# Carbon bike next to radiator



## iwantanewbike (5 Dec 2017)

I've just realised the carbon bike has been moved next to a radiator a couple of months ago in the store room. What are the chances the heat has damaged the frame material?


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## Hacienda71 (5 Dec 2017)

A normal radiator, none.


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## Dirk (5 Dec 2017)

iwantanewbike said:


> I've just realised the carbon bike has been moved next to a radiator a couple of months ago in the store room. What are the chances the heat has damaged the frame material?


It will be a pool of molten carbon by now. Best to buy a new one.


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## StuAff (5 Dec 2017)

Are you serious? It'll be fine.


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## jefmcg (5 Dec 2017)

"Carbon sublimes in a carbon arc which has a temperature of about 5,800 K (*5,530 °C*; *9,980 °F*). Thus, irrespective of its allotropic form, carbon remains solid at higher temperatures than the highest melting point metals such as tungsten or rhenium."


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## Hacienda71 (5 Dec 2017)

I suspect the resin that bonds the fibres may melt at less than 5530 degrees


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## jefmcg (5 Dec 2017)

Carbon bikes survive in Australia

Are you heating your house above 45C?

Note: temperatures go above 45C in oz, just setting an Adelaide temperature.


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## steveindenmark (6 Dec 2017)

It will have been made useless. Fortunately, I am doing a study into just this topic. Send it to me for research purposes.


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## Oldbloke (6 Dec 2017)

No problem unless the rad leaks water onto it causing it to melt.


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## biggs682 (6 Dec 2017)

More worry is why has it been stood still for that long !

Personally i would be re greasing all the bearings etc etc as the grease would have all dried up or leaked out after all that time not being used oh and it might pay to inflate your tyres as long as they havent also melted


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## Racing roadkill (6 Dec 2017)

Carbon frames dissolve in the wet, but I’ve never heard of one spontaneously combusting. I reckon they do, if you leave them next to a radiator for long enough though.


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## Globalti (6 Dec 2017)

This is as illogical as people asking if they should deflate the tyres to fly in a plane that's pressurised to 10,000 feet.


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## ianrauk (6 Dec 2017)

Hope the radiator is OK after being next to a carbon bike for so long.


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## vickster (6 Dec 2017)

You say you want a new bike? Why not just ride that one rather than keeping it in store? Or if you don't want that one, sell it and buy one that you do want


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## iwantanewbike (6 Dec 2017)

Thanks - more specifically, is there likely to be any change in the resin between the layers of carbon having sat next to (possibly even touching) a radiator at 80+ degrees C?

I fully take on board your comments re: using the bike rather than storing it. I promise you I'll ride it on the next sunny day, as long as there is no rain or hint of a cloud in the sky.


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## Globalti (6 Dec 2017)

If your radiator was at 80c I would suggest you get a plumber round fast because your heating system is dangerously overheated and something will soon fail, starting with the wax cartridges in the shower thermostat and in the TRVs, if you have any. Central heating and hot water is supposed to be limited to 60c, which is hot enough to be effective but not hot enough to cause damage to the components.


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## MiK1138 (6 Dec 2017)

iwantanewbike said:


> I've just realised the carbon bike has been moved next to a radiator a couple of months ago in the store room. What are the chances the heat has damaged the frame material?


If my daughter is in charge of the radiator temperature then it is a little puddle of tar by now


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## vickster (6 Dec 2017)

iwantanewbike said:


> I fully take on board your comments re: using the bike rather than storing it. I promise you I'll ride it on the next sunny day, as long as there is no rain or hint of a cloud in the sky.


Why? It won't disintegrate despite what some of the jesters suggest!


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## Globalti (6 Dec 2017)

Does anybody know the temperature at which the resin is usually cured in the mould? The internet says anything between 100c and 120c. That's curing, not melting.

TBH I would worry more about the warmth evaporating any droplets of moisture that happen to have found their way inside the BB or seat tube, creating a humid atmosphere, which will condense elsewhere slowly oxidising the internal parts of any fittings like bottle cage mounts and internal cables. Storing the bike with the seatpost removed might allow some moisture to escape.


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## spen666 (6 Dec 2017)

iwantanewbike said:


> I've just realised the carbon bike has been moved next to a radiator a couple of months ago in the store room. What are the chances the heat has damaged the frame material?




You bike is clearly unrideable now- as a fellow CC poster, I will offer to remove the junk for free


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## Alan O (6 Dec 2017)

Depending on the pressure, if it gets too hot it could turn to diamond.


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## Ming the Merciless (6 Dec 2017)

It will have been converted to graphite. Your bike is now only useful for writing a letter to Santa.


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## jefmcg (6 Dec 2017)

YukonBoy said:


> It will have been converted to graphite. Your bike is now only useful for writing a letter to Santa.


It's 2017, I'm sure he could get some graphene out of it.


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## Hitchington (6 Dec 2017)

I'm sure it'll be turned into coal.


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## Ming the Merciless (6 Dec 2017)

jefmcg said:


> It's 2017, I'm sure he could get some graphene out of it.



Would that convert the radiator into a super conductor as well?


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## lazyfatgit (6 Dec 2017)

Globalti said:


> This is as illogical as people asking if they should deflate the tyres to fly in a plane that's pressurised to 10,000 feet.


Qantas list tyres require to be deflated as one of the conditions of carriage.


