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I'm getting a new road bike. Would a light spritz of teflon spray help in repelling dirt and moisture? I wouldn't coat it completely, just focus on those dirt collecting areas, the undersides of the frame, the crevices on the brakes and derailleurs, etc. and of course not the brake surfaces.

It's an "internet bike" I'll assemble myself, so I don't have the guidance of an LBS for these things.

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    I would test this on something else, first. I think you'll find that most teflon lubricants aren't just teflon (which is a solid white polymer). There are other carriers and surfactants which help to move the lubricant around. Those are the sorts of things to which dust and dirt stick. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polytetrafluoroethylene
    – WTHarper
    Nov 7, 2012 at 23:19
  • Quite a long time ago I did spray my clipless pedals with Pam to keep mud from adhering to them. I don't think it worked like I wanted it to.
    – WTHarper
    Nov 7, 2012 at 23:20
  • Thanks for the response. I was thinking about something like Finish Line Dry Lube with Teflon, which claims to not attract dirt.
    – obelia
    Nov 8, 2012 at 0:30
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    I suspect a coat of car wax would be more effective.
    – Daniel R Hicks
    Nov 8, 2012 at 1:43

3 Answers 3

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I've used the teflon spray on my cross bike before, especially when it was new, it seems to keep the dirt away for a short period of time, but only a few days. After that it's back to the usual dirt and moisture build up, what seems like more than you can tolerate when you stil want your bike to feel shiny and new. I wouldn't say it's worth the trouble if you're already going to spend the time to rinse the frame with water and a towel.

It will help, but don't rely solely on the teflon spray to keep moisture out of those hard to reach places, cable housings and other such crevices where you don't want water to hang out.

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Back when I had a shiny new bike, I used to use car wax on the frame to keep the paint shiny, and at the time I thought it made cleanup easier because I could simply rinse the frame with a little light rubbing to get the dirt off. But I've never waxed my 3 year old commute bike and it's the same - rinse and a light rub gets the dirt off (unless it's greasy).

I haven't tried Teflon spray, but I'd be worried about it getting on the brake pads and rims, no matter how careful you are.

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  • Thanks. I'd take the wheels and brake pads off to avoid getting the lube on them.
    – obelia
    Nov 8, 2012 at 0:31
  • I agree with this. All the road grime and brake pad dust just wipes off pretty easily. I don't tend to do it very often as I'm not that particular about esthetics with my bike, but even stuff that's been on there a while cleans off easily enough with a wet rag. Use a mild detergent if you want to be fancy. I've also used a paper towel with WD40 on it (because that's what I had sitting next to me) to clean the frame and it works quite well. I wouldn't bother with any kind of pretreating with teflon or wax. If anything it might make it more difficult to clean.
    – Kibbee
    Nov 8, 2012 at 13:42
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I recently started using Pledge Wipes and find that the bike looks shiny and clean, and cleans up very easily after my cyclocross races, simple light water and dry and is back to being shiny and clean.

Dirt does still 'stick' but comes off so easily, and with the shine, I do think it is applying a small layer of something to the surface of the frame.

As with the other answers, I don't apply this to brakes, brake surface (wheels), tires, rubber, drive train... just the frame and fork. The wipes come in a container that you can get at the grocery store and I find one wipe does the bicycle and then I toss it, I have re-applied with a new wipe every couple months.

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