# WD40 Safe on Paint Finishes?



## armstrong (Jul 9, 2013)

Hi folks

I use WD 40 on everything when I clean my bike. Was talking to some guy and he said it's harmful in some respects - and he uses light oils - like cooking oil - to clean his bike.

I'm pretty sure aluminum parts can take WD 40 comfortably (at least I think so), but I'm concerned about the paint. The bikes I've been cleaning recently are used 1980s bikes bought off other people - in one case it had layers of gunk/mould on it but was NOS underneath. So is WD 40 OK/safe for cleaning the paint?


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## GOTA (Aug 27, 2012)

WD-40 has a whole line of bikes products. If you like the brand that's the best way to go.

WD-40 BIKE | A comprehensive line of bicycle care products developed for cyclists and mechanics


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## Mr645 (Jun 14, 2013)

WD-40 is pretty safe, a great degreaser and at car shows it's popular to wipe the stuff over the entire car for a great shine. But it attracts dirt. I would be happy to use it to clean off dirt and grease from anywhere on a bike, but probably wash it off with soap afterwards. We use it to clean motorcycle chains and it eats through just about anything, but we always wash it off and lube the chain with proper chain lube.


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## adjtogo (Nov 18, 2006)

Why not just use Simply Green to clean your bike? I even clean my drive train with Simply Green at full strength. It's a fantastic degreaser. Once the chain and parts are dry, I lube everything. If you want to polish your bike after you clean it thoroughly, use Pledge with a soft cloth. Simply Green is much cheaper and safer on your bike ounce for ounce than WD40 and safer too.


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## Mike T. (Feb 3, 2004)

I've been using WD-40 for years to clean my bikes - painted or Ti - with no negative results. It's just a type of mineral spirits and an oil. I sometimes give a quick wipe down with a clean rag at the end and sometimes I don't. It doesn't pick up any dirt.


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## MMsRepBike (Apr 1, 2014)

cooking oil?

I would not listen to that guy.


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## tihsepa (Nov 27, 2008)

WD40 is fine.
I would not use simple green to clean anything.


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## tvad (Aug 31, 2003)

+4 on WD40 being perfectly safe for cleaning paint on bikes. No need to buy cycling specific WD40 products either. Just get a can of the tried-and-true WD40 from your local hardware store. 

BTW, I use it to clean road tar from my white car. Works like a charm!


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## cxwrench (Nov 9, 2004)

WD40 should be fine. We used it on pretty much everything when I raced karts, especially on the 2-stroke chamber/pipe to keep it from rusting. That said...

I use Simple Green on pretty much every bike I clean. Mostly for drivetrain stuff as it gets rid of lube/grease and soap doesn't. I'll spray it full strength on the drivetrain and any area that is oily/greasy. I have a few brushes that only touch drivetrain parts and a few that I use on the rest of the bike. If you use SG make sure you rinse thoroughly. I've never had any problems from using it.


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## rcb78 (Jun 15, 2008)

cxwrench said:


> I use Simple Green on pretty much every bike I clean.


Have you ever had it contact any ano parts? I had a customer recently with a brand new set of a wheels on CK hubs, and the hubs looked like they'd been through an acid wash. I asked him what they hell he did and he said he used simple green to wash the bike. The first time they looked faded, the second time the color came off the hubs when he rinsed.
Just curious if he was using the real stuff, or a home depot/lowes version that was more caustic and didn't know the diff.

We've been using a bottle of the WD-40 bike wash that we got from a rep recently. Pretty impressed with it so far.


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## cxwrench (Nov 9, 2004)

WD40 Bike products are great. I've used them a bunch and really like their stuff. 

I used SG on our old team wheels that I build w/ gold King hubs. I used a couple pair of those wheels personally for a few years and always washed w/ SG then soapy water then rinsed. They're all still gold, no prob w/ the finish. I wouldn't spray it on then leave it for any length of time, but they way I did it...spray on SG, scrub, rinse within a couple of mins...never a problem. Makes me wonder what people are doing w/ SG when they claim they have problems.


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## looigi (Nov 24, 2010)

Bikes are made to be compatible with lubricating oils, greases and similar hydrocarbons which are normally used in their assembly and maintenance. WD40, OMS, etc. should therefore be safe for a bike. Water and detergents, including things like Simple Green, allow grease and oils to mix with water and be removed. This is OK, except for removing lubrication and protective oils and grease where they're needed. Also, water and detergents mixed in with oil or grease greatly reduces their lubricating and protective efficacy. If longevity of mechanical components is important, care must be exercised to not to wash out, contaminate or otherwise compromise their lubricants.

Dirt and grit are bad when they gets into mechanisms causing friction and abrasion. Superficial or improper efforts at cleaning may remove dirt on the surface but can also force it, along with water and detergent, into pivots and bearings where it can impair function and increase wear shorting the life of components.


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## Gregory Taylor (Mar 29, 2002)

Yes, WD40 should be good if you want to clean a factory painted bike frame. Should also be good on any newer refinishes as long as the paint has time to cure. The solvents in WD40 aren't that volatile, so they should not attack a fully-cured finish. My "go to" for general cleaning of painted bits, etc. is....Windex. 

Weighing in on the Does-Simple-Green-Kill-Anodized-Parts Imbroglio, I've used it on anodized aluminum parts with no problems. Kicks ass for cleaning brake spooge off of rims and tires. I don't use it to degrease mechanical bits like hubs, etc. - I go with mineral spirits for that. And I do that only because I grew up cleaning greasy parts in hi-test gasoline...


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## rcb78 (Jun 15, 2008)

I did a little googling and found that if used in concentrated form and allowed to soak, SG will completely strip the color off ano parts. My guess is this guy bought a gallon of concentrate at Home Depot and used it full strength, then let it sit on the parts rather than rinsing right away.


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## bigjohnla (Mar 29, 2010)

WD-40 is an excellent degreaser. I have used it on many things with no problems at all including removing tar from my car. You do have to be judicious with it because it will remove grease you don't want removed. Never spray it in a bottom bracket or a headset unless you are planning to pull them and overhaul. I use it for the chain mostly. Just squirt it on the chain and turn the crank a few times and wipe it all off. Then relube. This works great for a quick cleaning. Fora more thorough chain cleaning I remove the chain and soak it in purple power. It is cheaper than WD and works just as well. For general bike cleaning I like windex sprayed on a rag. I never spray it directly on the bike. I then come back with a light mist of water from a spray bottle and then totally dry the entire bike. I never put a garden hose to my bikes. EGAD !! Of course, I am 60 years old. My kids are all grown and I have lots of spare time. 2 hours going over my bike is an enjoyable and relaxing experience for me.


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## Oxtox (Aug 16, 2006)

neither SG or WD-40 ever touches my bike.

Chain L on the chain, damp cloth or some Pledge on the paint and bare Ti, and maybe a spritz of windex on the white bar tape keeps everything clean and shiny.


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## love4himies (Jun 12, 2012)

Video: The GCN five-minute bike wash

Go ahead and use it.


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## cxwrench (Nov 9, 2004)

bigjohnla said:


> I never put a garden hose to my bikes. EGAD !! Of course, I am 60 years old. My kids are all grown and I have lots of spare time. 2 hours going over my bike is an enjoyable and relaxing experience for me.


You've never had to wash, then thoroughly go over 16 bikes every day...bring me the damn hose!


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## bigjohnla (Mar 29, 2010)

cxwrench said:


> You've never had to wash, then thoroughly go over 16 bikes every day...bring me the damn hose!


Indeed, I have not. I am sure that I would do the same if I had that many bikes to maintain. I have seen guys at events using pressure washers.


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