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Muc-Off, are they a reputable company? Perhaps not!!

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jimster
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PostPosted: 14:59 - 25 May 2022    Post subject: Muc-Off, are they a reputable company? Perhaps not!! Reply with quote

This came as a bit of a shock to me. The well-known bike cleaning company "Muc-Off" (whose products I enjoy) last year uploaded a viral video to youtube where they "compared" their own bike cleaning product (that costs £5 - £10) to a similar product sold by the retailer Poundland (that costs about £1).

In the video, they poured both products onto different pieces of aluminium, and claimed that their own product did no harm but that after a few minutes the Poundland product was fizzing and corroding, and after 24 hours had destroyed the aluminium! I saw this video and was persuaded to use MucOff products as a result.

I now see that someone has replicated the test and discovered that Muc-Off's comparison appears to be untrue. In the replication video, the poundland product did NOT turn aluminium black after 24 hours nor was any difference visible after 24 hours. Could Muc-Off have done something to the poundland product to make it more corrosive before doing the test?

Muc-Off have now blocked access to their comparison video. Normally since the advert has been removed I would not get too excited, but in this case, it seems that some active naughtiness may have occured and it's made me rethink whether this is a product I want to be buying.

Here is a link to the advert (this is a mirror since the original has been taken down...I assume because they realised they were busted!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GOScuyn1iQM

Here is a link to the video where the test was replicated: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1WyTPyL_tBc

Any thoughts? Am I overreacting? Or is this is something they shouldn't be getting away with?
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Last edited by jimster on 15:46 - 25 May 2022; edited 1 time in total
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Fat Angry Scotsman
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PostPosted: 15:04 - 25 May 2022    Post subject: Re: Muc-Off, are they a reputable company? Perhaps not!! Reply with quote

jimster wrote:
This came as a bit of a shock to me. The well-known bike cleaning company "Muc-Off" (whose products I enjoy) last year uploaded a viral video to youtube where they "compared" their own bike cleaning product (that costs £5 - £10) to a similar product sold by the retailer Poundland (that costs about £1).

In the video, they poured both products onto different pieces of aluminium, and claimed that their own product did no harm but that after a few minutes the Poundland product was fizzing and corroding, and after 24 hours had destroyed the aluminium! I saw this video and was persuaded to use MucOff products as a result.

I now see that someone has replicated the test and discovered that Muc-Off's comparison appears to be untrue. In the replication video, the poundland product did NOT turn aluminium black after 24 hours nor was any difference visible after 24 hours. Could Muc-Off have done something to the poundland product to make it more corrosive before doing the test?

Muc-Off have now blocked access to their comparison video. Normally since the advert has been removed I would not get too excited, but in this case, it seems that some active naughtiness may have occured and it's made me rethink whether this is a product I want to be buying.

Here is a link to the video where the test was replicated: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1WyTPyL_tBc

Als here is a link to the advert itself (now removed...I assume since they realised they had been busted...!): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKUM7gYHajE

Any thoughts? Am I overreacting? Or is this is something they shouldn't be getting away with?


Without seeing it, I cannot tell what happened. They could have used different materials in whatever test block they were using: aluminium in one and zinc coated steel in the other. Then use a corrosive/ oxidising solution to dissolve off the zinc and leave a dark/ black steel face.

EDIT: Could simply have used zinc coated steel in both cases and simply made the competitor solution acidic and that's the difference.
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Last edited by Fat Angry Scotsman on 17:04 - 25 May 2022; edited 1 time in total
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Fat Angry Scotsman
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PostPosted: 15:24 - 25 May 2022    Post subject: Reply with quote

I found a mirror of the video here and I think it's horseshit and set-up.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GOScuyn1iQM

I think these are zinc coated tapered steel pieces and the zinc is effervescing off the surface of the underlying steel as they have likely made the solution slightly oxidising which is easy enough to do by dropping in a few millilitres of thin bleach into the bottle before pouring it into the beaker.

It's not corroding the aluminium as aluminium oxide is white and looks like this:

https://94271.smushcdn.com/443180/wp-content/uploads/Corroded-alumninum-2.jpg?lossy=1&strip=1&webp=1
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Last edited by Fat Angry Scotsman on 17:04 - 25 May 2022; edited 1 time in total
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Ste
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PostPosted: 15:24 - 25 May 2022    Post subject: Re: Muc-Off, are they a reputable company? Perhaps not!! Reply with quote

jimster wrote:
This came as a bit of a shock to me. The well-known bike cleaning company "Muc-Off" (whose products I enjoy) last year uploaded a viral video to youtube where they "compared" their own bike cleaning product (that costs £5 - £10) to a similar product sold by the retailer Poundland (that costs about £1).

£24.79 for ten litres.

https://www.demon-tweeks.com/uk/muc-off-nano-tech-motorcycle-bike-cleaner-oxfmucm267p/
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Nobby the Bastard
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PostPosted: 16:37 - 25 May 2022    Post subject: Reply with quote

Fat Angry Scotsman wrote:
acidic

bleach




Hmmm.......
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Fat Angry Scotsman
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PostPosted: 17:03 - 25 May 2022    Post subject: Reply with quote

Nobby the Bastard wrote:
Fat Angry Scotsman wrote:
acidic

bleach




Hmmm.......


Rolling Eyes apologies should have used the word "corrosive" instead of acidic since bleach is alkaline, slip of the finger tips really since hydrochloric acid is what we used to strip galvanised parts.
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tatters
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PostPosted: 17:17 - 25 May 2022    Post subject: Reply with quote

I would never use any Muc-Off product after using one of there general bike wash (pink stuff) products years ago on a early 90`s Kawasaki which caused the factory black frame paint to discolor and go milky.

