Duck Smart Smart 'n' Ezee

Duck Smart Smart 'n' Ezee is designed as a multi-surface cleaner that will tackle everything from helmets, glass, plastics and paint to smartphones, GPSes, laptops, cameras and tablet screens.

Some will suggest that colour aside, there's virtually nothing to choose between this and its bike specific cousin, Bike Ezee. They're both made from a specialist blend of PH neutral detergents and softeners whose molecules break through organic and petrochemical grime before leaving a glossy, contaminant shunning barrier behind.

However, research and school-of-the-streets experience suggests there's a very delicate balance between seemingly identical chemical compositions cleaning and causing irreparable damage to some surfaces. Traditional sudsy bike wash formulas are prime examples; if they're too strong they'll race through grot, but paint, anodising, lacquer and plating will take a pasting too.

Smart 'n' Ezeeis super convenient to use. If you're cleaning a bike, spray it on the frame, and components and polish with a clean cloth. Using this squirt/buff method avoids unwanted cross contamination of discs or other braking surfaces and produces a gleaming, streak-free finish on gloss, matt and satin surfaces within seconds.

Since there's no curing period, banishing spring typical filmy patinas on pared to the essentials road and mountain bikes took around twelve minutes from start to finish, slightly longer on tourers/fully dressed commuters.

Smart'n'Ezee shifts bovine dung, road/trail spatter and watermarks as well as most other brews, but it's notably better on acidic bird droppings and petrochemical cocktails. Really ingrained stuff required repeated blasts before it would lift completely but subsequent coats can be applied without time lag.

Witch's brews of road silt, petrochemicals and wet lubes required two, sometimes three helpings; simply a matter of building a thicker coat. Using cloths as mediator worked best when tackling lids, chrome plastics, mirrors, sports cams, sunglasses, GPS or LCD displays.

The protective coat is long-lived, though this will depend on riding style, environment and season. We're still on the original treatment despite several weeks' exposure to sunshine and showery rain. Winter may present a very different picture.

In common with other polishes, wet stuff seems to bead and roll harmlessly away without dismissing the protective barrier. Residual dirt collects around the brakes, fork crown, bottom bracket and chainstay regions, though it's easily dismissed on a weekly basis using a clean rag. Helmets and digital gizmos have remained similarly free of dust and other contaminants too; a very welcome surprise.

Verdict

Really useful all surface cleaner/polish with few limitations