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Bike Maintenance Basics: Eight Simple Jobs That Prevent Almost Everything
Bikes fail predictably. Flats come from low pressure, drivetrains die from dirty chains, and brakes fade from worn pads nobody looked at. Master eight simple jobs on a schedule and you eliminate the vast majority of breakdowns and shop visits.
Weekly (5 minutes)
- 1. Tire pressure. The single highest-value habit. Tires lose 5–10 psi a week just sitting. Underinflation causes pinch flats, sluggish handling, and rim damage. Inflate to the range printed on the sidewall — modern thinking favors the lower half of that range for comfort and grip (roughly 70–90 psi for 28 mm road tires depending on rider weight; much lower for wide gravel and MTB tires).
- 2. The ABC check. Air, Brakes, Chain: squeeze both brakes (levers shouldn't hit the bar), lift and spin each wheel (no wobble or rub), and glance at the chain for rust or gunk. Thirty seconds before any ride.
Every 2–4 weeks or 100–200 miles
- 3. Clean and lube the chain. Wipe with a rag, apply one drop of lube per roller, let it sit, wipe the excess thoroughly — excess lube is a grit magnet and worse than none on the outside. A clean chain saves measurable watts and multiplies drivetrain life. Wet lube for rainy climates, dry lube for dusty ones.
- 4. Bolt check. Stem, seatpost, bottle cages, rack: a gentle snug with a hex key. Carbon parts need a torque wrench — 4–6 Nm is typical, and overtightening carbon is how expensive parts die.
Monthly to seasonal
- 5. Brake pads. Rim pads: replace when the grooves disappear. Disc pads: replace below ~1.5 mm of material. Squealing discs usually mean contamination — never touch rotors or pads with bare fingers or lube near them.
- 6. Chain wear. A $12 chain checker tells you when the chain has "stretched" 0.5% (11/12-speed) or 0.75% (10-speed and below). Replace on time and a $30 chain saves you a $150+ cassette-and-chainring bill — the most cost-effective measurement in cycling.
- 7. Tire inspection. Look for embedded glass and wire, cuts, and squared-off tread. Most flats announce themselves days early as a shard working inward.
- 8. Cables and hydraulics. Shifting getting vague or brakes getting spongy is cables stretching or air in lines — a cheap, quick shop adjustment if you don't do it yourself.
What to leave to a shop
Wheel truing, bearing services (headset, bottom bracket, hubs), hydraulic bleeds, and suspension service have real learning curves and specialty tools. An annual tune-up ($75–$150) plus the eight habits above is the reliability formula. Kit for the habits lives in our gear guide, and the one roadside skill everyone needs is in how to fix a flat.
Keep exploring
Put these numbers to work with the free CalculateBike speed and calorie calculator, browse the cycling gear guide, or read more cycling articles. Prefer two feet to two wheels? Our sister tools CalculateSteps and CalculateRun cover walking and running.