Hose Pipe Bans and Bike Cleaning

Zendog1

It looks like the south east is going to have a ban from shortly. Does anyone know if bike cleaning is included?

I just read the Thames Water notice in the paper - motor vehicles, boats, windows and gardens are specified but not bikes.

Just to mention I have a water meter and am very frugal anyway but a hose is just easier than a watering can.

pottssteve

I cleaned my bike last weekend with one bucket of water. Started with the frame, moved to wheels/rims and ended with drive chain (using citrus degreaser first). Granted, it didn't come up quite like new, but it's not bad. I don't think a hose is really needed anyway.

Steve

marksimon69

Fill one of those garden sprayers (the ones you put pathclear etc in and pump up) from the tap in the house, wash bike with bucket of soapy water as normal, and clean off crud with water sprayer. Job done !!!

Brian B

Come up to Scotland and you can clean your bike in swimming pool if you want - we have lots of water up here! Too much in fact and last year I counted only 8 days in total in June, July, August when it did not rain at all. We also had our usual quota during winter.

ddraver

Get one of these bad bois - http://www.muc-off.com/products/bicycle ... hing_brush

Make washing from a bucket much easier as you can properly slop the water over the bike with it.

shouldbeinbed

I've only ever cleaned my bikes with bucket and sponge. but no matter, we in the North West seem to have plenty of water too, buy yourself a 300 mile length of hosepipe and give me a shout when you want the tap turned on.

rolf_f

Zendog1 wrote:

It looks like the south east is going to have a ban from shortly. Does anyone know if bike cleaning is included?

The ban is on hosepipes - not specific uses. TBH, it probably won't make much difference to cleaning time or efficiency using a bucket anyway.

daviesee

Contingency plan -
Start a riot and use your bike as a shield :twisted:

"The force is already considering buying water cannon, while baton rounds are being made more readily available."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-17362438


Only kidding obviously. Come up north and help us get rid of some of our water

Zendog1

"The ban is on hosepipes - not specific uses" -???

The text says:

"Thames Water Utilities Limited gives notice to all of its customers, that the potable* water it supplies throughout its entire area must not be used for the following purposes:
watering a ‘garden’ using a hosepipe;
cleaning a private motor-vehicle using a hosepipe;
watering plants on domestic or other non-commercial premises using a hosepipe;
cleaning a private leisure boat using a hosepipe;
filling or maintaining a domestic swimming or paddling pool;
drawing water, using a hosepipe, for domestic recreational use;
filling or maintaining a domestic pond using a hosepipe;
filling or maintaining an ornamental fountain;
cleaning walls, or windows, of domestic premises using a hosepipe;
cleaning paths or patios using a hosepipe;
cleaning other artificial outdoor surfaces using a hosepipe."

I guess a bike could be caught by the last one or the recreational use but that's why I asked the question.

So does anyone know the answer?

verylonglegs

Personally I'd take it as literal, a hosepipe ban means precisely that.

Trickyh

Howabout you permanently plumbed in a pressure washer to your outside tap??

sfichele

I use a watering can filled up from the water butt. Never really needed to use a hosepipe for cleaning the road-bike

rolf_f

Zendog1 wrote:

"The ban is on hosepipes - not specific uses" -???

The text says:
drawing water, using a hosepipe, for domestic recreational use;

It's a hosepipe ban - ie a ban on using hosepipes. Obviously, there are other useage bans as well that don't involve a hosepipe but you can, for example, assume that washing a car (or bicycle) with a bucket of water will use much less water than a hosepipe whereas maintaining a swimming pool will always use the same amount of water however you choose to fill it.

rolf_f

Trickyh wrote:

Howabout you permanently plumbed in a pressure washer to your outside tap??

Even if you can successfully argue that that is exempt (good luck) the point is that the water needs to be saved which is why the ban is in force; looking for loopholes isn't really constructive. In reality, it is a very small inconvenience to the majority and the alternative (ie no hosepipe ban every generation or so) is a massive expenditure that the residents of the South and East would have to pay for themselves. And they probably wouldn't be too keen on that.

arthur_scrimshaw

Surely you all use wet wipes to clean your bikes?

carl_p

Zendog1 wrote:

"The ban is on hosepipes - not specific uses" -???

