My wonderful riding mates always seem to arrive with showroom condition specimens while I’m lucky if something hasn’t seized.

What are your post ride cleaning rituals?

Spray with hose- if it is over the 75% mud mark

Lube chain before ride.

Life is too short to spend it cleaning a bile that will be filthy after every ride – this does not mean one should not maintain your bike

Rinse the mud off, brush and bucket of hot soapy water, rinse that off, sort of dry it, lube chain and dropper and stanchions. Five minute job.

What to put on pistons?

Two options, quick hose down at my local bar if the right staff are present (some don’t let me use the garden hose) with a beer or two or I give it a proper clean using a bucket of soapy water and a foam, rinse with a wet cloth, then hand dry with a dry cloth, then finally lube the chain and sometimes the suspension ( a little oil around seals).
Option 1 is the preferred method.

I get my mum to do it

There is normally a bit of a road spin, that blows most of the dust off

Spray drive train with hose, wipe off with rag, lube after most rides. When you can’t recognize the frame for the filth I’ll clean that too but not after every ride

Just hose it down, and an old washing up brush to get the worst off then a microfiber cloth to wipe all over.
I then sneakily bring it into the kitchen to dry off next to the AGA.
Then a quick check of the chain, and if it needs it, I whip it off and drop in a bottle of white spirit and re-lubricate it.
Check my fork stanchions and dropper by spraying a light oil and cycling them a few times.
Then I undress my muddy clothes and run to the shower!
Never jet wash! trick is to wash it as soon as you can, and don’t let the mud and cack dry on the bike.

Spray drive train with hose, wipe off with rag, lube after most rides. When you can’t recognize the frame for the filth I’ll clean that too but not after every ride

+1

And I spray on fork stanchion lube and a blast of disc brake cleaner every other ride or so.

Every 10 rides or so I also run the chain cleaner and a proper spray/clean with the ickle brushes on the drivetrain.

I’m offended, mine is always in a terrible state, am I not one of your wonderful riding mates? I’ll remember that when you next need a frame buying immediately and have no access to ebay. tsk.

A tip for people riding bikes that are designed for Californian conditions: The best waterproofer for cables and headset bearings is lanoline, which you can buy from Boots. Warm it up to soften it then smear it all over the bearings next time you drop the forks out. Also smear it on the rear derailleur cable ends before you fit the plastic ferrules to waterproof the cable and prevent the steel reinforcements from going rusty and manky.

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/i-had-to-put-my-bike-away-dirty-last-night

Rinse muck off with a couple of watering cans of rainwater, shake the drips off, leave in the kitchen to dry, lube chain.

Spray drive train with hose, wipe off with rag, lube after most rides. When you can’t recognize the frame for the filth I’ll clean that too but not after every ride

+1

And I spray on fork stanchion lube and a blast of disc brake cleaner every other ride or so.

Every 10 rides or so I also run the chain cleaner and a proper spray/clean with the ickle brushes on the drivetrain.

i don’t have a bike with suspension, one of the resons is the constant maintanence, I’d rather be riding

I keep my bike pretty clean – it doesn’t really take long especially if it is still wet.

I rinse the worst off, then use a bucket of warm soapy water to get the rest of, chain and cassette rinsed off and degreased if needed. Then wipe down to dry and relube.

It depends on how late back from my ride I am as to how much cleaning the bike gets 🙂

If the kids are already outside playing in the garden the bike gets a “proper job” (usually with some help):

1. Hose off the loose dirt
2. Sponge off the stubborn dirt (hot and sometimes soapy water)
3a. I have a big brush that does a great job on the cassette
3b. If the above didn’t clean the chain, out comes the chain cleaner and degreaser
4. GT85 on cassette and chain
5. Cycle forks and dropper post with some spray lube whose name I forget
6. Hang bike back up in shed feeling very pleased with how awesome it looks

Usually I get back in a rush and the bike either goes away dirty or at best it’s the hose and some GT85, although to be honest the last few rides have taken more effort to clean me and my clothes than my bike! Roll on Spring (or a proper winter at least).

