Originally Posted by
gauvins
I currently rotate chains that I clean in solvent and lube with a thick oil. Works well (commuting & long tours), but last week for some reason I got fed-up with the problem of solvent disposal and decided to switch to citrus-based solvents (and possibly just dish soap). One thing leading to another, I now plan to wax my chains for next season (commuting & short tours).
Chain waxing is a time tested way of fighting chain tattoos and I very much doubt that 50 years ago cyclists agonized about how to clean their chains prior to dipping them in molten wax. Searching for advice, I found a very wide range of opinions, as casual as no prior cleaning (people dipping dirty chains in wax and saying that over time they get rid of oil) to the imperative of several baths in OMS followed by a couple of rinses in denatured alcohol in order to get the wax to stick to the chain (the latter from a site selling high-end wax).
My current thinking is to use a citrus solvent followed by clean hot water rinse, but I'd be interested to read about others' experiences.
I do the lazy overkill method. I use a three pronged method. First treatment is degreaser. I just let it soak overnight. I am a bit lazy so that is really the only reason. I use simple green but a citrus solvent should work. Next day, I remove, wash with water and put it in mineral spirits and again let it soak overnight. Again, just lazy on my part. Shake maybe once or twice but that is about it. Next day, remove and wash with water and do a soak in ethanol again overnight because, you guessed it, I am lazy. Next day, remove, quick rinse with water, wipe down and dry (I use a hair dryer) before going into the hot wax where I let it sit for a bit - not overnight but a good bit before turning the slow cooker off and taking the chain out. I wait for the wax to start forming little islands on top. A quick wipe down and let dry before putting onto bike. When I started, I did two chains, so now, I am never in a rush and do it so I have the chain ready to go on when I take the used chain off.
Also, the chain that has been waxed and comes off the bike is generally just wiped down with water, dried and put into hot wax. No real cleaning. The above was just for new chains.
In terms of solvent, the degreaser gets put into a potted plant (for no other reason other than wanting to see what it would do to the plant), the mineral spirts are filtered and re-used. The ethanol is generally pretty clean and have not done much to that. I have now converted my three road bikes and my three mountain bikes.
Honestly, what I do is overkill and you could easily do just a 60 second degreaser, a 60 second mineral spirit and water/dry before waxing. I get about 200-300 miles on a chain. I generally change out chains when I hear them and shifting gets impacted. I should probably do it sooner but am lazy.