Cleaning components with petrol

subscriber

Is it ok to do this? I took apart the components of my bike today for cleaning and decided to clean them with petrol. I filled a basin with petrol and steeped the chain and cassette in it for 30 mins, scrubbed it, and then washed it down with water and dried it. I did similar with the rear cogs but did not take them apart, just hand scrubbed, washed with water and dried, and re-lubed again.

Everything came out crystal clean and when re-lubed seemed to run fine around the chainrings nice and smooth but am wondering about the long term effects this may have on the components..... Emmmm.

What do you clean your bike with?

G1032

Petrol will remove all lubricant from the components so I avoid using it. It gets them really clean alright but has zero lubricating qualities

I use diesel. Diesel is a lubricant anyway and I find it great for cleaning the drivetrain.

07Lapierre

Petrol? Is that not a pretty expensive option? I use soapy water and degreaser.

crosswords

Petrol vapour has a flashpoint of 32 degrees celsius.

Also the benzene vapours are hazardous to human health.

There are safer methods.

Nothing wrong with WD 40.

subscriber

07Lapierre wrote: »

Petrol? Is that not a pretty expensive option? I use soapy water and degreaser.

78 cent in a bottle for the whole bike..

07Lapierre

subscriber wrote: »

78 cent in a bottle for the whole bike..

fair enough...probably cheaper than other cleaning products!

subscriber

G1032 wrote: »

Petrol will remove all lubricant from the components so I avoid using it. It gets them really clean alright but has zero lubricating qualities

I use diesel. Diesel is a lubricant anyway and I find it great for cleaning the drivetrain.

Do you mean that once the components are cleaned with petrol that even though there rinsed with water and dried that lubricant will not stick as well to them afterwards?? .... Or just that if they were to be reused without lubricant after cleaning that they would not function properly?

Johnny K

Petrol contains benzene which highly carcinogenic. Not worth it!

subscriber

Johnny K wrote: »

Petrol contains benzene which highly carcinogenic. Not worth it!

Opinion on diesel?

Are you worried about the carcinogenic effect on the components or on me?? ha

crosswords

Don't forget to factor in the cost of a fire extinguisher, time off work, and 6 months of skin grafts.

Petrol - Seriously don't do this.

subscriber

crosswords wrote: »

Don't forget to factor in the cost of a fire extinguisher, time off work, and 6 months of skin grafts.

Petrol - Seriously don't do this.

???? Im not scrubbing the bike with a naked flame???

Lumen

crosswords wrote: »

Petrol vapour has a flashpoint of 32 degrees celsius.

Nope, the flashpoint of petrol is tens of degrees below freezing, well below any temperature you will ever find in Ireland.

G1032

subscriber wrote: »

Do you mean that once the components are cleaned with petrol that even though there rinsed with water and dried that lubricant will not stick as well to them afterwards?? .... Or just that if they were to be reused without lubricant after cleaning that they would not function properly?

Just that petrol will strip all lubricant off them. I suppose if they are re-lubed properly afterwards there would be no issues but that's going to take more that a quick drop of dry lube

subscriber

G1032 wrote: »

Just that petrol will strip all lubricant off them. I suppose if they are re-lubed properly afterwards there would be no issues but that's going to take more that a quick drop of dry lube

Good thing i use wet lube then... Ha.

I joke.. I see your point anyway.

Lumen

I've used diesel for chain cleaning. It was smelly, messy and caused disposal difficulties. I also worried about it being washed off the chain on to the road and causing someone to crash.

I don't know why anyone would bother given the much more pleasant alternatives.

crosswords

Diesel will irritate your skin and respiratory tract and has a moderate fire risk.

Lumen - the figure of 32 degrees refers to the requisite temperature of the liquid fuel, which may cause a spontaneous ingnition.

Vikings

Kerosene is great for and recommended by/for the cleaning of motorcycle chains.

I use it to clean my motorcycle chain every few weeks. Has crazy cleaning powers!

.ak

For my chain I just use hot water with fairy liquid, rub it completely dry, then re-lube, then wipe clean. Haven't had any issues yet. Will probably use a proper degreaser someday and oil bath as a 'deep clean', but for weekly cleans the above works fine.

subscriber

Lumen wrote: »

I've used diesel for chain cleaning. It was smelly, messy and caused disposal difficulties. I also worried about it being washed off the chain on to the road and causing someone to crash.

I don't know why anyone would bother given the much more pleasant alternatives.

And you use ??

Lumen

crosswords wrote: »

Lumen - the figure of 32 degrees refers to the requisite temperature of the liquid fuel, which may cause a spontaneous ingnition.

The autoignition temperature of petrol is upwards of 250C.

subscriber wrote: »

And you use ??

