Hand wash vs car wash

[Bob902]

It's really convenient having those in the garage. Our water heaters are in the garage so I could tap into it easily if I wanted to. I do have a water softener which I added a spigot to so now I run my power washer right off of that. It takes away all the hard water spots makes washing the vehicles much easier. In the summer our Tap water is so hot you don't even need the hot water heater on. Seriously, I turn mine off around the end of April and back on the end of October. ?

Wow. Hard water is a pain for sure.

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[AzScorpion]

Wow. Hard water is a pain for sure.

Yeah it'll destroy the seals in your faucets and appliances really fast. I didn't want any hard water going through my power washer so I added the spigot out in the garage. The whole house was plumbed for the water softener which was nice because some aren't and with no basements here it's next to impossible to do without cutting up walls.

 

[Jbrubakerjr]

I had the under carriage sprayed with the protectant film stuff. They guy said road grime will stick to it an make a barrier against the salt so maybe your right lol. I had the car wash turn off the under body spray for my account until spring.

Back in the day in western PA we used to spray the underbody of all our vehicles every fall with a thin coat of old motor oil then drive them down a dusty road. We would even drill holes in the door panels and spray there, then use standard body washers/plugs to seal the holes. Could always wipe the oil off the paint, nuts and bolts always came loose from underneath, but boy were you dirty when you worked on them. But no body rust! And you couldn’t park in the garage a few weeks. And we were doing our own oil recycling.

 

[Langwilliams]

If I ever build another house it will have an HVAC system and a drain in the garage. This way I can can wash my vehicles in comfort and no one will know. ?

I'm closing on the house I looked at with the mega barn at the end of this month. It has floor drains in the barn an it's heated. There's a "endless hotwater" thing there but I don't know if there's a hose connection for it yet. My goal is to not fill it with junk an unfinished projects.

 

[JohnnyO]

My nephew was stationed in North Carolina an he keeps his cars spotless inside and out. They passed emergency water conservation measures there. No at home washing your cars and no watering your lawn. He hates car washes an enjoys the hand washing for some crazy reason so he hated it. A year or two into this the city raised the water rates because they weren't "selling" enough water to cover the operating expenses. (I think it was NC he was talking about so I'll put an * on the area).

No water shortages where I live but they jacked the rates the last few years so I built a rain barrel system. A 55 gallon blue barrel on each back corner of my house. The trick is you set the barrels upside down on some concrete blocks. Drill a 4" hole in the bottom (which is now the top) and the 4" downspout hose goes into that so no need for a screen and sun doesn't get in and cause mold. Drill 3/4" holes on the sides opposite the white caps to install 3/4" boiler valves for drains. You want the holes next to the caps so you can reach inside to put the nuts on the boiler valves plus a little silicone. My hands don't fit so that was my wife's job. I use two, one for the drain and one for a balance hose between them. Then drill a 1" hole near the top for the overflow pipe that runs into the regular downspout drain. I have a garden hose that runs off the barrel I drain from to a $69 Harbor Freight pump to the garden hose that I wash our vehicles with. I do have to take the system apart in the winter since it gets below freezing here. Just put it back together again the other day.

 

[AzScorpion]

I'm closing on the house I looked at with the mega barn at the end of this month. It has floor drains in the barn an it's heated. There's a "endless hotwater" thing there but I don't know if there's a hose connection for it yet. My goal is to not fill it with junk an unfinished projects.

I remember you talking about the house and barn in another thread. That sounds really nice and there could be water already there. If not it should be fairly easy to tap into a water supply.

?Would you like to adopt me? I can live in the barn and I'll give you unlimited free washes on your Ranger. ?

 

[Langwilliams]

I remember you talking about the house and barn in another thread. That sounds really nice and there could be water already there. If not it should be fairly easy to tap into a water supply.

?Would you like to adopt me? I can live in the barn and I'll give you unlimited free washes on your Ranger. ?

There's water in there already but I don't know if they ran a hose tap for the hot water. Might have to rough it with just cold for a while
I've been in a condo with a one car garage an a no hand washing rule so it's going to be a nice change.

 

[AzScorpion]

There's water in there already but I don't know if they ran a hose tap for the hot water. Might have to rough it with just cold for a while
I've been in a condo with a one car garage an a no hand washing rule so it's going to be a nice change.

When I sold my house back east I rented a condo before moving here. They had the same rules there and nowhere to wash you vehicle. Luckily there was a car wash across the street with 2 self serve bays. I could go there early in the morning and wash and detail my truck under cover.

If there's a tankless water heater there you should be able to tap into the line and add a spigot off it. Actually you should be able to tap into the supply line for cold water then the return line for hot and add a Y connector. It'll be nice to have that either way and good luck with everything!

