Preventing rust

Ghost Rider

I have two bikes. One has an aluminium frame while the other has a frame that describes itself as "Nitanium", which I believe is a steel alloy similar to chromium-molybdenum steel ("chromoly").

If I have to leave these bikes outside for the Winter, is there any way of preventing rust? (I don't have a garage or shed.) Is it just the nitanium frame that's at risk or is the aluminium one susceptible too?

Will using bike covers help? If so, is there a type that's particularly effective?

Alternatively, does anyone use a wall rack to store their bike indoors...? If so, where did you get it and does it work well?

Cheers for any help.

Victor

Aluminium doesn't rust, but it can corrode slightly. It can corrode severely in certain circumstance like salt water.

Ghost Rider

That's what I thought - cheers.

Any idea what happens to chromoly?

Victor wrote:

Aluminium doesn't rust, but it can corrode slightly. It can corrode severely in certain circumstance like salt water.

Morgan

Any exposed parts of the steel frame (e.g. scratches) will rust after a while out in the rain. The same goes for your chain, most bolts and any other steel components. If water gets inside the frame it'll also rust on the inside. It'll take years for the frame to rust away but it'll look shabby pretty quickly. Store them inside if at all possible.

Ghost Rider

I'm afraid it won't be. My house is tiny. I might try and assemble some kind of makeshift shelter out the back - just to keep the rain at bay. Otherwise, I guess bike covers are the only option, right?

Morgan wrote:

Store them inside if at all possible.

Wibbs

Not sure about the bike covers from a rust protection perspective. It's better to get air circulation around the bike so that it dries quicker(counter intuitive I know). I know that classic car types can be dubious about putting car covers on for any length of time because of that.

Also counter intuitive but I remember reading before somewhere that it's actually in summer and autumn that rust is more active.

The best bet if you're storing them is to heavily grease the steel parts(chain etc). The frame can be sorted by taking out the seat tube and spraying rust preventative(Car Waxoyl or even ordinary spray oil, better than nothing) into the down tube(and the top tube if it's a lugless frame). You can reach the other main tubes by taking off a bottle mount and spraying in there. Spray liberally and after an hour or so turn the bike upside down and it should flow to the bits you couldn't reach. You could even go mad and grease the outside of the whole frame to be sure.

Ghost Rider

As for using a cover, I believe I've heard that theory before i.e. that a cover can trap damp air, thereby accelerating the rusting process. As for rust being seasonal, hadn't heard that before. Than again, I'm no rustologist.

Thanks for the tip re greasing the frame. How can you tell if it's a lugless frame? (In other words, what's a lug?)

Wibbs wrote:

Not sure about the bike covers from a rust protection perspective. It's better to get air circulation around the bike so that it dries quicker(counter intuitive I know). I know that classic car types can be dubious about putting car covers on for any length of time because of that.

Also counter intuitive but I remember reading before somewhere that it's actually in summer and autumn that rust is more active.

The best bet if you're storing them is to heavily grease the steel parts(chain etc). The frame can be sorted by taking out the seat tube and spraying rust preventative(Car Waxoyl or even ordinary spray oil, better than nothing) into the down tube(and the top tube if it's a lugless frame). You can reach the other main tubes by taking off a bottle mount and spraying in there. Spray liberally and after an hour or so turn the bike upside down and it should flow to the bits you couldn't reach. You could even go mad and grease the outside of the whole frame to be sure.

Wibbs

Ghost Rider wrote:

As for using a cover, I believe I've heard that theory before i.e. that a cover can trap damp air, thereby accelerating the rusting process. As for rust being seasonal, hadn't heard that before. Than again, I'm no rustologist.

Rustologist.:D Class. Apparently the higher temps and in Ireland the rain in summer and autumn makes rust spread farther than in the cooler temps of winter. Apparently

Thanks for the tip re greasing the frame. How can you tell if it's a lugless frame? (In other words, what's a lug?)

A lug is like a sleeve that holds the (steel)tubes together for welding. It's a more difficult join to get right but is generally much stronger, though slightly heavier. http://www.henryjames.com/lugbig.html
Welded joints are far easier to maunfacture, less strong but are slightly lighter.
http://www.henryjames.com/weld.html

The welded one is easy to spot as it's going to be the same on your aluminium bike. Here's some fancy pants lugged frames to give you an idea; http://www.rivendellbicycles.com/html/bikes_rivendellframes.html

Here's a lugless; http://www.edgecycles.com/edge-cycles-frames.cfm

In any case the chances are you can still access the other tubes on a lugless frame.

Ghost Rider

Some lovely looking frames on that Rivendell site. I believe I'm camped very much in the land of the lugless, though, so I'll see where that leaves me.

Cheers for l'info.

Wibbs wrote:

Rustologist.:D Class. Apparently the higher temps and in Ireland the rain in summer and autumn makes rust spread farther than in the cooler temps of winter. Apparently


A lug is like a sleeve that holds the (steel)tubes together for welding. It's a more difficult join to get right but is generally much stronger, though slightly heavier. http://www.henryjames.com/lugbig.html
Welded joints are far easier to maunfacture, less strong but are slightly lighter.
http://www.henryjames.com/weghld.html

The welded one is easy to spot as it's going to be the same on your aluminium bike. Here's some fancy pants lugged frames to give you an idea; http://www.rivendellbicycles.com/html/bikes_rivendellframes.html

Here's a lugless; http://www.edgecycles.com/edge-cycles-frames.cfm

In any case the chances are you can still access the other tubes on a lugless frame.

milod

I have two bikes also - one aluminium, one a traditional Reynolds steel frame. Neither are covered - both are kept in the garden - never had rust problems apart from a chain on one occasion which I now keep well oiled.

A regular light spray of WD40 prevents rust pretty much anywhere on a bike. and as previous posters said - don't put a cover on them - they just hold in the humidity.

DirkVoodoo

No Aluminium wont rust, when it oxidises you get alumina which will just form a very thin protective coating (similar to what you see on an ipod mini or the motorola V3).

Nitanium is a nickel-titanium shape memory alloy. Dunno why they use it for bikes, seeing as its not going to be undergoing any major elastic loading. The big use for nitinol is in artery stents.

I would guess that both are pretty safe in the rain, as long as it aint steel you arent going to get rust.

Ghost Rider

Nice one. Thanks.

milod wrote:

I have two bikes also - one aluminium, one a traditional Reynolds steel frame. Neither are covered - both are kept in the garden - never had rust problems apart from a chain on one occasion which I now keep well oiled.

A regular light spray of WD40 prevents rust pretty much anywhere on a bike. and as previous posters said - don't put a cover on them - they just hold in the humidity.

Ghost Rider

You know what I'm going to ask you, right...?

What's an artery stent?

DirkVoodoo wrote:

No Aluminium wont rust, when it oxidises you get alumina which will just form a very thin protective coating (similar to what you see on an ipod mini or the motorola V3).

Nitanium is a nickel-titanium shape memory alloy. Dunno why they use it for bikes, seeing as its not going to be undergoing any major elastic loading. The big use for nitinol is in artery stents.

I would guess that both are pretty safe in the rain, as long as it aint steel you arent going to get rust.

DirkVoodoo

Hmm..firstly turns out that the bike nitanium and regular nitanium arent the same...

An artery stent using nitinol is like a little metal cylinder that is inserted into a narrowing artery to allow a proper blood flow regime. The good thing about memory metals is that they can be expanded in vivo, making them easier to place and more effective.

Now, back to bikes...