Bike washing (do's and dont's)

[Dfurgi]

Hey guys bit of a newb question but I've never had to wash my bike before and I was wondering what are the do's and don't's of bike washing?
Can i use a pressure washer just like a car? Is it better to use like soapy water and a sponge? Should I disconnect the battery? ect.
Any tricks or tips appreciated
thanks

[01kat750]

Hey guys bit of a newb question but I've never had to wash my bike before and I was wondering what are the do's and don't's of bike washing?
Can i use a pressure washer just like a car? Is it better to use like soapy water and a sponge? Should I disconnect the battery? ect.
Any tricks or tips appreciated
thanks

Its bacically like washing a car. I dont reccomend a pressure washer. It can peel up the edges of stickers, take the clear off the wheels and paint, and get even farther into electronics than a water hose. Dont wash it while the motor and rotors are hot.

[Psycho1]

if you use a pressure washer I would keep it back a ways from the paint so as to not blow it right off the plastic, and don't use the pressure washer on the chain unless you want to buy a new one soon due to missing o-rings. I prefer to just use a bucket of soap and water, clean soft rag, and a garden hose.

[sharpie6]

A pressure washer is great if you need to clean the hard to reach area's of your swing arm. It really does a good job of blasting away all that grime.

[scottynoface]

I use the Mr. Clean car wash formula (the green stuff) with hot as hell water and a soft towel. Meguiar's Cleaner Wax after washing and then Meguiar's Quick Detailer to keep the shine up.

[steves]

A pressure washer is great if you need to clean the hard to reach area's of your swing arm. It really does a good job of blasting away all that grime.

Pressure washing is also a great way to blow all the grease out of a fitting, and replace the grease with road dirt and rust.


The Sprint Manual specifically mentions NOT ever using a pressure washer on the machine.

[sharpie6]

Well then don't pressure wash fittings

[suzukiray]

My thoughts EXACTLY! Ray.

[64dumptruck]

The Sprint Manual specifically mentions NOT ever using a pressure washer on the machine.

I don't trust them triumph engineers, they have been selling bikes and forgetting to put the forth cylinder on for years!!

[Phantom Kat]

I had a friend turn me on to a nice trick. If you put some whisk laundry detergant in a pressure sprayer, let it soak, and rinse it off it'll clean it up nicely. I usually do this whenever I take the farrings off.

[scottynoface]

I don't trust them triumph engineers, they have been selling bikes and forgetting to put the forth cylinder on for years!!

[HemiKat]

I rode throught a Mikes car wash once, my bike got clean but the people working there werent to happy.

[jono237]

i havent doen this nor will i ever as im paranoid and find that a little elbow greese goes a long way but my brother in law used oven cleaner and everything from bugs from 2 months ago to grease and road grime just whiped off i asked him if thats safe for his paint and he said well we will see. But so far seems to be ok. Please if its not good please let me know so i can pass on the info

[JokerZwild]

Put it this way,I used oven cleaner to strip my bike frames as a kid! Not a very bright idea to wash your bike with it!

[md86]

What if the dirt's the only thing holing it together .....
I don't wash mine anymore . Not because it's ugly , but because every time I DID , something broke . Seriously .