# Road salt,should I be worried?



## jetfan2207 (Nov 5, 2006)

Hi all, 
I've been using my bike almost everyday through the winter since we've had a mild one. Anyway, with recent ( 2 weeks ago) snow falls and icy roads the town has been salting the roads for the first time this season. I'm still riding, but my bike has a coating of salt on the downtube and front on the handlebars and fork. I wanted to wash it off and clean it really well and wax it but it's too cold to get the hose out and start washing. Should I be worried that the bike is not gonna hold up? How is bike paint compared to car paint? I waxed the heck out of the frame before the winter (I put on like 5 coats of car wax). Tomorrow is gonna be like 40 so I might try to wash it then.

Thanks in advance,
Steve


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## JM01 (Mar 29, 2005)

jetfan2207 said:


> Hi all,
> I've been using my bike almost everyday through the winter since we've had a mild one. Anyway, with recent ( 2 weeks ago) snow falls and icy roads the town has been salting the roads for the first time this season. I'm still riding, but my bike has a coating of salt on the downtube and front on the handlebars and fork. I wanted to wash it off and clean it really well and wax it but it's too cold to get the hose out and start washing. Should I be worried that the bike is not gonna hold up? How is bike paint compared to car paint? I waxed the heck out of the frame before the winter (I put on like 5 coats of car wax). Tomorrow is gonna be like 40 so I might try to wash it then.
> 
> Thanks in advance,
> Steve


yes

http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=271658

http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=270090


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## Rebus (Jun 11, 2004)

Yes again.

I drove across Kansas in 2004 around Thanksgiving during an ice storm with my bike on the hitch rack. Road salt and that mag chloride crap was sprayed all over the frame. By the time I got to Longmont, CO, all the hex bolts had some rust on them. The paint was fine, but the chain, bolts, and front derailleur clamp had some small amount of rust. I ended up having to replace the bolts on my Thomson stem because I couldn't get rid of the rust.

Nasty.


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## rkj__ (Feb 29, 2004)

Since your frame is pained (and waxed) it should be ok, but the salt will destroy most of the components on the bike.


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## man w/ one hand (Dec 29, 2003)

I bought a Bullit w/a 5th element on it back in February of 04. I took it to my LBS to cut the steerer tube. A day or so before we had snow & they had salted th' roads so my new bike got road salt all over it. As I rode my bike into the summer, I started noticing spots on the body of the shock each time I washed/wiped down the bike. After a while I noticed them on the spring as well. After a yr or so of riding, the shock was lookin' hideous. I sweat like a pig when I ride, cold or hot weather, & this just made it worse & expedited the corrosion process. I eventually bought another spring & cleaned up the shock body & painted it. Changed the whole look of my bike.


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## jeffscott (May 10, 2006)

I fight fight that problem every day, for about 6 months.

You got to get the salt and muck off regularly.

If I used a hose I would have a skating rink, so a bucket of warm soapy water, with the bike up on the work stand, put the bucket under the bike, I can get it clean with maybe a 1/2 gallon of water on my garage floor that just evaporates.

BTW the car wax, works great for me, so far you doing great.

I put grease in all the bolt heads, so that they don't rust at all.


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## TehSuck (Aug 22, 2006)

This thread just reminded me that I need to wash my brake rotors of the salt that got on them!


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## ironbike1 (Jun 9, 2006)

Wow I never thought it would hurt the bikes my self. I only rode on the roads for about 5-10 minutes, is that long enough to do damage?


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## ThrashNY (May 18, 2005)

The salt corrodes anything made of steel, which on the typical bike adds up to alot of smaller pieces such as bolts, chains, skewers, etc. Salt is brutal on a bike. 

I live in Western NY where every ride for me ends in a bike cleaning with buckets of warm water, or cold water if the outdoor faucet is operable. It's worth the extra 15-20 minutes of effort. Dry it off and relube it. If it gets very cold, bring it inside so the cables, etc won't freeze up.


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## wookie (Jan 24, 2007)

I had a cyclocross frame that rotted through because of salt. Get a beater bike for the winter!


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## ironbike1 (Jun 9, 2006)

ThrashNY said:


> The salt corrodes anything made of steel, which on the typical bike adds up to alot of smaller pieces such as bolts, chains, skewers, etc. Salt is brutal on a bike.
> 
> I live in Western NY where every ride for me ends in a bike cleaning with buckets of warm water, or cold water if the outdoor faucet is operable. It's worth the extra 15-20 minutes of effort. Dry it off and relube it. If it gets very cold, bring it inside so the cables, etc won't freeze up.


I hadn't cleaned my bike since I rode it last, even though it was only for a few minutes just to check out the new brakes & other parts I put on. I just washed the brakes, rotors & all of the lower parts with water & used a quick Liquid wrench spray lubricant to prevent the rust & waterproof it a little.


