Whether you’re a serious cyclist who logs thousands of miles per year, a casual commuter, or a recreational rider, you’re going to go farther—and feel more comfortable and confident doing it—if you know the bike maintenance basics that help you take care of your ride.
While you could take your bike to the shop for everything it needs (or worse, avoid maintenance entirely), you’ll save money and time while avoiding frustration once you understand these basics. Here’s what you need to know to keep your bike rolling smoothly.
Safety Check
When you think of bike safety, helmets, bike lights, and obnoxiously bright jerseys may come to mind, but you need to ensure your bike is in good working condition, too. “No matter what brings someone into our shop looking for service, we always start with a safety check,” says Ian Hughes, co-owner of Just Riding Along in Basking Ridge, New Jersey.
Tires
Ideally, you’ll inflate your tires before every ride, or every week at a minimum.
How much tire pressure you need varies according to the terrain, your weight, and tire width. Every tire has manufacturer’s guidelines printed on the sidewall, which is a great starting point.
Use a floor pump to fill your tires to the desired pressure. This item is a must-have, as it allows you to add a bit of volume at a time to get the exact pressure you’re looking for, says Park Tool master bike mechanic and technical expert Truman Purdy. Most floor pumps accommodate both a Presta or Schrader valve (the two types of valves you’ll find in a tire or tube). If you’re not sure exactly how to use your pump, Purdy suggests exploring the manufacturer’s website or YouTube channel.
Thru Axles or Quick Release Skewers
Check the tightness of your thru axles or quick release skewers (i.e. the cylindrical part that slides through your wheel to hold it in place between the fork or frame). If they’re not secure, you risk your wheels wobbling.
If you have a quick release skewer, pull on the lever to release it, then push it closed again. If you start to feel some resistance when it’s about halfway closed, and it’s a little challenging to close it fully, you’re in good shape. If it’s loose, tighten the nut and try again.
If your bike has thru axles, you may need an Allen wrench (a.k.a. Allen key or hex wrench) or a switch lever tool to check the tightness. Since most of us don’t have a torque wrench at home, Hughes suggests making sure it feels snug without cranking on it. “You don’t have to kill yourself to get it tight enough,” he says.
Handlebars and Saddle
You should also check your handlebars before you roll out. To do this, stand facing your bike with the front wheel secured between your legs, place your hands on either side of your handlebars, and try twisting them and pushing down on them, says Hughes. If they’re not secure, use an Allen wrench to tighten the bolts in the faceplate, which is the part of the bike that connects the handlebars to the stem.
You’ll also want to make sure your saddle is securely in place. Give it a shove in every direction (up, down, and side to side) to make sure it isn’t going anywhere. If you find that it’s loose, position it, and use an Allen wrench to tighten the relevant bolts.
Brakes
Last, but certainly not least, check your brakes before you hop in the saddle. Standing next to your bike, lift one wheel off the ground at a time, give it a spin with your hand, and engage your brakes to make sure they’re doing their job.
“Your brake levers should begin to connect with the rim/rotor at no more than halfway through the lever motion (from fully open to the handlebar),” Hughes says. “I want brake adjustment to be strong enough to start slowing you immediately upon the pads contacting the rim/rotor in a controlled manner.”
You should be able to control the rate you slow down and have the ability to initiate a skid (even if you don’t want to actually skid), Purdy adds.
If you find your brake levers go all the way to the bar, it’s a good idea to get to your local bike shop and skip the ride until your brakes work properly, Hughes says. (FYI, brake pads can cost anywhere from about $10 to $30 per wheel, and if you get it done at a shop, there will be an additional cost for labor. Higher quality systems, however, can cost well over $100.)
Keep Your Bike Clean
Your bike doesn’t have to stay pristine, but the cleaner it is, the better it will work, and the less often you’ll have to deal with the headache and expense of repairs and new parts. Plus, the process of cleaning your bike helps you get to know it—and once you know it and start getting in the habit of washing it, you’ll be able to see when something looks wrong or out of place.
