Discusman

Hi All,

Are there any product out there I can get to soak my chain? The chain is very greasy and dirty. I want to take it off and soak it in some solutions to have a complete cleaning.

Thanks

papaish

I use "Simple Green". Soak it in a plastic bottle, for about 20-30 min and then shake vigorously empty and fill with hot tap water soak about 5 min and shake, rinse and repeat until all the simple green is rinsed away. Wipe down with lint free cloth and hang to air dry. Re install back on your bike and re lube with your lube of choice. Works great for the type riding I do, XC, and only needs to be done this way about 2 X a year, as long as you maintain it throughout the year.

pablosnazzy

You don't need to soak your chain, only do it if you really want to. Simple green for bikes is a great degreaser and all purpose cleaner.

Discusman

Thanks. When you say maintain, do you mean clean & lubricate the chain after each ride?

Where can I get Simple Green locally? I'm in New York City.

cryptid01

Hi, you must be new to the internets.

https://www.simplegreen.com/shopping_where_to_buy.php

wmodavis

I use mineral spirits (paint thinner). It is available at most any hardware store. It is good solvent for grease and oil. I reuse it many times after sediment settles. Very little waste. Minimal impact on environment because very little of it is ever discarded.

Bill in Houston

yes, i like this idea. if you feel a little ocd about it, you can even run the mineral spirits through a coffee filter inside a funnel to get the last bit of sediment out. whatever gets dissolved in the spirits is basically the same as what you are going to put back on the chain - it's just lube. like you say, the mineral spirits wil last a looong long time this way.

Daspydyr 

At Interbike a speaker stated that most chain lubes were 99% mineral spirits and 1% secret sauce. Dang, makes me wonder about all the brands out there.

Pete In Az

Another vote for mineral spirits.

Discusman

Thanks guys, I will check them out at Home Depot.

Drummerboy1975

How is that the case when mineral spirits are a degreaser and chin lube is a lubricant which is the opposite of a degreaser?

I've read in several places that when you use a degreaser you are also taking the lube out of the bearings races in the chain, and thats no good.

Pete In Az

Mineral spirits are(is?) a solvent that will evaporate fairly easily. You can dissolve whatever lubricant you want to use in it. It will help get that lubricant into small, tight spaces, then evaporate, leaving the lubricant behind.

If you use a lot of it (put it in a jar and dump the chain in) it will greatly dilute and wash the old lubricant out. When you drip whatever chain lube you are using, it stays on and in the chain and the lighter fraction (the mineral spirits) evaporates.

Darth_Firebolt

that's great, except there are no bearing races in your chain. you are removing the lube from the inside of the rollers, though.

3speed

So what if you got two bottles - One full of mineral spirits and one with enough chain lube to cover the chain. Then soak the chain in mineral spirits and shake a lot every 30 minutes or so for several hours. Then let dry. Then soak the chain in the chain lube and shake every 30 minutes or so for a couple hours. Theoretically that would result in a nice clean, deeply lubed chain?

RIC0

simple green in a Gatorade bottle, which can be used for an entire season to clean chains.

junkyard

Yeah, but if you're short on booze you can't drink it. I vote for mineral spirits.

roccobike

+1, a vote for Simple Green

cryptid01

I use brake cleaner on a new chain to get it totally clean. Then I apply dumonde tech chain lube. Then I don't worry about degunking my chain ever again and only re-lube it once or twice a year, max.

I guess I'm just lazy.

papaish

a new chain has the beat lube already on it, why would you want to clean off good lube?

cryptid01

because its not "good lube" for off road conditions. also because dumonde tech instructions advise it.

Dannihilator

That lube that is on new chains is pure rubbish. Even finish line advises to remove it before applying. I've been using finish line ceramic wax lube a of late.

roccobike

I was using wax on my roadie, but not on the MTB. How do you like it? Does it attract dirt?

RIC0

that stuff basically protects the chain while on the shelf, clean that crap off before using the chain!

pablosnazzy

around here in the dry desert, for our mountain bikes, we like rock n roll, which is wax based. great stuff. although we are starting to get into the non-wax ATB, which is new and made by a guy in Arizona in his garage.

cbchess

simple green has been discussed before in threads and some claim it will harm your chain if you soak it in it. I know through my personal experience everytime I broke a chain while riding it was after soaking in simple green. I use Mineral spirits now and have had much better results.


https://www.nordicgroup.us/chain/


Myths and Facts about Chain Cleaning and Lubrication


Cleaning

Myth: Simple Green is a great chain cleaner.

Fact: Simple Green is corrosive and should never be used on chains. Supposedly, a newer Simple Green product, Extreme Simple Green, is safe for chains. However the statement on their web site, "We’ve found no other aircraft-approved product on the market that matches Extreme Simple Green’s cleaning performance," is a bit disconcerting, as that sort of marketing invariably means that they haven't actually tested it against other products.