Taking my shiny car everyday to the office was a matter of pride to me. I could hardly ever think of my car, looking less attractive than those of my colleagues.
However, it was habitual for me to see my friend’s car being praised always for its spotlessness, not mine.
Then one day, as I approached him and asked about this, his fingers just pointed at my tires! To be honest the tires of my car looked horrible, covered with an inch of mud and totally not worthy of being looked at.
Well, it is not like that I drove my car on any mud road but I didn’t just ever think of cleaning it! It seemed to me like: who on earth would clean a thing that would get dirty again the very next day?
All of us do think that cleaning a tire is not an activity that we can give our thoughts to; since cleaning a tire might seem like a lengthy process with zero particular outcomes.
By the way, we are actually not fully correct.
In fact, cleaning a tire regularly should be viewed as a customary activity as it can influence your car safety. Interestingly, ‘cleaning a tire' means significantly different than what we think of the term ‘cleaning’.
We can’t just use a scrubber and some detergent to clean the dirt away; rather some detailed cleaning is required for preventing any rust that can, or else, cause some serious safety issues. To ensure proper cleaning of the tires a special washing solution and a thorough detailing process is needed.
Things That You Need To Clean Your Car Tires Properly
Process of Cleaning - In Steps
Step #1
First of all, wash your car tires by rinsing them with the water from a high pressure hose. Ensure that any and every loosely attached mud or dirt is washed away. It is better to use a clean dry rag to rub the tires simultaneously as you spray the water on them.
Note that, the rag that you will be using should only be used for the tires. The tires accumulate a lot of brake dust which stains the rug when it is used. And using the same rug for other parts of the car may scratch those surfaces.
Furthermore, ensure that the dark brown deposit of brake dust are softened and blasted off. You can use this similar process with the high pressure hose to clean the wheel rim and wheel well as well
Step #2
Now that the tires are washed, you can apply the cleaning solution on them. There are special solution for this purpose and you can easily get them at the nearest hardware store or any big online store.
However, special care should be taken on buying the solutions with no formaldehyde. This substance can cause the tire to corrode.
Well, as the cleaning solution is now applied you should wait for a while to let the solution slowly degrease away the dirt and grease.
Step #3
After letting the cleaning solution sit for a while, use a soft bristled brush to rub away any dirt while rinsing the tire with water. Proper care should be taken so that every dirt and the cleaning solution are washed away. If possible, the water should be continuously sprayed on well after the tire looks clean.
On the other hand, a medium bristled brush should be used to rub away any dirt from the wheel rims and hums. Moreover, no hard bristled brush should be used on the tires as it may scratch the soft rubber.
Step #4
Since the wheel is now cleaned thoroughly, special care should be taken to dry the tire. It is advised that special microfiber towels should be used for wiping the tire as it would wick away the water and grease without leaving any fiber or mark.
Cotton or synthetic clothes are better not be used. These won't absorb the water properly and leave wet spots that would prevent solutions from reaching the surface of tire at those areas.
Step #5
As the wheel is now cleaned and dried fully, we can provide wax to the tire surface. The tire can easily be waxed the same you wax the other parts of the car. Simply just use the wax pad and apply the paste to the tire. Apply it with care and endurance until the paste is polished to the surface. Wait for some minutes so that the paste is dried fully.
This would not only make the tire look clean and shiny but also will protect the tire from accumulating dirt again so easily as before. The wax prevents any mud from sticking to the surface of tire, however, excess paste should also be removed as that may damage the tire surface.
Step #6
Finally you can dress the tire now. For that purpose you will need some good quality tire dressing which come as sprays in general. These special dressings are water based solutions which are made to protect the tire and make them shiny as new.
So, to apply them it would be best for you to look into the information provided on the bottle and then spray with precaution. Generally it is best for you to provide several coats and wait for each coat to dry before applying the next. In this way after the final coat has dried properly your tire are fully ready!!!
Since your car tires are spick and spruce you can do the cleaning and every other process like waxing, detailing and dressing with more ease now.
Going through the same process for several time a year would enough! And this not only would make your car tires look good but also will increase the life span thus ensure a less maintenance cost at the end of the year!!!
So to conclude, the one thing that comes into my mind is that for anybody of us who want to ensure a safe ride and make our ride look good, shiny tires are a must. And with proper care having some new tires all year around is actually not a tough job.