Iron-Eating (Color-Changing) Wheel Cleaners and Cold Weather

**Setec Astronomy** · 11-30-2021, 01:11 PM

I was using some Griot`s Heavy Duty Wheel Cleaner today, and I noticed I wasn`t getting any color change. At first I didn`t think too much of it, I never seem to get much color change, perhaps from ceramic brake pads, etc. Then it dawned on me that it was 35 degrees outside (with snow flurries) and that it may be the reaction is significantly slowed (longer than I was willing to wait given the temperature). Has anyone else noticed this? It makes sense from a chemistry standpoint.

**tom p.** · 11-30-2021, 03:10 PM

I`ve got "ceramic" pads on most of our cars. I see very little color change with this composition, Setec.

**Setec Astronomy** · 11-30-2021, 03:20 PM

Yeah, that`s what I was saying, I was just wondering whether in general you need to give these wheel cleaners more time in cold weather, if anyone has noticed that. The same would apply for paint decon.

**01GreyStangGT** · 11-30-2021, 07:11 PM

I can`t say I have noticed a difference with temperature and I try to detail as year-round as I can. I mostly use Adam`s Wheel Cleaner.

**roscopervis** · 12-02-2021, 01:59 PM

Are you washing the wheels first or are you going straight at them with the fallout remover?

**Setec Astronomy** · 12-02-2021, 09:19 PM

Usually I wash the wheels first.

**roscopervis** · 12-05-2021, 03:57 PM

That will very likely be why. After a wash, there isn’t usually that much iron on a frequently washed wheel. The photo attached is my ceramic coated wheel liberally coated with Bilt Hamber Korrosol (very effective) after washing the wheels. Not much reaction. Iron-Eating (Color-Changing) Wheel Cleaners and Cold Weather-f5db9e81-9631-457c-a20f-dfbed38ee31f.jpeg

Iron-Eating (Color-Changing) Wheel Cleaners and Cold Weather-f5db9e81-9631-457c-a20f-dfbed38ee31f.jpeg

You are doing it the right way.

**atbalfour** · 12-06-2021, 02:53 PM

Reaction time will be 2-3 minutes longer in all honesty.

Agree with rosco above. Another couple of considerations to chuck in:

- do you regularly wash with harsh alkaline cleaners as these have been proven to remove at least some iron contamination as a byproduct of their great cleaning ability.

- do you regularly protect your wheels with any form of LSP? If so, your LSP could be forming an invisible barrier between your fallout remover and the embedded contaminants. Sounds pretty farfetched but my testing has proven this to be the case, very few LSPs would be eroded away by your basic fallout remover, which is pH neutral in the bottle.

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