While ending a trainer session in a puddle of sweat may be gratifying, your perspiration can spell disaster for your bike. The salt from it will corrode metal parts like handlebars, headsets, seat posts, pedals, and cleats. As Bicycling’s head mechanic and a former competitive roadie, I’ve seen just how gross a trainer bike can get during an off-season (or any extended bout of indoor riding). Turn to these best practices—and recommendations for some of my preferred equipment and supplies—for keeping sweat off of and maintaining your bike.
Use Two Fans Instead of One
I’ve found that using a fan on my back tends to do a better job of actually cooling me off. And I still like one on my front because it feels good. I’ve used a couple of fans similar to this one from Lasko for 10 years now. Personally, I prefer an oscillating model because I can easily get it to face in the direction I want. By comparison, a box fan will need to be propped up at an angle, put on a chair or table, or rigged in some other pain-in-the-butt contraption if you want more than just your feet to get a breeze. Plus, the two fans prevent some of the sweat from dripping onto the bike, making cleanup easier.
Keep Your Headset Corrosion-Free
Your headset bearings and stem bolts tend to be very susceptible to rusting. If you ever need to adjust your stem or steer more than is required to go in a straight line, it’s best that either or both of those things aren’t corroded in place. These TACX sweat covers attach between to your seatpost and handlebar and use an absorbent textile to soak up sweat and prevent it from falling through to the bike. They can get gross as heck between washes, but they work really well.
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Lasko 16 in. Oscillating Pedestal Fan
Lizard Skins DSP 2.5mm Bar Tape
Topeak JoeBlow Sport III
Protect Your Handlebar
Changing bar tape frequently is a must, even if you aren’t the sweatiest person. Any moisture building up unchecked long enough can seep through the bar tape and corrode your aluminum handlebar to a point of failure, with potentially catastrophic results should it happen out on the road. (Carbon fiber or composite handlebars avoid the issue altogether because composites don’t corrode.)
So swap your tape about twice as often while using your trainer as you do out on the road. Look for bar tape—such as this Lizard Skins DSP—that doesn’t let moisture through. And draping a towel over your bars also helps.
Pump Up Your Tire(s)
If you ride rollers or a wheel-on trainer, invest in trainer-specific tires that are more resistant to wear and overheating. Or pump your current tires up to the maximum recommended pressure. This will slightly reduce abrasion and not make them ride funny when you get back on the road (consistent trainer use can square off a tire’s tread, so increasing pressure reduces the contact patch and prevents the flattening effect).
Ride, Wipe, Repeat
Immediately after finishing your workout, wipe down your bike using a rag or microfiber towel and bike cleaner such as Muc-Off MOX 904 below or Finish Line Super Bike Wash. Those are my two favorites as they don’t smell like they will kill you instantly when used in an unventilated basement.
To prevent corrosion, target your handlebar, stem, headset area, brake levers, and shift levers.
Muc Off Muc-Off MOX-904 Nano Tech Bike Cleaner - 1 Liter
Muc Off Muc-Off MOX-904 Nano Tech Bike Cleaner - 1 Liter
Also hit the top tube and downtube, focusing on areas where cables enter the frame or any external cable stops (even on carbon frames, these are typically aluminum and thus will corrode). On aluminum frames, make sure to wipe down the bottom of the top tube and downtube, as this is typically where sweat accumulates—I have literally seen holes in aluminum frames from sweat corrosion. Another area to focus on is the top of the seatpost where the binder bolts to the seat are, as well as the seatpost clamp and the area where the seat post enters the frame.
