Cleaning the FZ

[Guest JerzieFREQ]

Ok so I have yet to give my beloved a first bath.  I'm prepping for when the time comes and I can sense that its very close.  What products or techniques can you much more experienced people recommend?   
 
 
BTW I finally took off that hideous sticker on the tank plastic cover thing.  What a pain in the rear that was.  I used Goo Gone on some microfiber cloth.  You really gotta rub it in there (that's what she said )
 
I also have the Motul Chain Clean and Lube ready for the after shower massage 
 

[rowdy 821]

I have been using Meguire's Motorcycle EZ Clean with a soft rag and brush, but I must admit that good old Dawn dish wash or any quality auto car wash product work well too.  BTW, I'm at 1500 miles and I've only cleaned mine once (but I've owned and cleaned lots of other bikes).
 

[hobbs 558]

I clean the chain, sprockets, then the wheels followed by everything else. I use purple power on the wheels and grimy areas with a brush, soapy water and a sponge for the rest.
 
You're pretty well covered against water intrusion. Just don't directly spray electrical looking things.

[hobbs 558]

Also, S100 is a pretty good product for quick washes or inbetween major cleanings. I need to get another bottle.

[sorkyah 1,449]

[div align=left] I use Meguiar's Hyper Wash for my cars and just washed the bike with it for the first time this past weekend, works awesome. Also bought this for use between chain lubes. As for lubing the chain, that's done by the dealer whenever I feel like taking it in.
[/div]

[cndnmax 123]

Save your money on chain cleaner and buy a jug of kerosene, nothing will clean your chain better. I use a rag instead of a brush also.

[Kwaipuak 80]

I honestly hate cleaning and waxing my rides. God will I miss paying a pitatance to have people wash and wax my bikes in Thailand. Every nook and crany were scrubbed clean. Hate having to buy special tools to get into tight spots.

[sorkyah 1,449]

Diesel fuel wont work will it? I can get that relatively easily, but kerosene isnt used for heating down here like it is up north. Im not sure where to get it.
 

[howworkclutch 209]

most bike shops carry bikebrite. its biodegradable and does a really really good job of busting up grime. the cleaner honda sells is equally good.
 
i hate cleaning bikes. the dirtier they are the better, i say. but, sometimes its got to be done. i dont waste a lot of effort scrubbing. i wet the bike with water, coat it in bikebrite, have a couple of beers, then wipe and rinse-off. after chain cleaning/lube of course.

[cndnmax 123]

Diesel fuel wont work will it? I can get that relatively easily, but kerosene isnt used for heating down here like it is up north. Im not sure where to get it.

 
Diesel might work. You can usually find it with the camping stuff. They use it for stoves and heating.

[oscardms 16]

MTM FOAM CANON
 

[tino206 57]

/\\ that looks so sketchy..I have yet to wash mine but I think I will just use water and a tad of car soap while using a micro fiber cloth and call it a day

[Guest JerzieFREQ]

Save your money on chain cleaner and buy a jug of kerosene, nothing will clean your chain better. I use a rag instead of a brush also.

This is my first motorcycle and have never cleaned and lubed chain so I just got this stuff from cycle gear after some research.  so do you put the kerosene into a spray bottle or something and then use it on the chain?  Try to save money wherever i can next time haha

[cndnmax 123]

Save your money on chain cleaner and buy a jug of kerosene, nothing will clean your chain better. I use a rag instead of a brush also.

This is my first motorcycle and have never cleaned and lubed chain so I just got this stuff from cycle gear after some research.  so do you put the kerosene into a spray bottle or something and then use it on the chain?  Try to save money wherever i can next time haha

 
I pour a small amount into a container and soak a small section of a rag. Wipe the chain down and it will look good as new. Wait a few min to dry and spray on your lube. Make sure you use latex cloves.

[bmwpowere36m3 315]

Diesel fuel wont work will it? I can get that relatively easily, but kerosene isnt used for heating down here like it is up north. Im not sure where to get it.

 
 
Diesel will be fine... it'll just leave a lite bit of an oily film, which is not a bad thing. I'll use either diesel, WD-40 or some bio-cleaner I got with my grunge brush.

[sorkyah 1,449]

MTM FOAM CANON 

this looks like fun. i kinda want to get one of those now. and a pressure washer

[bmwpowere36m3 315]

MTM FOAM CANON 

this looks like fun. i kinda want to get one of those now. and a pressure washer

 
 
Foam cannons are good, maybe a little overkill.... A lot of detailers use them. Same can be said for pressure washers, but you need to be careful where and how close you point it.

[sorkyah 1,449]

this looks like fun. i kinda want to get one of those now. and a pressure washer

Foam cannons are good, maybe a little overkill.... A lot of detailers use them. Same can be said for pressure washers, but you need to be careful where and how close you point it.

Wonder if there are any foam cannons for low pressure use. Garden hose connected to my water softener/filter setup puts out decent pressures(~65 psi) but nothing near a pressure washer's output.

