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Bicycling 101 - A Clean Bike is a Happy Bike
Some time ago, when I was just starting to be ‘serious’ about bicycling, I went out on a first date with a fellow triathlete. Of course it was a biking date. He looked at my bike and said, “EEEW, your bike is filthy!” He refused to start the ride until he had cleaned my chain. Luckily, the dirty bike was not a fatal flaw on my part and these days I clean my own bike and do it a little bit more often.
Keeping your bike clean is not just a matter of aesthetics – especially when we’re talking about the drive train (chain, front chainrings, and cogs on the back wheel). Your bike will run better and drive train parts will last longer if they’re kept clean. This is a basic cleaning routine that does not involve taking your chain off, or taking apart your cassette or chain ring. You do need to know how to remove your back wheel.
What will you need?
- Rags (Tear up an old T-shirt. Tear some of it into thin strips of cloth)
- An old toothbrush that you are not planning on brushing your teeth with anymore
- “Degreaser” cleaner
- Mixture of dishwashing liquid and water in a spray bottle
- Chain lubricant
- Bike work stand (this is not a must, but it is ever so helpful if you’re going to do any work at all on your bike – really worth the investment)
- Put your bike in the work stand. If you don’t have a work stand, it will probably work best to position the bike upside down in such a way that it will be stable and not tip over. You might want to use some of the rags to protect your saddle, bike computer & other areas on top of the bike that you don’t want to get scratched. Remove your seat bag, frame pump, water bottles, and any other accessories.
- Take your back wheel off of your bike. Wet one of the thin strips of cloth with degreaser cleaner. Use the strip to “floss” between the cogs on your back wheel and get out all of the gunk and grease.
- Next go after the pulley wheels (the circular thingies that feed your chain around below the derailleur). These are especially prone to build up lots of dirt and grease. Rotate them around to be sure you get the whole thing clean.
- Now the chain. Work on one small section at a time. Spray or dribble degreaser on the chain, wipe with a rag, and use the toothbrush to dislodge any crud that might be between the links. Repeat until that section is clean, then use the crank arm to gently rotate the chain until the next dirty section appears.
- The front chainring is rather difficult to clean, especially the smaller ring (or rings) that are behind the larger one. Just go after it as best as you can with the rags and degreaser. Be sure to look at it from both sides of the bike (you might get the front of it clean, only to look at it from the other side and discover the back side is still filthy).
- Once you’re no longer working on the drive train, you can switch from the degreaser to the dishwashing liquid mixture. Actually, degreaser will work just fine, but the dishwashing liquid is cheaper and usually is all that is needed to get the rest of the bike clean. While you still have your back wheel out, clean off places that are hard to get at, like the underside of your back brake (a notorious spot for dried worms).
- Take your front wheel out and clean the underside of the front fork and the front brake.
- Now go over your whole frame and clean off grease, dust, dried Gatorade, etc. If you have the bike on a work stand and have not yet turned it upside down, be sure to do that, because the underside of the down tube and the place at the bottom bracket where your shifter cables are threaded through can get especially filthy.
- Put your wheels back in, and apply fresh lube to your chain. Dribble it on, making sure it gets into all of the links, and use a clean rag to wipe off any excess. Rotate your chain around a few times to work it in. You might also want to apply lube to your shifter cables in the spots where they come in and out of housings.
- Don’t forget to put all of your accessories back on the bike.
Go out and enjoy your happy bike!
By Liz Sands
Copyright © 2004 Liz Sands. All rights reserved.
(originally published in the TCBC Activity News: Nov-Dec 2004)
