Steam cleaner.

[viewsonic1]

Hi, I am thinking of getting one of these to clean the alloy wheels on my series 3 BMW. Ordinary washing with a sponge won't get in every crevice and I am loathe to use chemical cleaners as it marks our tarmac drive. Has anyone cleaned their wheels with a steam cleaner? What are the results?
Many thanks.

https://www.aldi.co.uk/en/specialbuys/t ... 1-11_17-28

[SteveClem]

I think they work very well. So does the karcher pressure washer. Advantage of the steam cleaner is that it's handy for cleaning the grout joints in the bathroom.

[irmscher]

Watch out for it bubbling the paint and lacquer

[olderisbetter]

I have something like this, it is ok for the money but it seemed a bit under powered so i modified my earlex wall paper stripper with some !/4" brass tube and just crimped the end up to make the steam jet out, also makes great frothy milky coffee.

[viewsonic1]

Thanks for the replies. I never thought about bubbling paint and laquer and amazingly we have just finished using our Earlex paper stripper on the last papered room in the house! Maybe I could modify mine? Thanks again!

[bmcecosse]

Just use the pressure washer at your local petrol station........

[John Naylor]

Ensure you don't direct a pressure washer onto the tyre side walls. High pressure can destroy tyres!

[Trickydicky]

For what it's worth I wouldn't use a steam cleaner as it will certainly cause damage to the lacquer and paint, I would be dubious about using a pressure washer too as they can lift the paint if there is any damage to the alloys.
If you want to keep your alloys sparkling after first removing the brake dust I would suggest regularly applying a coat of autoglym body wax, not only does it put a shine on them it helps stopping the brake dust sticking to the wheel making cleaning easier.
It's a lot of effort but it does make them look good and better than damaging your wheels!

[panky]

The best product I've found for cleaning wheels (and just about everything else) is Autoglym caravan and motorhome cleaner. Used with a stiff brush it will get through just about any type of muck. It's a strong detergent, not a solvent, so shouldn't do your drive any harm other than cleaning it