Need equipment and product help.

[letsgoMINAJE]

I've neglected my car for too long lol. I want to start washing my car but I don't really have any equipment or product. What are some things I can buy to wash my car as efficiently as possible? The quicker I can get the job done well, the better. The shinier I can get it the better.

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[Trash Panda]

I've neglected my car for too long lol. I want to start washing my car but I don't really have any equipment or product. What are some things I can buy to wash my car as efficiently as possible? The quicker I can get the job done well, the better. The shinier I can get it the better.

Following up from the other thread..

First you have to ask yourself, what caused my car to get dirty, and what scratched my car(swirls)?

Swirls are usually a mechanical defect meaning we cause them with improper wash techniques, or by touching the paint with no lubrication grinding in contaminates(dirt,dust,grime).

How do we prevent them the best we can? Protective coatings, 2 bucket wash method, and a pressure washer foam cannon are solid ways.

I use all Adam’s Polishes products, but pay attention to the process versus the product. Detailing is 80% user and 20% chemical.

My routine maintenance process is as follows…

•Wheels&Tires first (wash one wheel at a time, out of the sun if possible).
I use a separate 5gal bucket filled with water & Chemical Guys Diablo Gel(1-2oz) to provide lubrication(reducing swirls).

I use Adam’s Wheel & Tire Cleaner diluted 1:1(8oz product/8oz water) or 2:1 (5oz product/11oz water) because it tackles BOTH tire blooming(brown rubber) and brake dust. I use their wheel brush & tire brush.

The easiest way to add gloss/protection to your wheels is with a product like their Rinse+Coat. Simply mist over the wheel, let dwell for 30 seconds, and blast thoroughly with the pressure washer. You instantly see some white foam produced and insane water beading.

I then dry the Wheels with my Air Cannon to help prevent water spots.

•Pre-Foam Rinse
For the paint work you spray down with the pressure washer after you have done the wheels & tires.
Attach your foam cannon, if applicable, and foam your car! (I use 1.5oz of Adam’s Mega Foam)

It is perfectly fine that it is watery, that’s an advantage!
Think about it..what is that watery soap doing? It is encapsulating all the dirt/grime particles that could cause swirls, and removing it from the paintwork without you even touching it! That way the potential to cause mechanical induced swirls is greatly reduced.

•Wash Process
2 bucket method w/grit guards. 1 bucket of water, and 1 bucket of soap. I use 2-3 oz of Adam’s Graphene Shampoo(adds gloss&protection) in the soap bucket.

Start from the top of your car, and work your way to the bottom(rocker panels, bumper,etc are always the dirtiest).

WASH IN STRAIGHT LINES versus circles to reduce inducing swirl marks..it is so much easier to fix straight damage versus swirls because it’s harder to see and requires less polishing.

After you wash a panel(roof for example) dip your microfiber wash mitt in your bucket of clean water and rub it across your grit guard to help remove any contaminates stuck on the mitt..wring out your mitt and dip it back in your soap bucket and hit the next panel(hood for example).

If you are using a PH neutral soap like Adam’s, and are washing out of the sun, it is perfectly fine to let the soap dry on your car. The soap pretty much neutralizes hard water, and will reactivate when rinsing for a streak free finish.

I do a final rise with my pressure washer(white tip, 45 degree only) and then do a finesse wash(what I call it atleast) to aid the drying process. It’s simply taking your garden hose and letting the water sheet if your car is coated. No lie like 70% of my car is dried by simply sheeting water over it.

•Dry
I use an Adam’s Air Cannon(forced air drying unit) to dry my car. Since it is already 70% dry and coated, it takes maybe 6-10 minutes to finish it off with the Air Cannon. It’s near impossible to cause damage this way because you are not physically touching your paint.

If no air cannon use Adam’s Detail Spray as a drying aid with your microfiber drying towel or two. Simply mist a spray or two per panel in the air so it will atomize and drop to the surface of your car. When drying the best practice is to go in straight lines with your drying towel with lubrication!

•Protection
Ceramic coatings are great because instead of those nasty swirls nailing your clear coat, the ceramic coat is taking the damage and reducing the chance of your actual clear coat taking any. Plus, it makes washing/drying your car so much faster!

CS3 is a killer product from Adams because it does 3 things: Cleans,Shines,&Protects. It is a ceramic product that enhances your gloss while also leaving a small layer of ceramic behind(2-3mo durability).

