symptom on other treadmills, I can say this is caused by only a few things. The first is overtension. So make sure you have not overtightened the belt first. Generally, you can see this by the edges of the belt curling up. You can also test by placing your hand between the belt and deck half-way between the front and rear roller. If the belt is too tight you will not be able to reach the center of the belt. The other possibilities are: The treadmill is not level, so when you step on it, the machine moves or "flexes" and changes the roller to frame alignment. Or, the rollers mounts/hardware are damaged and are moving in the frame when the weight of the user is added. Or, the deck and or a deck bushing is damaged.

Thanks for your question! You will need to replace the bolt by first removing tension from the left end of the roller. Since the head is broken you should then be able to slide the right side bolt through the bracket and remove the rear roller from the treadmill. Then you can use locking pliers to spin the bolt out and replace it.

me also

The factory bolts require a M8 Allen/Hex wrench.

You loosen it on that side.

Sometimes this can happen if you have something rubbing the belt, or if there is too much tension on the belt. So look closely for anything that may be interfering with the belt's tracking. If that does not help, take some tension off both sides and start again. Let the machine run very slowly and make small adjustments.

Over-tightening will quickly destroy a belt just as quickly as bad alignment. To prevent further damage start the process from the beginning. Loosen both bolts so the belt is very loose. Center and straighten the belt by hand. Now remove one bolt from either end of the roller completely and re-install... but don't forget to count the turns on re-installation. Stop at a low number on re-installation such as 5 or ten turns and write that number down. Repeat that process on the bolt at the opposite end of the roller stopping at the same number of turns. Now you can tighten the belt with equal turns on each bolt with the treadmill slowly moving. Stop at a low number again. Making sure to use the same amount of turns on each side of roller and repeat this step, until the belt starts moving. Once it is moving you can again start making minor adjustments to one bolt at a time to make the belt run straight. Keep in mind when you tighten a rear roller bolt it will drive the belt away from the edge of the roller. Loosening will bring the belt toward the edge of the side you are adjusting. Use a slow speed so if the belt alignment is off you can stop it before damaging the belt. Once the belt is tracking straight do a tension test by walking on the belt. If it slips make equal turns to the bolts on both sides of the roller with the machine off and test again. These steps should help you slowly tension the belt to the point it no longer slips during use.

@@sportsmith Thanks man I really appreciate it. I'll let you know if it works.

@@foopock You are very welcome.

@@sportsmith It's fixed thank you

@@sportsmith Seriously man. Thank you

Thanks for your question. There are only two causes for the belt to be off-center. The most common is during belt installation when the rollers are not parallel to each other. Sometimes it can happen after the belt is installed and has been running straight. This happens if the machine is not sitting on a flat surface or the levelers are not all touching the floor. Either can allow the frame to twist during use. That allows the rollers to move during use causing the belt to move according to the position of the roller.

@@sportsmith can the belt miscenter misalign with regular use

Hello I know it’s been 10mos but I have same problem with yours. Is it working fine now?

Literally, the best way to design a treadmill in order to allow for future adjustability (because sooner or later, it's going to need to be adjusted). This is a simple and straightforward solution. If you know of a better one, I'd love to hear it...for my next treadmill design!

​@@Boothby171 You think the best design in something would have people literally flocking to videos on how to use it on RU-vid? How pathetic of you. How about a design that self regulates, or at least tells you which way you need to have it adjusted so you don't fuck around an infinite amount of times until you finally have it right? Oh but I forget, I'd need to actually give you the solution for you to agree. The same way I need to be a politician to vote for one. Such a narrow minded view it's disgusting.

​@@MrBlueSleeves, who the hell fucked you up the ass and died there? I give your response 1 star (zero stars if I could). What a jackass.