Citrus degreaser.

mirv

I use white spirit poured out of a 5L jug bought at a garden or hardware shop. I pour it into containers to soak and shake the chain/cassette/bearings in. For chains I generally need two or three 200-300ml 'rinses' before the solvent no longer changes colour as the chain gets progressively cleaner. Afterwards I pour all the leftover solvent and gunk back into the 5L jug. After a day or two the gunk settles to the bottom of the jug and I can reuse the spirits. I also use rags, brushes and dish soap to clean the bike. I feel that it's important to rinse the bike down with water after using sodium based dish soap on it. If I'm feeling particularly generous I'll wipe the frame down with a clean rag and a gentle application of gt85 as it's got some teflon in it to prevent dirt from sticking.

I probably lose 50-75ml of white spirit every time I clean the bike due to evaporative, dripping, and pouring losses but it's far more economical and more enviromentally friendly than using 'disposable' citrus degreaser. The per-litre pricing of bike cleaning and lubrication products is ridiculous - i.e. €9 for 125ml of lube or the same for about 500ml of degreaser (compared to much less for white spirits or petrol/diesel from the station) and I'm a staunch proponent of using off-the-shelf car and motorcycle products.

G1032

Lumen wrote: »

Citrus degreaser.

How much is this and where can one buy?

clog

Been using this lately and it works well. Much cheaper than cycle specific stuff (to be honest it seems exactly like Fenwicks). Free delivery if you bump the spend up to £25.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Gunk-6868-Ultra-Engine-Degreaser/dp/B006HFM8MA/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1405355101&sr=8-4&keywords=degreaser

Brian?

I don't see the need for anything more aggressive than fairy liquid and a bottle brush.

Petrol and diesel stink and need to be disposed of properly. Most degreasers stink and are too expensive.

WillyFXP

http://www.halfords.ie/motoring/engine-oils-fluids/engine-cleaner-degreaser/autoglym-engine-cleaner this stuff is brilliant. I've tried most off the shelf degreasers, and this one is the best by far. Halfords usually have a 2 for 1 offer on this as well.

G1032

WillyFXP wrote: »

http://www.halfords.ie/motoring/engine-oils-fluids/engine-cleaner-degreaser/autoglym-engine-cleaner this stuff is brilliant. I've tried most off the shelf degreasers, and this one is the best by far. Halfords usually have a 2 for 1 offer on this as well.

That's expensive though. You can get 5L of Jizer in a motor factors for about €22......

Jawgap

Lumen wrote: »

The autoignition temperature of petrol is upwards of 250C.




Citrus degreaser.

Jet A-1 as a chain cleaner.......




Until I get some of that to experiment with I'll stick with the citrus degreaser......smells fresh!

......and oocasionally Fenwick's foaming degreaser - more for the fun element!

Lumen

Jawgap wrote: »

Until I get some of that to experiment with I'll stick with the citrus degreaser......smells fresh!

......and oocasionally Fenwick's foaming degreaser - more for the fun element!

Yeah, read some material data sheets on citrus degreasers and get back to me.

http://www.bikersbest.dk/resources/files/Degreaser%20Citrus/Finish%20line_USA_Citrus%20Degreaser%20-%20Liquid%20-%20(NF).pdf

I haven't worked out whether it's more or less nasty than the alternatives, but I did some reading and resolved to clean my bike less often.

CJhaughey

Kerosene and gloves.
Cheap and effective and if you wear gloves... safe.

Jawgap

Lumen wrote: »

Yeah, read some material data sheets on citrus degreasers and get back to me.

http://www.bikersbest.dk/resources/files/Degreaser%20Citrus/Finish%20line_USA_Citrus%20Degreaser%20-%20Liquid%20-%20(NF).pdf

I haven't worked out whether it's more or less nasty than the alternatives, but I did some reading and resolved to clean my bike less often.

But it smells so nice........

I've been using BikeHut Citrus degreaser - looking at it's MSDS - it looks like I've been using orange flavoured soapy water.....:(

I may have to move on to something a bit more industrial.

Out of interest, I wear latex gloves when working on the bike - I assume most people do? I just find it easier to keep my hands clean rather than scrub them when I'm done.

Eamonnator

Lumen wrote: »

Yeah, read some material data sheets on citrus degreasers and get back to me.

http://www.bikersbest.dk/resources/files/Degreaser%20Citrus/Finish%20line_USA_Citrus%20Degreaser%20-%20Liquid%20-%20(NF).pdf

I haven't worked out whether it's more or less nasty than the alternatives, but I did some reading and resolved to clean my bike less often.

That stuff can be "fatel"

kao123

I've been using home heating oil (Kerosene) to clean all the grease and oil off the chain and sprockets, I use a small paintbrush and run it over the sprockets and chain. The same jam jar full of Kerosene has so far lasted for a really long time, once the sediment settles it's clear for the next degrease.

