Tire cleaner?

[Flash Gordon]

I find there is no need to spend a lot of money on a tire cleaner. I use the saved money on a better tire dressing. As flash mentioned purple power works great . IMO

I agree with Harleyguy 110%, why buy some "special" cleaner for tires?

:doh:

I have all ways used " Westley's Bleach White ".........any one else use it ?

Or maybe I should find something else......its kind of messy to use , but it's all I have ever used.

Westleys works great on white walls rops:

I used to use Simple Green (straight) but I have since switched to Amazing Roll Off (straight).

Simple Green should be outlawed. Never use this stuff on bare aluminum or you will be cussing like a drunken sailor :nomore:

I got a 1:1 dilution of purple power on the factory powder coated wheels on my Buick and it etched so deeply that I have never been able polish the damage out. Ive even done multiple step polishing starting with wool pads and rocks in a bottle compounds. That purple power doesn't get anywhere near my car and especially not a customer's car. That was an early lesson learned and I am glad it was on my own car and not a customer's.

I've cleaned literally thousands of aluminum wheels and have never seen this happen using Purple Power or Castols Super Clean. You must be mistaken or applied to a smoking hot wheel Dave

That's what I am afraid of, Wheel Damage! It's not worth it to save a few bucks on a cheap APC.

Merry Christmas Everybody!

Don't worry, Purple Power or Castol Super Clean will do you proud. Just don't apply to a smoking hot wheel like Dave did and you'll be golden

Before I found these forums I used to use Purple Power, Simple Green or Tuff Stuff for my automotive cleaning duties but what I found was that Purple Power will not only etch the wheels, it will also strip the dye out/off of interior pieces. Under the hood Purple Power will turn uncoated aluminum an ashy white color. This Mustang was dirty under the hood but the aluminum was a natural aluminum color until I sprayed Purple Power on it. This was one of my first details and my process is completely different and much safer and much more effective nowadays thanks to using Auto Detailing Specific cleaners.

I know this thread is about cleaning wheels but I just wanted to warn those of you who believe that all APCs are the same that you might be messing with a ticking time bomb so to speak. Take this info for what it's worth. Just my experience.

Have you been sipping Egg Nogg Dave. I've never seen Purple Power do that to an engine. Simple Green yes, Purple Power, never :bolt:

 

[tuscarora dave]

You must be mistaken or applied to a smoking hot wheel Dave

As I stated, this was my experience. The wheel was not hot. I picked it up from Walmart and I do remember that it was Purple Power. This was in the beginning of my detailing journey and I didn't have the hose handy but within a minute or two this etching occured.

Have you been sipping Egg Nogg Dave. I've never seen Purple Power do that to an engine. Simple Green yes, Purple Power, never :bolt:

I haven't sipped the Egg Nogg for nearly 6 years now.:dblthumb2: Now I have to say that this car was severely neglected to begin with and there was a good bit of oxidation present at the start, so maybe the Purple Power somehow accelerated the process or bleached the oxidation so that it appeared whiter. I've been through a lot of engine details since then using PB APC&D and various other APCs and this has not occurred since that day.

 

[rwright]

Optimum Power Clean for me. Provides worry free results and that alone makes it worth every penny. I just don't like the stress involved with other cleaners. I'm not saying they don't work as we all know how effective they are. Detailing is a fun hobby for me, I don't think it should be stressful.

 

[pfix]

Optimum Power Clean for me. Provides worry free results and that alone makes it worth every penny. I just don't like the stress involved with other cleaners. I'm not saying they don't work as we all know how effective they are. Detailing is a fun hobby for me, I don't think it should be stressful.

Amen to that! A few dollars more, but I consider that a cheap insurance policy and I can spay away with no worries.

As a hobby detailer with 3 cars to take care of its not a big deal to me to spend the extra dollars.

Having said that , I could see where the Pro's would want to look for a more cost effective solution.

 

[bmw5541]

I also use Purple Power. It works great and is really inexpensive!

 

[Kurt_s]

I'm pretty much sold on OPC as an APC. It seems to be safer and cleans as well or better than most everything that I've tried over the years. It does a nice job of removing old tire dressings and brown junk off tires and other rubber moldings. When washing a car before detailing, I will use OPC to clean the rubber window moldings to remove the black oxidized rubber that leaves black marks on the drying towels. It leaves a nice clean surface for the rubber dressing of choice. Like anything else, don't let it dry on the paint surface.

