Tips for fighting the scourge of salty coastal fog?

Gnarly Cranium

Gnarly Cranium

milk crate goes where?
I live on Treasure Island, and I have a carport but no garage. I'm about to bring home a pretty new bike (probably a Ninja 650r), which is actually still shiny. How can I try to keep it that way, as much as I can? Do I just douse the whole bike with WD-40 every day, or what? I know this issue comes up a lot, but I'm still a bit new to the mechanical end of things, and I need to put together some kind of specific maintenance regime that may seem pretty basic to you guys but is new to me, and I had some specific questions.

I was probably going to pull off most of the fairings and plastic anyway, and I'm hoping that will make the bike's important bits more accessible and easier to monitor/clean.

Should I hose the bike off periodically to rinse it? About how often? What do I avoid spraying with the water?

Cover or no cover?

Any protective products I can use to reduce the corrosion?

Preventative measures to keep the nuts and bolts from locking up? Every screw on my Nighthawk seemed almost melded in place in a nest of rust, it was hell getting anything open without stripping something.

Any particular areas I should give special attention and treatment? My previous bike was shaft drive, so now I'll be needing to maintain a chain for the first time, for one.

Anything I can do to help protect my forks? On the Nighthawk, those were really hurting really fast, I had replaced the forks when I first got the bike so they were brand new, but they were pitted in what seemed like notime. Would gaiters help? Having a ratty bike is one thing, I'm a fan of ratty, but when the forks tear up the fork seals and fork oil starts dribbling onto the front brake (the condition it was in when I bought it, and why I replaced the forks) is kinda not okay.

I've been sorta considering figuring out a way to park it in the laundry room through the back door, but um... I doubt that would go over too well with my roommates. :p
 
revnort

revnort

Tasty Pants
Others my have better suggestions but I think your best bet is indoors. Make a deal about doing extra chores with your roommates or something. I hear Treasure island is one of the worst places for bikes.
 
Carlo

Carlo

Kickstart Enthusiast
Move?

When I bought my first new motorcycle, a Kawasaki H1 Triple from Jackson Motors in Half Moon Bay, I lived within 100 yards of the ocean. Then moved to San Francisco, right across the street from the ocean at the end of Noriega.
Five years of that life created a rusty mess.
Salt air is everywhere, and you can't escape it by going indoors.
The brass fixtures in our flat in San Francisco were all green from the air.
 
Gnarly Cranium

Gnarly Cranium

milk crate goes where?
Really? That's it?

Not even anything to mitigate the damage?? I know it can't be stopped, but isn't there something I can do to slow it down as much as I can?
 
Valgar

Valgar

Fighting solves everything.
Staff member
Gnarly, when I lived on TI (or hell, even Pacifica) even with a cover, and a garage on TI, I still had to deal with salty fog.

Oddly, what worked on the engine and associate bits was a good hose down with WD-40. Once things warmed up, and after a bit of smoke, it actually created a nice barrier that seemed to keep the corrosion at bay. Still have the two bikes I had when I lived on TI, and they aren't all rusted to shit.

Used to live on sturgeon, loved it when it would flood during heavy rain.
 
mototireguy

mototireguy

Moto Tire Veteran
Fight the rusty fog monsters with a light fog of WD40 every month or so.

Rust never sleeps but you can delay the onset.
 
MrIncredible

MrIncredible

Is fintastic
Quality paint prior to rust will also help, though probably not the best option for a mechanical newb with a bike that's already shiny.
 
spdt509

spdt509

Well-known member
1.measure width of front door

2.measure width of handlebars

3.cut handlebars evenly on each side

4.park bike next to couch

5.if you get evicted for this,find new apt. with garage
 
Stormdragon

Stormdragon

Still Good Lookin'
Supposedly this ACF-50 stuff is the bomb. It's been mentioned a couple times by others on BARF. Haven't tried it yet myself, but I', planning on ordering some up at some point.
 
