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View Full Version : Washed bike with garden hose jet - disaster?


plampione
March 13th 05, 01:33 PM
Hello All,

I am new to mountain biking (and I am new to having to take care of my
bike in general). After three rides in gritty granitic sand-mud, I
decided it was high time to wash the bike. I pulled out the garden
hose, choose the "jet" setting (it's one of those hoses that has a
spout that can produce mist, shower, etc), and blasted the bike until
the mud was off (I then cleaned the chain with a toothbrush and more
care, and re-greased it).

Now I read in the newsgroup that it is a BAD idea to blast the bike
with a jet of water, as the water gets into the bearings. So my
question is: now what? Is there anything special I should do? Should
I bring the bike to a bike shop to be checked for water?

As an aside, after the wash, the brakes started SQUEALING madly. I
assume that's a good thing: they are so loud that a good part of the
energy is surely dissipating into sound, rather than heat, helping
keeping the brakes cool. However, I am worried about the effects on
wildlife, and I believe riding with earplugs will lessen the enjoyment
of the ride. What is the cause of the squealing? I tried to clean the
discs (I have disc brakes) and the pads with alcohol, as I have read,
but it didn't help...

Thanks for your advice,

Peter

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Mian
March 13th 05, 03:43 PM
1. you can jetwash your bike, just keep the jet away from the bottom
bracket/ fork seals/ suspension pivots etc.

2. the squealing could be caused by water trapped between the pad and the
piston


"plampione" > wrote in message
ups.com...
> Hello All,
>
> I am new to mountain biking (and I am new to having to take care of my
> bike in general). After three rides in gritty granitic sand-mud, I
> decided it was high time to wash the bike. I pulled out the garden
> hose, choose the "jet" setting (it's one of those hoses that has a
> spout that can produce mist, shower, etc), and blasted the bike until
> the mud was off (I then cleaned the chain with a toothbrush and more
> care, and re-greased it).
>
> Now I read in the newsgroup that it is a BAD idea to blast the bike
> with a jet of water, as the water gets into the bearings. So my
> question is: now what? Is there anything special I should do? Should
> I bring the bike to a bike shop to be checked for water?
>
> As an aside, after the wash, the brakes started SQUEALING madly. I
> assume that's a good thing: they are so loud that a good part of the
> energy is surely dissipating into sound, rather than heat, helping
> keeping the brakes cool. However, I am worried about the effects on
> wildlife, and I believe riding with earplugs will lessen the enjoyment
> of the ride. What is the cause of the squealing? I tried to clean the
> discs (I have disc brakes) and the pads with alcohol, as I have read,
> but it didn't help...
>
> Thanks for your advice,
>
> Peter
>
> --
> rec.bicycles.off-road is moderated by volunteers. To find help solving
> posting problems, or contact the moderators, please see http://rbor.org/
> Please read the charter before posting: http://rbor.org/rbor_charter.txt
>

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March 13th 05, 06:22 PM
I would take the bike to a shop for a good once over. I invested in a
bike stand, and also found a Pedro's bike wash kit, that came with a
pale, sponge, lubricant for the chain, and a product called "Bike Lust"
which you can spray on the frame after washing and drying it. It makes
the frame shine like new, and also helps resist mud, or at the very
least, helps the mud come off much easier. I just throw the bike in
the stand and wash with the sponge.

