How to Look After Your Bike
Keeping a clean and well-maintained bike is important if you want it to be able to look and operate at its very best. You don’t even need to spend particularly long looking after it, especially if you give it a good clean and inspection after every ride.
We’ve put together a quick but handy guide about how to give your bike a good clean.
You’ll need:
- Bucket of hot water
- Washing up liquid
- Sponges and Brushes
- Old Toothbrush
- Thin lubricant
- De-Greaser
- Screwdriver
- Cloth
First scrub the chain using the brush and hot water with washing up liquid. Brush the chain until all the dirt and grime is removed.
After the majority of the grime is removed, take a toothbrush and a can of de-greaser and apply generously as you rotate the chain backwards. Scrub the chain with the old toothbrush after the de-greaser has been applied and then rinse off any remaining de-greaser with clean water. Then take the cloth and rub down the chain to remove any excess water which could otherwise cause rusting.
Next coat the entire chain with lubricant using as little as possible with minimum wastage. Any excess lubricant can be wiped away.
Now take the brake and gear cables and pull back the outers to expose the cables. Give all the exposed parts of the cables a rub down with the cloth, covered lightly with some de-greaser, before applying some more thin lubricating oil. Any old or rusting cables should be replaced.
Then turn to the front set of gears situated by the pedals, which are often jammed full of dirt and debris. Using the toothbrush and the hot, soapy water give the entire section a thorough cleaning and use the screwdriver to scrape off any dirt that may be lodged in between the chain and gears. Repeat this for the jockey wheels that are located at the rear of the bike.
Then take the lubricant and apply some to the working parts of the jockey wheels and the front gears and wipe clean with the cloth afterwards.
Take the screwdriver and remove all the dirt and grass that is probably lodged in the rear sprockets.
Then ‘floss’ the inside of the rear sprockets with the cloth to remove any remaining dirt and grime
You can then wash down and polish the entire bike, ensuring that all dirt is removed from the frame, as well as any moving parts.
It is essential to check that the tyre pressure is correct on the rear and front tyres and that both brakes are in good condition and working correctly.
Your cycle is now ready for action!
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