The Essential Bike Cleaning Thread

I normally just jet wash it (at a distance) so no chance of hurting seals and radiators.

Autoglym body shampoo with hot water, jet wash again, and dry with large drying towl. Then use mucoff maintainence spray (like acf50) on all metal and wires and she is clean as anything.

Need to get some degreaser and give my wheels a good going over. To be fair, I use chain wax and put a piece of card board behind the wheel while I spray it on, and once the wax is dried, it doesn't fling, so rear wheel doesn't get that bad.
 
I just use a sponge and bucket now,jetwasher packed up

use regular washing up liquid and these from the local pound shop,then wd40 on any locks/electrical switchgear/sidestand ect,use t cut for any scratches or swirl marks and then regular turtle wax,the interior clean n shine spray is good for the screen/seats and mirrors and my tank cover,use the engine degreaser on my wheels/swingarm areas

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no expense spared :D
 
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The blood of female virgins under a full moon at midnight is my method of choice. It's why I had to move away from Essex.
 
I can tell you what not to EVER use.

Muc off

Truck wash

Tfr (Traffic film remover)

OR any Acid/Alkaline based cleaning products.

Any and all of the above will destroy the finish of anodized and bare alloy parts of your bike, if it gets under painted alloy surfaces it will lift the paint and etch into the surface.
 
darket said:
I can tell you what not to EVER use.

Muc off

Truck wash

Tfr (Traffic film remover)

OR any Acid/Alkaline based cleaning products.

Any and all of the above will destroy the finish of anodized and bare alloy parts of your bike, if it gets under painted alloy surfaces it will lift the paint and etch into the surface.
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I still haven't bought anything, what products would you recommend?
 
I've used muc off before,I think the key is not to leave it on for long,30 seconds or round abouts and wash it off
 
hmm not sure whats up, it was sunny on saturday and rode my varadero for a few hours came back late and parked it up. but looking at it now, the bolts that hold the brake discs in are rusted like hell on the front wheel im sure they wernt like that on fri/saturday.
 
I've got mine booked in with all year biker at the weekend to get a proper clean and ACF50 treatment, then I picked up some muc off stuff as I had a voucher just to give it a quick once over every now and again which should be good enough with the ACF50.
 
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SDOC100 for 15 mins or so, hose off. Meguiars wash with cold water & sponge. Autoglym wax to finish off.

I am after some sort of dry wash though that can be used when the bike doesn't need a full water wash. Something that isn't just going to strip away all the protection, but will remove the small amount of dirt built up through a dry week.
 
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tom_e said:
I've got mine booked in with all year biker at the weekend to get a proper clean and ACF50 treatment...
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How much was that? I have some tiny bits of rust building up on some screws which are really annoying me. I was thinking of spraying lots of WD40 on those screws to see if that helps or I could just spill some coca cola on them. :p
 
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IC3 said:
How much was that? I have some tiny bit of rust building up on some screws which is really annoying me. I was thinking of spraying lots of WD40 on those screws to see if that helps or I could just spill some coca cola on them. :p
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£65

I reckon you'll pick up a lot of dirt after an ACF50 treatment though.
 
Craig321 said:
£65

I reckon you'll pick up a lot of dirt after an ACF50 treatment though.
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We've seen several forum threads that suggest that ACF50 attracts dirt so your bike will look pretty grubby after a few miles. Fact is, neither ACF50 or any other coating 'attracts' dirt, that stuff is flung onto your bike while your riding and there's not much you can do about it. Whether the dirt sticks there is entirely down to whether it lands on a tacky or sticky surface or a glossy one that it can't adhere too properly. If the latter then any dirt can be easily rinsed or shampooed off, (which is what we recommend you do as frequently as you can). If left to accumulate then in all probability it will harden and bond to the surfaces and take a lot more effort to shift. ACF50 is designated an Ultra Thin Fluid Coating (UTFC), some people apply several hundred times too much to their bike. The surplus simply congeals and makes for the aforementioned sticky surface, properly applied this doesn't happen.
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That's their answer to that question in their FAQ, to be honest I'm not too worried if it picks it up a little easier as all it should require is a quick spray down with the hose to get rid of it.
As I use my bike for daily commuting I'd rather a little bit more muck and have the protection from ACF50.
 
My bike get's cleaned when it rains on my commute :p

But yer I think I might get it booked in at allyearbiker too.
 
Some clear lacquer sprayed on screws/fasteners helps stop them rusting

And some fine wirewool and wd40 will bring them back
 
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