ElliotSF

Is synthetic grease more earth-friendly than non-synthetic grease? I ask because, after spending an hour reading "which grease should I use?' threads, I've narrowed my purchase options to these three:

Sta-Lube CRC SL3121 Marine Boat Trailer and 4 x 4 Wheel Bearing Grease
Evinrude Johnson OMC Triple Guard Grease
Peak Synthetic Marine Grease

If the price is roughly equal (which it is) and all three brands work equally well for hubs and headsets and the like (which I hope), then for me the only remaining question is, if a bit of this grease oozes off my bike and onto the pavement and into a stream, what harm does it do? Yes, it's a tiny dab of grease. But still, it adds up! So I'd like to use the most benign/least harmful grease.

Any thoughts? Facts? Recommendations? I skimmed an EPA document called "Environmentally Acceptable Lubricants" but it was inconclusive and also boring.

I could post this question on the Mechanics forum but I wanted to start with C&V because I'm loyal to C&V. Thanks!

pastorbobnlnh 

With all due respect, if used correctly in your bearings, and any excess external grease is cleaned up at each bearing service, your bike should never "ooze" grease onto the pavement. But even if your bike does drop a tiny grease glob along the way, does it really hurt anything other then possibly stain someone's nice white tennis shoes? I personally don't believe it will. Here's why:

Crude oil, which is the basis for one of the primary ingredients (mineral oil) in "regular" grease, is a natural substance produced in the earth. There are all sorts of bacteria which live off of crude oil which comes to the surface either naturally or by human activity. The other primary ingredient is soap, which we all know is a cleaner. So between the bacteria and the soap, a little drop of grease here and there is quickly disposed of in a very natural way.

Synthetic grease substitutes vegetable oil for mineral oil. Pretty much anything living can consume vegetable oil with no effects, especially in the small doses inadvertently introduced by bicycle bearings. I'll admit soup can be hard to digest, if you try to eat a whole bar or drink the entire bottle of hand soap. But in the small amounts we are talking about, I'm guessing even the smallest song bird would experience nothing more then a nice internal "cleansing."

So my advise is use the grease you think smells the best. Clean off any and all external excess after servicing your bearings. And go enjoy the ride. Oh--- and don't forget you introduce carbon into the environment every time you exhale--- and all the plants love you for this!

miamijim

Shimano green Dura Ace is my all time #1 but its crazy expensive
Mobil 1 red in the tub has been my go to for the past 10 years
Recently I switched to Lucas 'red-n-tacky'

That being said, if you've done your home work and have found the 3 you mention to be the least environmentaly hazardous then I'd say go for any of them, at this point your probably splitting hairs.

miamijim

+1. The worst part about getting soap stuck in my teeth growing up was getting it out. All the toothbrush did was cause it to foam.

kunsunoke 

Big problem with the "environmentally-friendly" stuff is that what makes it friendly tends also to make the lubrication go away more quickly.

I'd recommend sticking to Mobil 1 synthetic red, Finish Line Teflon or something similar. Because everything returns to nature in the end.

jonwvara 

I've had good results with unsalted bacon fat.

momo608

This kind of politically correct mind dead garbage makes me sick. Man people are brainwashed!

iab

Huh?

nlerner

Does that apply to women people, too?

rootboy 

Great second post!
Can't wait for your 3rd.

repechage

Perhaps promoting the return of whale oil as a lubricant of choice.

roccobike

Uhhh. So Phil Wood grease is no longer the grease de jure?

rootboy 

I like it. Have a huge tub. Need some? At the rate I use it I could probably supply half the crew here with green grease.

Have a big tub of red Mobil 1 too, but somehow don't quite like it. Need some?

BTW, on Miami Jim's recommendation, I bought some of that green Dura Ace grease, and have to agree. Probably the best grease I've ever used. Too bad it is as expensive as drugs.

mstateglfr 

Curious what makes the 3 mentioned brands 'better' than basic ParkTool grease? I can use a 4oz tube of that stuff to completely rebuild probably 4+ bikes- headset, bottom bracket, and wheel hubs. It applies easily, cleans up easily, and doesn't cost a lot.
How are your options more eco-friendly than ParkTool's offering? I am not challenging you/disagreeing, I really just haven't looked into the environmental side of bike grease.

