Silicone Tire Dressings Bad!! For Tires And Paint!!!!

trhland

New member
Nov 8, 2006
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just wondering ive read that tires dressings that have silicone in them are bad for tires turns them brown over time. also it stains paint too. is this true? im refering to pro tire dressings from distributers. they seem like they shine real nice. i saw a post on autopia a detailer used carbrites purple dressing and it left the tire looking awesome.
 
Silicone is perfectly fine for paint ... it will not damage paint. Silicone and paint stuff is a myth. It may interfere during a repaint but it is not harmful to paint ....

Tire dressings, though, are different. Tires contain a chemical in the rubber that aid in the UV blocking and this is what is actually turning the tires brown. That is why using a strong cleaner on tires may not be a good idea -- you'll be stripping the rubber of this product which could lead to dry rotting. That is what silicone does ... dry rubber out. I'm not too sure you'd want to be using something that is degrading your tires. Many RV owners have to replace their tires because of dry rot and some use tire dressings to prevent this occurance to protect them from UV rays but when they use a silicone, it doesn't help the situation and may make it worse ...
 
Funny I was asking a friend of mine about this a couple weeks ago. He is a production manager for DUNLOP which was recently bought out by GoodYear. He has 30 years experience making tires so I figured he was expert enough for me. Anyway he told me that the tire dressings that you buy at the local autoparts stores etc are really bad for your tires. He said that when your tire is spinning the friction and heat cause certain oils to make their way to the outer edge of the tire and this is necessary to keep your tires in good condition. By applying Silicone based products it leaches these chemicals and oils from the tire and causes them to become dried out over time and crack (ie dryrot). Now this is the laymans version. I took some chemistry in college but that was several years ago. He was much more descriptive when he was telling me why it is bad to put silicone products on tires but this is all I can remember ha..ha..! I am in no way an expert and I'm sure other people can elaborate more on this topic but the advice I was given by a guy who makes the tires was Do not put it on your tires! I no longer put any silicone products on my tires. I have since been using 303 on my tires (not super impressed) and just ordered some Ultima Tire and trim plus so we'll see how that works?
 


Good Silicone / Not so good Silicone:
a) Water - based silicone dressings, usually a milky-white liquid, (Polydimethylsiloxane (PDS)that doesn’t contain petroleum distillate; silicone oils, waxes, or solvents that can harm rubber and/or vinyl over time. Water-based dressings use a combination of natural oils and polymers to offer a non-greasy, satin finish. Some of these products also contain ultra violet radiation (UVR) blocking agents to help keep tires from cracking, fading and hardening. Most, if not all water-based dressings are environmentally friendly / biodegradable, whereas solvent-based silicone is not.

b) Solvent-based silicone dressings, usually a clear greasy liquid, (Dimethal (DMS) that contain petroleum solvents as a cleaning agent, they remove the elasticity from vinyl, rubber and paint; causing them to evaporate out of the substrate, leaving behind a dry inflexible surface. Most high gloss products are based upon DMS silicone oil, the difference between water and solvent based is in the carrier system used. Solvent based products use a hydrocarbon silicone to suspend the product. When you apply it, the solvent evaporates leaving the dressing's active ingredients (Silicone oil) behind; solvent-based silicone is not biodegradable.
 
Funny I was asking a friend of mine about this a couple weeks ago. He is a production manager for DUNLOP which was recently bought out by GoodYear. He has 30 years experience making tires so I figured he was expert enough for me. Anyway he told me that the tire dressings that you buy at the local autoparts stores etc are really bad for your tires. He said that when your tire is spinning the friction and heat cause certain oils to make their way to the outer edge of the tire and this is necessary to keep your tires in good condition. By applying Silicone based products it leaches these chemicals and oils from the tire and causes them to become dried out over time and crack (ie dryrot). Now this is the laymans version. I took some chemistry in college but that was several years ago. He was much more descriptive when he was telling me why it is bad to put silicone products on tires but this is all I can remember ha..ha..! I am in no way an expert and I'm sure other people can elaborate more on this topic but the advice I was given by a guy who makes the tires was Do not put it on your tires! I no longer put any silicone products on my tires. I have since been using 303 on my tires (not super impressed) and just ordered some Ultima Tire and trim plus so we'll see how that works?

Very good information. I'm not going to say this with 100% certainty but I believe that the Ultima is silicone based. It definitely isn't water based, that's for sure.

A general rule of thumb- silicone based products are clear and water based dressings are milky colored.
 
im wondering how about theses silicone detail sprays? that u spray on plastic trim ect? are these bad too????
 
there are good silicones and bad silicones, unfortunately there doesnt seem to be a label warning which ones they are. I tend to stay away from any cheap as usually an indicator of low grade silicones.
 
im wondering how about theses silicone detail sprays? that u spray on plastic trim ect? are these bad too????

Don't go along with the myth that all silicone's are bad / harmful. Car care products in spray / mist type containers; to be efficient they need to be emulsified to work as a spray, to facilitate this they need to use an emulsion of silicone oils and water.

Good or not so good would be dependant upon the type of silicone used (Polydimethylsiloxane (PDS) or (Dimethal (DMS)
 
there are good silicones and bad silicones, unfortunately there doesnt seem to be a label warning which ones they are. I tend to stay away from any cheap as usually an indicator of low grade silicones.
Would be willing to name a product(s) that have, in your opiniun, the better of the two silicones? This is a pretty new area for me and your thoughts would be appreciated.
 
I've been using RL tire dressing for a while and never had a problem... however I now mix 25/75 DP tire gel, and then RL tire dressing
 
Most companies will just state on their product MSDS ;as there is no requirement to be more specific, "Silicone".

