shuru421

Im trying to get into washing, polishing and waxing my bike more often. TELL ME ALL ABOUT IT!

FBinNY 

Every once in a century or so (maybe as often as once in a decade) I actually wash and wax my bike. I go to one of those coin-op car wash places where you buy 5 minutes or so with a pressure washer. I soap it up, run a sponge over it a few times then rinse it off, and dry it with a cotton towel.

I finish with an automotive wax.

Obviously, I don't aim the spray near a bearing opening, but I don't obsess over the job either. So it's about 10 minutes a decade, and then it's up to riding in the rain to keep it clean.

Shimagnolo

Only time I wash a bike is about once every two years when I overhaul it.

Polishing?
Waxing?

clubman 

Post Lustre! Sorry, tired

texaspandj

I used to wash my bike once a week using dawn dish detergent then dry with towel then spray with lemon pledge then wipe again However since I have so many bikes I'm able to rotate them and wash once a month now. But just recently I tried this spray foam tire cleaner that I spray everything then wait ten minutes wipe with towel and done. I like the results except for the dirt that doesn't run off, like around the FD clamp. It should be noted I do not ride in the rain, however I was caught in it twice last week.

plonz 

I guess I'm on the other end of the spectrum. Here in Houston where it's hot and humid, when you ride hard, you sweat harder and bikes begin to look like this before you know it.


Suffice it to say, you learn real quick to clean your bike often; usually after every ride in the summer. Here's the rundown:
Good grief, no wonder my garage looks like an Autozone! This routine only applies to my road bikes. For some reason, I continue to neglect by mountain bikes under the delusion the mud and dirt serves as a protectant of sorts.

TenGrainBread 

Soapy water or Pledge followed by Turtle wax (I use the spray bottle).

When I am cleaning the chain/gears (which I don't do as often), I also use soapy water unless it's pretty gunked up, in which case I use degreaser. And lube the chain after.

Don't forget to clean gunk out of the deraileurs and pulleys and lube pivot points after.

Don't use pressurized water or degreaser near the bottom bracket, headset, or wheel hubs. Pressurized water shouldn't be necessary unless it's a muddy CX bike anyway.

Many people think that clean vs. dirty bike is just an aesthetic choice but it's not. Dirt in the drivetrain and bearing interfaces will grind away at the metal when the bike is in use and cause the components to wear faster.

texaspandj

Good point, it's humid here too. And since all my bikes are steel and 30 years old (on average ) it's a good reason to keep them clean. Which brings me to conclude if I had a carbon fiber bike maybe I'd also wait a couple of years to wash it. Score one and Only one for carbon.

Doohickie

lasauge 

I wash my bikes when they look dirty and keep it simple:
1. Start with water and a sponge if there's caked-on mud that needs removing
2. Spray the frame and parts that don't need regular lubrication with a generic automotive wash-n-wax solution and wipe clean with a rag
3. Use the appropriate combination of rag, degreaser, and lube on the drivetrain
4. Green scrubber pad and denatured alcohol for cleaning rims and brake pads
5. Dish soap for dirty bartape

When it's time for more complete cleaning my super-cheap parts washer (for bearings, small parts, and really filthy chains) is an old glass jar full of kerosene, and I have a tin of Simichrome for things that need to shine.

calamarichris

These responses so far have all been backward and barbaric.
Forget soapy water (!?!) and carwax; take a great tip from motorcyclists and get some Honda spray polish.

RiddleOfSteel

I have a dedicated rain bike and the rest of the fleet are dry bikes.

A newly acquired bike/frame or rain bike (during post-spring overhaul) gets fully disassembled gets the full clean with a wipe down using Kaboom foaming tub and tile cleaner (works great!). After that is rubbing compound like Meguiars has. Lastly, a Meguiars carnuba wax. Cloth application, microfiber towel for wipe off of compound and wax. Never Dull metal polish for the metal bits (different microfiber towel for wipe off).

