Well equipped for the dark season - care for your veloheld

“If you love your bike, you push it”, as the saying goes. But it should actually read: “If you love your bike, take care of it”. Otherwise it may have to be pushed. To prevent this from happening, we have put together a few care and maintenance tips for the “dark season”.

Even before the first de-icing salt is on the road, it is advisable to seal your bike’s frame fork. As a rule, de-icing salt cannot harm a flawless paintwork, but unfortunately small scratches or stone chips cannot be avoided in everyday life. These damaged areas are problematic as the salt can attack the metal surface and promote rust formation.

With a little dexterity, paint scratches can also be repaired with a touch-up pen. All RAL colors are available in gloss and matt for restoring minor damage in automotive supplies and online at lackstift24.de.

The paint surface should now be sealed with the help of a bicycle care wax. Before applying the protective wax layer, the entire wheel should be thoroughly cleaned by hand with a soft sponge or cloth to remove coarse dirt. Please do not use a high-pressure cleaner, as this could damage the bearings and seals. And be careful when using a wax spray: do not spray wax onto the disc brakes or braking surfaces of the rims!

Special care should be taken with matt surfaces. If a coarse sponge or cloth is used here, it can happen that the surface is polished and then shines unintentionally (information also here). So always clean very carefully!

In addition to surface sealing, cavity preservation of the frame is advisable.

Condensation forms on the inside of the frame, especially when there are frequent changes between warm and cold environments. In combination with oxygen, this is a breeding ground for oxidation.

Fluid Film AS-R” from the spray can has proven itself in our workshop for cavity preservation. ” Fluid Film AS-R” is a solvent-free, water-displacing anti-corrosion agent with excellent creeping properties; it does not harden but always remains viscous. The spray can enables clean application and good dosage. All areas of the frame can be reached very easily using the extension probe.

Our frames are supplied with a special cavity preservation coating, the so-called ED-Black coating (KTL – cathodic dip coating). This coats the frame tubes inside and out with a thin layer of rust protection. It is applied by means of an immersion bath process. However, small air pockets may occur in the seat and chainstay area and the inner surface seal cannot be 100% guaranteed. We therefore recommend regular internal sealing with Fluid Film to ensure an extremely durable frame.

Another important point is the contact between the seat post and the frame. Insufficient lubrication can lead to unwanted corrosion and firmly connect the seat post to the frame. Our recommendation: It is best to remove them now before winter and re-insert them freshly greased.

Due to their enclosed design, gear hubs require very little maintenance and are well protected against the effects of the weather. In order to guarantee the proper functioning of the hub gears in winter, it is advisable to re-grease the gear cable(s) to prevent them from freezing in the Bowden cable housing.

For oil-filled gear hubs such as the Shimano Alfine 11 and the Rohloff Speedhub, we recommend changing the oil after one year or 5000 km of use, preferably before winter, to remove any condensation from the hub body and to ensure that it continues to function properly.

As the heart of the drive, the chain is exposed to significantly higher loads in winter than in summer due to ice and slush or de-icing salt. For this reason, care should be taken to keep the chain clean and sufficiently lubricated, especially in winter.

For the cold season, we recommend a rather viscous chain oil that displaces moisture well – our recommendation: “Oil of Rohloff” from Rohloff. Before application, the chain must be cleaned of coarse dirt (more information here). In addition to viscous chain oil, the chain can also be sealed with spray wax. The wax keeps the oil between the links and increases the gliding effect.

Compared to the chain drive, the Gates Carbon Drive belt drive requires significantly less maintenance, but it is not maintenance-free.

Although slush and ice are pressed out of the belt by the pulleys, it is possible that small splinters can get caught in the center groove of the belt or other dirt can accumulate.

This can result in running noises in the drive. Belts and pulleys should therefore be cleaned regularly with a damp cloth or sponge (without cleaning additives) to remove dirt. If running noises continue to occur after cleaning, this can be remedied by applying a thin layer of dry silicone spray to the tooth side of the belt. Dry silicone dries immediately, accelerates the shedding of sand and has no effect on the service life of the belt.