Bestway to clean my bike???

[sacker]

Me, I hate having to do this job. I use the hose or water blaster (not on full, just a quietish stream) to clean it quick. But, what is the best and quick way?

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

DO NOT USE WATER!!! Furniture polish, ... Seriously.

 

[marathon marke]

RDV4ROUBAIX, I've heard of this before, but why does furniture polish work so well? I usually just use a couple of rags...one damp and one dry.
What about waxing the frame?

 

[Greyhound Velo]

For someone who is named after Mr. Paris Roubaix you have a fairly vehemently negative reaction to the idea of getting water on your bike .

For dusting if off, there are several products on the market that will clean and polish your bike. If it's really dirty, Dawn dish washing soap and a bucket of warm water work perfectly well, just be sure you dry it and lube your chain when you're done. Trust me, there are hundreds of pro bikes that are washed this way daily, your bike will be fine if you clean it with water once a week.

 

[richwagmn]

DO NOT USE WATER!!! Furniture polish, ... Seriously.

Hmmm, interesting. Wouldn't it be worth it to know what the bike frame is made of?

For my CF bike, I use some soapy water (car wash soap) and a soft car wash mit. I lightly drizzle water from the hose, then towel dry and let it sit in the sun.

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

Frame composition has nothing to do with it, it's all about the bearings, and "sealed" means nothing, they can still get water contamination. If you have to use water just be careful around bearinged areas like the hubs, BB, and head set. If you want to cut the lifespan of sealed bearings in half, use a pressure washer. I never use water on my bikes, just Pledge and a rag.

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

RDV4ROUBAIX, I've heard of this before, but why does furniture polish work so well? I usually just use a couple of rags...one damp and one dry.
What about waxing the frame?

Furniture polish is waxy and will not contaminate sealed bearings, water will.

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

For someone who is named after Mr. Paris Roubaix you have a fairly vehemently negative reaction to the idea of getting water on your bike .

I put my road bike through more hell than most, and I never use water to clean it. Pros use water because its easy, and can replace parts when the bearings get water contamination. For consumers it's a different story.

 

[richwagmn]

Frame composition has nothing to do with it, it's all about the bearings, and "sealed" means nothing, they can still get water contamination. If you have to use water just be careful around bearinged areas like the hubs, BB, and head set. If you want to cut the lifespan of sealed bearings in half, use a pressure washer. I never use water on my bikes, just Pledge and a rag.

Good points. I never do anything other than drizzle some water over it to get the soap off. But maybe I rethink using water at all.

 

[Sage48]

I use a terry rag stretched across the edge of a tie plate, a flat metal square about the size of a credit card that sells for a few cents at any home improvement store. I spray the cassette with degreaser and then push the plate with the cloth into the gap between the cogs.

 

[brianf7]

Bucket of hot water andy andy and kero soft scrubing brush.
and elbow greace.

You can if you hate cleaning your bike that much . take it to a car wash spray it with tyre and engin cleaner and use a high pressure hose.
It will come up gleaming.

It wont harm the bike that much and in fact it will cause less damage than sand and grit on the bike,

Spray with silicone oil.

 

[lostintime]

Cleaning the bike?

Spot clean as needed. I've had a bottle of Bike Lust for years ..... that tells you how much I use it. It's more or less a furniture polish. Otherwise I wipe the bike with a moist cloth. For Al rimmed wheels, I use come Clean Streak on a rag and wipe. Window cleaner also works well.

My 2 cents.

 

[tubularglue]

DO NOT USE WATER!!! Furniture polish, ... Seriously.

me too.


Armor All, Pledge

 

[James Huang]

Here's how the pros do it but it's definitely not recommended to follow this procedure on a regular basis unless you're super careful about regular maintenance (note the details in the article about bearing replacement):

http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/***-and-span-how-the-mechanics-keep-tour-team-bikes-clean

I use a modified procedure myself where there is basically no water pressure involved and so far things have been ok. But in general, I still hold the opinion (stemming from 14 years as a shop mechanic) that water of any sort on your bike is a bad thing. As already mentioned, virtually nothing is sealed as well as it's made out to be and more often than not, water will simply break up the big pieces of mud and dirt on your bike into much smaller bits and then carry them into the smaller crevices that it normally can't get into.

 

[krebs303]

Frame composition has nothing to do with it, it's all about the bearings, and "sealed" means nothing, they can still get water contamination. If you have to use water just be careful around bearinged areas like the hubs, BB, and head set. If you want to cut the lifespan of sealed bearings in half, use a pressure washer. I never use water on my bikes, just Pledge and a rag.