That being said, I don't use Purple Power as someone warned me about it years ago and I've passed on it since then. I honestly don't remember the reason that they gave but it stuck with me. For those that have had great luck with it, awesome.

Having damaged my fair share of things over the years with "safe" products, I would rather spend a little more money for truly safe products than spend the money and time to fix a problem.

My 2 cents...

 

[GaDetailDoc]

+1 on the Purple Power. I buy it buy the gallon and dilute it. Stuff works awesome!

***********

Be careful around anodized aluminum. I find 50% dilution works well...1/2 water, 1/2 solution to degrease...Like Seajay says, it works great!

 

[proudpoppa]

i like castrol's super clean. at 6 bucks a gallon i use it straight and haven't had any problems yet. megs apc+ is also in my arsenal and i will use that at 4:1 if the tires have been somewhat maintained.

 

[WJave]

Thanks for all the replies. It's a big help hearing from peoples own experience with these things, Dave

 

[BillyJack]

I care for a few cars on a regular basis. Most have blackwalls except one with white letters. Meguiars APC at 4:1 takes care of about any issues without fear of damage to any surfaces. I spray the cold wheels with either 10:1 APC or 10:1 Simple Green. Periodically, I'll do a more thorough job with either Bleche-White or a yellow whitewall cleaner from a local supplier. It gets the tires the "blackest" IMO and the letters the brightest, especially after the better half uses her white Michelin letters as curb finders.

Bill

 

[cnfowler]

Amazing Roll Off non diluted is fantastic on tires. It only takes a couple squirts to clean a whole tire, so the $25 per gallon goes a long ways. I used to use Meg's APC or Super Degreaser, but the ARO is even better. I cleans better with one application than 2 or 3 applications of APC.

And ARO is great on orange clay stains.

Colin

 

[BillE]

Another vote for "Bleche-Wite." I use it only a couple times a year, stuff really does wonders after a miserable long winter.

Bill

 

[vet]

I use Bleech-Wite too, but always looking for something 'better'. Have been thinking about getting the Amazing Roll Off some time. I clean the tire first, then the rim right away, so it doesn't set on the rim for long. Through this forum I discovered if the tires and wheels are properly sealed, you don't need to use the cleaners as often.

 

[GaDetailDoc]

I use Bleech-Wite too, but always looking for something 'better'. Have been thinking about getting the Amazing Roll Off some time. I clean the tire first, then the rim right away, so it doesn't set on the rim for long. Through this forum I discovered if the tires and wheels are properly sealed, you don't need to use the cleaners as often.

*****************

tire treatment sometimes contain silicon, which seals everything including concrete. ever notice white spots on concrete after it rains or while washing your car.

 

[BobbyG]

Amazing Roll Off non diluted is fantastic on tires. It only takes a couple squirts to clean a whole tire, so the $25 per gallon goes a long ways. I used to use Meg's APC or Super Degreaser, but the ARO is even better. I cleans better with one application than 2 or 3 applications of APC. And ARO is great on orange clay stains.
Colin

My initial post I mention only Meguiar's product because these are the one's I have the most experiences. Because of a trade with one of this forums finest members, I was able to obtain a nice sample of Amazing Roll Off and this really worked well.

In the spring after the tundra thaws I plan to use this more extensively. Let me sum it up this way; I was so impressed with it I bought a gallon.....rops:

 

[Finemess]

I bought a gallon.[/B]....rops:

I had to get a gallon with the Xmas sale!

 

[Old Tiger]

Amazing Roll Off non diluted is fantastic on tires. It only takes a couple squirts to clean a whole tire, so the $25 per gallon goes a long ways. I used to use Meg's APC or Super Degreaser, but the ARO is even better. I cleans better with one application than 2 or 3 applications of APC.

And ARO is great on orange clay stains.

Colin

I agree ARO is the way to go! I bought Hi Temp Tire Cleaner and it doesnt do as well as ARO for removing Blooming!

 

[DaHen]

Ok. All you nice people convinced me.
I Added Amazing Roll Off to my order, but just the quart size.

 

[davidc]

I was so impressed with it I bought a gallon.....rops:

I bought one gallon initially then found out how well it worked and was universal for other things I bought another gallon on my next order.

Dave

 

[agpatel]

opt power clean 1:1 or 1:3 does great on wheels. Power Clean is hands down one of the best APCs I have used. Great time to pick some up today with the sale going on.