Green Oil Clean Chain Degreaser Jelly

The Green Oil Clean Chain Degreaser Jelly is very effective, and managed to clean three months of gunk from my wet-lubed chain quickly and easily. It's also really simple to use, washes off quickly and, most importantly, is environmentally friendly.

The last time we took a look at this was in 2016, but I was excited to see what had changed in the last six years.

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To really fully prepare for this review I had a child and got a very tiring job, meaning that about three months of muck have recently built up on my chain. This has actually included both dry and wet lube coatings without a wash (it's a long story), so my bike was a prime candidate.

First off you coat your chain in exactly the same way as with lube. This stuff has a nice thick consistency, so although excess can still drip off, it's far less than with most other degreasers.

Green Oil recommends actually riding around for 30 seconds afterwards, though I found it just as effective to spin the cranks and shift the gears while stationary. You then wipe it down, scrub with a brush, and rinse off.

The entire process takes no more than 10 minutes, and by the end my black chain was silver and working efficiently. It was clean enough for me at that point, but I did it a second time to be a perfectionist and there was still some muck coming off.

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The lube-like consistency also avoids the issue of overspray getting on discs or carbon rims, and I didn't need to use that much to do a good job either. You can also add it to water to either use it as a chain bath or a regular bike cleaner, which is a nice bonus.

I even used it over grass to test how garden-friendly it really is – this avoids petrochemicals and is instead based on coconut oil – so if I end up with a bald patch, or indeed a coconut tree, I will update this review.

Value

At £6.99 it's technically quite expensive thanks to the small 100ml bottle, but then a little goes a long way and it lasts well. For instance, you could compare this to the Muc-Off Quick Drying Degreaser which is effective and works out at just £2 for 100ml, but the 750ml/£14.99 can blasts its contents out extremely quickly, and it doesn't have the same eco credentials.

Peaty's Foaming Drivetrain Degreaser is also £2 for 100ml (the 500ml bottle is £10), but again it doesn't have the same eco credentials or neat application.

Overall

I was really impressed with this stuff. It cuts through dried-on oil, dirt and lube, is simple to apply (sparingly), and is very eco-friendly too.

Verdict

Eco-friendly, powerful, and easy to use without wasting loads