cleaning & washing

Washing your bike is a necessary periodical task, particularly if you have ridden during inclement weather or have a whole lot of countryside built up on your bike.

The hard and fast rule of bike washing is go gentle.  DO NOT be tempted to leave your bike on the car rack and go to the car wash where the high pressure hose will definitely clean your bike but will also compromise every bearing surface on it!

Use warm soapy water, hand brushes, and a rinse bucket to do the job properly.  Use a chain cleaning device for the chain.  Use cleaning products designed specifically for bike cleaning.  We've got you covered on all these necessities and more with plenty of individual products and even complete cleaning kits.  They are linked below at the end of this article.

Option: It’s a matter of choice whether or not you want to remove the wheels. While you can certainly address the nooks and crannies of the cassette a bit better with them off, it’s not necessary. If you are going to pull them, use a chain keeper or lock out your derailleur to avoid the chain folding up on itself.

Here’s how it’s done:

Step One: Fix your bike in a workstand. If you don’t have a workstand you can lean the bike against a wall or hook the nose of the saddle over a taut section of rope. Get your hose on and nearby. You’re going to use it for all the rinsing, so a shut-off type head is advisable.

Step Two: Load up a bucket with warm sudsy water.

Step Three: Load up your chain cleaning tool with something like Simple Green or your favorite bike-specific degreaser. Clamp it on and start spinning those cranks backward to treat each and every link a few times to the scrubbing and bath. Pull off the tool, and let the fluid set a few minutes to really soak in and dissolve all the gunk. Then grab the hose and give it a good rinse.

Step Four: Grab one of your stiff bristle brushes and dunk it in the soapy water. Start scrubbing on the cassette and chainrings to get all the built up crud and old chain lube off. Lather it up good. Now rinse everything off with the fresh hose water.

Step Five: Dunk a soft cloth or a big sponge into the soapy water and start in on the frame and fork. Get the saddle if need be. Rinse.

Step Six: Now give that same soft sudsy treatment to the rims. If your tires are particularly scungy, use the brush on them first then move to the rims with the cloth or sponge. Rinse.

Step Seven: If you’ve got an air compressor, blow dry everything. If not, simply dry off the frame, fork, rims, large drivetrain bits, etc.

Step Eight: Lube that chain!