Support road.cc

Like this site? Help us to make it better.

Back to REVIEWS
review
Cleaning products
Green Oil Clean Chain Degreaser Jelly2021 Green Oil Clean Chain Degreaser Jelly

Green Oil Clean Chain Degreaser Jelly

8
by George Hill
Sat, Nov 27, 2021 09:45
1
£6.99

VERDICT:

8
10
Eco-friendly, powerful, and easy to use without wasting loads
Works really well
Environmentally friendly
Easy to avoid wastage
Weight: 
100g
Contact: 
www.green-oil.net
How we test

At road.cc every product is thoroughly tested for as long as it takes to get a proper insight into how well it works. Our reviewers are experienced cyclists that we trust to be objective. While we strive to ensure that opinions expressed are backed up by facts, reviews are by their nature an informed opinion, not a definitive verdict. We don't intentionally try to break anything (except locks) but we do try to look for weak points in any design. The overall score is not just an average of the other scores: it reflects both a product's function and value – with value determined by how a product compares with items of similar spec, quality, and price.

What the road.cc scores mean

Good scores are more common than bad, because fortunately good products are more common than bad.

  • Exceptional
  • Excellent
  • Very Good
  • Good
  • Quite good
  • Average
  • Not so good
  • Poor
  • Bad
  • Appalling

The Green Oil Clean Chain Degreaser Jelly is very effective, and managed to clean three months of gunk from my wet-lubed chain quickly and easily. It's also really simple to use, washes off quickly and, most importantly, is environmentally friendly.

The last time we took a look at this was in 2016, but I was excited to see what had changed in the last six years.

> Buy this online here

To really fully prepare for this review I had a child and got a very tiring job, meaning that about three months of muck have recently built up on my chain. This has actually included both dry and wet lube coatings without a wash (it's a long story), so my bike was a prime candidate.

Green oil clean chain degreaser jelly on links.jpg

First off you coat your chain in exactly the same way as with lube. This stuff has a nice thick consistency, so although excess can still drip off, it's far less than with most other degreasers.

Green Oil recommends actually riding around for 30 seconds afterwards, though I found it just as effective to spin the cranks and shift the gears while stationary. You then wipe it down, scrub with a brush, and rinse off.

The entire process takes no more than 10 minutes, and by the end my black chain was silver and working efficiently. It was clean enough for me at that point, but I did it a second time to be a perfectionist and there was still some muck coming off.

> Beginner's guide to bike tools – get all the vital gear for basic bike maintenance

The lube-like consistency also avoids the issue of overspray getting on discs or carbon rims, and I didn't need to use that much to do a good job either. You can also add it to water to either use it as a chain bath or a regular bike cleaner, which is a nice bonus.

I even used it over grass to test how garden-friendly it really is – this avoids petrochemicals and is instead based on coconut oil – so if I end up with a bald patch, or indeed a coconut tree, I will update this review.

Value

At £6.99 it's technically quite expensive thanks to the small 100ml bottle, but then a little goes a long way and it lasts well. For instance, you could compare this to the Muc-Off Quick Drying Degreaser which is effective and works out at just £2 for 100ml, but the 750ml/£14.99 can blasts its contents out extremely quickly, and it doesn't have the same eco credentials.

Peaty's Foaming Drivetrain Degreaser is also £2 for 100ml (the 500ml bottle is £10), but again it doesn't have the same eco credentials or neat application.

Overall

I was really impressed with this stuff. It cuts through dried-on oil, dirt and lube, is simple to apply (sparingly), and is very eco-friendly too.

Verdict

Eco-friendly, powerful, and easy to use without wasting loads

If you're thinking of buying this product using a cashback deal why not use the road.cc Top Cashback page and get some top cashback while helping to support your favourite independent cycling website

road.cc test report

Make and model: Green Oil Clean Chain Degreaser Jelly

Size tested: 100 ml

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?

Green Oil says:'Clean Chain is a degreasing jelly, so it sticks to the chain for effective degreasing. Clean Chain degreaser is 100% biodegradable, utilizing naturally derived ingredients.'

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

- Made in Britain

- Unique gel formula - easy to apply

- Can be diluted to make 1 litre of Green Clean bike cleaner

- 100ml

Rate the product for quality of construction:
 
9/10

The bottle is made from recycled plastic, and the jelly itself is impressively thick.

Rate the product for performance:
 
8/10

Works really effectively, even on several months of gunk buildup.

Rate the product for durability:
 
7/10
Rate the product for value:
 
4/10

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

Very well: it stripped all the dirt off my chain quickly and easily, and the grass where I used it has not died as yet.

Tell us what you particularly liked about the product

The thickness makes it so much easier to use.

Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product

Nothing much.

How does the price compare to that of similar products in the market, including ones recently tested on road.cc?

At £6.99 it's technically quite expensive thanks to the small 100ml bottle, but then a little goes a long way and it lasts well. For instance, you could compare this to the Muc Off Quick Drying Degreaser which is effective and works out at just £2 for 100ml, but the 750ml/£14.99 can blasts out extremely quickly, and it doesn't have the same eco credentials.

Peaty's Foaming Drivetrain Degreaser is also £2 for 100ml (the 500ml bottle is £10), but again it doesn't have the same eco credentials or neat application.

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 overall score

This cuts through even heavily built-up gunk and lube, is simple to use, and is kind to your bike and environment. Although it's relatively expensive per millilitre, it's easy to use sparingly and it lasts well – it's really good stuff.

Overall rating: 8/10

About the tester

Age: 33  Height: 6 ft  Weight:

I usually ride: CAAD13  My best bike is: Cannondale Supersix Evo

I've been riding for: 10-20 years  I ride: Every day  I would class myself as: Expert

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

Green Oil Clean Chain Degreaser Jelly 2021
Green Oil Clean Chain degreaser jelly
Green Oil 2021
Green Oil
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.

Latest Comments