Bike Chain Cleaning Made Quick and Easy With WD-40 (2024)

FAQs

Bike Chain Cleaning Made Quick and Easy With WD-40? ›

All you need to do is rinse the bike chain to remove any mud and thick dirt. Spray the WD-40 Bike Degreaser onto the surface of your bike chain and give it adequate time to work. On top of that, the WD-40 Bike Degreaser can be used for the cleaning and degreasing of other moving parts as well.

Pull the chain and drop into an old plastic jar (cleaned out peanut butter jars work great) and cover in mineral spirits. Soak / shake until clean, then switch to a jar of denatured alcohol and soak / shake. Take it out and let dry and then you're ready to reinstall and wax / lube.

To remove light rust, leave parts in the solution for 1-3 hours. To remove heavy rust, leave parts in the rust removal solution overnight. Do not use on parts that have bluing, browning or protective oxide paints, as those protective coatings would be removed.

If using a chain-cleaning device, pour degreaser in until it reaches the fill line. Rub the degreaser into the chain with a brush or rag. It's best to use an old rag or brush specifically for the drivetrain and have a clean rag to use on the rest of the bike, to avoid getting black marks over your sparkling machine.

Bike chains can be cleaned using normal soap, such as washing up liquid, or your local bike shop will sell bike-specific degreaser. Don't worry too much about splashing out on fancy products because shop-bought washing up liquid works fine most of the time. The same goes for your scrubber.

White spirit from any hardware shop will do a great job of degreasing components like cassettes and chains, while Isopropyl alcohol can be used to clean your disc brake rotors. WD40 is also great for breaking down unwanted grease and oil, and washing up liquid will do for general cleaning.

Is WD-40 good for bike chains—summary. In summary, WD-40 is great for cleaning and degreasing your chain, but doesn't work well as a lubricant. It will provide some small amount of lubrication, but nowhere near enough for your bike chain to run smoothly. It's best to use a high-quality, bike-specific lubricant instead.

Borax, Vinegar, and Salt

Combine two tablespoons of borax, two tablespoons of vinegar, and one tablespoon of salt in a container, adding enough water to create a paste. Apply the mixture to the chain and scrub with a toothbrush or chain brush. Rinse well with water and dry the chain with a cloth.

Simply fill a bucket with warm water, add a cleaning agent of choice (whether it be a liquid kitchen detergent, degreaser or another bike cleaner), and use a stiff-bristled brush to scrub the chain.

Can you use rubbing alcohol to clean bike chain? ›

Wipe the chain with isopropyl alcohol on a rag for a quick clean. Pour enough isopropyl alcohol onto a rag to wet it. Then, hold the rag against the chain. As you do so, pedal the bike slowly to move the chain across the rag.

Still, as a spray it will just slightly dilute grease. You might be able to use it by putting the chain in a container with it and shaking it around a lot, but you would have to do the same with a detergent, and the other additives in the sanitiser aren't going to do you any favours.

WD-40 is a lubricant dissolved in a solvent. While it can break down grease and oil to a certain degree, it also adds back some. This might be desirable if you are cleaning a hinge, conveyor, or corrosive-prone part, but not if you need it truly clean.

While most lubricants are formulated with antioxidant additives to provide this protection, in addition to any natural protection afforded by the use of synthetic base stocks, it appears from the MSDS sheet that WD40 does not contain such additives and would likely degrade and form sludge fairly rapidly if used at even ...