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review
Cleaning products
Zefal Bike Bio DegreaserZefal Bike Bio Degreaser

Zefal Bike Bio Degreaser

8
by George Hill
UPDATED Thu, Oct 15, 2015 04:24

First Published Jul 24, 2015

0
£8.50

VERDICT:

8
10
Strips dirt but not your wallet - well worth a try once it's more readily available in the UK
Weight: 
500g
Contact: 
www.zefal.com
How we test

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The Zefal Bike Bio Degreaser packs a punch with a decent level of grease stripping. It cut through the grease and dirt on my drivetrain well and allowed me to wipe clean after only one or two sprays regardless of drivetrain condition.

As far as degreasers go, it works in exactly the same way as every other I have used: spray on, wait, wipe, spray and wipe again until your are satisfied. In fact it doesn't even include instructions on the bottle, it's assumed you know how to point and spray.

Find your nearest dealer here

Buy this online here

It comes in a nice squirty bottle that's easy to aim and hold. The nozzle has two settings, stop and start, meaning you can leave it without worrying about the trigger accidentally going off.

If it does go off mistakenly, though, it is a bio product, meaning that it is safer on the skin and is better for the environment. I couldn't test this precisely in road.cc's extensive sampling lab, as we are currently using it to test the marginal gains from using original Jelly Babies compared with supermarket own brand varieties. It certainly doesn't have the deep chemical smell that most non-bio variants have, though I still wouldn't spray it at my face.

In terms of stripping dirt, it's very impressive, despite my initial thoughts that the solution was perhaps a bit too thin. It drips off the components easily, but despite this it stripped everything well. I used it with brushes and a chain cleaner and found it equally effective with both.

The main drawback at present is that it's a hard product to find. According to distributor Bob Elliot it has an RRP of £8.50 for a 500ml bottle, which is a great price for a high performing product.

I liked using the Bio Degreaser. It could probably be a bit thicker, just to stop excessive dripping, but this is a minor point for what is an effective and affordable degreaser.

Verdict

Strips dirt but not your wallet - well worth a try once it's more readily available in the UK

road.cc test report

Make and model: Zefal Bike Bio Degreaser

Size tested: 500ml

Tell us what the product is for, and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?

Zefal say: "The Bike Bio Degreaser is a powerful degreaser that is efficient for all transmission parts of the bike, and removes as well grease, mud and dirt. Its unique formula is easy to rinse and leaves no trace or residue. After rinsing, it gives a shine to the treated surfaces. 100% biodegradable degreaser."

With a price point of £8.50 it is aimed at anybody from the racer down to the dad keeping it in the garage to clean the kids' bikes.

Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?

Zefal are short and to the point:

BIODEGRADABLE - Safe for the environment.

QUICK CLEANING - Removes stains quickly and effectively.

Rate the product for quality of construction:
 
8/10

The strong and sturdy bottle is easy to use and the nozzle that can be locked and unlocked is also a nice touch. The plastic used throughout the bottle is thick and sturdy. It should survive living in a garage, being dropped or being left inside a toolbox.

The degreaser itself could do with being a bit thicker to stop excess dripping, but this does not detract from its performance.

Rate the product for performance:
 
8/10

Works well for stripping grease and grime, even on particularly dirty components, which would be cleared after only a couple of squirts. The sprayer is easy to turn on and off and the bottle is comfortable to hold and easy to use. What more do you want?

Rate the product for durability:
 
9/10

Big bottle, small price, combined with good performance means it will outlast most, and if it doesn't, it will not be a bank busting trip to replace it.

Rate the product for value:
 
9/10

£8.50 is a great price for 500ml of a really strong-performing degreaser. At present finding it in the UK is a bit of a struggle, but hopefully stock will increase.

Tell us how the product performed overall when used for its designed purpose

Very well. Degreasers need to strip dirt and wipe clean easily, and for both of these it was really good. I even used it on my girlfriend's bike and I don't know if the chainset has ever been cleaned; even then it was two sprays and I could easily wipe away the grime.

Tell us what you particularly liked about the product

The shape of the bottle and the price. It is comfortable to hold and easy to aim.

Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product

The degreaser could be thicker to prevent as many drips.

Did you enjoy using the product? Yes

Would you consider buying the product? Yes

Would you recommend the product to a friend? Yes

Use this box to explain your score

A strong-performing degreaser, which compares well to many non-bio and more expensive degreasers I have used in the past. Loses a couple of marks for the viscosity of the degreaser, but overall I was impressed.

Overall rating: 8/10

About the tester

Age: 27  Height: 6 ft  Weight:

I usually ride: Cannondale Supersix Evo 6  My best bike is:

I've been riding for: Under 5 years  I ride: Every day  I would class myself as: Experienced

I regularly do the following types of riding: commuting, club rides, sportives, general fitness riding, fixed/singlespeed

 

Zefal Bike Bio Degreaser
Zefal 2015
Zefal
George Hill

George is the host of the road.cc podcast and has been writing for road.cc since 2014. He has reviewed everything from a saddle with a shark fin through to a set of glasses with a HUD and everything in between. 

Although, ironically, spending more time writing and talking about cycling than on the bike nowadays, he still manages to do a couple of decent rides every week on his ever changing number of bikes.

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