I leave it for a few mins then apply some fenwicks to remove all that. I then give the bike an overall clean using good old fashioned soap and water with rags and sponges etc....

Once it's all dry I re-lube the chain and sprockets, been doing this for a long time now and so far it works very well for me.

And I too wear latex gloves - saves scrubbing the oil and grease off afterwards, got a box of 50 somewhere last year for a fiver!

CJhaughey

Motorcycle chains transmit more power, are larger, greasier(auto lubers) and many have O-rings which need more care than bike chains which are tiny and cleaner.
Most bikers that I know use kero as a cleaning agent, cheap, dries away leaving no residue and works very well.
I haven't tried my italian chain cleaner with kero as I find it fiddly, just a tooth brush and a paint roller tray of kerosene.
Those with sensitive noses might want to look at odourless lamp oil which is refined kero with the odourising agents taken out.
Once it settles it can be poured off and reused.

Mamil biker

I use baby wipes for a quick clean of the chain and bike. It works. Simple as.

Mamil biker

I use baby wipes for a quick clean of the chain and bike. It works. Simple as.

doozerie

For the bike generally I often just wipe with a damp j-cloth, rinse/clean the j-cloth with washing up liquid afterwards or as and when it gets particularly dirty while wiping the frame. For stuff that resists removal by that method I use a damp multi-fibre cloth and a little elbow grease.

When I actually wash the bike, which is a rarity, I use diluted Fenwicks. I mainly use it because it comes in a convenient spray bottle (which I refill from a cheaper bottle of undiluted Fenwicks as I need to), otherwise I’d use some mild and non-abrasive detergent or other diluted in water in a bucket and applied with a multi-fibre cloth.

For my chain I use ProGold ProLink, one of several lubricants which “self clean” the chain. After each ride, or every other ride if I’m feeling particularly lazy, I wipe the chain (and jockey wheels and chainrings, and cogs too if I’m feeling enthusiastic) clean with a rag or kitchen towel, apply more ProLink, and wipe off the excess. I do that in my kitchen, which is possible because it’s not a messy task (I lay a rag on the ground under the chain, and another over the chainstay to stop drips/splashes getting onto the rear rim). Once in a blue moon I’ll use a chain cleaner and Park Tool degreaser to ensure the chain is “fully” clean, which is definitely an outdoor job.

I’ve used the like of white spirits on chains before but for me it’s too smelly, too harsh on my skin (no matter how careful I am to avoid contact with it), too messy, takes too much time, environmentally conscious disposal of the mucky residue is a problem, etc., to be a good regular option.

For gloves I use nitrile gloves, not latex, latex is an irritant for some plus nitrile has much better resistance to harsh chemicals than latex. I find nitrile gloves much tougher too so they last a lot longer. Nitrile gloves are only marginally more expensive than latex ones, if you buy them from somewhere that sells medical supplies, and Lidl stocks them occasionally too - by contrast, the Park Tool branded nitrile gloves are very expensive and while they look like they’d be more robust than some I’m not convinced that they’d prove to be good value for money.

WillyFXP

G1032 wrote: »

That's expensive though. You can get 5L of Jizer in a motor factors for about €22......

Which isn't water soluble, is full of solvents and has to be disposed of the same way oil or diesel does. The autoglym stuff is very economical, a couple of sprays does the whole drivetrain, I've done 3 bikes at least 3 times each and I've still more than 3/4 of the bottle left.

Lumen

Jawgap wrote: »

I've been using BikeHut Citrus degreaser - looking at it's MSDS - it looks like I've been using orange flavoured soapy water.....:(

I may have to move on to something a bit more industrial.

From my reading the toxic ingredients are the solvents. The surfactants (your soapy water) are not acutely toxic and can happily be poured down the drain.

I think it makes sense to do the least harm possible. Is a solvent really required for cleaning a chain?

Jawgap

Lumen wrote: »

From my reading the toxic ingredients are the solvents. The surfactants (your soapy water) are not acutely toxic and can happily be poured down the drain.

I think it makes sense to do the least harm possible. Is a solvent really required for cleaning a chain?

I suppose the question is do you really need solvents? Chain lube doesn't strike me as being particularly 'heavy.'

Some warm soapy water, from my reading, looks like it would be reasonably effective. Especially as the chain gets changed regularly. I'm not sure washing up liquid is the way to go because of the salt, but what about sodium stearate?

Despite my earlier suggestion, I won't be heading down the petrol / diesel / kerosene route - it's not the type of stuff I'd like to have around the shed.

Solvents might be more efficient and give a cleaner chain, but is the marginal gain worth it?

endacl

Good lord!

Simply have your footman dispose of the chain when any dirt appears! And replace with a new clean one.

Peasants.