Giving your bike its weekly clean and tidy.

A great thing to do on a sunny Sunday afternoon after a good bike ride, maybe beforehand, then you'll have something to do after that aswell.

This instructable will cover:

- Cleaning your bike up without using a hose or anything likely to force water in to bearings.
- Cleaning and degreasing the sprockets.
- A little bit of De rusting on the likes of quick releases and small chrome components.
- Cleaning rims
- Some basic checks you should do at least weekly.

Step 1: Stuff you'll need...

You will need:

- A few rags, here I used a few disposable wet wupes that had been left out and dried up...
- A can of WD40 or similar degreasing compound.
- A can of lubricating oil for bikes or similar, I like 3in1 it's great though perhaps a bit viscous.
- A wire brush
- An hour at most but most likely half an hour

Comments

[04mewm]

as a bike mechanic we NEVER use WD40. It is a water based substance that will cause your bike to rust. Instead use something oil based such as GT85 of which is a specialist bicycle oil containing PTFE - a really lubey substance. It will do the same job as WD40 but without making it rust, it will also lubricate the bike leaving no use for 3 in 1 oil. People bring there bike in to get repaired all to often with rusted chains and when I ask them what they have been using on there bike 9 times out of 10 it is WD40. Don't be one of them :)

[JamieGibson81]

WD-40 stands for water displacing spray. It is not water based, by definition. It is mainly used for cleaning or degreasing as the poster said but its intended design function is getting rid of water from componants. GT85 is fine but you can buy specialist chain lubricant from most decent hardware shops for that purpose. I personally wouldn't use anything other than chain grease on chains.
I would recommend that you use wd40 or similar to clean (and free off any siezed componants) and then immediatly use the correct type of lubricating grease for that componant.
If you're in the UK DON'T go to Halfords as they don't sell the correct products and the people in the store have VERY limited knowledge of bikes.

Happy cleaning!! :)

[struckbyanarrow]

WD40 is a degreaser, it is fine to use as long as you properly clean and re-grease whatever it if you used it on.

[Redgerr]

GT85.. marked it down -- good to know

Thanks!

[dguillinta]

I usually always give my bike a quick 15 minute "maintenance" after I ride... My neighborhodd always seems to have construction going on so dust always gets everywhere.

[hossweightlifter]

I ride out in the country because that's where i live so it's mostly gravel roads and i have not cleaned my bike for 2 years and its still working great!

[tmartinez7]

its better to use the WD40 AND a toothbrush!

[the stig06]

y would u bother cleaning a bike like that anyway??

[Redgerr]

Because a bike is a bike and if it gets you from pace A to place B it really dosnt matter.

[tdawber-mandeno]

i do not recomend sprays round disk brakes but is a great instructable

[_Scratch_]

Weekly? And I thought I took good care of my bike....

[sharlston]

Hey,great instructable,i recently refurbished my old mountain bike thats been left outside for a few years,i didnt use 3 in 1,i used silicone spray its great for derailers and cables just give a quick shot,its fairly water resistant,for the chain i used specific chain oil from halfords

[bad ass pope]

You may already know this, but you shouldn't really wash your hands with washing up liquid (unless it's the specifically hand-friendly kind!). It breaks down the cells in the surface of your skin or something like that; I can't remember the details, but I know it's not good...

[killerjackalope]

It's the best way to remove the oil and grease other than proper handwashes, after washing your hands with washing up liquid washing them again with normal soap seems to make a difference...

[bad ass pope]

Yeah, you may be correct there :-)

[sharlston]

(removed by author or community request)

[Sunbanks]

If the chain and stuff like that isn't clean would a bike make worrisome noises that sound like it's going to break whenever I ride it? Because my friend's bike does that nearly every time I ride it and it totally sounds like it'll break...

[killerjackalope]

Is it like a big creak?

stop creaky cranks If it's not coming from there it's probably the chain...

[Sunbanks]

Uh well I asked my friend how she would describe it and she said it was like an odd click. It reminds me of the noise that certian office chairs make when you lean back in them. Could all of the times I've crashed the bike be one of the causes of this noise?

[sharlston]

i had the same problems take the rear wheel to a bike shop becuse either the bearings are loose or ones missing

[Ardwiz]

I would recommend Liquid Wrench as a chain lubricant... its a dry lubricant that repels dust and grim that you might get while riding, and it lasts a really long time...

[sharlston]

3 in 1 oil works aswell and its cheap

[the stig06]

ah not this guy again...

[mkeefe]

Vegetable based lubricants like WD40 & 3-in-1 tend to collect grime. May I suggest cleaning with a degreaser like Simple Green and then lubricating separately with whatever you fancy (Park, Pedro's, etc.)

[killerjackalope]

WD40 just happens to be good at taking 3 in 1 off to clean, then I lubricate with it, it's a bit thick so the grime collects but it works well and is fairly resistant to water etc.

[wingbatwu]

A good way to clean up your greasy hands is to use liquid laundry detergent and a non-metallic scrub pad (preferably NOT a heavy-duty one). It's way cheaper per ounce than commercial hand degreasers...

[killerjackalope]

I thought I suggested the very thing in the 'ible... Yeah, though sometimes the commercial stuff is necessary, not in this situation but when you do a days work getting covered in oil grease dirt and brake dust... Used to be a tyre fitter... Fairy liquid was the equivalent of the moisturising handwash, the other stuff, I'm reasonably sure just removed a layer of skin from your hand...

[wingbatwu]

I've never heard the term "fairy liquid" used in Canada

[killerjackalope]

It's a big brand of washing up liquid here, it gets used generally but is also one of the best things for making bubbles with.... Most dishwashing liquids for hand washing are great for this purpose, or shower gel...

[Kiteman]

Oh, that's where I've been going wrong - the bike needs work every seven days.

_{Not every seven years...}

(My old Granny used to call me a mucky pup. And a dizzy cotterill (though she may have meant cockerel - her false teeth were very loose).)

[killerjackalope]

I hope you don't treat the children the same... They might get stuck to things...

[killerjackalope]

Wel You don't really need to do this every week for occasional usage, I just have a habit of tearing around the place getting dirty and breaking bits off the bike...

[LinuxH4x0r]

Good stuff. I prefer marvel's mystery oil, but wd-40 also works. I still haven't gotten my bike fixed. (Only been here for 3 weeks out of the entire summer) 5/5

[CameronSS]

Ahem.

[killerjackalope]

It's used for degreasing here, read and realize... Or was that only a specific go at what linux said...

[CameronSS]

I read it, I'm just making fun of Linux. Yes, Linux, I saw that you said marvels.

_{Yeesh...can't a guy be a pain in the butt around here without getting yelled at?}

[killerjackalope]

NO, You'll just have to live with being yelled at if you want the privilege of being a damn nuisance.

[LinuxH4x0r]

Thats why I said marvels

[killerjackalope]

The best stuff is penetrating tool oil, comes in a whit can with black writing, it actually fizzes like hell and goes nuts, leaves nothing but clean metal after being wiped off...

[Spokehedz]

PB Blaster is what you are thinking of. Better than WD40 IMO.