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Has anyone got any recipes for homemade bike cleaning solution? I seem to go through it so quickly, just wondering if there's a way of making my own.
For cleaning components that are off the bike, dishwasher on high temp cycle is fantastic,may need to do this covertly though.
Old coke or citrus fruit can be good for cutting through grease. TBH it is easier to buy a big container of degreaser or professional floor cleaner, not that expensive and lasts ages.
Don't have a dishwasher!
What degreaser/floor cleaner works best in your experience? I'd like to make a big vat of cleaner ready to go.
[url= http://www.screwfix.com/p/swarfega-oil-grease-remover-5ltr/20817 ]this is powerful stuff[/url] but everything is a compromise the more powerful it is the more careful you need to be with rubber parts and rinsing it off etc. You should be able to get 5L of citrus degreaser from motor factor for a similar price.
For general getting mud off the frame stuff I prefer car wash products which have the surfacants that suspend the dirt and reduce how much the paint gets scratched while cleaning.
Baby wet wipes, seriously. Cheap kind to your bike and removes everything.
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Be careful with the dishwasher; the hot caustic solution will take the surface off alloy components, ruining the finish.
Just go you your local car accessory shop and buy a 5 litre jerrycan of car shampoo, which contains no salt as thickener and is supposed to leave a layer of wax on cars.
5 litres of Screwfix No Nonsense degreaser for components when stripped off the bike
Why do you go through it quickly? Muc Off and Fenwicks can be diluted and are still as effective. Especially Muc off, which is horrible to aluminium when neat.
Gunk, Fairy Liquid and Flash.
Wilko do a cheap muc off copy, does the same job as far as I can tell.
Baby wet wipes, seriously. Cheap kind to your bike and removes everything.
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5 litres of Screwfix No Nonsense degreaser
+1 very effective and dirt cheap .
I've been buying [url= http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/5L-Concentrated-Professional-Motorcycle-Bike-Bicycle-Chain-Cleaner-Degreaser-/111506460732?hash=item19f64d903c:g:I-YAAOSwMmBVnoat ]this stuff[/url]from FleaBay. Two of these are £24 quid delivered and I split this with a mate. It gets diluted at 2% for most bike cleaning applications. So 5 litres makes 250 litres of cleaner. It's dirt cheap 😀 and I lash it on with a garden spray. I cant tell the difference between it and MucOff or Fenwicks.
D.
Please don't use baby wipes, they just end up in land fill.
Remember everytime you thoroughly clean your bike you risk cleaning lubrication out if bearings and getting water into places it shouldn't be.
I use microfibre cloths and soft natural brushes that can all be cleaned and reused along with diluted Fenwicks but when that runs out I have green oils eco stuff to use. Plenty of eco friendly cleaners/soaps available you can use and they will probably be much kinder to your bearing greases than some very powerful road grime cleaner.
Any of the Fairy Liquid copies that supermarkets sell are easily good enough. and can be had for pennies/litre usually.
I rarely clean my bike! I give it a towel down if it's been a wet ride and use rock n roll blue lube on the chain. Brush mud off when it's dried. Make sure fork stanchions and seals are clean and that's it.