Best washing/waxing technique?
#1
04-30-2004, 09:51 AM
#2
04-30-2004, 11:07 AM
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gmorf33,
Personally, I use straight (top to bottom) motions for my washing technique. However, I think there are a lot of other equally important factors to proper washing. Here's a write-up that I did for another site.......... maybe this will give you some ideas:
One of the most overlooked areas of paint care is washing. Improper washing is probably the biggest cause of swirls/ spider webs. (the enemy of that sought after "perfect finish")
Keep in mind that these are only my recommendations, and work well for me. There are slight variations of the tools/ products and process that also work well.
Tools & products:
Car wash shampoo
2 Car wash mitts (or more) (Trim off the labels before using)
2 - 5 gallon wash buckets
Wheel brush if you wish/need
Tire Brush
1 or 2 Waffle Weave drying towels (Trim off any labels before using)
Buy the best car wash you can get................ NO, they are not all the same. Some have more lubrication, clean safer, contain water softeners, add gloss instead of removing it............. etc. Same thing goes for the towels....... some will scratch, and some won't. Don't scrimp on quality on ANYTHING that touches your vehicle........... period!!!!!!!!!!
Get yourself several (not just one) high quality wash mitts. 100% cotton is great, as are high quality lambs wool/ sheepskin mitts. Don't "overuse" your mitts either. Once they have been used several times on the paint, relegate them to a dirtier chore like the wheels. Then, a few times on the wheels, and get rid of them. Don't forget to trim any "labels" off them before using.
Process:
NOTE: Use a "light touch" with all your washing/drying process. Don't scrub, or use too much pressure with the mitt or towels. If you are using the right car wash, and mitt, the mitt should "glide" over the surface and remove the dirt. If you are rinsing properly, you won't need to do a lot of wiping with the towels.
Also, if possible, wash you vehicle while the paint surface is cool, and work in a shaded area.
Start by rinsing the vehicle well, to remove as much loose dirt as possible. I like to angle my spray, so as not to drive the dirt into the paint. Rinse off the loose dirt from the top of the vehicle, and work your way down.
Next, wash, and rinse your tires, wheels, wheel wells, and "grungy" dirty areas with a separate mitt(s) and proper brushes. Never use the same mitt that you use on those areas........... on the paint. If you do, you will "guarantee" yourself some very nice swirl marks and scratches. Use a high quality tire brush to scrub the tires with your favorite tire cleaner.
Now, mix the "proper" mix of car wash in a clean and rinsed bucket. PROPER is a key word here. Follow the manufacturer's mix ratio. Don't just dump in a big "glob" of car wash in the bucket. Using too much car wash can strip the existing protective wax from the finish, and can leave soap residue on the paint even after a thorough rinsing.
When washing the vehicle's paint, starting from the top of the vehicle, and working your way down is the prefered method. This helps to continually float the dirt and suds off the paint.
Use the "two bucket" method to wash............. one bucket with the suds, and one bucket to rinse the mitt thoroughly after EVERY panel. This keeps much of the dirt in the bottom of the rinse bucket, and not on the mitt, or in the suds bucket. I also use the two bucket method on the wheels, wheel wells, tires, and "grungy" areas.
Occasionally, when the vehicle is very dirty (often the lower half of the bottom panels), you will want to dump out the suds, and rinse bucket, refill with a fresh bucket of suds, and fresh rinse water, and grab a clean mitt to finish washing.
Keep the paint wet, until you've washed all panels. Then, remove the nozzle from the hose, and use a steady stream of water to rinse the entire vehicle. This will minimize the standing water, and allow for easier drying, and less water spotting. This is a very important step. The less wiping of the paint you need to do, the better off you are, as the less you touch the paint, the less likely you are to create swirls/spider web marks.
Use high quality towels to dry your vehicle. The new Waffle Weave towels are great for this. Blot most of the water up, and then "lightly" wipe any remaining water. Again, the less you touch the paint, and the lighter you touch it, the less likely you are to induce swirls in the paint.
When done washing and drying the vehicle, thoroughly wash, rinse, and air dry, your wash mitts and towels after using. Using dirty mitt's and towels the next time you wash, defeats the whole purpose of even trying to do it right!
Happy washing!
Personally, I use straight (top to bottom) motions for my washing technique. However, I think there are a lot of other equally important factors to proper washing. Here's a write-up that I did for another site.......... maybe this will give you some ideas:
One of the most overlooked areas of paint care is washing. Improper washing is probably the biggest cause of swirls/ spider webs. (the enemy of that sought after "perfect finish")
Keep in mind that these are only my recommendations, and work well for me. There are slight variations of the tools/ products and process that also work well.
Tools & products:
Car wash shampoo
2 Car wash mitts (or more) (Trim off the labels before using)
2 - 5 gallon wash buckets
Wheel brush if you wish/need
Tire Brush
1 or 2 Waffle Weave drying towels (Trim off any labels before using)
Buy the best car wash you can get................ NO, they are not all the same. Some have more lubrication, clean safer, contain water softeners, add gloss instead of removing it............. etc. Same thing goes for the towels....... some will scratch, and some won't. Don't scrimp on quality on ANYTHING that touches your vehicle........... period!!!!!!!!!!
Get yourself several (not just one) high quality wash mitts. 100% cotton is great, as are high quality lambs wool/ sheepskin mitts. Don't "overuse" your mitts either. Once they have been used several times on the paint, relegate them to a dirtier chore like the wheels. Then, a few times on the wheels, and get rid of them. Don't forget to trim any "labels" off them before using.