You should also realize that if someone was too name products on a public forum that an individual thought contained "not so good silicone" he would be opening himself, and /or his company, of whom he is a representative to a law suite.

Use a product from a mfg that you trust and using the guidelines given (Greasy = DMS, Milky white = PDS)

When it comes to product marketing and technical specifications, it is also important to realize that all companies must keep secure their proprietary information and agreements. Without this, no business would have the incentive to develop new products, expand their market, stay competitive, and ultimately - exist.
 
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I've been using RL tire dressing for a while and never had a problem... however I now mix 25/75 DP tire gel, and then RL tire dressing

Using a silicone (clear, DMS) isn't going to make your tires explode when they come in contacr with it ... prolonged use of it along with UV radiation especially on vehicles that don't get driven a lot are the ones thar are going to have the most issues.

Most companies will just state on their product MSDS ;as there is no requirement to be more specific, "Silicone".

You should also realize that if someone was too name products on a public forum that an individual thought contained "not so good silicone" he would be opening himself, and /or his company, of whom he is a representative to a law suite.

Use a product from a mfg that you trust and using the guidelines given (Greasy = DMS, Milky white = PDS)

When it comes to product marketing and technical specifications, it is also important to realize that all companies must keep secure their proprietary information and agreements. Without this, no business would have the incentive to develop new products, expand their market, stay competitive, and ultimately - exist.

Great points indeed. I personally try to stay away from clear tire dressings but I'm not sure if that's the only way to tell. I use Meguair's Hot Shine which is clear meaning it must be DMS silicone. On the MSDS is states it contains a
"Isoparaffinic Hydrocarbon" which all of their other dressings have in it except for their "silicone free" dressing which contains glycerine instead. This product doesn't have that milky appearance like say Poorboy's NL or the new Armor Alls;
autogeek_1975_19740534
 
I use the CarBrite Purple dressing with awesome results, as the OP had said. I also use a product extremely similar to Meguiars Hyper Dressing.
 
Just pulled this off of the Meguiar's forum, and thought it was very interesting in regards to tires. Goes along with what you guys were saying about the chemicle (it's called antiozonant).

Mike-in-Orange said:
1. Which Meguiar's products should I use on my tires?

Most people don't give a lot of thought to their tires except for how they look. Truth be known, your tires are designed to perform under extreme conditions of heat via kinetic energy transfer, high speeds for long periods of time and incredible forces of torque and flexing. That's a lot to ask from a chunk of rubber, inflated with air like a cream filled donut.

The science behind the modern rubber formulas used by major tire manufactures today is both complex and interesting. The rubber itself contains and ingredient called Antiozonant. Antiozonant is an ingredient that helps to prevent the exterior rubber surface from cracking, checking, oxidizing, and deteriorating. The rubber is designed in such a way as to constantly work its way to the outside of the tire and as such, continually replenish the exterior surface with fresh antiozonant.


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After the antiozonant works its way to the outside of the tire and is exposed to the ozone in the air, it turns brown. The technical term for this effect is blooming.

This is why you see a brown film on the surface your tires. You can wash your tires with soap or an all-purpose cleaner and remove this film, but in a few weeks, it's back. That's because the antiozonant continually works its way to the outside of the tires every time you drive your car.

Their tire dressings apparently replenish the antiozonant in the tire from what they say, and I believe it; I have yet to find any false information from them on car care. Some may not like Meguiar's, but you can't deny they do offer a wealth of knowledge :)
 
As far as I'm aware this is called Carbon black, I've never heard of antiozonant.

To provide protection from ultra violet radiation (UVR) a sacrificial absorber (carbon black) is used to convert UV radiation into harmless light wave energy and dissipate it. Carbon Black forms a high percentage of the rubber compound. This gives reinforcement and abrasion resistance. Silica used together with carbon black in high performance tires, as a low heat build up reinforcement.
 
Most companies will just state on their product MSDS ;as there is no requirement to be more specific, "Silicone".

You should also realize that if someone was too name products on a public forum that an individual thought contained "not so good silicone" he would be opening himself, and /or his company, of whom he is a representative to a law suite.

Use a product from a mfg that you trust and using the guidelines given (Greasy = DMS, Milky white = PDS)

When it comes to product marketing and technical specifications, it is also important to realize that all companies must keep secure their proprietary information and agreements. Without this, no business would have the incentive to develop new products, expand their market, stay competitive, and ultimately - exist.


I also expect that the info we find out will help weed out the bad companies from the good, I don't expect we want bad companies to exist, much less stay competitive on a price only basis.

Companies will hide formulas for competition purposes but should not be allowed to hide info on products that are detrimental to the product is was designed to work on.


 
Most companies will just state on their product MSDS ;as there is no requirement to be more specific, "Silicone".

You should also realize that if someone was too name products on a public forum that an individual thought contained "not so good silicone" he would be opening himself, and /or his company, of whom he is a representative to a law suite.

Use a product from a mfg that you trust and using the guidelines given (Greasy = DMS, Milky white = PDS)

When it comes to product marketing and technical specifications, it is also important to realize that all companies must keep secure their proprietary information and agreements. Without this, no business would have the incentive to develop new products, expand their market, stay competitive, and ultimately - exist.


I also expect that the info we find out will help weed out the bad companies from the good, I don't expect we want bad companies to exist, much less stay competitive on a price only basis.

Companies will hide formulas for competition purposes but should not be allowed to hide info on products that are detrimental to the product is was designed to work on.


 
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