Water.

I'm curious, why would you want to clean them?

I wanted my rotors sparkling for my new wheel build so popped them into the dish washer.

Usually I'd just hose them down though.

Isopropyl alcohol if there's been a leak or cock up and they've been contaminated. Just water when i wash the bike if not.

I don't touch the pads & just wipe off the rotors with a clean piece of kitchen paper when they've dried .
Could be wrong , but works for me .

With mud.

Fairy liquid works well for pads. For rotors I usually heat them in the oven to a few hundred degrees and then clean them with degreaser/isopropanol. Obviously, not directly from the oven, that'd be silly.

@oldpasit...I usually just squirt water into pads to clean debris away and hose/squirt water onto disks...I ask because I noticed other day the rotors were still a bit mud smeared....I guess all I should do is wipe with kitchen towel as ernie67 says....

Although I'm aware there's some products people buy...wondered if that was marketing or actually useful at this time of year...

I think you may be looking for a solution to a problem that doesn't exist.
Keep it simple: water and a soft grease free brush if the mud is stubborn.
Ovens, special products, paper towels etc are for when you've got some contaminant on the disk. Or you are anal about how your bike looks.

water for a muddy bike, fairy if they are contaminated and buy new pads

I don't think we can embed Insta pics on here, so here's link...

View this post on Instagram

Hot soapy water, then cold water to get the residue off.

Blast of something a bit more aggressive if they've been contaminated (road grime, oil, general mank).

If my pads are contaminated, then I put on new pads.

I hose the rotors with water when I wash the rest of the bike after a ride. At most, some fairy.

A few years ago I used some spray on disc cleaner, but to be honest, I haven't needed anything more than fairy in a decade. When I did have a contaminated disc, it was a symptom of a more serious problem, and my caliper needed changing. But I just used fairy on the rotor and and all was good again (once I'd repaired the leading caliper obviously).

Water most of the time, but if I want to clean up the caliper/pads and rotor, I just use muc-off disc brake cleaner. It's safe to use on all parts and gets rid of the 'baked in' grime. Only really use it when i'm swapping things around in the shed to remove brake dust etc., for mud just use water and sponge.

Edit - and for pads I rarely take them out, if they're contaminated then they get replaced and source of contamination sorted (as above really!)

Normally rinse with water, recently been having to take out pads to remove gunk from between pads, little springy thing etc.

Water on all of ours.

unicorn tears does the trick for my brakes

Mine get squirted with water at the same time as the rest of the bike if it was a muddy ride, if not they get cleaned the first time I pull the brake lever on my next ride 😉

I take it the people that clean their bike brakes take the wheels off their car and clean them too everytime they drive it 😆

Sorry but WTF?

If they get contaminated and stop working properly then go ahead. Otherwise they self-clean as soon as you use the brakes.

Hose. Aimed to get all the crap out. Never ever use anything else never seen why I need to do it? My XT running great after two years and no cleaning. Have been bled.

When I put new pads in I always do a load of stoppers on the road that seems to face them off and they last for ages.

I did urinate on a particularly sandy disc once, after a beach mishap. It was, before anyone asks, quite voluntary. Other than that, water from a hose.

Cheers for answers - interesting to see what people say about it.

GT85 😆

[quote="scotroutes"]Otherwise they self-clean as soon as you use the brakes.Sorry but WTF?

The holes get full of crap. The surfaces get "stuff" smeared all over them. Especially on shared use trails (lots of quads/motorbikes round here) and sometimes i use the road, getting oil/diesel/road grime on the discs.

Why would you bother unless they are contaminated? A friend tried some muc-off brake cleaner a while back. All it did was make his brakes not work for a short while then squeal for a while longer until it wore/burnt off. I'm not sure if his calliper seals felt more hydrated like the label said they should.
If they are contaminated then I would use carb cleaner or isopropyl alcohol but fairy would do if its all you have, just make sure you rinse it well.

sometimes i use the road, getting oil/diesel/road grime on the discs.

What you doing lying your bike down on the floor? As above do you clean your car after ever trip out?

Makes you wonder how people manage to survive on rim brakes 🙄

In all the years I've been mountain biking I've never felt the need to clean my disks or pads and definitely never felt the need to remove them to clean them, bake them at 200C (180C fan) for 30 mins or until golden brown.

Different matter if you've accidentally contaminated them but otherwise they clean themselves during use

they clean themselves during use

That's always worked in my case.

[quote="dragon"]What you doing lying your bike down on the floor? As above do you clean your car after ever trip out?

Makes you wonder how people manage to survive on rim brakesNo, they get sprayed by the passing traffic, other riders, riding through standing water (with it's lovely sheen of oil products) lorries and so on.

Of course i don't clean my car after every trip out, what a ridiculous comparison. I do clean my rim braked bikes fairly regularly through the winter though.

I sometimes wonder if some people have ever ridden a bike. 🙄

Just rinse them with a hose after a ride. And spray disc cleaner and wipe off if they are making squealing noises. Change the pads in march after winter and October before winter regardless of if they are alright.
Same goes for my motorbike.

I did urinate on a particularly sandy disc once

? 😉 No - that's for frozen rear mechs. Water for brakes, like the rest of the bike or just don't bother.

Just washed my mud caked mountain bike with soapy warm water (fairy liquid) using sponge/soft brush and rinsed with warm water

left it to dry under the air conditioner in the workshop

will take it outside later after lubing the chain

-spray the rotors on either side with muc-off disc brake cleaner and a quick blast into the pad slot
-wipe off any surface residue on the rotors with a clean rag
-ride the bike up and down the road outside doing firm stops until the brakes stop squeaking

done this for years, its never let me down...

for rotors contaminated with oil, I'd use Isopropyl Alcohol and put new pads in

[i]No - that's for frozen rear mechs[/i]

Done that too.

Just buy Shimano resin* pads. They self clean by wearing down to the backing plates in the course of a single ride in the welsh winter mud.

*As fitted to my new Zee caliper

Never clean mine at all.. Well they get wet when I'm washing the bike but I don't clean them directly.

But as above Isopronol or similar solvent, I imagine meths or white spirit would work too if they get anything oily on the disks..

Never clean mine at all..