H20 Guard & Gloss(durability 2-3mo) is also an efficient protection method because you dry&seal your car in the same process step.

I hope this helps, crap what a read.

To summarize:
•Wash w/Graphene Shampoo
•Dry with Air Cannon or Detail Spray/Microfiber Drying Towel
•Enhance gloss & protect with CS3 ??

Remember to wash your microfiber goods to keep them in tip top shape and prevent them from being the root cause of your swirls. Warm water, extra rinse; Dedicated microfiber detergent or Tide Free&Clear; AIR DRY or LOW heat only!

 

[letsgoMINAJE]

Holy fuck. What a write up. I truly appreciate it. Very informative. I have follow up questions.

Following up from the other thread..

First you have to ask yourself, what caused my car to get dirty, and what scratched my car(swirls)?

I live in a desert, so no matter how clean I ultimately get the car to be, it will be dirty as soon as I'm done. I also don't/can't garage it. Swirls are from being an idiot and using drive thru car washes and letting this stupid car wash company do my car (they suck).

•Wheels&Tires first (wash one wheel at a time, out of the sun if possible).

I often see people saying to do wheel and tires last. Why do you do them first?

Attach your foam cannon, if applicable, and foam your car! (I use 1.5oz of Adam’s Mega Foam)

Will any foam attachment be sufficient? I may have one already somewhere in my garage

If you are using a PH neutral soap like Adam’s, and are washing out of the sun, it is perfectly fine to let the soap dry on your car. The soap pretty much neutralizes hard water, and will reactivate when rinsing for a streak free finish.

I have car wash self serve bays nearby where I live. While it's not in the sun, it's hot as fuck where I live (100+). Will that amount of heat have the same effect as washing in the sun? Sorry if these questions are dumb or self explanatory. I am a lifetime drive thru car wash guy.

I do a final rise with my pressure washer(white tip, 45 degree only) and then do a finesse wash(what I call it atleast) to aid the drying process.

I have a pressure washer that I never really use. Is there a certain pressure strength I should not exceed?

I use an Adam’s Air Cannon(forced air drying unit) to dry my car. Since it is already 70% dry and coated, it takes maybe 6-10 minutes to finish it off with the Air Cannon. It’s near impossible to cause damage this way because you are not physically touching your paint.

Can I use a leaf blower? lmao

Is there anything I can use to protect against pollen? or to keep pollen from sticking to my car?

 

[Doc_Mello]

What a write-up, @Trash Panda!

Q: Why rims first? That doesn't make sense to me because they'll get wet when washing the car.

I take a top-down approach: everything soaked, roof-to-side skirts, then rims (with a different washing tool than that used on the paint, of course), rinse with clean water, then dry.
https://www.civicx.com/forum/threads/recommended-washing-technique.41720/post-688996

 

[Trash Panda]

Holy fuck. What a write up. I truly appreciate it. Very informative. I have follow up questions.


I live in a desert, so no matter how clean I ultimately get the car to be, it will be dirty as soon as I'm done. I also don't/can't garage it. Swirls are from being an idiot and using drive thru car washes and letting this stupid car wash company do my car (they suck).


I often see people saying to do wheel and tires last. Why do you do them first?


Will any foam attachment be sufficient? I may have one already somewhere in my garage


I have car wash self serve bays nearby where I live. While it's not in the sun, it's hot as fuck where I live (100+). Will that amount of heat have the same effect as washing in the sun? Sorry if these questions are dumb or self explanatory. I am a lifetime drive thru car wash guy.


I have a pressure washer that I never really use. Is there a certain pressure strength I should not exceed?


Can I use a leaf blower? lmao

Is there anything I can use to protect against pollen? or to keep pollen from sticking to my car?

ALL very valid questions, I will answer to the best of my knowledge.

•You wash wheels&tires first because it can be a pretty messy process. Brushes can sling soap & crap back on your already clean panels if you had washed them first. You are potentially working against yourself.

•Foam Cannon: yeah to an extent they are all similar tools. Use what you have with a dedicated foaming soap.(Graphene Shampoo can be used in both the cannon & buckets but it does not foam to my liking, hence why I use the super concentrated Mega Foam)
The important thing with this process step is like I said in the write up; it encapsulates dirt&grime without even touching your car.