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March 13th 05, 06:23 PM
Mian wrote:
> 1. you can jetwash your bike, just keep the jet away from the bottom
> bracket/ fork seals/ suspension pivots etc.
>
> 2. the squealing could be caused by water trapped between the pad and
the
> piston
>
>
> "plampione" > wrote in message
> ups.com...
> > Hello All,
> >
> > I am new to mountain biking (and I am new to having to take care of
my
> > bike in general). After three rides in gritty granitic sand-mud, I
> > decided it was high time to wash the bike. I pulled out the garden
> > hose, choose the "jet" setting (it's one of those hoses that has a
> > spout that can produce mist, shower, etc), and blasted the bike
until
> > the mud was off (I then cleaned the chain with a toothbrush and
more
> > care, and re-greased it).
> >
> > Now I read in the newsgroup that it is a BAD idea to blast the bike
> > with a jet of water, as the water gets into the bearings. So my
> > question is: now what? Is there anything special I should do?
Should
> > I bring the bike to a bike shop to be checked for water?
> >
> > As an aside, after the wash, the brakes started SQUEALING madly. I
> > assume that's a good thing: they are so loud that a good part of
the
> > energy is surely dissipating into sound, rather than heat, helping
> > keeping the brakes cool. However, I am worried about the effects
on
> > wildlife, and I believe riding with earplugs will lessen the
enjoyment
> > of the ride. What is the cause of the squealing? I tried to clean
the
> > discs (I have disc brakes) and the pads with alcohol, as I have
read,
> > but it didn't help...
> >
> > Thanks for your advice,
> >
> > Peter
> >
> > --
> > rec.bicycles.off-road is moderated by volunteers. To find help
solving
> > posting problems, or contact the moderators, please see
http://rbor.org/
> > Please read the charter before posting:
http://rbor.org/rbor_charter.txt
> >
>
> --
> rec.bicycles.off-road is moderated by volunteers. To find help
solving
> posting problems, or contact the moderators, please see
http://rbor.org/
> Please read the charter before posting:
http://rbor.org/rbor_charter.txt

Never-ever use a jet wash or a power washer on your bike . A gentle
spray or even straight from the hose is good enough . Ater a few times
, your bike cleaning time should cut down to about 10 minutes .
Afterwards , dry your bike , especially your chain thouroughly to get
the water out of the nooks and crannies ( I'veactually used a blow
dryer on my chain ) Lube your chain and wipe off any excess lube. Don't
worry too much about your squeling brakes . They'll warn hikers and
other bikers of your presence and if you are zoned during the ride ,
you'll never notice the noise.

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rec.bicycles.off-road is moderated by volunteers. To find help solving
posting problems, or contact the moderators, please see http://rbor.org/
Please read the charter before posting: http://rbor.org/rbor_charter.txt

plampione
March 13th 05, 09:10 PM
Mian wrote:
> 1. you can jetwash your bike, just keep the jet away from the bottom
> bracket/ fork seals/ suspension pivots etc.

I am not sure I paid attention to keeping the jet away, but also I
didn't
insist on any particular area, so I guess I should be fine...

> 2. the squealing could be caused by water trapped between the pad and
the
> piston

You are right. After drying overnight, the squealing is completely
gone.
I will have to be more careful when washing the brakes (I still need to

clean them periodically: I bike in a place where the ground is a
kind of granitic mud/grit that gouges the discs when it gets inside
the brakes).

Thanks,

Peter

--
rec.bicycles.off-road is moderated by volunteers. To find help solving
posting problems, or contact the moderators, please see http://rbor.org/
Please read the charter before posting: http://rbor.org/rbor_charter.txt

Westie
March 14th 05, 05:44 AM
plampione wrote:
> Mian wrote:
>
>>1. you can jetwash your bike, just keep the jet away from the bottom
>>bracket/ fork seals/ suspension pivots etc.
>
>
> I am not sure I paid attention to keeping the jet away, but also I
> didn't
> insist on any particular area, so I guess I should be fine...
>
>
>>2. the squealing could be caused by water trapped between the pad and
>
> the
>
>>piston
>
>
> You are right. After drying overnight, the squealing is completely
> gone.
> I will have to be more careful when washing the brakes (I still need to
>
> clean them periodically: I bike in a place where the ground is a
> kind of granitic mud/grit that gouges the discs when it gets inside
> the brakes).
>
> Thanks,
>
> Peter

Word of warning: Don't obsess about cleaning your bike. IMHO, a
hairdryer and toothbrushes, while no doubt very effective once in a
while, are verging on the obsessive :-)

Make sure you spend more time riding than maintaining it. With luck,
you'll wear everything out before the water has time to damage it.
--
Westie

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rec.bicycles.off-road is moderated by volunteers. To find help solving
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TJ
March 14th 05, 09:22 PM
"plampione" > wrote in message
ups.com...
> Hello All,

You will be alright. Don't directly spray the bearings or shifters. They
don't weather so well.

TJ



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