[vc_row][vc_column video_bg=”yes” video_bg_parallax=”content-moving-fade”][vc_column_text css_animation=”fadeIn”]We get it, you love your car. For most of us, car lovers, washing our vehicle by hand is a relaxing activity. We can sometimes see it as being therapeutic and beneficial for our mindset. It’s also a must to upkeep a regular cleaning regiment on our vehicle’s appearance. This is an excellent activity because regularly washing is also one of the best ways to upkeep our “just off the dealer” look on our vehicle. I know that washing your car isn’t rocket science, but, there are a few techniques to look out for so that we don’t want to coincidentally damage or scratch that delicate and fragile clear coat finish. Let’s read along to find some useful car washing techniques and tips.
Which are the best Products to Use?
We get this question asked all the time. Instead of sticking to a specific brand, we rather go over what to DO and what NOT TO DO.
Don’t… for the love of all the car gods use household dishwashing soap or similar agents like hand soap, on your car’s paint. These products don’t have a safe ph-balanced formula. Please don’t use them on your car’s fragile bright coat of paint. Aside from that, they’re very aggressive and will strip off any carnauba/synthetic wax or polymer paint sealants off your car’s surface.
Do… use a ph-balanced automotive car wash soap. These soaps are far milder and are intendedly designed to target your car’s paint. Extra credit if you apply your initial suds with a vast amount of foam from a foam canon. This initial rinse will loosen up a good layer of dirt off your paint. With this first step, you’re already making it safer by creating a cleaner surface when it’s time to hand wash your car.
Do… use separate buckets, mitts, and brushes to clean your car, wheels, and tires. Wheels and tires are always contaminated with sand, dirt, brake dust particles, and many other contaminants that will mar the car’s paint. It’ll be best to isolate all of the wheels and tires dirt on one bucket. Usually, a couple of ounces of mild soap and water will be enough; if it isn’t, step it up to a stronger iron wheel cleaner. Just make sure that the solution is compliance with your wheel type finish.
When it’s time to hand wash your car, it’s imperative to use the two bucket wash method. Designating one bucket strictly for just your water and soap solution and another one filled with only water. You’ll use the bucket with just water as your rinse bucket. This is a crucial step and a significant one that will keep dirt debris from mixing into your water and soap bucket. Ideally, you’ll want to rinse your mitt after you clean each panel. Doing so will fortify that your glove is clean. Imagine having a clean mitt every time you use it on each section that you’ll touch!
Deposits like Grease, rubber, and road-tar can accumulate around the wheel arches, along with the lower rocker panels of the body. These can be harder to wash off and may need a bit more of elbow grease and will require stronger chemicals. It’ll be best to use a bug and tar remover for these areas. Paired with a soft, nonabrasive wash mitt, you’ll safely remove these deposits.
Are There Any General Guidelines I Should Follow When Washing a Car?
Don’t… wash your car in a circle pattern. Doing so will create a light, but highly recognizable scratches, better known as swirl marks. As an alternative, move the wash mitt in the east to west, or north to south patterns. Do this across your hood and other body panels. Also, if you drop your glove don’t continue using it! A dropped mitt should be immediately rinsed out before continuing. The dropped mitt will pick up dirt particles that can scratch the paint if not thoroughly rinsed.
This is all great, but how should i dry the car when i’m done?
Don’t… leave your car air drying, and don’t assume that a quick drive around the neighborhood will do a productive job. Doing so will leave hard water spots that originate from minerals in hard water. Moreover, don’t use an abrasive bath towel, shammy, or water blades that can potentially generate light scratches in the paint.
Do… dry your car in a shaded area. We recommend that you use a high-quality microfiber waffle weave drying towel. You can even blow dry your vehicle with an electric leaf blower. Doing so will discharge water out of all the tight nooks and crannies. Should you choose towels, you will need a couple, depending on the size of your car. Preferably, you should blot, pat dry the water up. Safely doing so instead of tugging the towel over the car. Drying the vehicle should be done quickly. Using the combination of a high power leaf blower and top absorbing microfiber towel will definitely speed up the process.
In conclusion, these similar techniques are performed when we do all of our detailing packages, including our most famous detail package. We hope you found these tips helpful. After washing many cars weekly, these techniques have helped us when it comes to hand washing the cars for our Miami locals.