My Nishiki winter bike went through nearly nine months of epic rain and sitting this last winter. I had done all the mentioned things, including touch up paint, before the winter. It took a lot of cleaning as the deep red metallic paint turned dark matte grey the lower you looked. In the end of this full disassembly cleaning and waxing, the bike came back to the shine it had before it all started. Giving a rip about a bike works!

realsteel

I follow Jay Leno's advice:
(at 7:45)

He says "The trick [to keeping a vintage car like new] is not to wash it too often..."

So I just wipe down the bikes now and again and apply wax polish sparingly. Water is, after all, a reactive chemical, as is soap and the solvents in polish.

See here for some ideas for wax polish: https://www.bikeforums.net/18625276-post13.html

gomango

Various Mothers products.

Really exceptional product line. imho

cycleheimer

I usually hose it down when it starts to look "unclean". Then I wash it with dish water liquid , rinse it off with the garden hose, let it dry a bit, then wax it with any non-abrasive car wax I have on hand. If I haven't ridden a bike in awhile, and the shine needs some rejuvenation, I use furniture polish or a carnuba wax spray mist. I usually keep one " rainy day" bike that I don't really bother cleaning.

RobbieTunes

1-Really dirty: Wet down, degreaser on chain and other areas, then soapy soapy Ajax dish detergent and hot hot water, then rinse. The key to all of this is to rinse frequently so the chems don't mess up any finishes... Then I wipe down and blow off as much water as possible, then wipe down again and q-tip the bolt heads, crevices, etc to avoid rust down the road (...Never Sleeps). Then I wipe the bike down with a cloth that is damp with WD-40. Lube comes next, with Slick50 1Lube (red can) on all the pivoting parts, sometimes a squirt into cable housings, guides under the BB, etc. Very last is chain lube, link by link. 30-45 minutes.


2-Normal road use to a previously clean bike: Grime Boss wipes, then a shop rag to wipe off any excess. Periodic lube to pivots and chain.


3-I rarely wax anything. Sometimes I use Magwire's Instant Detail, spray and wipe off. I don't see the point in preserving the bike longer than I'll be around.

rootboy 

Have an old friend who used to collect Jaguars. E types, mostly. He rarely washed those cars.
I learned from him what a Kozak cloth was. Still use one on my truck.

Needles

+1 (Motorcycle, too.)

RobbieTunes

Absolutely works on white bar wrap. Spray it on, let it foam, wipe it off. Uncanny.

TimmyT 

Pledge is good because it has carnauba wax. That's a light, non reactive plant wax. Pledge isn't really element proof, however, so it doesn't last too long.

I normally use degreaser or Dawn and water on the frame and wheels every now and then, maybe 2-3 times a year or after a long dirty ride. If things are squeaky and gritty, then the bike doesn't get used until I do it. Grime is a lot like polish --- grease and fine particles. Clean the grime out before it wears the parts.

On the chain, I wipe it down with WD-40 on a rag and then relube with Pedro's or Finish Line.

Also, for cleaning hoods, Goof Off really does the trick. People swear by Magic Erasers, but those are for amateurs, IMO.

Lazyass

I always keep my paint waxed just like my car, it protects the paint and keeps it shining. After most rides I wipe it down with Pledge. Every few weeks (or after a wet ride) I'll hose it down. I spray dollar store degreaser on the drivetrain, clean the chain with my clamp on thing, brush the chainrings/cogs and then wash the bike with my auto wash soap (dish soap removes the wax on the paint so that's a no no). When it's all dry I put on a coat of Turtle Wax.

Cheddarpecker

Glass cleaner or a damp rag.

Fortunately, I live in the part of Texas which is NOT humid.

Doohickie

...and I thought I was the only guy using Pledge...

Grand Bois

Pledge contains no wax.

rootboy 

Kinda just a spray on silicone. I wouldn't use it on my antique furniture.
But maybe it's OK on bikes. Don't know.