[howworkclutch 209]

MTM FOAM CANON 
*pics snipped for sanity*

this looks like fun. i kinda want to get one of those now. and a pressure washer

i had to go look these up because i'd never heard of a foam cannon. 
so i read some reviews and some more reviews.  one thing stuck out:
 
not one reviewer made a single comment about cleaning-ability of all that foam. all the comments were about the volume of foam.
 
that much foam is an impressive feat of engineering but if it doesn't clean any better than a soapy rag i just don't see why anyone would need one. it seems like a solution to a problem that didn't exist until the solution was created. and the problem really is just one of "I saw lots of foam and now I want lots of foam."
 
just my opinion, which should be taken as offensive to anyone anywhere at any time.
 

[sorkyah 1,449]

this looks like fun. i kinda want to get one of those now. and a pressure washer

i had to go look these up because i'd never heard of a foam cannon. 
so i read some reviews and some more reviews.  one thing stuck out:
 
not one reviewer made a single comment about cleaning-ability of all that foam. all the comments were about the volume of foam.
 
that much foam is an impressive feat of engineering but if it doesn't clean any better than a soapy rag i just don't see why anyone would need one. it seems like a solution to a problem that didn't exist until the solution was created. and the problem really is just one of "I saw lots of foam and now I want lots of foam."
 
just my opinion, which should be taken as offensive to anyone anywhere at any time.

I see what youre talking about, I encountered the same issue. But they were reviewing the blasters afterall. The soap is whats doing the cleaning. Most of the soapsbive found(including the one I already use)have active suds and are extremely concentrated.
 
So yes the foam cannons dont really do anything, just make excessive amounts of foam. But the soaps created for use with the cannons are the key and actually clean what you spray

[howworkclutch 209]

i had to go look these up because i'd never heard of a foam cannon. 
so i read some reviews and some more reviews.  one thing stuck out:
 
not one reviewer made a single comment about cleaning-ability of all that foam. all the comments were about the volume of foam.
 
that much foam is an impressive feat of engineering but if it doesn't clean any better than a soapy rag i just don't see why anyone would need one. it seems like a solution to a problem that didn't exist until the solution was created. and the problem really is just one of "I saw lots of foam and now I want lots of foam."
 
just my opinion, which should be taken as offensive to anyone anywhere at any time.

I see what youre talking about, I encountered the same issue. But they were reviewing the blasters afterall. The soap is whats doing the cleaning. Most of the soapsbive found(including the one I already use)have active suds and are extremely concentrated.  
So yes the foam cannons dont really do anything, just make excessive amounts of foam. But the soaps created for use with the cannons are the key and actually clean what you spray

that seems like a fair assessment. of course, being the complete-and-total jackalope that i am: i had to go read reviews on the soaps.
 
i found this on amazon:
After foaming the vehicle and washing it off, do you still have to physically wash the vehicle with a cloth or sponge? Thanks in advance.
 
A: Yes you still need to physically wash the vehicle by hand. All the foam really does is loosen the dirt and create a slippery barrier between the paint and the dirt.
Gregory Kenney answered on October 23, 2014
 
A: Depends on how dirty the car is, if the paint was properly maintained prior to foam, and The type/color of the paint. It's a yes and no kinda of question You should be able to gauge it by that.hope that helps a little bit more....
DynamiteD answered on October 24, 2014
 
A: Absolutely, When this product is used with a foam canon and a pressure washer when foamed and allowed to sit for a couple minutes if you rinsed the car loose dirt will be gone. However, the car still needs to be washed. The only way your going to have dirt just come off the car without actually washing with physical… see more
 
 
humans do bizarre things

[bmwpowere36m3 315]

this looks like fun. i kinda want to get one of those now. and a pressure washer

i had to go look these up because i'd never heard of a foam cannon. 
so i read some reviews and some more reviews.  one thing stuck out:
 
not one reviewer made a single comment about cleaning-ability of all that foam. all the comments were about the volume of foam.
 
that much foam is an impressive feat of engineering but if it doesn't clean any better than a soapy rag i just don't see why anyone would need one. it seems like a solution to a problem that didn't exist until the solution was created. and the problem really is just one of "I saw lots of foam and now I want lots of foam."
 
just my opinion, which should be taken as offensive to anyone anywhere at any time.

 
 
The point of the "cannon" is to flood the surface/paint with foam for two reasons... First, it allows the soap to soften up any contaminants on the paint. Second, it puts a lot of soap/lubricant on the bodywork to reduce to amount of micro-scratches/swirl-marks that occur when you use a brush, sponge, MF towel on the bodywork... essentially your "rubbing" some of those contaminants into the paint while cleaning.
 
That said, it's mostly used by detailers or people seriously anal about their paint.

[Guest sportyeight]

Diesel fuel wont work will it? I can get that relatively easily, but kerosene isnt used for heating down here like it is up north. Im not sure where to get it.

#1 diesel and kerosene is so close to the same thing it isn't even worth the price difference to get the kerosene. In fact a lot of places sell #1 diesel labeled as kerosene. Up here we use #2 diesel to heat homes, the same junk they put in farm tractors.

[Guest JerzieFREQ]

I have been using Meguire's Motorcycle EZ Clean with a soft rag and brush, but I must admit that good old Dawn dish wash or any quality auto car wash product work well too.  BTW, I'm at 1500 miles and I've only cleaned mine once (but I've owned and cleaned lots of other bikes).

Sweet I hit 500 miles on mine just today.  Might ask the dealership to throw in a complimentary wash and chain lube when I go get my first break-in service.  haha  

[nmucat 88]

What about drying the bike off? I use my leaf blower, no water spots or drip marks.