Gnarly Cranium

Gnarly Cranium

milk crate goes where?
The painted bits aren't so much what I worry about, as the knobbly, threaded, bumpy bits and moving parts, assorted bolts and joints and gears, the engine and especially the fork tubes.

I was kidding about the laundry room and the baths of WD-40, but it's starting to sound like those are among my best options? :wtf Heh! :laughing Well, WD-40 I can do for sure... I wonder if ACF-50 is a re-branding? :p I will look into this silicon wax matter.

I am not planning on living on TI forever (I mean, come on, it's gonna sink into the ocean any min anyway) but if I can keep the bike in 1 piece for a year or two that'll be nice.
 
Brewbacca

Brewbacca

wookie
yooo why are you gonna remove the fairing and stuff..:shocker
They are there to protect your bike for when you drop it or crash by accident.. are you trying to make a grnr-kawi or something.. leave that ting alone and wd-40 that thing every week
 
Gnarly Cranium

Gnarly Cranium

milk crate goes where?
Brewbacca said:
yooo why are you gonna remove the fairing and stuff..:shocker
They are there to protect your bike for when you drop it or crash by accident.. are you trying to make a grnr-kawi or something.. leave that ting alone and wd-40 that thing every week
Click to expand...
What? How are a couple of delicate, heinously expensive slips of smashable plastic going to protect a metal engine? They are solely cosmetic, or maybe, ostensibly, for wind protection. Engine guards are for protecting the bike. Those and maybe frame sliders.

Ray said:
You could also look at replacing all the bolts with aluminum or stainless:
http://www.probolt-usa.com/Products/ZX6_Ninja_09_10_Full_Monty_Bolt_Kit
Click to expand...
Oooh, interesting idea!
 
sanjuro

sanjuro

Rider
A shed. I don't think it is cheap, but it is the next best thing to indoors...

040933050505lg.jpg
 
Wormwood

Wormwood

Is right behind you
If outside storage is a must I have used a cloth dust (cycle gear $20) cover topped with a good all weather cover ($45). Stored a bike during 5 winters in Alameda and no oxidation/corrosion issues.

Bare metals can benefit from a lite coating of WD-40, cheaper and just as good as any "suface protectant."

Threads rusting up, A good teflon based anti-seize may help but I have never had this problem so ymmv.
 
ST Guy

ST Guy

Well-known member
Gnarly Cranium said:
Really? That's it?

Not even anything to mitigate the damage?? I know it can't be stopped, but isn't there something I can do to slow it down as much as I can?
Click to expand...

Forget it. It's a loosing battle no matter what you do. Move is really the only way. If that's not practical, then sell your bike now while you can (or put it in storage somewhere else), and then buy a rat bike that's mechanically sound for use while you're living there.

The bottom line is that any of the things you might try are labor intensive, barely work, and you'll get frustrated doing them all the time anyway. Living by salt water bodies simply means accepting that your stuff is going to end up sticky and rusted.
 
yella600rr

yella600rr

popmonkey.com
mototireguy said:
Fight the rusty fog monsters with a light fog of WD40 every month or so.

Rust never sleeps but you can delay the onset.
Click to expand...

A long time ago I had a friend that had a pressure spray canister that he would fill with WD40 and pressurize the canister with compressed air and it would make a finer mist than using a WD40 spray can.

This was to done to all the bikes after a trip to Pismo Beach.
 
yella600rr

yella600rr

popmonkey.com
ST Guy said:
Forget it. It's a loosing battle no matter what you do. Move is really the only way. If that's not practical, then sell your bike now while you can (or put it in storage somewhere else), and then buy a rat bike that's mechanically sound for use while you're living there.

The bottom line is that any of the things you might try are labor intensive, barely work, and you'll get frustrated doing them all the time anyway. Living by salt water bodies simply means accepting that your stuff is going to end up sticky and rusted.
Click to expand...

She could park vacuum pack her bike every night.
 
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