Difficulty
Easy
How to wax a bike chain
Waxing a chain is more complicated than applying lube but it's worth the extra effort
Tom Hallam-Gravells
Online Production Editor
A wax treatment will make your chain faster, more efficient, extend its longevity and keep it cleaner, which is why many cyclists now use the method instead of a more traditional bike lube.
Those benefits come at a slight effort cost, though, as waxing a chain is a little more complicated and takes longer than applying lube. In this guide we’ll take you through the process, as recommended by Silca. For it you’ll need a dedicated chain wax, a hydrosonic cleaner (although a glass jar will work), a crockpot, white spirit, drivetrain degreaser and acetone.
Step 1A
Clean the chain
New chains usually arrive with grease already applied and this will need to be removed before applying the wax.
If you’re applying wax to an older chain, check it with a chain wear tool first - there’s no point in waxing a worn chain.
Read more: How to measure chain wear correctly
Step 1B
Dip the chain in white spirit
Immerse the chain in white spirit in a hydrosonic cleaner for 30 minutes.
If you don’t have a hydrosonic cleaner, put the spirit inside a glass jar. Place the chain inside and give the jar a shake. Then leave the jar for 30 minutes.
Top Tip
Thread the chain along an old spoke. This will make it easier to dip the chain into the hydrosonic cleaner
Step 1C
Immerse the chain in degreaser
Take the chain out of the spirit and wipe it down with a microfibre cloth and a normal cloth.
Then give it a second bath, this time in some drivetrain degreaser, for 30 minutes. You can do this in a hydrosonic cleaner or a jar.
Step 1D
Immerse the chain in acetone
Remove the chain and wipe it down once again with a cloth.
Give the chain one final bath, this time in acetone. This only needs to be for around 10 minutes.
Top Tip
If dirt is still coming off the chain at the end of the 10 minutes, you will need to repeat this step.
Step 2
Melt the wax
Add the wax to a crockpot and put it on a low setting. It should take around eight minutes for the wax to melt.
You can use other methods to melt the wax but we’ve found that a crockpot is the best.
Step 3
Put the chain in the wax
Thread an old spoke through the chain and dip the chain into the wax. Use the spoke to move and agitate the chain so that the wax can penetrate into all of the links.
Step 4
Remove the pot
Remove the pot from the crockpot. This will give the wax a chance to cool down a little so that it doesn’t drip off when you remove the chain.
A small layer of skin will start to develop on the surface when the wax is at the correct temperature - this is when it’s time to remove the chain.
Top Tip
Don’t let the wax cool too much otherwise it’ll become too viscous and completely cover and clog the chain. If that does happen, you can put the chain back into the wax and warm everything back up again.
Step 5
Remove the chain from the pot
Once the skin forms, use the spoke to move and agitate the chain, giving the wax one last chance to penetrate deep into the chain.
You can then use the spoke to remove the chain from the pot. Before finishing, dip the quick link into the wax for a few seconds.
Step 6
Let the wax bed in
Fit the chain to your bike and then run it in for around 15 minutes, ideally on a turbo trainer or rollers.
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