Meterman

Good morning folks. I live on Long Island and my trusty Trek 7800 was unlucky enough to be stuck in 2-3 feet of flood waters following hurricane Sandy for several days. I took it to my local shop a few months after the hurricane and was told it would probably be too expensive to repair as both rims, the cassette, derailleurs, chain, cables, crank assembly, etc were exposed to corrosive salt water for so long.

My question is simple: Can anyone give me the remotest idea of what that repair might cost? I'm not a bike aficionado and don't need the best-of-the-best. I just want the bike to be usable again. I used to put 100 miles per week on this bike just commuting to and from work and it seems a shame to leave it on a scrap heap now. Any input will be appreciated. Thanks!

demoncyclist

To replace the entire drivetrain, wheels, etc., and clean out everything else to make the bike safe and reliable will probably cost more than replacing the bike with a new version of the same thing (or finding a nice used one on Craigslist or some other source). You also have the problem of continuing corrosion as the bike has been sitting for how long now? The salt water has probably done damage to everything at this point. Had you flushed the whole bike in fresh water right away, you may have been able to minimize the damage, but the salt has continued to corrode the insides of everything it has come in contact with- so even removing some of the old components- especially the bottom bracket, may be a herculean task.

Little Darwin

Generic numbers for low end component replacement, even though I think the 7800 was not low end.:

New wheels would be $100+, new cassette is $30+, Derailleurs another $50+, Chain is $10+, Cables $10+, Crank and BB $50+

Then you potentially have a headset if the waters were over the bottom race of the headset... Since you don't mention being completely submerged, your shifters may be ok. However, the aluminum frame could corrode, but you could check that (to some extent) when you disassemble it.

So, $250 or more for parts that are probably below the quality of what the bike came with, plus labor (if needed) for a bike that is worth about $250 with the original components etc. (Bicycle Blue Book doesn't list the 7800, but the 1999 7700 estimate is $250 in fair condition)...

If the bike has significant sentimental value, it may be worth the effort and expense, otherwise, I would look for another bike.

Meterman

Yeah, at this point I wish I had pulled the bike apart immediately following the hurricane and cleaned it thoroughly, but it wasn't high on the priority list at the time. Just trying to get the 18,000 gallons of water out of my house was a task in itself.

Perhaps I'll pull the bike apart myself and see whether replacement parts are a worthwhile investment. The bike does have sentimental meaning, but not if it's going to cost me $400. If I can get it to a comparable state for $250, it's completely worth it.

gsa103

Post a couple of pictures. If you're just looking for a beater, you might be able to get acceptable performance by putting in a new chain and brake/shift cables. Then re-grease the hubs & BB, and soak the cassette & crank in WD-40. The problem is that route isn't free, and you'd need to verify that there wasn't too much underlying damage to the frame, derailleurs or wheels. Likely its toast, salt water isn't nice.

Coal Buster

I have a sandy bike that was completely submerged. Problem wasn't salt but sand. I had to take everything apart to rinse out the sand, every bearing and movable component. Maybe it didn't have salt damage because it was rinsed in sweet water soon after (but not immediately). It's a Giant Boulder, a cheap bike but maybe that's what saved it. The components aren't exactly high end. It's perfectly fine now.

FBinNY 

It's been almost a year, and most of a riding season, where ya been till now?

Anyway, it's impossible to estimate without having a sense of the actual damage. If the bike was well cared for before submersion, there's a chance that the actual damage is less than you think.

So the real question is what is the actual damage that you can see or feel?

BTW- to anyone else whose bike suffers salt or flood water submersion or damage. The first and most important step is a thorough rinse with fresh water, followed by drying in a warm place (the sun can work wonders here). This minimizes corrosion and in many cases is the ONLY thing required. Otherwise, the next step would be to spray down with something like LPS-1 or WD-40, to keep the water from "wetting" the bare metal.

Then whether it actually will need any disassembly and service is a matter of it's condition prior to the drowning, and luck. It also helps that the bike is ridden as soon as possible, this redistributes lubricants and keeps rust from attacking stationary nooks and crannies.

AnkleWork

Good idea -- better than all the guesswork in the world.