What do you put in your chain cleaner

tomsdad

I have a Park tools chainer it came with the citrus cleaner.They reccomend that after cleaning with the citrus cleaner wash out then use fairy liquid and water.
I wonder what most people use.I also get a bit concerned washing my chain in water.
Could you not use diesel ,which is a lubricant and also cleans dirt and grease.Then a good wipe or leave to drip then chain lube.
Thoughts please.

mercsport

There's a lot on YT on cleaning chains. Excuse the huge file extension : http://www.youtube.com/results?search_q ... an+a+bicyc

Probably contrary to all the all the above, the way I do it now is with a can of " Weldtite TF2' lubricating spray with silicon" and saturate the chain with a backwards freewheel, then a vigorous rub down of all the chain's sideplates with rags until it all looks shiny new again.

Sometimes I'll unhook the 'quick-link' and sink the chain in a shallow bath of paraffin. But again, a rub down of all the sideplates until dry.

AndyD2574

Use 'muck off' that I had for my mountain bike. Clean it with a rag and then let it dry off before putting ceramic lubricant on.

Scrumple

The poster wants to know what to put in his park tools cleaner... not what rags you all use!

I'd suggest washing up liquid is fine, cheaper by miles, and will not be an issue if you lube well afterwards.
I'd not use it all over the bike though as it may leave residue.

John.T

I only use a chain cleaner every 500 miles or so but when I do I use parafin followed by Muc-off. Then a good rinse off with water followed by WD40 to shift the water. Allow to dry fully and then lube with PTFE dry lube. Some will cringe but it works for me, Chains do 2000+ miles in winter. For the summer bikes the intervals are much longer.

Scrumple

clean, rinse, and DRY.
then lube.

what you use is not that important. They don't last long enough to worry too much.

JohnnyAllez

Muc-off in the chain bath, dry off, lube up with Pedros wax. Only needs the full treatment if the chain is filthy, otherwise I use degreaser wipes (works supply ) and run the chain though my hand with the wipes to remove exterior crap, then lube.

sloxam

white spirit

agent_buchwald

WD40 in the chain vleaner works well, wipe off and lube = Iwouldn't use washing up liquid because it contains a lot of salt and if you don't completely remove all of it then things start to rust.

gaz545

I use citric degreaser from halfords, cheap compared to the park tools own brand but does the same job.

rake

Scrumple wrote:

The poster wants to know what to put in his park tools cleaner... not what rags you all use!

I'd suggest washing up liquid is fine, cheaper by miles, and will not be an issue if you lube well afterwards.
I'd not use it all over the bike though as it may leave residue.

parrafin is cheap and does a brilliant job. dont reccomend water and washing liquid has lots of salt. good for rusting.

Wappygixer

I use this http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=130342563987&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

I use it in a parts washer.First off I clean my chain in the parts washer with a stiff paint brush to get rid of all the stuck of grime, I then leave it for about and hour to drain.Next I wash it in hot water and washing up liquid to get rid of the degreaser (you don't want to leave it on your chain or it will break down you new lube) , I then dry it off and leave it over night to dry all the internals and then I lube it.To lube it I put it in a cheapo pound shop saucepan, pour in my lube of choice and put it on the cooker to warm up.This thins the lube and ensures it flows into the inner parts of the chain.I then leave it to drip free and its now ready for use.

John.T

Wappygixer wrote:

I use this http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=130342563987&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

I use it in a parts washer.First off I clean my chain in the parts washer with a stiff paint brush to get rid of all the stuck of grime, I then leave it for about and hour to drain.Next I wash it in hot water and washing up liquid to get rid of the degreaser (you don't want to leave it on your chain or it will break down you new lube) , I then dry it off and leave it over night to dry all the internals and then I lube it.To lube it I put it in a cheapo pound shop saucepan, pour in my lube of choice and put it on the cooker to warm up.This thins the lube and ensures it flows into the inner parts of the chain.I then leave it to drip free and its now ready for use.

Washing in water and leaving to dry will let rust start. Better to use WD40 or similar to displace the water then leave to dry.

woody-som

i use diesel for the winter and mtb bikes, but don't clean the summer one.

al2098

Like JohnT said, If it dries without lube it will rust!! :shock:
This may sound mad but I run it through a chain cleaner, Parktools, and the citrus degreaser. The degreaser is expensive but you can put the used fluid in a sealed container and it will seperate from the sludge and can be reused!! :idea:
Then its fairy liquid in the chain cleaning machine. (All this stuff about salt in the soap is relevant if you use fairy to clean your frame and don't rinse properly)
The atmosphere will rust a chain anyway with or without fairy liquid salt.
The mad bit is, right after a good soap clean, I run boiling water from a kettle over the rear bottom mech roller and spin the cranks. The boiling water will evaporate superfast as the chain gets very hot (DO NOT get the boiling water near the hub!!!!) This will give you a superclean, dry chain. Immediately therafter, lube with your poison of choice. (make sure to lube the lower mech roller as well :roll:

gupta-patel

Finish Powerball tablets dissolved in Coca Cola.

Tonymufc

I put the chain in my chain cleaner.

Tonymufc

.........and Halfords citrus degreaser, works a treat.

tomsdad

gupta-patel wrote:

Finish Powerball tablets dissolved in Coca Cola.

Would that be diet or zero or full on ?i did try grapefruit jucie when they were talking about citrus but evidently i was mislead.!

Wamas

1st Washing up liquid with a drop of white spirit, then run through again with muc-off.
(Revoer muc-off and put in a jar, let it settle and you can use about half of it again next time.
Then rinse with lots of water.
Dry with a lint free cloth, and oil immediately.

Runoutofgears

I don't use my chain cleaner very often so I'm still using the big bottle of park tools cleaner I bought. Works well and smells nice :roll:

dennisn

Don't own one.

cheesebeanie

I keep it simple...
After each ride i clean off chain with old rag (I don't use a cleaner/de-greaser)
Apply fresh lube with rag
Done...
Always have a sparkling chain and never have any problems with it - smooth as silk.

Wamas

cheesebeanie wrote:

I keep it simple...
After each ride i clean off chain with old rag (I don't use a cleaner/de-greaser)
Apply fresh lube with rag
Done...
Always have a sparkling chain and never have any problems with it - smooth as silk.

I do this most of the time, but occasionally in winter, the chain needs a good clean.

dave milne

Muc off in a chain cleaner

wipe down

lube

dieselgeezer

Take the chain off (easy with quick link). Put it in a small coke bottle. Add a mix of 50% petrol, 50% diesel & shake the bottle vigorously ( with the top on you muppet). Repeat until clean. Hang chain & oil with chainsaw oil. Allow to drip overnight. Sorted.