I try to clean my bicycle once every two weeks (150 miles), or after a wet commute. Yesterday I was watching football and working on the bike when I decided to skip the degreaser altogether in favor of just using a cotton rag to wipe down the components.

My logic is that I'd rather have a thin coat of grease on the surface than degreasing and trusting myself to re-grease or re-oil every part (I was greasing all my bolt threads in prep for winter as well). The degreaser also strips any wax I've put on the frame, which may or may not matter, but I think I'd prefer to have the paint protected.

Is this okay for light cleaning or am I doing harm in some way that I may not know?

What is this clean you speak of?

I really don't try to degrease anything on the frame. I mean, if there is a smudge of grease or oil, I spray a little bit of Park Tool citrus chain cleaner or some Goof Off on a clean rag and wipe it off. For me, it is mainly dirt that gets on the frame, so I clean that with very mild soapy water.

As for the components that the chain touches, I clean them and the chain as needed with the citrus chain cleaner and then re-apply Finish Line teflon dry lube. I do not lube/degrease anything else.

I take a soft brush to remove dirt and lube the chain and drive train with syntetic lubricant once in a while, The bike as gone 12000 kms approx. so far and still riding like a brand new bike

I have heard stories about this "clean", but I just assumed they were fables told by the old folks of the village.

Come on man it's a bicycle not a Ferrari.

C'mon, it looks like the OP (like me) has a 2012 bike, so we are still in the honeymoon phase. If he's referring to the 2012 Salsa Vaya 2 in his signature line, that baby is a sweet looking orange. I'd be keeping it clean too! I debated about getting that bike. Steel, disc brakes, etc. Great choice.

Yeah, I am still in the honeymoon phase, before the winter strikes it's cold hands on my soul and bicycle.

For reference my old method (pre-yesterday) was to go over the bike with a spray bottle of 10:1 Simple Green and a cloth. I suspect it was overkill and I did more harm than good. At least that's not how one would wash a car (a much more delicate task in certain respects).

The bicycle is now my primary form of transportation, so if I can spend an hour every few hundred miles looking after it then it is worth it in my opinion. I also enjoy it, as long as I'm not tracking down a mechanical gremlin of some sort.

I wave a power washer over my bike when it's really crusted with dirt. Usually every 4 or 5 weeks in the winter, maybe twice between April and December. I lube the chain when it makes noise. I replace the entire drivetrain when it starts to skip (about every 9000 miles - I've tried also maintaining the drivetrain diligently and replacing the chain when the Park tool says to, and the drivetrain still needs complete replacing at 9000 miles, I have just bought 3 more chains in the mean time for no better operation).

I've never used anything but a blast of water on the bike, or at least, not for years. I actually tried to clean it once and after about 30 minutes decided "screw this, I don't really care that much."

It has 28500 miles on it after 8 years and I haven't yet had any issue that could be tied to dirt or lack of maintenance - I had broken spokes, a broken axle, and I stripped the pedal threads out of a crankset once because I changed pedals in the garage when it was -15*F once and the aluminum had bonded to the pedal (I now heat the aluminum with a torch if I need to change pedals when it's that cold).

My Surly that I got over the summer still hasn't been cleaned. It's starting to develop a nice patina of road grime, too.

I just cleaned my bike yesterday for the first time in six years. A bucket of soapy for the frame and stuff, and a can of CRC brake and parts cleaner for the chain and sprockets (My chain and rear cassette are only a year old, the rest of the bike hasn't been cleaned in six years). If I wanted to be one of those people who obsesses over keeping stuff flashy and pretty, I'd buy a Corvette or a Harley. But, since I don't like those kinds of things and I don't like cleaning stuff, I ride a bike and hardly ever wash it. Just keeping the chain and rear cassette properly maintained is enough work for me.

After I lube my bikes, I wipe them down with Pledge all purpose wipes or Armorall Detailer. Takes less than 5 minutes if you do it every week or two.

Dirt on the frame keeps the UV off the paint, making it last longer. At least, that's the theory I'm working with. :-)

Ok, thanks for the opinions.. I'm putting too much thought into it, I'll tone it down.

All chops-busting aside, the 10:1 mix of Simple Green/water is fine. You could most likely go full strength and not do any damage. (I don't want to guarantee safety since I have never done it.)

There are as many ways to clean a bike as there are people. If you like the SG then clean away. I mean, it's not exactly brain surgery now is it?

Takes no time at all, if you never waste time "wiping down" a bike.

i don't have a dog so i shower my bike

+1

I just use a wet rag and wipe everything down - maybe a touch of dish soap if things are a little greasy. I do as needed. If you keep the bike fairly clean, it doesn't take much to clean it up when you get it dirty. I ride mostly on roads, so my bikes dont get caked up with mud and grass and junk like that.

Toss my bike on the stand once a month or so and wipe most of it down with a slightly damp rag (half an old t shirt) doing the chain last, then toss out the rag. I use one of those thin curved brushes on the cogset.