Taking time to wash your bike is just as important as checking all parts
Spring cleaning doesn’t just pertain to household duties, it includes the outside as well, now this means that your garage will want to have a spring clean too, you’ll need to sort out all the stuff you shoved in there over the years, maybe you’ll need help with knowing how to store extension ladder in garage so you’re not tripping over it as well as your bike, which brings me onto what we’ll be discussing today. So brush the cobwebs off your bike, wash your bike, and get it in proper gear for the spring triathlon season. Ensure your bike is ready to go, especially if you’re racing Rookie Tri on Sunday, May 6th!
Whether your bike is aluminum, steel, titanium, or composite, an important aspect of any frame is keeping it clean. Steel rusts, aluminum corrodes, titanium and composite bikes just look cruddy.
The paint on a steel or aluminum frame is porous and penetrated easily by elements that will rust the tubes from underneath the paint. Grease and solvents can degrade the glued joints of some older composite bikes with aluminum lugs.
Check inside your frame for water. It’s more common than you think for water to seep in down between seat posts and seat tubes. Especially if you ride in the rain or carry your bike on top of the car in the rain. Water in a steel frame shortens its life significantly.
Remember that a clean, dry bike is a happy bike!
Stop by your local bike shop if you need help cleaning your bike or learning about your bike’s frame.
