Wheel cleaning tips for easy and fast upkeep.

When washing our vehicles, we always start with the wheels first, since they are the dirtiest part of the car. Here are a few tips to get your wheels clean effenciently, and keep them that way for longer periods of time.

1. First thing to do is rinse the Wheel and tire down with a good spray of water, or a good pass if you are using a pressure washer. (When using a pressure washer make sure to keep at least a foot away from the vehicle’s surface so as not to damage the paint)
2. With your wheel and tire cleaner of choice, spray down the surface and inner barrel of the wheel and tire face. Give the solution a few minutes to penetrate and loosen the dirt, brake dust, and grime on the wheel. 
3. Using a long barrel brush, clean the inner barrel of the wheel working from top to bottom. Afterwards you can use your short, soft Brissel brushes for the wheel and tire face. In some cases where you have an accumulation of dirt and brake dust within the wheel lugs or bolts, you can use a fine boars hair brush to better clean these detail areas.
4. Now that you have brushed down the inner barrel and wheel face you can rinse them.
5. After rinsing, inspect the wheel and repeat the cleaning process if needed.
6. There may be brake dust or iron particles embedded in the wheel that need a more thorough cleaning by clay bar treatment or iron decontamination.
7. If you have a clean surface to work with, you can wipe down and dry the wheel for the next step.
8. After you have dried the wheel with a micorfiber towel, you can apply a protective coating to the painted surface to prevent brake dust and dirt accumulation from damaging the wheel. Before you apply the protective coating to the wheel, be sure to first apply the tire dressing.
9. After the tire dressing you can apply one of the following to protect the wheels:
   1. Spray wax will give you 1-2 weeks of protection.
   2. Liquid wax will extend the protection to 1-2 months
   3. Paint sealant such as Jet Seal is even more effective, extending  the protection to 9-12 months
   4. Ceramic coating will give the most effective protecting; however, this treatment should be applied to brand new wheels, or to wheels during a new car prep service.

I hope this information was helpful. Going through this process for wheel cleaning should make future cleaning faster and easier.

Please give us a call with any Auto Detailing questions at 925-895-1327.