When cleaning your bike, you’ll need a different approach for the drivetrain (which includes the crankset, chain, cassette, and derailleurs) versus the rest of the bike (i.e. the frame, fork stem, handlebars, seat, seatpost, pedals, and wheels), which we’ll refer to as “the bike.”
Cleaning Your Bike
There’s no one perfect method for bike cleaning, but don’t feel compelled to buy special cleaning solutions or tools, especially if you’re just getting started with riding. All you really need are water, dish soap, a soft, non-abrasive sponge, and a few rags (old t-shirts are great).
Once you have your supplies assembled, here’s what to do:
- Fill a bucket with a mixture of dish soap and water. (Don’t worry about finding the “perfect” ratio.)
- Wet the bike to loosen any dirt, sand, or grime, using a hose if you have one, or a wet rag or sponge if you don’t. If you’re using a hose, avoid using a high-pressure spray to keep the water from getting into your bearings.
- With a soapy sponge or t-shirt, rub your bike down, the same way you would wash a car, paying special attention to any parts that are especially filthy. Keep going until it looks clean.
- Rinse well with water. (Skip this step, and you risk creating micro scratches when you dry your bike, says Purdy.)
- Wipe your bike down with a clean rag or microfiber towel.
If you’re short on time or your bike isn’t super dirty, you can also get away with wiping it with a microfiber towel, or rinsing it with just water after a ride. If you go for the latter, make sure you wipe it dry after to keep your bike running as smoothly as possible. “Water exposure can shorten the lifespan of the components,” says Purdy.
How often you should clean your bike depends on how much you’re riding, what kind of riding you’re doing, and how dirty your bike is. For example, you might need to give your mountain bike a quick wash after every ride, especially in muddy conditions, whereas you could go months between washes if you’re commuting primarily on paved paths in good weather a few times a week.
Cleaning Your Drivetrain
“Cleaning your drivetrain is the hardest part of cleaning your bike, but keeping it clean prolongs the life of your entire bike, and makes it work more efficiently,” says Hughes. While you can purchase stiff, long-bristled brushes and degreasers designed specifically for the task, you can also use household items you probably already own, including dish soap, an old t-shirt, and a toothbrush or scrub brush.
- Clean the cassette (the set of typically silver rigs that attaches to your wheel hub and holds your chain) by scrubbing it with a soapy brush. You can then use a t-shirt or a rag to “floss” in between the sprockets. Rinse with water.
- There are multiple ways to clean the chain, but the easiest is using a soapy brush to get all parts of the chain (including the inside). Then rinse with water. (You could also use a degreaser instead of soap if you have it. Just make sure you rinse with water after, too.)
- Get into all the other nooks and crannies, including the derailleur pulleys (the little cogwheels that help to move the chain across the cassette’s sprockets, also known as pulley wheels or jockey wheels), using a soapy, stiff bristled brush. Then rinse with water.
- Dry everything off using a clean rag or old t-shirt.
- Once it’s completely dry, lube your chain.
Although lubing your chain is a distinct task, you should never clean your drivetrain without following up with some fresh lube. (More on that below.)
Lubing Your Chain
“If you ride a lot, a $16 bottle of lube could save you hundreds of dollars a year on bike maintenance,” says Hughes.
How to lube your chain depends on whether you’re using wet lube, or dry lube, or wax, a choice that depends on a number of factors. “It depends on where you’re riding, what kind of riding you’re doing, and how often you see yourself doing maintenance,” says Purdy.
For the typical novice, wet lube is best if you frequently ride in wet conditions or just want to get to and from work. It also lasts longer than dry lube, so it can be a good choice if you’re touring or doing high volume training.
If you’re mountain biking in a dry climate, on the other hand, wet lube attracts and holds onto dust and sand, which creates more chain wear; in that case you’re better off with dry lube, says Purdy.
