Recommended washing technique?

frontlinegeek

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im debating between what a few of you have said: rinse, foam, rinse, foam again, wash? or just rinse, foam, wash?
I think for maintenance washes, rinse, foam, rinse, hand wash, rinse is enough.

If you are preparing to do some paint protection/wax/sealant, then more foaming would maybe be good? It may also really be irrelevant as you should be doing a chemical (Tar and iron removers) and possibly physical (Clay bar) decontamination step if you are about to wax/SiO2 or ceramic sealant. And if you are going to apply a ceramic sealant, a final IPA (Isopropyl alcohol) spray and wipe on each area you are working is a must before applying it.

The additional thoroughness before protection or even correction is important so you don't trap imperfections like water spots and the like or have impurities on the surface of the clearcoat when you are trying to polish out or cut down scratches.

havent decided which foam is the best to buy
You might have to play with that depending on the hardness of your water.
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godsmacksully

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I think for maintenance washes, rinse, foam, rinse, hand wash, rinse is enough.

If you are preparing to do some paint protection/wax/sealant, then more foaming would maybe be good? It may also really be irrelevant as you should be doing a chemical (Tar and iron removers) and possibly physical (Clay bar) decontamination step if you are about to wax/SiO2 or ceramic sealant. And if you are going to apply a ceramic sealant, a final IPA (Isopropyl alcohol) spray and wipe on each area you are working is a must before applying it.

The additional thoroughness before protection or even correction is important so you don't trap imperfections like water spots and the like or have impurities on the surface of the clearcoat when you are trying to polish out or cut down scratches.



You might have to play with that depending on the hardness of your water.
After you foam it, what do you wash it with though? I was thinking you just use the just use the foam again
 
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godsmacksully

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I think for maintenance washes, rinse, foam, rinse, hand wash, rinse is enough.

If you are preparing to do some paint protection/wax/sealant, then more foaming would maybe be good? It may also really be irrelevant as you should be doing a chemical (Tar and iron removers) and possibly physical (Clay bar) decontamination step if you are about to wax/SiO2 or ceramic sealant. And if you are going to apply a ceramic sealant, a final IPA (Isopropyl alcohol) spray and wipe on each area you are working is a must before applying it.

The additional thoroughness before protection or even correction is important so you don't trap imperfections like water spots and the like or have impurities on the surface of the clearcoat when you are trying to polish out or cut down scratches.



You might have to play with that depending on the hardness of your water.
Okay nevermind I'm reading that you can use the Honeydew snow foam as soap as well. I think the only thing I'm still confused about now is diluting. How much to mix when I foam it, and how much to mix when I spray it back on to wash it
 
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godsmacksully

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You inspired me to wash my car tonight, so here are some photos to go along with what the guys are saying. Be sure to watch those youtube videos.

73567011-828F-4F94-932A-079A91EA8B98.jpeg

Start with a pressure washer of some type. As mentioned a machine capable of 2.0 gpm or greater is preferred. A Kobrajet hose makes it nicer because it doesn’t kink or get twisted but not necessary.

DA18B3C7-0210-40FA-B309-EC3D98444319.jpeg

This is the SGS28 gun that was mentioned. I use it with a 25 degree green spray nozzle. Anything less (like a 0 degree) may damage your paint.

28FB87EA-777C-4D57-9E05-9D5409E4254E.jpeg

After you prime the hose (make sure all air is out) connect the gun and rinse the car. Most of the dirt will fall off the car.. but some stuff like bird droppings stick. Keep the nozzle a couple feet away from the car to not damage the paint.

3B652A50-5B3B-49C2-9D72-B13814DF1D15.jpeg

I like to spray the brake pads really good. Since I’ve been doing this on a regular basis, no more rock or brake dust squeal.

E12D1CCA-BD98-407D-8139-9A8C34F2D802.jpeg

Spray the wheels with wheel cleaner of your choice.

