How To Properly Clean Your Bicycle During a Pandemic

Photo by carolyn christine on Unsplash

During the COVID-19 pandemic, people have been turning more to bicycles as a means of solitary fitness when going to the gym is not an option. Proper cleaning and maintenance of hybrid bikes and other models is important during the best of times. However, in light of the current public health crisis, it becomes even more important to ensure that your bike is not only clean but sanitized before you ride.

Basic Bike Cleaning

If your bike is visibly dirty after a ride, it is advisable to clean and lubricate it thoroughly before putting it away. However, wiping off the frame with a damp rag and lubricating the chain after every ride is considered a good habit by the experts.

If you own an electric bicycle, which is one with a battery and a motor to provide pedal assist, you may wonder if it needs any special care. In fact, the electrical components are designed to withstand water. Therefore, cleaning a womens e bike need be no different from a traditional nonmotorized bike. You do, however, need to prevent any leather components on your bicycle from getting wet.

When cleaning your bike, you can use either a bucket of water or a hose with a normal spray attachment. Do not use any sort of pressure washer. This can cause the bearings to rust by forcing water into them. You can use a pre-formulated bike wash cleaner, or you can use diluted dishwashing fluid, which workswell because of its degreasing properties.

Special Bike Sanitation

Normal bike cleaning tends to focus on the parts of the vehicle that are closest to the ground and therefore most likely to encounter water, dirt, and mud. However, efforts to stop the spread of infectious diseases such as COVID-19 focus more on sanitizing the surfaces that you touch most often. On your bike, this primarily means the handlebars and the brake levers. You should use a disinfectant cleaner on a cloth or pre-prepared wipe to clean these areas off both before and after each ride.

In fact, it may be a good idea to sanitize everything that comes in contact with you during your ride. This means not only the bike itself but your helmet should also be sanitized. You may think the risk of infection from your helmet is low, and perhaps it is, but you never know what might happen to it when you leave it hanging on the bike or set it down on a surface that could be contaminated.

Don't forget hand hygiene in addition to bike sanitation. After your ride, wash your hands for at least 20 seconds with soap and water as soon as possible. In situations where you do not have access to soap and water, an alcohol-based hand sanitizer is an acceptable alternative. In either case, be sure to rub your hands together vigorously because it is the combination of cleansing agents and friction that neutralizes and removes the viruses from your skin.

As long as you comply with orders from your local government and take reasonable precautions to prevent the spread of germs, you can continue to ride your bike during the pandemic. If you're looking to get back into riding, check out mens bikes for sale from reputable online dealers.