The text says:

"Thames Water Utilities Limited gives notice to all of its customers, that the potable* water it supplies throughout its entire area must not be used for the following purposes:
watering a ‘garden’ using a hosepipe;
cleaning a private motor-vehicle using a hosepipe;
watering plants on domestic or other non-commercial premises using a hosepipe;
cleaning a private leisure boat using a hosepipe;
filling or maintaining a domestic swimming or paddling pool;
drawing water, using a hosepipe, for domestic recreational use;
filling or maintaining a domestic pond using a hosepipe;
filling or maintaining an ornamental fountain;
cleaning walls, or windows, of domestic premises using a hosepipe;
cleaning paths or patios using a hosepipe;
cleaning other artificial outdoor surfaces using a hosepipe."

I guess a bike could be caught by the last one or the recreational use but that's why I asked the question.

So does anyone know the answer?

Yes don't use a hosepipe.

On the bright side not being able to do the above activities frees up more time for cycling

Brian B

Thought I would resuurect this thread now that Blightly has had a pretty dismal summer and was wondering how you are affected now

MattC59

I was disappointed that I wasn't able to use a short length of hose pipe for whipping the local chavs !

team47b

Surely cyclists are anarchists, by which I don't mean out of control, rather out of their control!

Ban away if it makes you feel better

It would never occur to me to use a hose to wash a bike!

Trickyh

We are still under the ban (veolia bollox water) when all around us the ban is lifted. I just use the hose anyway.. Fúck em if they dont know how to manage water supplies. They should have their monopoly taken away...

All the garden centers around our way are showing how to attach a pressure washer to a water butt. Thats great, if you want to wash your car with stinky stagnant water full of mozzie larvae.. :twisted:

TheEnglishman

My waterbut has a tight fitting lid so it's just water in there - no mozzies or leaves. So I'm off looking for a cheap pressure washer as mine split the pump housing over the winter :-( its always the non repairable bit that goes isn't it?

verylonglegs

Traditionally it's just wielding a tennis racquet or cricket bat in the open that was enough to bring out the rain. Turns out this year various water companies and news items declaring a drought and telling us how desperate the situation is was enough to guarantee the wettest spring/early summer for over a hundred years :roll:

jim453

Trickyh wrote:

We are still under the ban (veolia bollox water) when all around us the ban is lifted. I just use the hose anyway.. Fúck em if they dont know how to manage water supplies. They should have their monopoly taken away...

All the garden centers around our way are showing how to attach a pressure washer to a water butt. Thats great, if you want to wash your car with stinky stagnant water full of mozzie larvae.. :twisted:

F@ck who? It's you and your area who will run out of water if everyone does that. Moron.

Trickyh

jim453 wrote:

Trickyh wrote:

We are still under the ban (veolia bollox water) when all around us the ban is lifted. I just use the hose anyway.. Fúck em if they dont know how to manage water supplies. They should have their monopoly taken away...

All the garden centers around our way are showing how to attach a pressure washer to a water butt. Thats great, if you want to wash your car with stinky stagnant water full of mozzie larvae.. :twisted:

F@ck who? It's you and your area who will run out of water if everyone does that. Moron.

Believe all the propaganda you want m8.. x

jim453

Ok, I will. Thanks.

You're probably right though. Whatever the actual water situation is, the best course of action is almost certainly to indiscriminately and wilfully waste water.

TheEnglishman

Bugger!

ste_

jim453 wrote:

Ok, I will. Thanks.

You're probably right though. Whatever the actual water situation is, the best course of action is almost certainly to indiscriminately and wilfully waste water.

Who says he's wilfully wasting water?

I didn't use my hosepipe in the ban, but only for social conformity reasons. A hosepipe with an an/off trigger at the end is the most efficient means for washing my cars that I've found.

Pissing about walking back and forth to your tap to fill a bucket or watering can to pour over the car uses more water and does a worse job.