This winter, I decided that I needed to do whatever I could to protect my chain, downtube, and bottom bracket from all the salt and road spray.
So, I rigged up a DIY fender extender and have been riding with it for months now.
After every ride, I do tend to wipe my chain and any parts that got sprayed, but I'm blown away by how clean the bike stays simply by having that front fender extender.
The photo shows the fender extender, held in place using duct tape (didn't want to drill holes in the fender, although, some fenders are designed so fender extenders can be put on easily). It's held like this through numerous puddles and all kinds of weather, so "it works". Make it out of a plastic file folder, which I got from Walmart for a few dollars. I can probably make another 3 out of the single file folder.
The only downside I see, which can probably be tweaked by trimming the extender to mitigate it, is that it causes more drag as it acts like a mini sail that's always working against you. LOL I'm not racing with this bike, so it's a small sacrifice for keeping it clean! I'm sure someone more crafty could come up with a design that could be easily removed, although, my setup only requires you to pull the tape off. Easy enough.
I never used fenders it was "unnecessary added weight". Now I commute every day so I put them on ... and I have to say that they are not unnecessary.
Yeah, I bought my commuter hybrid bike with fenders. People were like why do you want to ruin the look with fenders? As they have wet lower pants, and turn around and have a muddy stripe splashed up their back. The only time it became a problem was switching to winter studded tires, and snow would sometimes build up inside the fender, but they have those adjustable posts to move it up off the tire some and that did the trick.