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## Pooh Bear (May 25, 2006)

Think of your nipples! Always wash'em, too.


If not, wheel trueing will be impossible, because even brass will shear off when salted long enough.


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## JM01 (Mar 29, 2005)

Pooh Bear said:


> Think of your nipples! Always wash'em, too.
> 
> If not, wheel trueing will be impossible, because even brass will shear off when salted long enough.


+1...

...also take care to clean your free wheel, bottom bracket, and V-brake bearings...last year my free wheel seized and I had a fixie until I found a used cog set. Peddle beat the crap out of my ankles on the descents

If you ride in the snow and salt, why not buy a beater and toss it in the spring? The $50-$100 is worth it as it lets you store the better bikes until the first rains wash away the road salt


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## jeffscott (May 10, 2006)

Just a rant.

I put on about 3000 km a winter, on my one and only very best bike.

I like to ride it, it is a mountain bike, 

I think it should take the mud, snow, and salt (from a great ocean beach ride), with very simple and standard maintance methods. Wash clean and re-lube etc.

I am just about there with a light 27 lb bike, and some pretty high end equipment.

While, it is certainly possible to ride beaters etc, it is my crusade to get a high end light durable bike, for all conditions.


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## JM01 (Mar 29, 2005)

jeffscott said:


> Just a rant.
> 
> I put on about 3000 km a winter, on my one and only very best bike.
> 
> ...


That's sad...for a few $, you can ride all winter and still protect your investment in your good bikes...Commuting in the city year round and riding at the cottage kills a couple of beaters each year, or so, at least I can save my good bikes for conditions that will not kill them

just my .02 CAD...some of our other bikes:


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## JM01 (Mar 29, 2005)

at least these will last a little longer


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## jeffscott (May 10, 2006)

Nice all of them.

Hey but this year, 

no new chain, no new bearings, no new BB, no new cassete. Only failure is front fork, not due to cold or salt.

Really no failures attributable to cold salt and muck.

So as I said, I am just about there. In fact i am working on lighter.

I am sad, you are sad.


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## JM01 (Mar 29, 2005)

jeffscott said:


> I am sad, you are sad.


beater...1 minute ago

in the last 3 weeks...3 rear wheels, 3 tubes, fender is now tied on, old brake pads disolved in the snow...just has to last a few more weeks


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## jeffscott (May 10, 2006)

Don't know why the brake pads would dissolve in the snow.

I went with Kool stop pads that lasted way bettter than stock shimano.

I am back to stock shimano cause I upgraded to XTR's, they are wear a little faster and are squeaking more, they seem to last about 2000 km so I'll be back to Kool stops by oh end of April.

The road muck does build-up on the rotors to form a glossy frictionless sheen, but isopropyl alchol once a week keeps this under control, and is a recommend maintance procedure.

Sorry my camera is at home, last week -20 C 160 mm of snow (salt and gravel), this week chinook up to 7 C -5 C nights, everything gone to muck and ice, next week Mexico ahhh.


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## Kris (Jun 15, 2004)

JM01 said:


> If you ride in the snow and salt, why not buy a beater and toss it in the spring? The $50-$100 is worth it as it lets you store the better bikes until the first rains wash away the road salt


I tried that, it sucked. My first winter beater was a $150 bike, a month into the winter the hubs and headset were dry and would not spin, the pedals would barely move, it was hell to ride. Now I ride a cheap Norco frame converted to rigid singlespeed with semi-quality parts that came stock on a $1000 bike that went through several rounds of upgrades. The hubs still work after several winters, Shimano UN series BB's last at least a couple of winters, the headset has lasted 3 winters with seveal re-greasings on the lower cup and the brakes work until they are frozen. Much better than riding a disposable bike IMO. Now I just have to do some maintenance and throw on a new chain and cables every year or so. My pocket book and the environment thank me.


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## JM01 (Mar 29, 2005)

jeffscott said:


> Don't know why the brake pads would dissolve in the snow.
> 
> Sorry my camera is at home, last week -20 C 160 mm of snow (salt and gravel), this week chinook up to 7 C -5 C nights, everything gone to muck and ice, next week Mexico ahhh.


seems like my pads dissolve faster when wet...I've had to tighten the cable 2 times last week and still have to adjust at the levers

I carry a camera as I'm a "citizen photagrapher" for one of our local papers...seems that when you spend 4 hours/day cycling around town, you get to see a lot of interesting stuff

Yep, we had the -20C last week...today is 0C, but lots of new snow this AM


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## Danke (Sep 19, 2005)

Road salt (and the other chemicals that aren't "salt") is horrible stuff. Wash as much as you can, try to maintain the overall environment of the bike (don't take it in and out all day long) full wrap fenders will help.

