degreasing with engine degreaser
 

I've had my cannondale R700 for a year and a half now, and have never used anything other than Finish Line to degrease my chain and cassette. I picked up a bottle of motomaster engine degreaser. The back says that it is safe for surfaces like metals, enamel, porcelain, masonary so i am not too concerned about my drivetrain. But i am worried about my paint. I bought the gray model, which isn't exactly the most reliable paintjob and tends to chip.

So i was wondering if using this as my degreaser sounds like a good idea.

Thanks

Simple green, in my experience is a great paint remover.... if you let it sit long enough full strength on the paint. Never the less I have no reservations about using weaker solutions on painted (bike or other) surfaces, as long as it is cleaned off within a short period, which is pretty much what you do when cleaning a bike. I used it at about 10% conc to clean an industrial 1800# milling machine of 30yrs accumulated grease, grunge and coolant before repainting a few years ago and the paint didn't peel off before and the new paint is still adhering. Try it on some other painted metal first, but it is unlikely to be a problem, there is a lot of painted metal in engine compartments.

Yes! I use brake cleaner from an auto store. Flat out works FAST! I only use it on the freewheel or cassette by taking off the wheel and holding it so the degreaser runs away from the spokes and tires. I don't like all the crud running all over everything. It works so well you don't even have to spray it full throttle. You can just kind of goose it or finesse it if you will. This way you will have a lot left over for use for another time.

Then I use ProLink chain lube. Prolink has a cleaner in it as well and it seems to keep everything clean. It does such a good job that I don't think I will have to use the brake cleaner again for a very long time. You can use brake cleaner on the chain as well. I have done this in the past and it also works very well. But I do it in a way as to not let all the crud and degreaser get all over the paint. It's not that the paint gets hurt but if there is any wax on your paint there won't be if the brake cleaner gets on it.

J B

Engine cleaner like Engine Brite? I would not risk using that on a painted surface.

Not a good idea. If any gets into your hub it will dry up the lube in there and lead to bearing/hub failure.
It's overkill.

Bob

Nah. I've been using spray engine degreaser on my drive trains for as long as I can remember. I just spray it on, wait about two minutes and rinse it with a hose (not a high pressure hose.) You can't get anything into the hubs without pressure. Everything gets squeaky clean. I bounce the bike on the ground a couple of times to shed most of the water and let it dry. Then I lube the chain. I've done it countless times. I know people who actually remove the chain to clean it and use toothbrushes on the cassettes and derailleurs. What a hassle. I like clean bikes but I would ride dirty ones if that's what I had to go through.

Nah.

Bob

It's just kerosene.

Check the directions, it usually has a big disclaimer saying not to get it on paint. I use citrus cleaner on my bike and it doesn't hurt the paint and it works about as well as engine degreaser on engines.

+1, FMW may have had success, and he may also know exactly how to use powerful degreasers. I have both engine cleaner and Simple Green. I use Simple Green on bikes for the same reasons Bobby Lex stated. IMHO, it just is not worth the risk of accidently cleaning/compromising a bearing surface.
As for the paint surface, I doubt it will hurt the paint if you remove it right away, but as was previously posted, use at your own risk.
BTW, I didn't think Simple Green would attack paint. So I soaked a new chain that had bluing on it over night. All the bluing was removed except the few links that were not covered by Simple Green.

My favorite is a big can of PJ-1 Super Cleaner. A great all around cleaning solvent that dries quickly with no residue, safe on paint but not some plastics. Works on chains, clusters, bearings, races... you name it!

When I service a bearing set I put all the balls in a little glass dish, spray the cleaner to cover and agitate. Wipe down with a rag and they;re good to go. The extension nozzle is handy for flushing the major crap out of races, spray some on a rag and wipe them clean.

No rinsing with that rust inducing stuff called water needed.

Most engine degreasers are intended to work at higher temperatures. I haven't had very good luck with spray degreaser, but obviously my experience contradicts that of others in this thread. I prefer citrus-based, non-hazardous degreasers. I find they do just as well as the engine cleaners (better in most of my cases) and cost a lot less. I agree with the posters who say that rinsing with a hose is not going to damage anything.