Motul products on the other hand have been excellent.
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Kawasaki Jimbo
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PostPosted: 19:06 - 25 May 2022    Post subject: Reply with quote

Surprised Liar
That’s awful. If the Poundland product was that bad they’d have been bombarded with compensation claims. Now I know that Muc-Off are dirty they’ve lost me as a customer.
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to v or not to v
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PostPosted: 19:17 - 26 May 2022    Post subject: Reply with quote

i wash the bike about once a year and washing up liquid, or whatever else is available, is good enough for me.
am i being too fussy?
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Hong Kong Phooey
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PostPosted: 10:57 - 27 May 2022    Post subject: Reply with quote

to v or not to v wrote:
i wash the bike about once a year and washing up liquid, or whatever else is available, is good enough for me.
am i being too fussy?


No. Bennetts bike did a test of cleaners, including washing up liquid. It came out as quite favorable compared to other dedicated bike brands.

Not a great surprise really given that WUL is designed to clean ceramics, metals, plastic. The key ingredient in almost all detergents is the same.
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Easy-X
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PostPosted: 11:29 - 27 May 2022    Post subject: Reply with quote

Kawasaki Jimbo wrote:
Muc-Off are dirty


Oh the irony Smile
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to v or not to v
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PostPosted: 19:32 - 29 May 2022    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hong Kong Phooey wrote:
to v or not to v wrote:
i wash the bike about once a year and washing up liquid, or whatever else is available, is good enough for me.
am i being too fussy?


No. Bennetts bike did a test of cleaners, including washing up liquid. It came out as quite favorable compared to other dedicated bike brands.

Not a great surprise really given that WUL is designed to clean ceramics, metals, plastic. The key ingredient in almost all detergents is the same.


the same thing happened when Which compared it against carpet cleaning shampoo.
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Kawasaki Jimbo
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PostPosted: 19:39 - 29 May 2022    Post subject: Reply with quote

It used to be said that washing up liquid had salt in it, but that doesn’t seem to be true, and I guess it would be rinsed off anyway. I think I’ll try it.
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Hong Kong Phooey
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PostPosted: 15:08 - 01 Jun 2022    Post subject: Reply with quote

Kawasaki Jimbo wrote:
It used to be said that washing up liquid had salt in it, but that doesn’t seem to be true, and I guess it would be rinsed off anyway. I think I’ll try it.
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No salt in the one analysed, aldis own. IIRC the chemist said no salts in any WUL.

There are waxes added to other dedicated products, I prefer to wax separately.
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jeremyr62
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PostPosted: 09:21 - 06 Dec 2022    Post subject: Reply with quote

Being a tightwad, I also started to use the Aldi WUL as recommended by Bennetts after watching that video. However after a few months I noticed more corrosion on steel parts. Not saying it was the WUL but I stopped using it anyway. Salt is a cheap thickening agent and it is definitely used in some soap products like hand washes. Taste it if you don't believe me. Very Happy
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to v or not to v
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PostPosted: 18:39 - 06 Dec 2022    Post subject: Reply with quote

the downside with washing up liquid, is that it will remove protective layers like wax.
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Ste
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PostPosted: 21:10 - 06 Dec 2022    Post subject: Reply with quote

The salt content isn't a problem unless you go leaving it on your bike rather than rinsing it off as per tradition.

It's used in cleaning products because it's good at cleaning things rather than anything to do with it being a thickening agent.

Wink
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Ste
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PostPosted: 12:40 - 07 Dec 2022    Post subject: Reply with quote

dave001 wrote:
apart from what i saw when it was tested when i used any of there stuff before that

Ummmmm, what product are you referring to? Laughing
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jimster
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PostPosted: 22:01 - 12 Oct 2023    Post subject: Reply with quote

To the people saying there is salt in washing up liquid: Well, yes. But it's sodium carbonate. The salt that rusts your bike is sodium chloride (i.e. table salt) and there is no table salt in washing up liquid.

This is as I understand it (not a chemist!)
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jeremyr62
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PostPosted: 22:31 - 12 Oct 2023    Post subject: Reply with quote

Salt or NaCl (sodium chloride) is added to detergents like hand soap and some washing up liquids to increase the viscosity.

They explain it here.

https://yeserchem.com/the-key-role-of-salt-in-modulating-detergent-consistency/#:~:text=Salt%20is%20a%20critical%20component,them%20to%20pack%20closer%20together.
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Fat Angry Scotsman
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PostPosted: 09:41 - 13 Oct 2023    Post subject: Reply with quote

It doesn't need to be sodium chloride specifically because any salt that is an electrolyte (it doesn't even need to be a salt as weak acids are also electrolytes, etc) will accelerate corrosion the same as anything that is an oxidiser will cause natural corrosion by oxidation (including the air itself).
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Ste
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PostPosted: 11:29 - 13 Oct 2023    Post subject: Reply with quote

Salt content doesn't matter because you wash the cleaning stuff off your bike with water.
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struan80
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PostPosted: 17:17 - 13 Oct 2023    Post subject: Reply with quote

I just use washing up liquid, Fairy, but I don't tend to wash my bikes as often as I should. What do you guys use for cleaning your chain? I don't do that as often as I should either.

Did I read somewhere that the joints in a chain self lubricate and that oiling your chain only prevents corrosion? Or am I talking utter shite.
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