Hose off the worst of the muck, hot water with a bit of car shampoo, once over with sponge. Rinse and dry. Gt85 on chain, every 2nd or 3rd run some stantion lube on the right bits.
I do that (2 bikes) and the good lady sorts out the kit to be washed or dried then takes on brew responsibility

I remember reading Steve peats old mechanic (Andy from northwest mtb) saying he washed Steve’s bike after every run. It ment he was able to inspect everything as he went. Seemed sensible to me.

Hosepipe to wash off the mud, bit of bike cleaner worked around with a brush, hosepipe again.

Clean drivetrain with Fenwicks foaming cleaner, then hose off. Relube chain and occasionally stanchions. GT85 on mechs

10-15 mins – well worth it.

Find a ford or a big puddle to ride through just before the end of the ride – yesterday just riding along the road from Bamford to Hope did the trick

I think we should do a quick survey for which you’ll all need a stopwatch.

When you get to the door of your house, set the stopwatch going. Don’t stop it until your bike is clean and put away and you’re back inside the house. I’m sure it takes me as long to get the washing stuff out, patio hosed down from all the muck and washing stuff away again than it does to wash the bike itself! 😆

When I used to get to the trails by car I used to give the whole thing a proper clean after every muddy ride. Scrub down with brush and cleaner and rinse off with portable pressure washer thingy. Then a dash of lube on the chain.

Now I have a van the bike just gets chucked in with mud and all. Only gets a clean if I give a mate a lift who has a hose in the garden. I haven’t used the pressure washer for so long that the battery has depleted so much that it’s damaged and won’t charge now. Chain only gets lubed after a few wet rides.

I feel no adverse effects to the bike it still works the same with bearings running nice and smooth, gears changing fine. Though it does mean when something needs fixing I need to give it a clean first before I start to fix it.

Hose off the worst then spray juice lubes cleaner all over, leave for a few minutes to do it’s thang whilst sorting other kit out.

Brush all over with an old soft bristled brush, wash off with the hose.

Degreaser spray on drive train, leave for a few minutes then use a hard brush then wash off

Dry frame, and uppy downy bits, lube uppy downy bits, cycle through and wipe off excess

Dry drivetrain with special drivetrain towel, gt85 bits that need it then lube chain

Probably takes about 15 minutes 🙂

Lube chain- Ride- repeat

How do I wash my bikes? Lovingly. Immaculately. Precisely.

The dirty bike sits in the hall on a blanket opposite The Bike Drying Radiator.

In the morning it’s dried off and there’s dirt on the blanket. I take the bike outside and knock any remaining stubborn bits off.

Wax chain lube all year round so the chain gets a polish and a relube if required and I wipe the suspension bits with a dry rag.

Have not used water or chemical cleaners since about 2002.

quick hose down, spray some muck muncher on (best bike wash by miles in my experience), have a cup of tea, rinse with hose, marvel at the shiny shiny bike that has emerged from the cack, quick chain lube, check brake pads, job done

there is no point in having lovely bikes to leave them lookin like shite. Ride hard but keep kit in good condition. It always makes me wonder how many folks that complain about stuff not working or bearings failing etc, don’t maintain their kit in the first place?

I’ve found it can be the case that you can clean your bike too much. Basically using too much degreaser etc too often is worse than just giving it a quick hose down and re lube. End up stripping grease out of the hubs and bearings.

I normally just hose it down as soon as I get home. Run the chain through a rag with wd40 then re lube the chain. Important bit is to use the hose ftom a distance on spray and not directly at any sensitive bits. Always tend to do the tyres too. Sounds silly but I like to check for splits etc as I often ride alone and don’t fancy a walk home!

Spray with hose- if it is over the 75% mud mark

Lube chain before ride.

Life is too short to spend it cleaning a bile that will be filthy after every ride – this does not mean one should not maintain your bike

Same, apart from spray a bit of muc off on sometimes.

I do tend to give it a very good clean in Spring as it becomes less likely to get covered in mud. I do maintain it meticulously all year round though.

Hose off biggest chunks of cack, put in garage.

