Road Salt

[con05]

Looks like we are going to have early ice out here in So. NH.  I usually wait for a few good rain storms to wash the road salt off.  Yet this week they are talking temps in the 60's which will make it really hard not to ride. The snow is gone and the roads are dry. Would the salt residue be an issue or should I wait until the roads get a rinsing?

[JS_racer]

Riding in Minnesota already. Jan was wetter in spots, did a quick wash when I got home. The last few times out was dry. For salt alone, just a quick wash if needed. On the road, should be easy to spot, lots of sand in spots but very enjoyable. Have about 600 miles in MN since the first of the year. Crazy winter to say the least.

[stevewfl]

All we have is sea salt, wish i could contribute to this chat but I'm not a boater 

[Rhino]

RIDE!!! You can always rinse it off with the hose. 

[W14]

+1

[Cavediver]

That stuff is slippery. With this mild winter in northern Ohio they seem to be putting it down just to get rid of it.  I say keep it it won't go bad.

Jack

[momo65]

Js_ is right, the weather has been kind of weird this year in minnesota, but this weekend was great,  ended up with around four hundred miles this weekend, happy to be on the road again. woot

[BlkBird]

I have over 22,000 miles on my C14 now.  I ride all year around and don't like salt due to what it does to the bike but on top of that I came close to a high side once.  Here they will fill any cracks in the asphalt with tar, the salt on top of the "tar snakes" is a really bad combination and if you aren't careful it can be quite dangerous.  I would say go and ride but keep the warp drive shut down.  And after the ride wash the bike down.

[Cholla]

Sometimes sodium chloride is mixed with the salt. The stuff is very corrosive. I have seen it eat through bridge support beams.

[lt1]

Sometimes sodium chloride is mixed with the salt. The stuff is very corrosive. I have seen it eat through bridge support beams.

LOL

Next you'll be warning us about the dangers of dihydrogenmonoxide.

To the OP, a good wash afterwards should protect the bike, but if you have lived in snow country for a while, you already know that.  Since it may be your first ride in a while, be especially alert to salt patches, which accumulate like sand/gravel and cause a loss of available traction.  Which you also probably already know.

[Cavediver]

Dihydrogenmonoxide. Yep that stuff will kill you. I have to deal with it every time I dive.

Jack

[Cholla]

Not being funny, its a fact. I used to work for MoDOT. Calcium chloride is highly corrosive. We kept hearing a clanging noise on the US 67 bridge over the MO River. Found an I beam flapping in the breeze due to salt/calcium chloride eating through it. That bridge was replaced in the 80s.

[VirginiaJim]

Sometimes sodium chloride is mixed with the salt. The stuff is very corrosive. I have seen it eat through bridge support beams.

I thought that sodium chloride was salt......

[timsatx]

Ok, you made me do it:

Salt, also known as table salt, or rock salt, is a mineral that is composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl), a chemical compound belonging to the larger class of ionic salts.

[Cholla]

Guys, sodium chloride (salt) stops working at temps below 20 or so. Then CALCIUM chloride is mixed in. It triggers a chemical reaction which raises the temp so the salt can work. Look at bags of snow melt. Its a mix of calcium and magnesium chloride.
Now some states are using beet juice. Yes, I said beet juice. It melts snow but isn't corrosive.  They mix it in a brine solution and spray it on the roads before the snow hits. For a while MoDOT discontinued use of calcium chloride because it was damaging the roads so badly.

[Conrad]

Well, it seems that beets are good for something after all.

[lt1]

Guys, sodium chloride (salt) stops working at temps below 20 or so. Then CALCIUM chloride is mixed in. It triggers a chemical reaction which raises the temp so the salt can work. Look at bags of snow melt. Its a mix of calcium and magnesium chloride.
Now some states are using beet juice. Yes, I said beet juice. It melts snow but isn't corrosive.  They mix it in a brine solution and spray it on the roads before the snow hits. For a while MoDOT discontinued use of calcium chloride because it was damaging the roads so badly.

All that is fine and dandy, but your original warning was that salt may contain sodium chloride.  So you were being funny, even though it now appears that the humor was unintentional.

[Cholla]

No attempt to be funny, it was a mistake. I meant to say calcium. Senior moment at work. Mea culpa.

Now that I look at it that was kinda funny!