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## Tim Hall (6 Dec 2017)

lazyfatgit said:


> Qantas list tyres require to be deflated as one of the conditions of carriage.


Just because they're an airline, it doesn't mean they're not illogical.


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## Globalti (6 Dec 2017)

Scary to think the airline doesn't understand school physics.


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## Drago (6 Dec 2017)

iwantanewbike said:


> I've just realised the carbon bike has been moved next to a radiator a couple of months ago in the store room. What are the chances the heat has damaged the frame material?



You maniac! There's a very real likelihood of an explosion!!!


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## iwantanewbike (6 Dec 2017)

Globalti said:


> Scary to think the airline doesn't understand school physics.



Indeed.. some airlines do and some don't. In reality the effect on bike tyres is minimal but for large volume vehicle tyres it could be a problem. FWIW I flew with easy jet a couple of years ago and partially deflated my tyres while my friend just kept his at 90PSI - they came out the other side perfectly fine.


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## david k (6 Dec 2017)

iwantanewbike said:


> Thanks - more specifically, is there likely to be any change in the resin between the layers of carbon having sat next to (possibly even touching) a radiator at 80+ degrees C?
> 
> I fully take on board your comments re: using the bike rather than storing it. I promise you I'll ride it on the next sunny day, as long as there is no rain or hint of a cloud in the sky.


Heating water should be around 70c possibly less if a condensing boiler


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## david k (6 Dec 2017)

Globalti said:


> If your radiator was at 80c I would suggest you get a plumber round fast because your heating system is dangerously overheated and something will soon fail, starting with the wax cartridges in the shower thermostat and in the TRVs, if you have any. Central heating and hot water is supposed to be limited to 60c, which is hot enough to be effective but not hot enough to cause damage to the components.


Think your mixing heating water and hot water, they are separated by a coil and yes hot water is usually around 60-65c


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## Alan O (6 Dec 2017)

iwantanewbike said:


> Indeed.. some airlines do and some don't. In reality the effect on bike tyres is minimal but for large volume vehicle tyres it could be a problem. FWIW I flew with easy jet a couple of years ago and partially deflated my tyres while my friend just kept his at 90PSI - they came out the other side perfectly fine.


I think it's more that it's a lot simpler to just ask for all tyres to be deflated than to have complicated rules which apply to various categories of tyres - it's not as it it's any great hadrship to have to reinflate them at your destination.


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## Globalti (7 Dec 2017)

iwantanewbike said:


> Indeed.. some airlines do and some don't. In reality the effect on bike tyres is minimal but for large volume vehicle tyres it could be a problem. FWIW I flew with easy jet a couple of years ago and partially deflated my tyres while my friend just kept his at 90PSI - they came out the other side perfectly fine.



It's pretty simple - do TDF riders' tyres explode when they ride over an Alpine col at 8,000 feet? No they don't and an aircraft hold is pressurised to 8,000 or 10,000 feet.


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## Alan O (7 Dec 2017)

Globalti said:


> It's pretty simple - do TDF riders' tyres explode when they ride over an Alpine col at 8,000 feet? No they don't and an aircraft hold is pressurised to 8,000 or 10,000 feet.


Under-floor holds are pressurized (which covers most aircraft), but I think some smaller aircraft with rear holds don't have them pressurized. So again, it's probably just a "one rule to keep it simple" approach.


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## oldfatfool (7 Dec 2017)

jefmcg said:


> Carbon bikes survive in Australia
> 
> Are you heating your house above 45C?
> 
> Note: temperatures go above 45C in oz, just setting an Adelaide temperature.


I suspect the rad will operate at around 75 deg. The room temp is not a mirror of the rad temp.


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## Apollonius (7 Dec 2017)

Well, I have just moved three of my best carbon bikes into the spare bedroom for the winter. Snow forecast from tomorrow, and I think they will do better with warm and dry!


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## jefmcg (7 Dec 2017)

oldfatfool said:


> I suspect the rad will operate at around 75 deg. The room temp is not a mirror of the rad temp.


I misunderstood. I thought it was beside the radiator, not inside it.


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## Alan O (7 Dec 2017)

Hmm, I'm getting a marketing idea here... carbon radiators!

(I know carbon doesn't conduct heat very well, but that never stopped people making bike wheels out of it.)


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## jefmcg (7 Dec 2017)

Alan O said:


> I know carbon doesn't conduct heat very well


Carbon takes many forms.

Diamond has 5 times the thermal conductivity of copper! 

I see a big future in diamond central heating.


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## Apollonius (7 Dec 2017)

Diamonds burn well, I am told. (By my chemistry teacher, long ago, who had done it.) Coal is a good deal cheaper, I believe.


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## postman (7 Dec 2017)

Don't worry once it gets to an unsafe temperature The saddle begins to shake violently then pops out of the seat post.


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## ianrauk (7 Dec 2017)

postman said:


> Don't worry once it gets to an unsafe temperature The saddle begins to shake violently then pops out of the seat post.


Sounds like you talk from experience Postie.


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## ianrauk (7 Dec 2017)

postman said:


> Don't worry once it gets to an unsafe temperature The saddle begins to shake violently then pops out of the seat post.


Sounds like you talk from experience Postie.


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## postman (7 Dec 2017)

ianrauk said:


> Sounds like you talk from experience Postie.




Is this the second delivery,sorry to tell you Royal Mail stopped it years ago.


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