Wheel & Tyre Cleaners

The main difference between tyre cleaners and wheel cleaners are their chemical makeup, and what type of grime and contaminants they target.

Firstly, let's start with wheel cleaners. There are two main types, which are acidic and alkaline cleaners.

Acidic wheel cleaners are more targeted, as they react with minerals and deposits such as iron, which are often found in the brake dust, and common wheel contaminants. By actively trying to dissolve these contaminants, they can usually have an increased cleaning power, but may be harmful to some incredibly sensitive wheel finishes. This is the same chemistry used in a dedicated iron remover.

Alkaline wheel cleaners are usually the more general approach, ensuring safety on all wheel finishes, and can often be more eco-friendly. These certain products are packed with cleaning agents that target stubborn grime and dirt, but don't specifically target things like brake dust, iron deposits, etc.

Tyre cleaners on the other hand tend to be relatively similar to alkaline based wheel cleaners. With tyres, you are more looking to break down dirt, grime, oils and other common contaminants. These are more heavy duty than just your average car wash, and are specialised for cleaning rubber surfaces.

All in all, acid wheel cleaners are usually more popular as they target common wheel contaminants such as iron and brake dust, and alkaline wheel cleaners and tyre cleaners are more for general cleaning, and can usually be used on both wheels and tyres.

Based on the information in the above FAQ regarding the differences between wheel and tyre cleaners, alkaline based wheel cleaners can usually be used on tyres.

Although specialised tyre cleaners are usually always the best choice, non-acidic wheel cleaners that target dirt, grime and oils are quite similar to tyre cleaners, and can definitely be used on both the wheel and tyre.

Acidic based wheel cleaners on the other hand won't damage your tyres in any way, they probably just won't be very effective at cleaning them, as they are trying to target contaminants on and in the wheel barrel, rather than things penetrating into your rubber.

Yes, painted wheels are a very common finish on wheels. This type of finish can usually withstand any type of wheel cleaner, whether it be more acidic or alkaline.

The same goes for the other common finishes. An alloy wheel cleaner and a mag wheel cleaner are the same product in most cases, the naming just follows what people call their wheels, and the products we stock are suited to alloy, mag, chrome, painted and powder coated finishes alike.

We always recommend reading the product directions and dilutions provided, and ensure you are using the product properly. Where you want to take more care is on raw or polished alloy and anodised finishes, which are far less common but far less forgiving, and on wheels with a ceramic coating where a pH neutral cleaner will protect the coating for longer.

Wheel cleaners that change colour are reserved only for acidic based wheel cleaners, those that have a reducing agent infused in the formulation.

This visual reaction is actually the wheel cleaners attacking and dissolving mineral deposits, such as iron, brake dust, and other common wheel contaminants. As these cleaners bind to these contaminants, they begin to loosen, and dissolve them, allowing you to simply pressure wash the wheel clean.

This allows for a touchless approach for wheel cleaning, and can work very well. On some heavily soiled wheels, although a lot of contamination is removed, some are just loosened and may require you to use some physical agitation with a wheel brush.

It really depends on how dirty the car is getting, and what products you are looking to use.

Generally speaking, wheel and tyre cleaners should be incorporated into your normal wash process, say every couple of weeks. But you may be rushed for time, or find your tyres aren't really that dirty so you skip this step, and that's fine.

What becomes more important is if you are wanting to apply any wheel protection, or say a tyre dressing, you want to ensure that these surfaces are clean, and no contaminants are going to inhibit these products from working.

If this is the case, we strongly recommend utilising a specific mag wheel cleaner, and a specialised tyre cleaner, whilst also using suitable wheel and tyre brushes to ensure the best clean.

This will allow you to get the most out of your tyre dressing, or wheel coating.

The best way to minimise brake dust on your wheels is to apply some form of wheel protection. The product best suited to this would be a ceramic coating for wheels, as the aim here is to enhance the surface of the wheel, and make it more difficult for things like brake dust, iron, dirt and grime to even stick to the wheel.

This will not only minimise the amount of brake dust on your wheels, but also make cleaning your wheels much easier, as the contamination will be less caked on, and much less stubborn, and far easier to remove.

In this case, periodic maintenance with an acid based cleaner could allow you to simply spray and rinse your wheels clean, without the need for any scrubbing.