APC+ paint and wheel safety?

[Emile]

On the gallon bottle of APC+, it says that the product is safe on glass and clear plastic, but how about paint?

I see some detailers use it at 10:1 to clean up trim and emblems and stuff. I use it at 8:1 on rims and tires during an ONR wash and I just assume it's okay because I have read a lot of other people use it up to 4:1 on wheels. I go 8:1 for just a bit more cleaning power than I would need for the interior, but still want it to be spray-and-wipe during those rinseless washes.

Can it be used at 10:1 or a stronger dilution for degreasing/cleaning paint and wheels? Or is this not recommended?

Thanks,
Emile

[Bert31]

I use megs regular APC at 10:1 on my paint with no problems. I first rinse the car so it does not dry on the paint but you should be fine.

[VISITOR]

i use APC/APC+ on paint, tires, wheels, etc,. as long as you don't let it dry on the surface and rinse immediately, you'll be fine...

[agpatel]

As long as you dont let it dry on the paint, then if you can spray it you can clean it with APC+

[Emile]

How long does it take to get dry? I always use this product at 4:1 to clean my wheel wells...I spray it, let it sit and work for a couple of minutes while I clean the wheel and then rinse it all away and move onto the next wheel & wheel well. Never seen it dry up on me.

[harshest]

I use APC/APC+ in all different dilutions on everything in and around the house including stains on clothes, paint, rubber, painted aluminum on the camper, and have never had a trouble. I have never let it dry either. Just spray it on, let it soak, scrub away, rinse and dry.

[agpatel]

How long does it take to get dry? I always use this product at 4:1 to clean my wheel wells...I spray it, let it sit and work for a couple of minutes while I clean the wheel and then rinse it all away and move onto the next wheel & wheel well. Never seen it dry up on me.

Drying will depend on air temp and surface temp. But a few mins is not going to be a issue unless the car surface is blazing hot.

[JCruiza120]

I used 10:1 to quick clean my wheels yesterday and it left some residue, the step of "rinse afterwards" is pretty important.

[Emile]

JCruiza, if I'm doing an ONR wash and doing the wheels, I will spray the rim and tire with APC+ 8:1 very lightly (my focus is on the tires) and then I will brush the rim with a wheel brush that is dipped in and out of the ONR/water solution. Then I brush the tires with a tire brush dipped in and out of ONR/water solution. Finally, I will towel-dry the rim and tire immediately before moving onto the next wheel. Brushing with the ONR/water solution and brushes washes off most of the APC+ and the towel will pickup any remaining product. I do not get any residue this way. Also, I do not spray the wheel barrels with APC+ during an indoor ONR wash because there is just no way I can reach inside the entire wheel with a towel. APC+ at 10:1 (or 8:1 in my case) is spray-and-wipe, but the keyword being wipe otherwise it will leave some streakiness.

[JCruiza120]

Thanks for the advice, I've always done a full wash on the wheels but yesterday I just wanted to give them a quick clean since I was only QD'ing the paint and didn't want to spend the time grabbing the hose and bucket, hence only APC+'ing them and not knowing how to properly ONR-wash them.

[Emile]

Btw, does mixing a product with water change the ph level of the total formula?

APC+ has a ph level of 13.4 which is extremely high alkaline...on par with concrete/warehouse/industrial degreasers. I am assuming that mixing 4:1 with water brings the final product ph level way down.

Here is my math, based on ph level of water (7) and ph level of APC+ (13.4) on a 4:1 ratio: 7+7+7+7+13.4=41.4 divided by 5 total parts = 8.28 total product ph level which is only slightly alkaline. Is this correct?

[agpatel]

pH is a log function of H+ concentration, pH=-log(H+), so dont think you can do it the way you said, maybe you can. But, it has been 4 years sinse i took chem. :( haha

[Emile]

Yeah, thanks agpatel, I did some research and what you said was correct. I just finished college in May so I'm not even going to bother trying to figure it out exactly with the log functions.