CA2C85AC-00F9-4678-858C-67FAD865E850.jpeg

Then use a wheel brush. CTRmofo turned me onto these Woolies. They work fantastic. Wear safety glasses so the chemical doesn’t splash in your eye... scrub everything real well then rinse.

890ED2A6-33A5-40DC-9038-2054351A9AB5.jpeg

Connect your foam cannon to the SGS gun, filled with car shampoo of your choice. Diluted to instructions and safe for ceramic coatings. No wax content.

0543EB01-CBD3-45A6-9BA5-96AEDC8230C8.jpeg

I use this stuff.

30E54ADD-9223-4E0C-A107-AA3E20358515.jpeg

Spray your car with the foam cannon.

3081875F-2FF0-409F-9D8E-30DAB85F422C.jpeg

Then let the shampoo sit for a little while.

117DBD46-3C06-4438-9D5D-188203C17894.jpeg

Now handwash using a safe microfiber washmitt. Doesn’t take much effort. After several passes, rinse the mitt in (2) clean buckets filled with water.

14E0BEC4-4379-4B05-A4A2-5E43A9411118.jpeg

Then rinse off the shampoo.

C7B05D6F-4BE0-4910-9AA5-BD2286E32CF7.jpeg

Can use a leaf blower here to blast off the excess water...then use a microfiber towel to dry off the car. I use (2) of these per wash, without a blower.

6D17AED1-8434-4438-8421-DD0781E58FFE.jpeg

No swirls.

015C4582-F2BC-4228-ADB9-BACA06992F70.jpeg

Done. Takes about 30-45 mins solo. Ez peezee ;)
If I am going to foam it first, then rinse it off, then foam it again to actually wash it, how should I dilute it each time? I'm confused about that part
 

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fatherpain

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Godsmacksully,

Nice to see you are taking initiative :)

.

Here is the sequence I follow:

1. Fill (2) clean plastic 5 gallon buckets with clean water. One bucket will be first rinse and the 2nd will be the final rinse for your microfiber wash mitt. Do not mix these up and rinse out of order. Place your clean wash mitt in one of the buckets to soak.

2. Rinse the entire car with the pressure washer.

3. Make sure your foam cannon is filled with shampoo (diluted w/water per instructions)

4. Remove the spray tip from your spray gun and install the foam cannon in its place.

5. Spray your car with foam. Cover the whole car and let it sit for a few minutes. You only need to do this once. Remove the foam cannon and put the 25 degree tip back on the gun.

6. Grab your wash mitt and lightly scrub your car. After several scrubs, turn the mitt over and keep going.

7. After about 1/3 of a side of the car, dunk the wash mitt in the first bucket. Rinse good in there. Wring it out then dunk in the 2nd bucket to make sure it’s clean again.

8. Rinse the area of the car you scrubbed using your pressure washer.

9. Grab the mitt and keep scrubbing. Repeat steps (6) thru (9) until the entire car is washed and rinsed.

10. Blast water off your car using the leaf blower.

11. Use a microfiber drying towel and lightly dry the car.

12. Put all your stuff away. All done.

***I omitted the wheel cleaning. But it would go right after step (2) then add another full car rinse for step (3)
 
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godsmacksully

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Godsmacksully,

Nice to see you are taking initiative :)

.

Here is the sequence I follow:

1. Fill (2) clean plastic 5 gallon buckets with clean water. One bucket will be first rinse and the 2nd will be the final rinse for your microfiber wash mitt. Do not mix these up and rinse out of order. Place your clean wash mitt in one of the buckets to soak.

2. Rinse the entire car with the pressure washer.

3. Make sure your foam cannon is filled with shampoo (diluted w/water per instructions)

4. Remove the spray tip from your spray gun and install the foam cannon in its place.

5. Spray your car with foam. Cover the whole car and let it sit for a few minutes. You only need to do this once. Remove the foam cannon and put the 25 degree tip back on the gun.

