New to cycling, how to maintain my bike

freyners · 29-03-2015 5:49pm #1

So I bought a bike under the cycle to work scheme a couple of months back and I've been hooked. Love my commute (8miles in and out), love the benefits (down almost a stone since I've started) and, most of all, love saving almost a fiver my commute usually costs daily.

I'm fairly new to cycling, even newer to how to properly maintain a bike (its a hyrid Giant escape if thats an issue). Already I've noticed my back brake doesn't work as effectively as it used to and last week I developed a slight buckle in the rear wheel. Just wondering does anyone have an advice on any good videos online on proper bike care, what tools I should need and any tips to keeping my new baby in good condition (tips on how to effectively clean it would be msot welcome). I have a fairly limited budget and would rather do as much for the bike myself before i bring it in for repairs. I can change a tyre but thats about the height of it at the moment

Appreciate any help anyone could give me, apologies if there is a thread on this already and I missed it.

arybvtcw0eolkf · 29-03-2015 6:38pm

I'll start the ball rolling.

If Lidl still have them then buy yourself a bike work stand (€30), it'll take a huge workload of your back as you can then work on the bike at eye level.

After that a basic set of Allen keys and spanners, a tub of multi-purpose grease, and chain oil.. After that you can build it up, I use engine degreaser to strip the chain of oil before re-oiling it.. A track pump, I got almost ten years from Halfords own brand and have just replaced it with the very same model)

There's a few more things like a saddle bag, spare tubes, tire levers etc.

For all sorts of tips I found Global Cycling Network a great source of info as are BikeRadar (both on youtube).

Well done on the weight loss.

freyners · 29-03-2015 7:20pm

Rocco Large Wingspan wrote: »

I'll start the ball rolling.

If Lidl still have them then buy yourself a bike work stand (€30), it'll take a huge workload of your back as you can then work on the bike at eye level.

After that a basic set of Allen keys and spanners, a tub of multi-purpose grease, and chain oil.. After that you can build it up, I use engine degreaser to strip the chain of oil before re-oiling it.. A track pump, I got almost ten years from Halfords own brand and have just replaced it with the very same model)

There's a few more things like a saddle bag, spare tubes, tire levers etc.

For all sorts of tips I found Global Cycling Network a great source of info as are BikeRadar (both on youtube).

Well done on the weight loss.

Cheers, delighted how its going so far, fair bit yet to go but its a start.

thanks for the advice, really appreciated.

Pump wise I have a clip on for emergencies on my bike, i suppose its handy in a pinch but will look into it.

thanks for the sites, will look into them

One thing I left out of my op, how often do people clean their bikes? Daily or is that over doing it?

arybvtcw0eolkf · 29-03-2015 7:59pm

freyners wrote: »

One thing I left out of my op, how often do people clean their bikes? Daily or is that over doing it?

Good God I'm anal about having a clean bike and actually love getting stuck in and giving them a good wash down, I'd do it a few times a week during winter and less in the summer.

Its also a chance to keep on top of the bikes repair, check tire pressures, chain and wear & tear or other things.

G1032 · 29-03-2015 8:00pm

freyners wrote: »

Cheers, delighted how its going so far, fair bit yet to go but its a start.

thanks for the advice, really appreciated.

Pump wise I have a clip on for emergencies on my bike, i suppose its handy in a pinch but will look into it.

thanks for the sites, will look into them

One thing I left out of my op, how often do people clean their bikes? Daily or is that over doing it?

It depends on the riding conditions tbh. If I've been out in wet weather or on wet dirty roads then I'll clean the drive train after the cycle. I'll wipe the bike down and get as much dirt off as possible by wiping with a rag. Cycling in dry roads I'll give the chain a wipe with a rag every couple or three rides and give it a good cleaning every once in a while.

ted1 · 29-03-2015 8:02pm

Never leave home with out spare tubes, tyre levers and a pump,

Your cables etc will stretch after a few months. The ship will/ should do a free service to adjust this stuff.

Keep your tyres nice and hard. I keep mine at 120. A track pump is a must have.

Clean it every week. Especially if your out in bad weather

Ranjo · 29-03-2015 9:31pm

Hey OP I have a Giant Escape same as you. Been cycling a few years but only picked this one up six months ago.

I recently bought the bike maintenance stand from LIDL which has been a godsend for cleaning and basic maintenance.

