Washing the bicycle is a useful operation to keep it in order and in full effectiveness. When you wash the bike, in fact, you can touch and examine all its components and notice on time some damages.
What are the tangible benefits which involves washing the bike regularly and with accuracy?
- Better fluidity – free from dust or mud, the bike is definitely better because components such as chain and derailleur do not find any obstacles to their operation.
- Preventing wear – impurities and road dust that end up on the bike when you pedal, act on it like sandpaper, if you clean it, the bike lasts longer.
- Observing the state of the bike – just by washing away the dirt you can see any scratches or rubbings that otherwise would have gone unnoticed.
- Ease of maintenance – a clean and orderly bike is easier to handle if you need maintenance. With rust or mud the maintenance operations are complicated.
When to wash the bicycle?
After a trip in adverse weather conditions (rain, snow, white road dust), the bicycle should always be thoroughly cleaned to prevent that moisture, dust, or mud affecting the operation of any component, even inside the frame as well.
How to wash the bicycle?
Just use the water pipe in the garden or just a couple of buckets of cold water (the hot one ruins the seals).
The high pressure cleaner is to be avoided completely because the pressure water enters the inner bearings to the frame and lifts the grease by accelerating the wear of components no more lubricated.
The same applies to compressed air often used to dry the bicycle, rather use cotton cloth.
Which products use to wash bicycle?
On the market there are many soaps, lubricants and polishes for the bike, these are products designed specifically for the components of the vehicle. It is better not to use shampoos or stain remover for cars and home because they may prove to be too aggressive.
A thorough cleaning of the entire bike with the proper products does not take more than 30 minutes. It’s not a tough task, so do not neglect it.