Like the guys have said before a lot of it depends on where you are. Places in the center of the continent lock in at temps that salt won't work at, places on the West Coast never see any bad weather (I don't call rain bad weather), and places out East seem to have it worst.

Folks on the oceans swear by something called Boeshield as a clean/displace moisture/protect spray.

For the brake pads, some days when the temp is just around freezing you get a great mushy, gritty spray all over the bike that will stick and eat up the pads. It also eats up the rims.


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## tedsti (Oct 22, 2004)

The stuff they put on the roads these days is NASTY. It will eat aluminum, copper, steel... I bought a $100 rigid HardRock at a pawn shop and that is what gets ridden in the salt. It gets some hand-me-down parts as the good bikes get upgrades. Just don't wait too long or all the parts will be seized to the bike frame

The good bikes only get ridden on the trail and are put inside the vehicle to get them there.


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## burtronix (Jun 5, 2006)

*An Engineering Solution*



jetfan2207 said:


> Hi all,
> I've been using my bike almost everyday through the winter since we've had a mild one. Anyway, with recent ( 2 weeks ago) snow falls and icy roads the town has been salting the roads for the first time this season. I'm still riding, but my bike has a coating of salt on the downtube and front on the handlebars and fork. I wanted to wash it off and clean it really well and wax it but it's too cold to get the hose out and start washing. Should I be worried that the bike is not gonna hold up? How is bike paint compared to car paint? I waxed the heck out of the frame before the winter (I put on like 5 coats of car wax). Tomorrow is gonna be like 40 so I might try to wash it then.
> 
> Thanks in advance,
> Steve


Corrosion can be prevented or stopped by adding a sacrificial metal that is higher on the electro-active scale than the metal you want to protect. This is called a sacrificial anode, & a good example of it is galvanized steel found in old metal buckets, wash tubs, & stove pipe. The galvanized layer is actually zinc, which is higher on the electro-active scale than steel. The reason you see the steel hardware corroding on your aluminum frame bike is that steel is higher on the electro-active scale than aluminum.

If you attach some zinc to your bike, the salt should attack the zinc instead of the steel. It is important that you make an electrical connection between the 2 metals, or it won't work. I'm not certain of the best way to make an electrical connection without ruining your finish (I'm good with the theory, but thin on the details).:idea: Some utility companies that bury steel or iron pipes in the ground will attach blocks of zinc with some copper wire every several hundred feet.

You can be thankful that it was the steel hardware that acted as the scrificial anode. When salt attacks aluminum, it turns it into what looks like water-logged paper. At least that's how it works with nearly pure aluminum. I'm not sure what happens to frame alloys that have been formed into tubes, but it can't be good.


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## jeffscott (May 10, 2006)

You can be thankful that it was the steel hardware that acted as the scrificial anode. When salt attacks aluminum, it turns it into what looks like water-logged paper. At least that's how it works with nearly pure aluminum. I'm not sure what happens to frame alloys that have been formed into tubes, but it can't be good.


Steel is higher on the galvanic scale than aluminium. Aluminium is protected by the strongly adherant Aluminium oxide film. If this film is eroded by outside conditions, then it dissolves very quickly. I have not found any erosion corrosion on my aluminium bike.


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## JM01 (Mar 29, 2005)

Danke said:


> It also eats up the rims.


yep...


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## ThrashNY (May 18, 2005)

While many of us use winter bikes (vs racing or more $ bikes) this time of year, I see guys showing up on our weekly rides with Litespeeds, new Gary Fishers, Santa Cruz', etc on these sh*tty roads. These dudes swear by the non-corrosive materials that make up the bikes apparently. 

My new Blur XC will not see the roadsalt at all. It gets into places that you can't see, including fork steerer tubes where that aluminum galvanizes inside the steerer tube.


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## xJumper (Aug 10, 2006)

There is a product called "Salt-Away" that we use after riding jet skis in the ocean. You can purchase in 16 oz spray bottles that would work for a bike. Then rinse off with another spray of plain water.

Ride on!


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## Danke (Sep 19, 2005)

ThrashNY said:


> While many of us use winter bikes (vs racing or more $ bikes) this time of year, I see guys showing up on our weekly rides with Litespeeds, new Gary Fishers, Santa Cruz', etc on these sh*tty roads. These dudes swear by the non-corrosive materials that make up the bikes apparently.
> 
> My new Blur XC will not see the roadsalt at all. It gets into places that you can't see, including fork steerer tubes where that aluminum galvanizes inside the steerer tube.


Those guys will have a nice clean Ti frame and a boxy of parts crumbling to dust and coverd in white dust.


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