Which cleaners do you use?

canada16

Hey guys

Thought I would post this on here as well as seems a bit more suitable.

Just wondering which cleaners you use to clean your bike, as I have never bought any before.

Need to be paint friendly and good value for money.

Also would be nice if the cleaner made my chain sparkle as well.

Thanks

Also what lube as well, never ride in the rain, but if it does rain while im out need to be protected, (lube for uk weather.)

Anonymous

i have only tired muc off and it is superb, i dont know how it does it but by following the simple instruction, your bike is immaculate with no effort, very good. wish tescos would bring out a value version (they do for everything else!!)

as for lube, i like white lightening for pretty much all conditionsand have been pleased with halfords own brand of wet lube.

Ben.Taylor

I often jet wash for speed and use nano-tech car cleaner by turtle wax for hand washing, always lube nuts, bolts and hard to reach places with GT-85 to get rid of any water left behind which could cause rust. I use a Park chain cleaner which is excellent with just general degreaser, I then use Finish Line wet lube as it keeps everything running slickly, quietly and doesn't get washed off by our 'summer' weather.

redvee

The cleaners I use do my flat for £20, £30 topless & £40 nude. By night they are lap dancers

canada16

Hey dont you get a lot of gunk stuck to web lube? And dont you then have to clean it all the time.

Will look at that nano tech by turtle wax, if its ok for car paint it should be ok for bikes.

Just kinda looking for a all in one degreaser for the chain and also a cleaner for the bike.

Will keep looking and asking.

Out of 5 votes muk-off is in the lead.

ExeterSimon

Muc-Off is good but overpriced.

One litre of Muc-off is around 6 quid yet for 9 quid you can get a litre of Fenwicks concentrate that makes up 10 litres You can do the math.

In its concentrated form Fenwicks is also a degreaser.

Go into most quality bike shops and you'll see a bottle of Fenwicks lurking around the workshop.

crichten

The cleaner I use was like £3 from my LBS and its pink, I cant remember the name might be something similar to PINK cleaner (original I know)

It doesnt quite Degrease as i would like it to but it gives it a good try and makes it less effort than hand cleaning.

Ive been using that wet Lube as well seemed good.

NikB

There should be an option for none. I use my car shampoo which is a Poorboys one. Does the job and isn't harsh.

canada16

Yeh

I was looking at that fenwicks.

The only thing I can do is try it and see how it goes.

10.00 for 1 litre, and makes 10 litres. Uhm kinda a no brainer.

realnumber 1

I also just use whichever car shampoo I have in at the time. If its good enough for my car then it's definitely good enough for my bike.

turbodog

ditto - i am using car shampoo too and it is fab and easy.

scottyjohn

I use Fenwicks, but be careful as I think they do a "bike wash" which is a diluted version of the normal fenwicks which makes the 10 litres. Ive used it as a degreaser and its amazing, and then diluted in a spray as a general bike wash. Its excellent all round

allthegearnoidea

i use 'Daisy' all purpose cleaner from Tesco! 65p for 1.5L dilutable 1:10 for general bike cleaning and 1:4 for chain etc,
does just as good a job as the rest just a Damn site cheaper!
also use a cheap alloy wheel brush for cleaning the cassette!

Surf-Matt

Muc Off cleaner.
Muc Off brushes (4)
Muc Off Bike Spray (after each wash - dirt sticks much less and lubes)
Muc Off brake disk cleaner.
Prolink chain lube.
GT85.

Oh and a hose.

Guess who asked for Muc Off stuff last Christmas?!

Works a treat though.

mellex

Clean warm water
Muc Off cleaner
Park Tool chain and cassette brush
White lightening degreaser
White lightening chain lub.

steve_1981

I'm going to sound really think now but what's wrong with a bucket of hot water and a squirt of Fairy?

Surf-Matt

Steve - nothing but it's very handy having the right brushes (sponges get shredded to bits) and Fairy contains some salt and doesn't lube properly.

Bmjboy

allthegearnoidea wrote:

i use 'Daisy' all purpose cleaner from Tesco! 65p for 1.5L dilutable 1:10 for general bike cleaning and 1:4 for chain etc,
does just as good a job as the rest just a Damn site cheaper!
also use a cheap alloy wheel brush for cleaning the cassette!

Another vote for Daisy - cheap as chips! and readily available in Tescos.

I kind of started a similar thread here:

http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=12581460

Started with the cheapest first (Daisy 65p for 1.5l concentrate!) and it works fine.

I have Muc-Off brush set, the best tool is the cog cleaner comb thingamee!

Im doing 2 very mucky rides a week at the mo, and my bike is nice and clean in 10mins.

steve_1981

Surf-Matt wrote:

Steve - nothing but it's very handy having the right brushes (sponges get shredded to bits) and Fairy contains some salt and doesn't lube properly.

Fair enugh....

So, if you use muc off or something similar, does that reduce the need to lube parts?

BobbyTrigger

i use:

muc off degreaser (amazing stuff)
muc off
then give her a good rub down
then i lube the chain/gears up with some stuff in a green aerosol tin which name escapes me - it comes out like green foam? - does the job anyway, and some bike bloke told me to use it so it cant be bad!