Based on my own experience, at a company I used to work for, there was a saying: "Cleanliness is also a performance aspect." Keeping things clean allows you to spot small problems and prevent larger ones from occurring.

Above all, it feels good to have things clean, doesn't it?

But when you actually try to clean, it often doesn't get as spotless as you'd like.

This time, I'm going to share a method that will dramatically improve your cleaning results.

No special detergents are needed.

Just an ordinary rag and a melamine sponge.

▲ICAN Carbon Wheels shipped from Japan warehouse

What is a melamine sponge?

The "melamine sponge" we'll be using this time is a type of sponge mainly used in kitchens, often sold at 100-yen stores.

Its characteristic feature is a highly rigid skeletal structure formed by foaming melamine resin at a micron level.

Familiar product names include "Gekiochi-kun" (a popular cleaning sponge).

That's the one.

It looks like a plain white sponge, but it appears to have a fine texture.

It's soft and fluffy.

Looking at it, you might wonder if it can really remove dirt.

However, its effectiveness is significant.

■ Tire Cleaning Method

First, here's a picture of the tire before cleaning. It's a bit embarrassing.

It's all black, isn't it?

The inner side is uniformly black, as if it was black from the beginning, but these tires were originally pure white.

I'll also share methods that I've tried and didn't work.

Car tire cleaners are good for cars, but for bicycles, they produce too much foam and weren't quite suitable.

Using household neutral detergent was pretty good, but scrubbing with a brush was quite a hassle.

Since it got relatively clean, I, the author, used to clean it with detergent and a brush.

This time, however, I'll show you an easier and more effective cleaning method.

First, dilute kitchen neutral detergent about 20 times with water and spray it all over the tire.

(It seems that leaving it for about 3 minutes makes it easier to remove dirt.)

If the dirt is difficult to remove, diluting the detergent with hot water will make it more effective.

A temperature of about 50 degrees Celsius seems to be most effective.

(This varies slightly depending on the detergent.)

After that, gently scrub with a melamine sponge.

A few rubs are enough.

Specifically, about 5 back-and-forth strokes.

Rather than section by section, wipe about 90 degrees of the entire wheel at once.

Then, wipe off the dirt with a rag.

This alone will make it dramatically clean.

Furthermore, because the melamine sponge has such a fine texture, it doesn't seem to cause any noticeable scratches on the tire.

It also doesn't make it easier for dirt to stick afterwards.

Cleaning the front and back, and both sides, takes less than 10 minutes.

Given this effectiveness, there's no reason not to do it.

■ Frame Cleaning

For cleaning the frame, dry wiping is probably best.

However, dry wiping doesn't remove 100% of the dirt.

While you might think "it has to be 100% clean," try to change your perspective a little here.

Switch your mindset to "70% with dry wiping."

If you think 70% is fine, the wiping process will go smoothly.

And for the finishing touch, use a melamine sponge.

Just a light wipe of the front fork makes this much difference.

The areas facing the tires are hard to reach, and both rags and melamine sponges are difficult to get into, so cleaning those spots might be a bit challenging, but it's probably okay to do them moderately.

If you clean too meticulously, you might start to dislike getting your bike dirty next time you ride it, which defeats the purpose.

Thinking "it's okay to do difficult-to-clean spots moderately" suddenly makes it much easier.

Melamine sponges wear down quite easily.

Since I used it on the entire bike frame and tires this time, this is what it looked like after cleaning.

I realized that it gets clean quite easily without much effort, so from now on, I think I'll be able to clean it effectively and more regularly.

I hope this comes across to you through the images.

■ Results of this cleaning

The whole process took about 15 minutes, but I was able to clean the entire bike.

My bike had been getting dirty lately, and it had been bothering me.

I tried to find an easy way to clean it, and this method worked out well.

When you clean and maintain something, you often find small issues.

This time, I found a crack in the tire.

While this condition doesn't particularly affect riding, I wouldn't have the courage to embark on a long-distance trip without noticing it.

In such a case, I would likely replace the tire a bit sooner than planned.

Just this simple act helped prevent a potential accident or problem.

Therefore, I recommend frequent maintenance and cleaning to stay aware of the detailed condition of your bicycle.

External writer: Koichi Okuno

▲ICAN Carbon Wheels shipped from Japan warehouse