•Heat: so I live in Alabama and it does get hot here too; I try my best to wash out of the sun in the evenings. The whole purpose is you are trying to prevent water spots on your final rinse.
You’ve seen a pop up shower, and then the sun absolutely bakes the water spots on your car. That requires another product, and more time to tackle. Again, washing in the direct sun is simply working against yourself.

Fun fact the water spots are simply calcium and other contaminates in hard water that are left over. If there is a “spot free rinse” option use it because it might be filtered.

•Pressure Washer: I mean don’t get crazy. Any pressure washer can potentially cause damage. I have a 2000psi,1.2GPM electric Ryobi.
The important thing to prevent any damage is to only use the white(45degree) tip, and always leave at-least a foot or more of distance between the car & tip.

•Leaf-Blower: You can, I am no scientist but since a leaf blower is not filtered, and since you are in a very dusty environment(desert) you would potentially be blowing any dust particles back on your clean paint. I’ve heard some compare it to “sandblasting” your car but I do not know if there is a whole lot of proof out there.
The Adam’s Air Cannon blows filtered, heated air is why I use it. It was a gift from my wife & son too.

•Pollen or Dust: It is pretty much snake oil products claiming to prevent that..There simply is not a product on the market that significantly reduces the surface tension enough to impact that.
Sure Ceramic Coating reduce surface tension, but dust&pollen will still stick until washed off.

 

[Trash Panda]

What a write-up, @Trash Panda!

Q: Why rims first? That doesn't make sense to me because they'll get wet when washing the car.

I take a top-down approach: everything soaked, roof-to-side skirts, then rims (with a different washing tool than that used on the paint, of course), rinse with clean water, then dry.
https://www.civicx.com/forum/threads/recommended-washing-technique.41720/post-688996

I guess it’s more of guidelines versus law. ?

I use foaming type products and have indeed gotten the brown wheel cleaner suds on my fender while rinsing. The idea is if my car was already clean & dried, I’d have to dry those parts again.

https://www.lenosgarage.com/blogs/a...ing-101-7-rules-to-follow-on-your-next-detail

 

[Doc_Mello]

I guess it’s more of guidelines versus law. ?

I use foaming type products and have indeed gotten the wheel cleaner suds on my fender while rinsing. The idea is if my car was already clean & dried, I’d have to dry those parts again.

https://www.lenosgarage.com/blogs/a...ing-101-7-rules-to-follow-on-your-next-detail

"First up on the exterior wash "hit list" are the wheels & tires. You'll want to clean these before the paint because they’re typically the dirtiest part of your vehicle. Plus, if you wait to clean them until the end of your wash you'll run the risk of splashing dirt & brake dust back onto the clean paint."

Sure, makes sense depending on how they're washed. I don't straight pressure wash my rims; I get all up in there, nice and deep-like ?, by hand, so, by the time they're clean, and I rinse them, the whole car is getting rinsed, so, it doesn't matter.

 

[Trash Panda]

"First up on the exterior wash "hit list" are the wheels & tires. You'll want to clean these before the paint because they’re typically the dirtiest part of your vehicle. Plus, if you wait to clean them until the end of your wash you'll run the risk of splashing dirt & brake dust back onto the clean paint."

Sure, makes sense depending on how they're washed. I don't straight pressure wash my rims; I get all up in there, nice and deep-like ?, by hand, so, by the time they're clean, and I rinse them, the whole car is getting rinsed, so, it doesn't matter.

Yeah I think it’s just what the detailer prefers. In my case wheels & tires look like this because the Adam’s cleaner does it’s job.

You can definitely see the potential of getting that back on the paint. Plus if you are using one of the barrel brushes that have the nylon bristles, when you pull out product and grime goes everywhere. ? (Those brushes are effective though)

If I’m feeling super lazy I do not even do the wheels and tires..?

 

[Doc_Mello]

Yeah I think it’s just what the detailer prefers. In my case wheels & tires look like this because the Adam’s cleaner does it’s job.

You can definitely see the potential of getting that back on the paint. Plus if you are using one of the barrel brushes that have the nylon bristles, when you pull out product and grime goes everywhere. ? (Those brushes are effective though)

If I’m feeling super lazy I do not even do the wheels and tires..?

No, yeah, makes sense.