Most MTB parts benefit from having a protective layer of grime on them and if you clean them too much they actually wear out faster. No, shut up, it’s true. 🙂

No hosepipe, no garden, just tiny courtyard outside basement flat, bike stored indoors: 1) Scrape off mud and move out of way so it doesn’t block drains. 2) Bucket of hot soapy (using washing up liquid) water. 3) Old soft haired broom head & one of those brushes useful on cassettes. 4) Clean bike, wheels & tyres too. 5) If necessary refil bucket with clean water & repeat.

Took it to jetwash for first time yesterday, 9 minute cycle, rinse only, disappointed at how much mud was still stuck to bike when finished.

CXer? I jet wash mine.. the garage is on the way home and normally the CXer looks like it’s been through some monsoon or other. So 3mins under that to clean the cack off, then I do my shoes, and if I’m particularly grimy I’ll spray my legs too. Then home I’ll run over it with a soapy cloth, then the wheels. Then I get a GT85 covered rag and run all over the wheel rims/spokes/seatpin/bars/cranks. Then I’ll clean up the cassette and chain, then finally I’ll run over the tyres with a bit of saddle soap to keep my tan walls looking nice.

Then I’ll get out on it again and it’ll look filthy.

The roadie, well suffice to say you could eat your lunch off it. It sparkles like a diamond.

I don’t hose my bikes very often.

Generally I give the dropper and fork uppers a wipe down and then wait for the mud to dry and then brush it off.

I also brush off the gears and brakes and wipe the chain with a dry rag before relubing/cleaning.

Occasionally I will give the bike a proper clean and inspect but jet washing /hosing after every ride is a recipe for grease free bearing in my opinion/experience.

I use Ultimate Bike Solution so when I get home I give the bike a quick spray with the hose, respray with UBS and put the gleaming back in shed. Simple, quick and effective.

Depends…if I’m riding my bike daily during the xmas holidays when it’s hub deep in cack, then I’ll only clean once every other ride.

Otherwise, I’ll spray with Muc-Off, rinse with a hose and brush down with 50% car shampoo and 50% washing up liquid in warm water. After a final rinse, everything is left to dry before a good spray with furniture polish or if I’m feeling indulgent I’ll give the frame and forks a coat of Turtle Wax.

Cassette and chain will usually receive a squirt of GT-85 to flush out any water before re-oiling.

Assuming that you clean the drivetrain, stanchions and shock, what functional benefit is there from cleaning the rest of the bike? How does cleaning mud off the bike help your bearings/bushings?

I got my routine dialled in my last house:

First, buy Muc-Off (other cleaners are available) in huge bulk.
Second, get a pressurised spray-bottle (that squirts continuously until depressurised) and keep it full of Muc-Off.
Third, acquire a soft car-cleaning brush attachment for your hosepipe, and leave it plugged in.
Fourth, thoroughly (really thoroughly) degrease your chain and give it a light/moderate oiling only, just the rollers.

When you get back from a ride, immediately give the bike the once-over with the hose brush, then give it a Muc-Offing, paying particular attention to the chain. Leave for 5 minutes while you sort out whatever else needs sorting, then give it another going over with the hose brush. Next, re-oil the chain, which should be largely grease-free, and put away. I appreciate there’s nothing very original there, but having it all set up meant that I always cleaned properly whenever it was even slightly dirty, even if I was cold, wet, drunk or whatever – because it took a grand total of about 10 minutes. If you keep the chain reasonably clean and don’t re-oil over dirt then the whole thing just keeps running along fairly nicely.

🙂

Less often than many other people, perhaps not quite as often as I should but if it isn’t too bad I leave the muck to dry and brush it off carefully. Then light lube
If heavily soiled, I might give it a quick (low pressure) hose down before doing the the above.
If absolutely plastered I’ll use Rhino Goo whilst still wet, use a water dispersant on the gear train and then full lube, but as a bottle lasts me a year, it doesn’t happen very often.

I should say that I am lucky enough to have a heated storage area which makes all the above much easier

Did Bike Bomb the super concentrated detergent people ever have any sccess?

big +1 for Ultimate Bike Solution here. Keeps the drive chain clean and makes it easy to rinse the rest of the cack off. Got to be the top choice for commuting