After years of simple green, I found it really isn't simple at all for cleaning a chain. A friend told me about "Bean Clean" so I ordered some to try it.

One spray and the crud literally falls off your chain. A quick wipe with a shop rag and you're done. It's amazing, and it doesn't even leave residue marks on the driveway. One hit with the hose and it washed away. Our chains were pretty dirty, so I used about half a can to do 2 bikes spraying very liberally. I'm sure next time I will spray it on the chain and in to a rag.

The company also sells a gadget called chain drain. I can see where it would be useful but I just used a plastic dish from my recycling garbage in my garage.

http://www.chaindrain.com/