Process:
NOTE: Use a "light touch" with all your washing/drying process. Don't scrub, or use too much pressure with the mitt or towels. If you are using the right car wash, and mitt, the mitt should "glide" over the surface and remove the dirt. If you are rinsing properly, you won't need to do a lot of wiping with the towels.
Also, if possible, wash you vehicle while the paint surface is cool, and work in a shaded area.
Start by rinsing the vehicle well, to remove as much loose dirt as possible. I like to angle my spray, so as not to drive the dirt into the paint. Rinse off the loose dirt from the top of the vehicle, and work your way down.
Next, wash, and rinse your tires, wheels, wheel wells, and "grungy" dirty areas with a separate mitt(s) and proper brushes. Never use the same mitt that you use on those areas........... on the paint. If you do, you will "guarantee" yourself some very nice swirl marks and scratches. Use a high quality tire brush to scrub the tires with your favorite tire cleaner.
Now, mix the "proper" mix of car wash in a clean and rinsed bucket. PROPER is a key word here. Follow the manufacturer's mix ratio. Don't just dump in a big "glob" of car wash in the bucket. Using too much car wash can strip the existing protective wax from the finish, and can leave soap residue on the paint even after a thorough rinsing.
When washing the vehicle's paint, starting from the top of the vehicle, and working your way down is the prefered method. This helps to continually float the dirt and suds off the paint.
Use the "two bucket" method to wash............. one bucket with the suds, and one bucket to rinse the mitt thoroughly after EVERY panel. This keeps much of the dirt in the bottom of the rinse bucket, and not on the mitt, or in the suds bucket. I also use the two bucket method on the wheels, wheel wells, tires, and "grungy" areas.
Occasionally, when the vehicle is very dirty (often the lower half of the bottom panels), you will want to dump out the suds, and rinse bucket, refill with a fresh bucket of suds, and fresh rinse water, and grab a clean mitt to finish washing.
Keep the paint wet, until you've washed all panels. Then, remove the nozzle from the hose, and use a steady stream of water to rinse the entire vehicle. This will minimize the standing water, and allow for easier drying, and less water spotting. This is a very important step. The less wiping of the paint you need to do, the better off you are, as the less you touch the paint, the less likely you are to create swirls/spider web marks.
Use high quality towels to dry your vehicle. The new Waffle Weave towels are great for this. Blot most of the water up, and then "lightly" wipe any remaining water. Again, the less you touch the paint, and the lighter you touch it, the less likely you are to induce swirls in the paint.
When done washing and drying the vehicle, thoroughly wash, rinse, and air dry, your wash mitts and towels after using. Using dirty mitt's and towels the next time you wash, defeats the whole purpose of even trying to do it right!
Happy washing!
#3
04-30-2004, 03:17 PM
cool, thanks for the info boss. Do you use the same up and down motion for waxing? When you wax, do you just squirt a little wax onto your applicator then go, or is there some other procedure you use when you apply. And finally.. Do you machine wash and dry your mitts and towels (on delicate, liquid detergent, airdry, etc), after every wash, or do you do this by hand?
#5
04-30-2004, 07:49 PM
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Originally posted by gmorf33
cool, thanks for the info boss. Do you use the same up and down motion for waxing? When you wax, do you just squirt a little wax onto your applicator then go, or is there some other procedure you use when you apply. And finally.. Do you machine wash and dry your mitts and towels (on delicate, liquid detergent, airdry, etc), after every wash, or do you do this by hand?
cool, thanks for the info boss. Do you use the same up and down motion for waxing? When you wax, do you just squirt a little wax onto your applicator then go, or is there some other procedure you use when you apply. And finally.. Do you machine wash and dry your mitts and towels (on delicate, liquid detergent, airdry, etc), after every wash, or do you do this by hand?
Yes, I use the same back and forth, up and down motion for just about all my processes, except for extreme paint cleaning/swirl removal by hand, which is done with a circular motion. However, for waxing, it probably doesn't matter that much which way you do it, if you are working on a good, clean paint surface with applicators/towels that are of the highest quality, and kept clean.
The theory behind the back and forth/up and down motion is this............ "IF" any swirls/spider webs are induced, they will be "vertical" swirls which are not as noticeable as "circular" swirls.
As for application of product to the applicator.............. If I'm using a liquid product, I apply tiny amounts of the product to several parts of the applicator, and then spread it around the surface of the applicator. This "primes" the applicator, and helps insure complete coverage. If I'm using a paste wax, I simply move the entire surface of the applicator on the paste to accomplish the same thing.
I hand wash my applicators with Dawn, and towels with Liquid Tide after ever use, and air dry them. I rinse my car wash mitt out from the inside out, and then up and down each side after every use. After a couple of uses, I hand wash the mitt in Liquid Tide. After several uses, I get a new mitt for the paint, and use the older ones for wheels, and "scruffy" areas.
Hope this helps.
#7
05-01-2004, 12:24 AM
yeah, i've just started reading the stuff @ autopia.. there's so many threads its taking me awhile :P
Boss, I've got one of those sheepskin wash mitts.. i've been air drying it for 2 days now and its still soaking wet.. I ringed it out the best I could, but that leather inside is still pretty wet. Even turned it inside out hoping it would dry faster.. I guess its not that big of a deal.. my hand will just smell stank when I take it out if it stays wet all the time :P.
Thanks again for the advice
Boss, I've got one of those sheepskin wash mitts.. i've been air drying it for 2 days now and its still soaking wet.. I ringed it out the best I could, but that leather inside is still pretty wet. Even turned it inside out hoping it would dry faster.. I guess its not that big of a deal.. my hand will just smell stank when I take it out if it stays wet all the time :P.
Thanks again for the advice
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#8
05-01-2004, 12:30 PM
#9
05-01-2004, 04:52 PM
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