Keeping your bike nice and shiny can seem like a full time job sometimes. I have a garage cabinet full of various remedies and potions that are designed to make cleaning easier and more effective. Sometimes I wonder if those motorcycle-specific products are necessary, or if they are any better than some of the age-old concoctions that housewives have known about for generations. Here are a few tips I’ve recently discovered for ways to keep my bike shining with common household products.
Rust removal: Chrome is gorgeous, but it is constantly in danger of rusting. It’s easiest to catch rust early and to protect your chrome, rather than attempting to remove heavy rust after it has set in. Gentle acidic household products like vinegar, lemon juice and cola can do a great job of removing light rust from chrome. Use a soft cloth to apply to a clean surface, and rinse thoroughly when you’re done cleaning. For heavier cleaning, try mixing equal parts salt and lemon juice. You’ll get a little more abrasion from the salt, but it will still be gentle enough to clean without scratching the surface. Another tip is to dip aluminum foil in cola, and use the foil as a cleaning cloth. Try it — it actually works! Remember, frequent light cleanings are best for chrome. Avoid heavy abrasives and keep your chrome parts well protected with wax or chrome preservative.
Leather care: I’m allergic to lanolin, which is one of the common ingredients in many commercial leather cleaners and preservatives, so I have had to come up with my own alternatives. Caring for the leather seat on my Harley-Davidson is a particular challenge. The poor seat has to be durable enough to withstand the abrasion of my riding pants, and then it sits in the sun when it is parked. Things could not be tougher. The best natural leather cleaner I have found is a simple mixture of 1/2 cup of lemon juice with 1/2 cup of cream of tartar (Potassium bitartrate). Cream of Tartar is an acidic baking ingredient that you can buy in the spice section of most any supermarket. Mix the two together into a paste, and rub them into the leather. Rinse thoroughly with clean water, then condition your leather. If you want a natural leather conditioner, you can use a mixture of distilled white vinegar, olive oil and essential oils. Spray on a light coat, buff into the leather and keep your seat clean.
Paint care: Painted surfaces on your bike are tough but need good cleaning and protection to retain their color and sheen. Unfortunately, household soaps (like dishwashing liquid) are not good choices for bike washing. They are too harsh, and may remove wax and protectants that you’ve applied in the past. The best bike cleaner is what your chemistry professor used to call “The Universal Solvent” — and that’s water. Just water. A great trick to improve the cleaning power of water — fill your clean bucker with clean water, and set it out in the sun for a while before you use it. Warm water is a more effective solvent than cold water — so your cleaning will go faster. I rotate several buckets of clean water in and out of the sun while I clean my bike, so I always have a warm bucket to work from.
Wax: Don’t be nuts. Buy a good quality protective wax and use it. You can find recipes online that include vinegar, linseed oil, carnauba wax and beeswax, but using a commercial product will be easier, cheaper, faster and more effective. You want to ride your bike, not eat off of it!
Now that your bike is clean and protected, get out there and get it dirty again!