While chain wax has become popular lately, and is known for being very clean and effective, it’s a more complicated process than the other options, so we’re going to focus on how to use wet and dry lubes.
Here’s how to lube your chain using wet or dry lube:
- Make sure your chain is fully dry before you begin, otherwise the moisture will prevent your lube from adhering to your chain, says Purdy.
- Wipe your chain using a rag or an old t-shirt. If you don’t have a bike stand to place your bike on, lean your bike up against something sturdy with the drive side (where the chain is) facing you.
- Spin the pedals backward several times with one hand while pinching your rag against the upper and lower edges of the chain to absorb the old chain lube and the grime it has collected.
- Apply your lube to the chain according to the manufacturer’s directions on the package. Make sure you’re holding the container directly above the chain so that you’re applying the lube directly to the inside of the chain.
- Wipe your chain with a clean rag, as above, to get rid of any excess lube.
Fixing a Flat
Fixing a flat can be intimidating, but it’s an essential skill for every cyclist. “Being able to change a flat on your own gives you the confidence to go out for your ride,” says Hughes.
At a minimum, carry what you need in case you get a flat; that way, even if you’re sure exactly what to do, you’ll have the necessary equipment in case a friendly, knowledgeable stranger offers a hand.
Every time you roll out, make sure you have the basics for fixing a flat on the go: a tire lever, a spare tube, either a small hand pump or CO2 cartridge, and a tire boot (i.e. a patch designed specifically to line your tire).
If you run tubeless tires, you should also carry a tire plug kit for smaller punctures. If going tubeless, you may be able to get away with finding the puncture and using your tire plug kit according to the manufacturer’s directions to plug it, then re-inflate it, and be on your way.
If the puncture is sizeable or you’re using tubes, here’s what to do:
- Remove the affected wheel. If you’re fixing a flat on the rear tire, it’s easier to pop the wheel on and off with your bike upside down, resting on the seat and handlebars.
- Deflate the tire (if you’re running tubeless) or tube completely.
- Run your tire lever around both sides of the wheel to push the tire bead (i.e. the edge) toward the rim’s center.
- Use your tire lever to remove one side of the tire from the rim. (It doesn’t matter which side.)
- Remove the tube.
- Inspect the inside and outside of your tire and check your tube to see if you can identify the puncture site.
- Very gently and carefully run your finger along the inside and outside of your tire to check for anything sharp stuck in it and remove whatever you find.
- If you’re running tubeless tires and the puncture is too big to plug, insert your tire boot (or dollar bill or a used gel packet) over the gash. From here you can skip to inflating your tires. However, you may want to insert a spare tube, especially if you can’t identify the source of the puncture. If you go this route, dump out the extra sealant first, otherwise you’ll make a huge, sticky mess, and it will be very difficult to insert your tube.
- Inflate your new tube just enough to give it some shape.
- Starting at the valve, tuck the tube into the tire.
- Starting opposite the valve, push the tire bead into the rim, being careful not to pinch the tube between the bead and the rim. Your thumbs will be doing most of the work. If you get to a point where the tire is too tight to maneuver into the rim with your hands, use your tire lever to lever it in. Do the best you can to finish the job with your hands if at all possible, as this greatly reduces the risk of a pinch flat, which is what happens when your tire gets pinched between the tire bead and the rim; once you inflate it, the pressure causes it to puncture.
- Go around the entire rim, pulling one section of the tire bead in toward the center at a time; you shouldn’t be able to see any tube sticking out. If you do, use your fingers or the blunt end of the tire lever to gently reposition it inside the tire.
- Inflate your tires.
- Place the wheel back on the bike and hop back in the saddle.
Pam Moore is an occupational therapist-turned-intuitive eating coach, certified personal trainer, and award-winning freelance writer with bylines in outlets including The Washington Post, Time, SELF, Outside, Runner's World, and others. Listen to her podcast, Real Fit, or subscribe to her newsletter, Real Nourished, at
