Keeping the seat rollers clean

[f2d]

I live in the city, so dust accumulates on things pretty fast, and as a result, no matter how many times I wipe down the rail, the seat rollers accumulate quite a bit of crud on them each use so it's slightly bumpy.

I've been holding a moist paper up to the rollers and rolling the seat back and forth and it'll wipe off most of it, but it'll be bumpy again by the next use.

Any tips on keeping em clean?

I thought about oiling the rail with the motor oil I got for the chain, but that would probably make more dust stick to it.

[liuyi]

I subscribe to the baby-oil-on-slide method described in the links below. When I was using damp paper towel, I had to wipe down the rail and rollers after each row to eliminate the bumpy ride. With the baby oil, I can have several smooth 40-minute+ rows between each cleaning. I don't see dust accumulating on the rail either, even after leaving the rower idle for a few days.

Here're the discussions from where I picked up the baby oil tip:

http://www.c2forum.com/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=75109
http://www.c2forum.com/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=10329

BTW, I doubt anybody lives in a "dustier" environment than I do --- Beijing, China If I don't vacuum the floor every couple of days, armies of dust bunnies (?) take over corners of rooms and hallways. But my slide rail stays dust free for quite a bit longer, after I started treating it with very thin coat of baby oil.

[sekitori]

I spray Windex on both tracks of the rail after every workout, even when the rollers seem to be moving smoothly. After I do, I slide the seat back and forth so that it spreads the length of each track. I then wipe the rail and the rollers with a paper towel until the Windex has been completely removed. This usually works well but I occasionally will have to put a drop of 3-In-One or mineral oil on each track. I slide the seat back and forth as before to spread it. Since the oil can leave a small amount of residue, I wipe it off with the paper towel and follow that up with the Windex. That way, I have a clean, smooth rail with no evidence of oil remaining.

The reason I clean the rail every time is that dust can land on the rail even though it may not be visible. I have found that even a small speck of it can result in a ride that isn't as smooth as I would like it to be. I occasionally notice that when I start a workout, even though the rails and rollers were clean after I finished the last one, I feel a very slight bumpiness under the seat. Apparently some dust has landed on the rail between workouts and if that happens, I use Windex at the start of the workout as well.

[rowbike]

I use either baby oil or the 20 wt mineral oil like Concept 2 provides for the chain. It has completely eliminated the black marks and bumps for me. The 20 wt oil lasts a lot longer than baby oil, but you have to make sure you apply sparingly and buff to a very thin coating, basically a shine, or you will have too much which is not good. Baby oil spreads thin easier so it is better in that way, but needs to be reapplied every few uses. 20 wt oil can last for many weeks on my machine. At least that is how I have been applying them which seems to be working.

Oil is all I use on the rail. When it starts to feel like the oil has worn away, I simply apply more. Any dirt/dust that may be there gets cleaned away while applying.

I found what seems to be a 20 wt mineral oil that is virtually the same as the Concept 2 oil at Ikea called Skyyd. About $5 for 0.5 liter. Seems fine on the chain too. Generic baby oil on the other hand is dirt cheap pretty much anywhere, so lots of choices if you decide to use some sort of oil.

[f2d]

All right, I tried this out and it does seem to help. I'm using the 10w-30 mobil 1 that i got for the chain on the seat rollers.

It does still get scummy (since the scum is from the accumulation of dust and other particles), but the oil makes it so the scum doesn't clump as much and stays more evenly spread out, so it doesn't make the rollers bumpy as quickly. Still needs to be cleaned but less often.

[rowbike]

10w30 may work for the chain, but it is awfully thick for the rail. The 20w chain oil is already quite thick for the rail and needs to be buffed pretty well so that is not over applied. I can't imagine using 30w, but if it works for you that is what counts.

A cheap bottle of baby oil will be much thinner and should work better.

[Carl Watts]

Checkout other posts on the same subject.

Don't use oil on the slide, just makes it a whole lot harder to clean. The "black" is tiny partials of dust and very slow wear from the stainless steel slide (if you clean it all the time it just looks polished where the rollers touch), just a damp cloth is all you need for the slide and rollers. Clean it on a regular basis otherwise it makes rowing uncomfortable, lumps on the slide or rollers can also cause it to crack from repetitive pressure in one spot.

[f2d]

I've been using oil on the rail for over a month now. I wipe and reapply every couple of weeks, and leave residual oil on the rail.

It actually makes the rail look really scummy (since all kinds of crap sticks to the rail), but when I slide back and forth it FEELS silky smooth, and that's what's important.

If I just clean the rail it needs to be cleaned EVERY time I use it. As far as functionality goes the oil is much better.

[InlineJinn]

I just tried the Windex followed by baby oil treatment, and they did a better job of cleaning the slide and rollers than soap and water ever did. I was surprised at how much more black stuff came off the slide and rollers while I was applying the baby oil and wiping the excess off. Thanks for the suggestions!

John B.