Dave Cutter

I don't think we should contribute the popularity of environmentalism to brainwashing or politics. I am pretty sure environmentalism as practiced in the world today is a religion. Even Al Gore saw that... and spoke to direction of the movement some years ago. I think many in the movement was surprised when Al's speeches took on a southern-evangelist preacher tone... for a period.

Ether way... I think the poster deserves a little respect about their concerns... even if misguided.

BTW I like the cheapest waterproof grease I found at the local auto-supply.

rootboy 

Expressing an honest question regarding being concerned about his environment met with disrespectful comments such as
" mind dead garbage" and "brain washed" deserve a little respect?

yes…as little as possible in my world.

IcySmooth52

I'm very surprised Mobil 1 Red is used on anyones bike! That's a high temp grease and will actually slow your bearings because it'll be so dense/thick! No part of your bike will make that grease ideal even in 115 degrees going at 40 mph for an hour.

Unfortunately there's no "green" grease that's bio-degradable and able to compete with synthetic greases. So you'll have to re-pack your wheel bearings 100x more often!

I'd like to point out Super Lube. Not as expensive as Shimano Dura-Ace, waterproof, long lasting, and certainly smooth.

unworthy1

synthetic oils and greases are (generally) produced from gasses rather than liquid petroleum or vegetable oils. Those gasses CAN include natural gas such as methane, which is both found deep in the earth and as nearby as your sewer or barnyard...maybe even closer!
And, although methane may be "natural" it's also considered many times more harmful than carbon dioxide as a contributor to global warming and/or climate change...there, I said it both ways.

ThermionicScott 

I'm not worried about the tiny amounts of grease that have left my hubs while riding in a downpour, but I am going to be moving on to boat trailer grease or similar so that it stays put better. Then at least I'll have more control over where it goes in the end.

bikemig 

+ 10, 'nuff said.

jimmuller 

I've never had a woman person ooze off my bike and onto the sidewalk or into a stream. Does that happen very often? I'd consider it a great loss if it did.

CMC SanDiego

I recently switched from Park-lube to a marine grade grease and tried it on a recent build. It is a little thicker and somehow kind of stringy, but seems to work great. I assume it will last longer but only time will tell.
The only way I ever see that getting into the environment is by washing it off my hands or if I wash the shop rag that I was using at the time. In either case it would be bound to a soap molecule (which alows it to become water soluble), and filtered just like everything else we wash down our drain through hundreds of feet of decomposed granite based soil before entering the ground water system. The stuff thats close enough to the surface for plants to pick up doesn't seem to cause any harm because the grass is way greener over the septic lines than anywhere else.

roccobike

This thread made me think about the re-cycling and earth friendly actions we take today. I have not looked into earth friendly grease like the OP, but, consider when I was a kid, everything went into the garbage that we didn't want. Lawn clippings, glass, metal containers, plastic, all of it.
Today, I use Simple Green to clean all my bike parts, I recycle my motor oil at the local auto parts shop, all bike frames and large parts like wheel that I discard go to the metal recycling bin at our local waste center. We bring old TV sets to the county's main recycle facility along with old paint cans. Anything reusable we donate to Goodwill or Guardian Angel thrift stores. Of course we abide by all the local laws about grass clippings, metal, glass and plastic containers and so on. So, while not quite as into it as the OP, I'm surprised by how much we've changed to be concerned about waste and recycling. It doesn't really take up that much additional time and it's worth it.

fitftw

I like Redline CV-2 synthetic grease and Timken hi-temp wheel bearing grease. Timken makes wheel bearings for cars, so you can't go wrong there. Not sure if it's synthetic though.

https://www.amazon.com/Red-Line-80401...mobil+1+grease

Amazon.com: Allstar ALL78241 Timken Brand Premium Red Type Wheel Bearing Grease 16 oz. Tub: Automotive

bikemig 

The claims made by religion cannot be evaluated by reason. That's neither a criticism nor a defect.

You may dislike environmentalists and their beliefs but these are not a matter of faith. They are subject to empirical verification and human reason.

There is a difference.

By the way, the criticisms of the poster's thread had a lot to do with the tone of the comment. This was a troll post looking for a reaction. There's lots of good back and forth here that do not involve trolling. For example, your thread questioning how environmentalism is practiced. That's a serious claim that one can agree or disagree with but that's quite different than the poster's attempt to troll the thread.