Spare tire cover or no?

[exjay1]

My dealer threw in a "free" spare tire cover due to the orig Jayco one was missing/taken off by the PO. Ive found the one they put on (white) requires a bleach wipe down every so often to remove the mold that for whatever reason loves this tire cover. The inside of the cover is pretty much cottom lined and just holds water against the tire/rim constantly and never really seems to dry out (mold). Could this be doing more harm than good for protecting the tire/rim?

[McMonk]

Having to clean the fool-thing all the time would really bother me. I don't think that you'll be doing the tire any harm, but if it's a PITA, I'd spend the bucks to replace it with something that doesn't show the dirt so much.

[tinlizzie23]

Holding water against the inside will not harm the tire itself, but might cause premature rusting of the rim if it is steel. The only reason I would have a cover at all is to protect from the sun. As McMonk says, if you don't want to continually clean, then invest in another cover that is mold/mildew resistant.

[exjay1]

Im going to clean it then treat the inside (cotton) with some scotch guard to see if that helps some.

[clutch]

I wouldn't worry about the moisture. The sun will cause problems in just a few months in some parts of the country. An alloy rim won't rust and a steel rim will take years to look really bad but it will still be out of sight.