How do you clean tires and rims when doing a rinseless wash

theory816 said:
Trust me, you guys will need a steamer with at least some power. Power hosing a tire and rim down wont clean it, what makes you think a few microfiber towels will do the job?
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Because they are reasonably maintained vehicles and I imagine this is for his personal vehicle. I could go clean mine right now with water and micro fiber and they would come out nice. I've done nasty, but not caked on, BMW wheels the first way I stated above. I would assume that she probably gets her car done only once or twice a year.

If they are the type of person that lets their wheels/vehicle get that bad then they are probably not calling use to do them unless they are trying to sell it. They just don't care.
 
theory816 said:
Trust me, you guys will need a steamer with at least some power. Power hosing a tire and rim down wont clean it, what makes you think a few microfiber towels will do the job?
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What makes you think steam, alone,
will clean tires and wheels?

Or, do you just recommend using sponges,
for cleaning purposes, on vehicles' paint,
glass, and other non-tire/wheel surfaces?


Bob
 
theory816 said:
Trust me, you guys will need a steamer with at least some power. Power hosing a tire and rim down wont clean it, what makes you think a few microfiber towels will do the job?
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Although I have one, I personally think steam cleaners are a lot of hot air.

They do this work as well on porous surfaces, and tires are porous. Steam is obviously water, and water - whether cold or hot - has limited ability to emulsify hydrophobic substances. You often need a surfactant and other types of cleaners that break down oils and grease. An APC will do this for example.

I'm willing to bet that an APC and some elbow grease will do as much cleaning or more when compared to a steam cleaner when it comes to tires.

Rims may be different since they are nonporous surfaces, but you still run into issues of lifting oils and substances that aren't hydrophilic.

(Sent via my mobile device)
 
Wheel woolies are great as are Mother's wheel face brushes for rinseless washes. But you can also get a cheap wash mitt amd use it. I prefer the super cheap "micro fleece" mitts from O'Reilly's. They seem to clean up better than microfiber from wheels.
 
When people clean tires and rims, they usually use some kind of APC. This APC is very hard to clean off of tires and rims because its mixed in with heavy brakedust, oils, and dirt. You can stand there and power hose a tire down for 10mins still trying to get the apc off.

The reason why a small powerful steamer works is because it can create lift on the APC, dirt, and oils much better than a powerful water jet stream and even better than using elbow grease with a mf. It is why I said to use a rag to catch the black grime that comes off next to the steamer.

Steamers is very good on NON porous surfaces like rims and painted surfaces so long as you place an extractor next to it(MF). They are ok for porous materials like tires. Interior cleaners use steam on porous materials because it breaks up the oils very easily, they then use a extractor to get those oils out easier.

I mean yes, a MF towel will work but if you really want a truly clean tire and rim, steamer is the way to go.
 
To me tires and rims are never truly clean. The second you drive the car it gets dirty. With BMW brakes, the second you touch the brake pedal the rims are black lol
 
pheerix said:
To me tires and rims are never truly clean. The second you drive the car it gets dirty. With BMW brakes, the second you touch the brake pedal the rims are black lol
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Tires/rims are the hardest to clean and the hardest to keep clean. However, there is one product that will make our lives easier...and its from ArmorAll LOL! Its called Wheel Protectant. It really is a taste of whats in store for car care. The product is TRUE HYROPHOBIC characteristic. Nothing can attach to it. Its also the only product I use from ArmorAll. It will keep your rims clean for at least 2-3 weeks compared to two days LOL
 
theory816 said:
Tires/rims are the hardest to clean and the hardest to keep clean. However, there is one product that will make our lives easier...and its from ArmorAll LOL! Its called Wheel Protectant. It really is a taste of whats in store for car care. The product is TRUE HYROPHOBIC characteristic. Nothing can attach to it. Its also the only product I use from ArmorAll. It will keep your rims clean for at least 2-3 weeks compared to two days LOL
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I believe there is review here for that product. It looked good.
 
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