Cleaning inside of wheel

[xopher]

OK, finally getting around to cleaning off a few years of brake dust. The clear-coated side of the wheel still looks great, but the inside of the wheel is almost brown in some places. I searched around here and didn't find a recommendation on cleaning the bare alumnium on the inside of the wheel. Knuckleheads on youtube just use oven cleaner on everything, but I can't imagine what oven cleaner overspray would do to the clear coat on the other side of the wheel. I'm going to put a chopped toilet brush (new, not used lol) in my cordless drill chuck on low speed to agitate some water into the dust, but I'd like to use something to help clean. Should I use anything more aggressive than dish soap? Or would I risk further damage?

[RubberCtyRauder]

Scotch bright pad and simple green or any wheel cleaner except the acid type will work well

[gdmjoe]

RubberCtyRauder - Scotch bright pad and simple green ...
Would NOT RECOMMEND Simple Green.

Excerpted from Simple Green's FAQ ...
Aluminum — Is it safe to use Simple Green All-Purpose Cleaner on aluminum?

When used with caution and according to the instructions, Simple Green All-Purpose Cleaner has been safely and successfully used to clean aluminum. Simple Green All-Purpose Cleaner, Crystal Simple Green Industrial Cleaner & Degreaser, and Simple Green Pressure Washer Concentrates have been used on aircraft, automotive, industrial and consumer aluminum items for over 20 years. However, caution and common sense must be used: aluminum is a soft metal that easily corrodes with unprotected exposure to water. The aqueous-base and alkalinity of Simple Green All-Purpose Cleaner can accelerate the corrosion process. Therefore, contact times for unprotected or unpainted aluminum surfaces should be kept as brief as the job will allow - never for more than 10 minutes. Large cleaning jobs should be conducted in smaller-area stages to achieve lower contact time. Rinsing after cleaning should always be extremely thorough - paying special attention to flush out cracks and crevices to remove all Simple Green product residues.
Unfinished, uncoated or unpainted aluminum cleaned with Simple Green products should receive some sort of protectant after cleaning to prevent oxidation.Given that there are plenty of quality (and safe) aluminum rim cleaners available, why risk it.
.

[RubberCtyRauder]

I've never had issues with simple green on aluminum. Especially insides of wheels. It's not like it is left on it for hours. Outside is clear coated.

[ctrlraven]

For the inside of the wheel I used diluted simple green for years then last year started using Meguiars U1422 DUB wheel cleaner with a brush.

Or just use whatever car paint shampoo with a brush.

[Zack]

You can always use Dawn.
Everyone has that.....and it works

[rauder88]

When mine were super bad, I used dawn and a white scotch bright pad. Wasn't fast but turned out very good!


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[MOTOWN]

Scotch brite pad does an excellent job.

[CrownVictorious]

I see mention of scotch brite pads and havent seen the white ones. Do the easy to find heavy duty thin green ones work like the pads in the link below - without damaging the wheel?

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Scotch-Brite-Heavy-Duty-Scour-Pads-6pk/16564933

[J-MAN]

Sonax wheel cleaner with a light grey Scotchbrite pad. When clean, apply sealant so you can clean up with soap and water after that.

[MMBLUE]

You can always use Dawn.
Everyone has that.....and it works


Scotch brite pad does an excellent job.


Winner Winner chicken dinner :beer:

[rauder88]

I see mention of scotch brite pads and havent seen the white ones. Do the easy to find heavy duty thin green ones work like the pads in the link below - without damaging the wheel?

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Scotch-Brite-Heavy-Duty-Scour-Pads-6pk/16564933

I guess mine were 3M pads. Got them through work for free.
http://www.amazon.com/3M-Doodlebug-White-Cleaning-4-625/dp/B006UWP6B0
That's a case of 20 4.6" x 10" pads, can be found online for around $4ea.

[sflrainmaker01]

You can always use Dawn.
Everyone has that.....and it works


When mine were super bad, I used dawn and a white scotch bright pad. Wasn't fast but turned out very good!


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^That right there. I used the "blue" Dawn and Scotch bright pad on my Mustang wheels I just restored. It worked great!

[loud2004marquis]

I just used the scotch bright type pad on the back of the sponge from the kitchen sink. It's designated for garage use now.

Soap and water, then turtle wax "bug and tar remover", then Mothers polish.
(Washing between steps)

Before

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/979453/fullsize/1-rim-off-car.jpg

After

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/979458/fullsize/6-mothers-by-hand.jpg

[Mike D Mechanic]

The wheels on my 03 has 177k on them and believe never to have been cleaned. I used diluted formula 88 & a well worn scotch brite pad on insides of my wheels. They were very nasty , took few times but they came out pretty nice . Wish I took before & after pics, oh well. Tape from old wheel weights was the hardest to remove.

On my 04 I have a ceiling fan brush bent around that I use to clean insides of wheels ever since new. Just sneaks by the caliper. Do it every time I wash the car. Then when I change tires only the spokes really need to be done, and they have always cleaned easily so far.

[Blackened300a]

Scotch bright pad and simple green or any wheel cleaner except the acid type will work well

^^^ This or I used a heavy truck degreaser^^^

Just have a hose handy to remove the simple green and wash the inside with car wash soap when completed.

[JBeezy]

I used a Scotch Brite pad and some Super Clean

[MERCULES]

Dawn dish soap is a surprisingly good degreaser useful for many cleanups and mild enough that it is always safe to try first on almost anything. Oh yeah and cheap.:)

[xopher]

My idea of chopping toilet brushes and chucking in my drill worked ok, but the bristles were really not firm enough to do what I could do with elbow grease and a green scrub pad. Also, the longer I left the handle, the more wobbly it got. I will continue my R&D with stiffer, shorter brushes. I did have to take a wire wheel to the center back of the wheel to clean off the rust from the rotors.

As for removing the wheel weights and adhesive, I used a dull paint scraper to get off most of the gunk, then quick squirts of Zippo fluid then more green scrub pad. At this point, the cleanest part of the inside of the wheel is the spots where the old wheel weights used to be.

Thanks all for the advice!

[RubberCtyRauder]

If you want to make them really nice , then get some wet/dry sandpaper in varying coarseness from like 320 grit up to 600 or 800 grit and wet sand them with rougher then finer grits and then use aluminum polish..it'll be a dirty process but they would shine up.

Might be able to try some auto polishing compound as well, it has grit in it to cut thru very oxidized paint so might work on inside of wheels, don't use it on the clearcoat side.