6. Grab your wash mitt and lightly scrub your car. After several scrubs, turn the mitt over and keep going.

7. After about 1/3 of a side of the car, dunk the wash mitt in the first bucket. Rinse good in there. Wring it out then dunk in the 2nd bucket to make sure it’s clean again.

8. Rinse the area of the car you scrubbed using your pressure washer.

9. Grab the mitt and keep scrubbing. Repeat steps (6) thru (9) until the entire car is washed and rinsed.

10. Blast water off your car using the leaf blower.

11. Use a microfiber drying towel and lightly dry the car.

12. Put all your stuff away. All done.

***I omitted the wheel cleaning. But it would go right after step (2) then add another full car rinse for step (3)
awesome thank you!
 
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godsmacksully

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another product question... what can i buy to keep in my car in case of emergencies between washes? like bird poop and tree sap. im used to just leaving that stuff on there til the next wash! obviously cant do that with this car
 

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ok i bought a leaf blower, foam cannon and handle for the pressure washer, wash mit, drying cloth. dad has a 1.2 gpm pressure washer that im gonna use
those wheel woolies are expensive, and idk which wheel cleaner to buy, so thats on hold.
im debating between what a few of you have said: rinse, foam, rinse, foam again, wash? or just rinse, foam, wash?
still havent gotten the swirls out from the dealership yet. almost, but not quite. kinda worried theyre gonna thin the paint even more at this point?.. o_O
havent decided which foam is the best to buy
theres my update. may try this next week, as its filthy from the rain anyway
I would keep it simple

Rinse

Foam (I like Adam's shampoo)

Wash (use the two bucket method, use some Adam's shampoo in your wash bucket, just plain water in your rinse bucket)

Swirls need to be polished out, you can't wash them out
 

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Honda Civic 10th gen Recommended washing technique? FAA8F438-5D76-4D94-8E8A-A0CA9E28C40F

These are the products I use:

Cool Guy - for wheels
Shift - car shampoo
Throttle - detail spray between washes for those bird turds and smashed bugs. Spray on let sit a minute then wipe with a microfiber cloth. I keep this in my car at all times

another product question... what can i buy to keep in my car in case of emergencies between washes? like bird poop and tree sap. im used to just leaving that stuff on there til the next wash! obviously cant do that with this car
 


frontlinegeek

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another product question... what can i buy to keep in my car in case of emergencies between washes? like bird poop and tree sap.
Throttle - detail spray between washes for those bird turds and smashed bugs. Spray on let sit a minute then wipe with a microfiber cloth. I keep this in my car at all times
Ya, pretty much any good detailing spray, Mothers, Meguiar's, etc... And a good microfiber cloth. I keep one in the door.

For me, if it is nasty enough, I will more carefully spot clean it (with polish or compound if necessary) once back home and reapply wax/SiO2/sealant to the area.
 

frontlinegeek

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Oh, I should note that where you live where there are winters, don't store your car care products outdoors. Some of them don't take kindly to being frozen over and over or even once for a few of them. Hit up Home Depot and get a couple of their Husky brand tool carrying trays from the toolbox section. They are only $9 in Canukistan so they are likely $5 or $6 in freedom bucks.
 

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Yes, the stuff I use is just the stuff they upsold me to at the place that did the ceramics..

They require me to take it in for an annual inspection and service that costs $200 in order to keep the warranty. What a scam. Sigh.

Whichever detail spray used, make sure it doesn’t contain any wax or carnubal or anything that would negatively affect your ceramics

Ya, pretty much any good detailing spray, Mothers, Meguiar's, etc... And a good microfiber cloth. I keep one in the door.

For me, if it is nasty enough, I will more carefully spot clean it (with polish or compound if necessary) once back home and reapply wax/SiO2/sealant to the area.
 
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godsmacksully

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First step you will want to look at is getting a power washer, gasoline or electric with a flow rate of at least 2.o GPM Gallons per minute. This will allow you the ability to attach Foam Canons like at MTM PF22 Foam Cannon. While your at it get yourself a MTM SGS28 Gun and replace the pressue washer handle your power washer comes with. World of difference and it very well made and makes using the foam cannon a lot easier.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07Q4ZQFFN/ also included in this link is the snow foam. As for me I use this soap, extremely foamy and it is Ph Neutral, more on that later.

