Word of warning alloy wheel cleaners

[garellikatia]

I might just be stupid but I managed to nearly ruin a decent set of oem original merc alloys by using alloy wheel cleaner  (halfords) by applying to all four wheels at the same time and letting the substance work its way in. In turn this ate through the laquer causing nasty black spots and damage. Use with caution guys and don't let it stay on for too long!!

I've managed to sort them out mostly with some fine 2000 grit but just a heads up. Use that stuff with caution. 

[PrinceRupert]

21 minutes ago, garellikatia said:

I might just be stupid but I managed to nearly ruin a decent set of oem original merc alloys by using alloy wheel cleaner  (halfords) by applying to all four wheels at the same time and letting the substance work its way in. In turn this ate through the laquer causing nasty black spots and damage. Use with caution guys and don't let it stay on for too long!!

I've managed to sort them out mostly with some fine 2000 grit but just a heads up. Use that stuff with caution. 

I'm pretty sure it is wheel cleaner that's made my chrome wheel nuts all rusty

[yes oui si]

Yeah, it's nasty stuff

[Lankytim]

Which cleaner was it? 

[NorfolkNWeigh]

I’ve got a set of Merc rims in my garden that were destroyed by the previous owner using a shit, human trafficking type car wash twice a week. Maybe Merc wheels are more susceptible.

[Datsuncog]

Best to do them one wheel at a time, and give them a really good rinse after - including getting the rear face properly cleaned off.

I remember a fella from work (two-bucket wrong'un) suffering really bad corrosion to a set of alloys on his Impreza - they'd started to crumble at the back from his regular dousings with lashings and lashings of alloy wheel cleaner, which then hadn't fully been washed off. I took a look at them, they were like the inside of an Aero bar at the back.

He ended up having to scrap the wheels, even though they looked like new from the outside. But they were so structurally weakened from the acids in the cleaner that they could have shattered at any time.

As others have said, nasty stuff.

[garellikatia]

48 minutes ago, Lankytim said:

Which cleaner was it? 

Halfords own brand . Should've known better tbh. But we live and learn, could be worse

[garellikatia]

1 hour ago, PrinceRupert said:

I'm pretty sure it is wheel cleaner that's made my chrome wheel nuts all rusty

I wouldn't be surprised apparently it's really acidic 

[garellikatia]

49 minutes ago, NorfolkNWeigh said:

I’ve got a set of Merc rims in my garden that were destroyed by the previous owner using a shit, human trafficking type car wash twice a week. Maybe Merc wheels are more susceptible.

Your not wrong about human trafficking  most of them live in those huts. Had a brief at work and said they don't leave the car Wash, ever 

[garellikatia]

40 minutes ago, Datsuncog said:

Best to do them one wheel at a time, and give them a really good rinse after - including getting the rear face properly cleaned off.

I remember a fella from work (two-bucket wrong'un) suffering really bad corrosion to a set of alloys on his Impreza - they'd started to crumble at the back from his regular dousings with lashings and lashings of alloy wheel cleaner, which then hadn't fully been washed off. I took a look at them, they were like the inside of an Aero bar at the back.

He ended up having to scrap the wheels, even though they looked like new from the outside. But they were so structurally weakened from the acids in the cleaner that they could have shattered at any time.

As others have said, nasty stuff.

No way that's unreal!! Wonder if it effected the brakes too? Tbf having seen what it's done I'm never using that stuff again, I'll just have to use a bit of Mk1 elbow grease 😂 

[MiniMinorMk3]

How much does a bottle of vinegar cost these days? Will probably do the same for less money than a Halfrauds acid bath.

[Timewaster]

OE Merc wheels are problematic.

My boss had a nearly new SLK bought from a main dealer and they replaced all 4 wheels after the lacquer turned to shit.

They should have stuck with these:

 

[Wack]

In the late 80s I worked for a courier company called ANC , the owner bought 3 new 7.5t curtainsiders , had the curtains signwritten

They'd only had them a couple of weeks , one of the drivers slopped some traffic film remover in a bucket , got a brush and applied it to the curtains

Went in the get the hose , came out and all the signwriting had run like an abstract painting ,down the curtains , dripping on the floor

Boss man wasn't happy , there was shouting in the office

The wheel cleaner is or was pretty much the same as brick acid

[Barry Cade]

Neat TFR is really nasty stuff, much stronger than you'd think. Even diluted it'll strip wax off and make your paint dull.  Horrible stuff. 

[Wack]

Just now, Barry Cade said:

Neat TFR is really nasty stuff, much stronger than you'd think. Even diluted it'll strip wax off and make your paint dull.  Horrible stuff. 

Even when watered down to what you think isn't very strong I can confirm it takes skin off hands

[beko1987]

Bilberry red wheel cleaner is excellent for when their not too filthy, but when they are I find Bilt Hamber Korrosol to be bloody excellent! All safe and non corrosive! Bloody hate wonder wheels type shit even on the worthless crap I drive 😂

[Wibble]

All this talk of TFR reminds me of another use I found for it. I received a phone call one Friday morning some 10 years ago, asking us to assist with a serious office fire damaging two floors of an office block for a major publishing company. They were desperate to have the building open for Monday!

The fire had destroyed the third floor and there was severe smoke damage to the 4th. I had to come up with a plan quickly, so had air scrubbers installed either end of each floor and the team agreed to work through the night and over the weekend. 
 

There was access to each floor from stairs each end and whilst they could relocate staff to other floors, they needed the toilets on each landing cleaned and the odour dealt with. It really did stink, as they usually do. The blackened toilets were cleaned and the stair wells, landings and carpets and we spent hours thermal fogging stairs and lift shafts. All was good and the building reopened Monday morning, with office staff surprised they couldn’t smell anything.
 

We then had to clean and deodorise the damaged third and fourth floors with the aluminium window frames posing a problem. They were black and nothing we had was touching it. They were happy to replace two that had melted but desperately wanted to save all the others as the building only had a few more years before demolition. Sorry for long story but that’s when I resorted to TFR. Thought it worth a shot and it brought them up like new!

Worked out well for us, as our method and approach was then used as a case study in how to  return a fire damaged building to use in the shortest possible time. The building was demolished 2 years ago now.

[Wibble]

6 minutes ago, beko1987 said:

Bilberry red wheel cleaner is excellent for when their not too filthy, but when they are I find Bilt Hamber Korrosol to be bloody excellent! All safe and non corrosive! Bloody hate wonder wheels type shit even on the worthless crap I drive 😂

I’ve found Bilt Hamber good too👍

[face]

If I use a wheel cleaner, I do them one at a time and after a good jet-wash.

Spray and then clean immediately before thoroughly jetting off all the shite.

[Noel Tidybeard]

if its like autoglim DO NOT LEAVE ON

if its iron fallout remover that turns red/purple leave on til colour shows