I always carry a spare tube, mini pump and a multi tool. I own a stand up pump as I'm particular about tyre pressure.

I ride it fairly hard, as in hopping gutters and cycle in all weather. Had its first service recently and it cost 120 euro. I was surprised at that. Bikes worth 800.

After reading the above replies I intend to clean my bike more often! I do keep the chain clean I think the grit from wet roads did cause some of the high cost of my service.

torydiver · 29-03-2015 9:33pm

Loads of stuff on YouTube,
As mentioned, GCN(GLOBAL CYCLING NETWORK) on YouTube is a reputable site with loads of informative video clips on a variety of topics.....

cajonlardo · 29-03-2015 9:43pm

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pWZGMMZwaNs&list=PL56C43FD507BCBC61

Heres 22 of the bike radar "how to" videos.

freyners · 29-03-2015 9:55pm

Thanks all. Really helpful bunch of people

Tigerandahalf · 29-03-2015 10:31pm

The GCN videos are very good. Nice and short too. As you are only doing 16 miles a day a wash once a week should be fine. Mudguards I presume you have.
I have a road bike not too long and I have been very fortunate not to get a road puncture yet. In some ways it is a bad thing so tonight I went out and decided to take off the rear wheel as if I had a puncture. I made a mess of it and got grease all over my hands. There are videos on youtube that will show you how to take off the rear wheel without touching the chain. Put the chain into the smallest ring in the front and the back. I had trouble putting the wheel back on and the brake calipers were catching the rim but I played around with it and got it sorted. Playing around with the bike like that will save you hassle on a wet day.
Check out the GCN video on adjusting the deraileurs by indexing and adjusting the hi and low limit screws on it. This can make a huge difference to the ease at which your gears will shift without rattling and slipping.
In cleaning the drivechain get a degreaser from Halfords or other bike shop, spray it on for a few mins and then clean off the heavy stuff with a jey cloth which you can throw away afterwards. You can then fine clean it with suds and warm water.
To work at the bike I just turn it upside down. Just be careful you don't damage the shifters.
Bikes can require a lot of maintenance so some people might prefer to just let the local bike shop do it. But it is always good to learn about what you are cycling and try to do stuff yourself. Some lads are very handy and have great patience for it.

WillyFXP · 30-03-2015 1:19am

If the bikes only a couple of months old, the shop where you bought it should true the back wheel for you free of charge, it's about the only thing you'll have problems doing as a beginner, and difficult to correct it you make a balls of it, everything else as others have said is fairly easy to learn from online videos and just tinkering with your bits in the garage (pun fully intended)

m5ex9oqjawdg2i · 30-03-2015 10:06am

If you have a brand spanking new bike, I would be wary of rubbing dirt off the bike with a cloth. There's plenty of grit in the road gunk now stuck on your bike. If you rub it with a cloth it's going to scratch that beautiful paint.

I don't know what other peoples opinions on this are, but hosing your bike down first and using a brush might help here.

Muahahaha · 30-03-2015 10:33am

Not sure if you are in Dublin OP but if you are these guys run bicycle maintenance courses www.rothar.ie iirc it is €40 for the course. Other than that vids on YouTube are a great resource.

freyners · 30-03-2015 6:16pm

Muahahaha wrote: »

Not sure if you are in Dublin OP but if you are these guys run bicycle maintenance courses www.rothar.ie iirc it is €40 for the course. Other than that vids on YouTube are a great resource.

Yup, working here for the last few months. Have you gone personally or can anyone recommend them?

Einstein? · 30-03-2015 10:42pm

I think some of the responses here are a bit OTT. Ideally, you'd clean your bike after every use if you want the most out of it - but hey, would you give your girlfriend that much TLC?

I think it depends on weather conditions. For instance, I cleaned my bike there on the weekend. I don't use a bike stand, but as previously said you'll get more ache on your back without one. I don't stick to an SOP for cleaning but this is what I did for example:

1) Sprayed it down with some kitchen cleaner diluted in hot water 1/10. Try to avoid drive train bolts.
2) Scrubbed with disposable kitchen sponge & blue cloth (the ones used for cleaning kitchen tables).
3) Rinse & wash, repeat as many times until it's clean. Get the blue cloth through gaps and then pull on either ends like flossing to get the dirt out of those corners - same for rear derailleur. For wheels, take your time and go around rims where brakes make contact with it.
4) Dry with clean, dry blue cloth.
5) Chain - get your hands dirty, keep going through it with a moist cloth. You'll know when it's clean when it returns to normal color.
6) Assemble wheels.
7) Oil your chain with some product designed for bikes, don't try to use WD40 or some other stuff. Use minimum and try and get into the cavities of the chain - not the sides. Remove side excess.
8) Run it through all the gears, and it should be running as smooth as new.

