Painless Bike Cleaning

Recently i shared a tip about how to clean your bike when living in an apartment to a friend. He tried it and was thrilled about it so i thought i might share it here as well.

I live in an apartment and had my small private hell every time i decided to clean my bike. I tried putting it in the bathtub which worked but left the bathroom in a mess. During the summers i could fill a 10 liters bucket of water and go outside but it usually required a trip or two back up to the apartment refilling water since there are no water taps near.

Both methods took a lot of time and often i took the easy way out riding a messy bike instead. Since i commute during the winter the wear and tear of chain and cassette was unacceptable.

When browsing our local hardware store i found the solution. A pressure sprayer for garden use.


I bought a 5 liters model from Gardena on the spot but i have found cheaper models later on. I paid like 30$ for this one. I guess you could get one for 15$ if you look around. The great thing about it is that 5 liters is more than enough for cleaning one bike. I guess you would need a refill if you did two bikes. Just fill it up (i use warm water), pump up the pressure and spray away. The nozzle on the one i bought could be adjusted from a solid spray to a gentle fog, this is great since you don't want to spray that hard on certain parts of the bike.

Begone! Messy Bike, Begone!