Back to pressure washers, if you go with a gasoline powered one the fittings and adapters are pretty universal, everything usually fits to them, as for electric ones, they tend to use proprietary fittings so you may have to get adapters and step up or step down adapters to attach devices to them which can be a major pain in the ass. If you can take the noise of a engine get a gas powered one 2.0 GPM with a psi rating of 2000 – 3000 psi output.

Second step: Soaps.. you want a soap that is Ph Neutral. A Ph Neutral soap will clean your car while at the same time not degrade and coatings you may have on your car like wax or sealants. Look at snow foams from Chemical Guys and or Griots Garage for now, buy in the Gallon containers to save $

Third Step: Washing… I personally use a one bucket method, I personally think a two bucket method is a waste of water. Get a 5 Gal bucket from Home Depot, get a Grit guard https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CKCLBQY/ this one is really good. After you have the power washer connected and your cannon with water and soap connected rinse the vehicle down first, this will knock off the larger particles of dirt off first. After the rinse foam the car up and let that sit on the car for 5+ min then rinse again. This is a pre wash to loosen up further dirt that will further wash away when you rinse the car. Next, reapply the snow foam and with water, grit guard in bucket get your wash mitt in hand https://www.amazon.com/Chemical-Guys-MIC_493-Microfiber-Scratch-Free/dp/B003TTL0TE/

Start from the roof and wipe down to the front or back of the car in straight lines, go in one direction only, not in circular motions very bad! When your done with one pass go up in the other direction or lift the mitt and repeat. Done with the roof and hood or trunk, rinse your mitt and start with the upper part of your doors and again wash in straight lines. Essentially divide your car in half, the upper part will typically be less dirty then the bottom half from your doors and rocker panels. Wash the upper half rinsing your mitt periodically. When you reach the lower half of the car your going to want to rinse your mitt more frequently and or every section. Start watching this guy for more info on the technique:

Fourth Step: Wheels… Get some wheel woolys and I use Purple Power, pretty self-explanatory. I do the wheels first then wash the car. Get yourself Nitrate gloves, one step larger than your hand size so when your hands are wet they are still easy to put on. Protect your skin from these chemicals.

I follow these channels on you tube, a wealth of information, start watching how they are doing it and perfect the way you do your routine. My car is a little over a year old, no scratches that I can see.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3W4jRH8JVqnBDE4Wo8KdAg

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVlOAVbs8QbHMmKdVWTleaQ

https://www.youtube.com/user/AMMONYCdotcom

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqZOhpSAihtUBnebhY_ro_Q

Once you have your car polished again and clean you may want to look at protecting it with either a Si02 sealant or a ceramic coating. The one I have on mine is by Dallas Paint Correction called DPC Shield, a DIY installion, typically takes two days to apply but gives you 2 years worth of protection, Look into it.

This should be a good starting point, watch the videos there is a Ton of good information in those videos.
AHHHHHHH WTF! i cant figure out how to put the damn thing together!! and it says in order to run properly it needs a pressure of at least 1.8 but my pressure washer is 1.2. i have absolutely noooo idea what im doing and i thought the damn thing would come already assembled
 

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AHHHHHHH WTF! i cant figure out how to put the damn thing together!! and it says in order to run properly it needs a pressure of at least 1.8 but my pressure washer is 1.2. i have absolutely noooo idea what im doing and i thought the damn thing would come already assembled
1.8 what? Gallons per minute?

You might would be well-suited to go to Obsessed Garage and watch some of his videos. I warn you he is a bit OCD, but if you want to learn everything you ever did and didn't want to know about pressure washers, car washing equipment, etc, he has a video on it. You will learn a lot. Go to the store, pick a product in the pressure washing section, and watch the attached video. Then you can go to his YT and watch dozens more.
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