+1 but I use Lemon Pledge so it smells nice

 

[richwagmn]

Here's how the pros do it but it's definitely not recommended to follow this procedure on a regular basis unless you're super careful about regular maintenance (note the details in the article about bearing replacement):

http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/***-and-span-how-the-mechanics-keep-tour-team-bikes-clean

I use a modified procedure myself where there is basically no water pressure involved and so far things have been ok. But in general, I still hold the opinion (stemming from 14 years as a shop mechanic) that water of any sort on your bike is a bad thing. As already mentioned, virtually nothing is sealed as well as it's made out to be and more often than not, water will simply break up the big pieces of mud and dirt on your bike into much smaller bits and then carry them into the smaller crevices that it normally can't get into.

Ok, so what does everyone use to clean the drive line? I've been using http://www.finishlineusa.com/products/degreaser.htm from finish line. I probably clean the drive line every 2 -3 weeks. In between, I'll simply wipe the chain down and reapply lube.

 

[tubularglue]

drivetrain


white lightning or ice wax, and eventually pick the goo from pulleys.

gob it on, wipe off, re apply. no degreaser.

i enjoy the wax on, wax off

 

[redtreviso]

Brain Surgery

WD40 liberally the chain and sprockets. Clean chain with wd40 soaked rag. Bucket of hot water with dish soap and a sponge.. Can use very little water if you think your bearings are in a vacuum and are ready to force you to be stupid. Rinse lightly avoiding those areas of before mentioned stupid inducing vacuum. WD40 all moving parts and threaded rustable things. Blow water off with an air hose.Use liquid chain lube not MTB stuff from the Trek store. Tri flow is good.
Soak a rag in rubbing alcohol..99c a bottle.. Clean tires and braking surfaces.
All done ..12 minutes.

PS dust you can't see scratches when you rub it. The wipe it down crowd probably waxes a car without washing it first. or never has waxed a car.
Don't use water on treks or specializeded or they might asplode.

 

[Colm.Murphy]

I use bucket with simple green for bike and a diesel fuel soaked rag for driveline. Brake cleaner also works well on badly greasy/dirty surfaces.

I used the same triflow bottle for 10 years, though when it ran out after year 1, I replaced with Castrol synthetic motor oil, 5w/20, for chain. Works excellent, cheap and makes cleaning a breeze. No gunk, just apply lightly after the diesel fuel cleaning.

 

[ElChingon]

Not sure what kind of water some of you use but I never have water washing issues on my bikes, have used water all the time well with soap. Its called drying, dry it and no rust or bearing contamination, also a small layer of grease over the bearing and locations where water and dirt/grime can enter will catch the nasties. Then again I have an air compressor much like the pro mech's do on the team buses and blow the water out of those crevasses (low pressure not super high) which aids the drying, but as long as you don't soak your bike in water or blast it with a high pressure hose you'll do fine.

Now I have to wonder how much pledge you guys are using to wash your cars

 

[marathon marke]

I tried the Pledge today (lemon-scented, of course ) after a 75-mile group ride. I was pretty impressed. I think I'll be using this a lot from now on.

 

[TigerFish]

I use a terry rag stretched across the edge of a tie plate, a flat metal square about the size of a credit card that sells for a few cents at any home improvement store. I spray the cassette with degreaser and then push the plate with the cloth into the gap between the cogs.

I just strip off a long thin piece of old rag like a tee shirt. I oil the strip then run it in between the cogs like polishing the front of a shoe with a shoe rag. If the rag is just wide enough you can actually use it to rotate the cog while you buff out the grit. I also use cheap $0.50/ea paint brushes with a little oil for hard to reach areas. Works good but the brushes get filthy. A little clean oil and my air compressor can clean the brushes perfectly. I throw the rags out after I use them. Works good.

I have been wondering how the long bristled brushes I see in bike shops would work on the cogs with a little light oil on the end. The brushes I am talking about look like really long make-up brushes with much more stout bristles.

 

[Hmmmmm]

I've always used water. These days I spray with Simple Green and then dump water over the bike from plastic Folgers coffee cans as I live in an apartment and have no access to a hose. I would normally lightly mist with my hose or take off the nozzle. Let it dry or wipe dry and lube with White Lightning. Previously used Slippery Spitt but it attracts too much crap compared to WL. I have a titanium frame so I wipe it with a soft dry cloth, sometimes with Pledge. Never had a problem with water - a little rain never kept me from going out for a spin anyways....

 

[richwagmn]

I've always used water. These days I spray with Simple Green and then dump water over the bike from plastic Folgers coffee cans as I live in an apartment and have no access to a hose. I would normally lightly mist with my hose or take off the nozzle. Let it dry or wipe dry and lube with White Lightning. Previously used Slippery Spitt but it attracts too much crap compared to WL. I have a titanium frame so I wipe it with a soft dry cloth, sometimes with Pledge. Never had a problem with water - a little rain never kept me from going out for a spin anyways....

Do you need to strip your chain to use white lightning?

 

[Black Dog]

I am surprised that folks are still using White Lightening when Pro Gold is so much better and less dirty.