Now - regarding when you clean it, it depends on the Irish weather. Today for instance, I got caught out in the torrential rain and so the bike picked up a bit of dirt. With that, if you can avoid bad weather days you'll have to clean it less. Beyond that, it's personal preference how often you clean it. I would do mine maybe once a month.

Congrats on weight loss

RainyDay · 20-04-2015 9:48pm

freyners wrote: »

Yup, working here for the last few months. Have you gone personally or can anyone recommend them?

I did one of their courses a couple of years back, and it wasn't a great experience. The instructor had a strong European accent, and was hard to follow, though certainly knowledgeable. There wasn't any particular structure to the course - really just a bit of 'try this and try this'. I did pick up a few nuggets, but I thought it could have been better.

freyners · 20-04-2015 9:57pm

RainyDay wrote:

I did one of their courses a couple of years back, and it wasn't a great experience. The instructor had a strong European accent, and was hard to follow, though certainly knowledgeable. There wasn't any particular structure to the course - really just a bit of 'try this and try this'. I did pick up a few nuggets, but I thought it could have been better.

Thanks for the feedback. Going to go in Monday on the beginners course and see how it goes. More than willing to post feedback if people want

flywheel · 20-04-2015 10:25pm

Pretty much this book:
Zinn and the Art of Road Bike Maintenance

http://www.velopress.com/books/zinn-the-art-of-road-bike-maintenance-4th-ed/

jon1981 · 20-04-2015 10:26pm

freyners wrote: »

Thanks for the feedback. Going to go in Monday on the beginners course and see how it goes. More than willing to post feedback if people want

Would be interested to her about your experience as I'm thinking of doing it too but can't make the next date.

5p9arw38djv2b4 · 27-04-2015 11:08pm

freyners wrote: »

Yup, working here for the last few months. Have you gone personally or can anyone recommend them?

I've done the course and it was really helpful, was about 3-3.5 hours on a Monday night - took my bike so I learnt how to do my own bike. Good mix of people and we learnt everything from total basics to removing front and rear wheels, changing brake blocks etc. had time to do practical hands on for everything.

Now to be fair I knew nothing at all going into the course, so if you have an idea already maybe do an intermediate course

And my instructor was easy to understand, perfect English. I did the course in October

GTDolanator · 28-04-2015 8:30am

Keeping your bike clean is IMO the most important thing one can do in regards maintenance

smacl · 28-04-2015 8:45am

Practice a tyre change in the comfort of your home rather than having to learn how on the roadside in the lashing rain. Not usually difficult, but some tyres like marathons can be tough to get on and off if you're not used to them. In terms of daily clean, for me the most important one is checking tyres for crap like little bits of glass they may have picked up and checking pressure. I tend to clean the chain and drive train at weekends and check the brakes at the same time. More often in bad weather.

If you do get a puncture roadside, check the inside of the tyre for the thing that caused the puncture before putting the new tube in. If you don't, chances are you'll get another puncture five minutes later.

Kinet1c · 28-04-2015 9:08am

freyners wrote: »

Thanks for the feedback. Going to go in Monday on the beginners course and see how it goes. More than willing to post feedback if people want

jon1981 wrote: »

Would be interested to her about your experience as I'm thinking of doing it too but can't make the next date.

Any more info on this as I'm considering attending.

Thargor · 28-04-2015 10:39am

Can I get a link to the courses people are talking about please?

RainyDay · 28-04-2015 11:57am

http://www.rothar.ie/bike-maintenance-classes.html

http://bikemaintenance.ie/

Thargor · 28-04-2015 12:55pm

Thanks, Im booked in for intermediate on the 11th in Rothar, sounds like a good deal for €50, anything heavier like servicing bearings Ill just use the LBS.

freyners · 28-04-2015 1:13pm

Apologies. I wasnt able to go last night Something came up i had to attend to

New to cycling, how to maintain my bike

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