Not Necessarily Another Cleaning Question

[cowboyup3371]

I'm not actually asking how to clean my bike because I know there are already a ton of those questions out there. However, I also know that most people on this forum live in town. Trust me when I say I envy a lot of you for your garages and driveway in the sense that you have a good place to store and work on your bike.

However, I live in the country and don't ever plan on moving back into town at least as long as I have any control over it. That being said, my driveway to my gate is a quarter-mile long dirt/mud pit/puddle dodging road. Once I get to the gate, I have about another 1.25 miles to the hard top road. Both of our regular vehicles get extremely dirty and we pretty much don't worry about it because by the time we finish washing them, we'll already have a good thick layer of dust.

With that said, are there others on here like me who live in the sticks? What do you do about cleaning your bikes? Do you leave it alone for several weeks at a shot or are you constantly cleaning them up?

[pete]

I don't live in the sticks myself, but I used to work with a guy that had a Harley Electra Glide Ultra Classic (or some name like that) which of course had all the bells and whistles and chrome etc. etc.

He lived in a situation that sounds a bit like yours and he only seemed to clean it about once a month unless it rained, and then he cleaned it less.

I remember him telling me about dropping it in the mud one afternoon on the way home in the rain and it wasn't exactly a light bike...

[Macguyver]

I live in the country, on a gravel road which is only about 50 feet from a paved road, so I won't get the same level of dust/dirt as you do.

However, last year I cleaned my bike once a week or so with the hose and a big soapy sponge. It only takes a few minutes to get the majority of the dirt off.

The way I look at it is if I am wearing my leather jacket somewhere, then it is a social occaision, and the bike should be clean-ish and presentable. If I am wearing my textile jacket, then screw the dirt, I am likely going to get her much dirtier before it gets washed anyways.

My bike is not intended for the showroom floor, so it might get one or two good detail cleanings a year, and be kept clean-ish with semi-regular washing.

Just my 2 centavo's.

[DanTheMan]

I actually have a paved driveway. I live in a very rural area though, and go through a lot of gravel/loose sand/muddy roads so my bike isn't a showpiece. When it gets real nasty I have to wash it.

[Sandy]

Fix the driveway! For about ten years we lived well into the boonies and had started with what we called the driveway from hell. Shortly after we moved there even the locals would ask us about THAT driveway. It was about half the distance of yours and uphill with a few tight corners. In the spring thaw the only thing that could get up it was the wife's Jeep. I was amazed at how nice it was after dumping 3 12yd truck loads of proper road gravel on it. I thought the next spring it would have just disappeared but it didn't and we actually had a decent driveway for years. It kept a lot of dust out of the house too and only cost us about $500.00 at the time. (about 16 years ago)

[Mysuzyq]

If you do clean it and don't have a garage, get a bike cover, or your effort will be for nought. Even a cheap WalMart cover will do the job, and provide some protection from dust & the elements (sunlight, bird poop, tree sap etc.). A compressor with an air hose will also help to blast off the dust prior to covering it (after the bike cools)....once you have clean bodywork, dust comes off pretty easily.

[KRyder13]

Actually I'm kind of in between. I don't clean the bike every day or every week (or every whatever - I don't use a schedule) but I don't usually let it get real bad before I clean it. I live kind of in the suburbs and the Suzuki is in the garage when it's not being ridden.
Ken