 

[AzScorpion]

Are anyone of you going to put your car through a car wash or are you all going to hand wash it? I heard car washes put swirls and little scratch marks on the body.

Any tips for hand washing? Do rims need separate cleaners?

thanks.

Touchless washes are the best, the others just move everyone else's dirt all over your finish.

Hand washing you should use 2 buckets with grit guards, one to wash and one to rinse. Do not use dish soap as it will just strip the wax off your vehicle. Use a dedicated car wash soap low in ph.There are tire and wheel cleaners out there, of course I like the 303 ones.

Now if you really want to get into it use a power washer with a foam cannon. IMHO this is the best way to wash.

Edit:

This is my system and you can use any products you like. I just find these very user friendly and reasonably priced.

As far as washing I use this power washer here along with this foam cannon and this snow foam soap. I'll do the tires/wheels first with this cleaner (foam, scrub and rinse) then foam the whole truck. I let it sit for 3-5 minutes so the foam can break down the dirt/dust then wash with a microfiber mitt Rinse off with the power washer, dry with a waffle towel or good chamois then hit it with the Graphene Detailer if needed. I use this tire dressing.

 

[Jhbryaniv]

Touchless washes are the best, the others just move everyone else's dirt all over your finish.

Hand washing you should use 2 buckets with grit guards, one to wash and one to rinse. Do not use dish soap as it will just strip the wax off your vehicle. Use a dedicated car wash soap low in ph.There are tire and wheel cleaners out there, of course I like the 303 ones.

Now if you really want to get into it use a power washer with a foam cannon. IMHO this is the best way to wash.

Don't forget a wheel and tire bucket. That bucket should never be used for paint.



#2cents

 

[AzScorpion]

Don't forget a wheel and tire bucket. That bucket should never be used for paint.



#2cents

Thanks for adding that. I gave him the Cliff Notes version as I was getting dinner ready. ?

 

[Msfitoy]

Touchless washes are the best, the others just move everyone else's dirt all over your finish.

Hand washing you should use 2 buckets with grit guards, one to wash and one to rinse. Do not use dish soap as it will just strip the wax off your vehicle. Use a dedicated car wash soap low in ph.There are tire and wheel cleaners out there, of course I like the 303 ones.

Now if you really want to get into it use a power washer with a foam cannon. IMHO this is the best way to wash.

I've been using touch-less wash once a month for the past 3 years...coin wash in between and 70 mph free air dry...works for me...

 

[Jhbryaniv]

Thanks for adding that. I gave him the Cliff Notes version as I was getting dinner ready. ?

That was like the how to wash a power wheels version....

 

[DukeCanBuildit]

Are anyone of you going to put your car through a car wash or are you all going to hand wash it? I heard car washes put swirls and little scratch marks on the body.

Any tips for hand washing? Do rims need separate cleaners?

thanks.

Hey Brinker,

Car washes with rotating bristles will leave swirls, the ones with those large, flat, linguine noodle things hold dirt from the cars ahead of you and could leave scratches, the touchless ones don’t do a great job and rely on high pressure that can put water in places you might not want it. Self-serve pressure wand car washes are great because you can control things but avoid the Foam Brush because the guy before you just used it to clean his wheel wells and tires - oops, tyres.

Washing by hand with a two bucket process is always best (plenty of YT videos) but you need time and weather to achieve that. I have to shut off my outside taps from inside the house before freezing temperatures hit, so I use the self-serve place in the winter but like to wash it by hand the rest of the time with the help of a pressure washer and foam cannon - highly recommended. Sadly, I even have to winterize my pressure washer by injecting it with antifreeze. Either that or store it in the house.

Wheel cleaner? Pffft - Money grab IMO - I use Simple Green or other general purpose cleaners and a brush.

Your Ranger is your baby, right? So, think of cleaning it like you would bathe a baby - wash it from the cleanest part to the dirtiest. Save the wheels and tyres until the end.

Then 303 Graphene Detail Spray the heck out of it. ?

You’ll need some of these….

 

[Jhbryaniv]

Hey Brinker,

Car washes with rotating bristles will leave swirls, the ones with those large, flat, linguine noodle things hold dirt from the cars ahead of you and could leave scratches, the touchless ones don’t do a great job and rely on high pressure that can put water in places you might not want it. Self-serve pressure wand car washes are great because you can control things but avoid the Foam Brush because the guy before you just used it to clean his wheel wells and tires - oops, tyres.

Washing by hand with a two bucket process is always best (plenty of YT videos) but you need time and weather to achieve that. I have to shut off my outside taps from inside the house before freezing temperatures hit, so I use the self-serve place in the winter but like to wash it by hand the rest of the time with the help of a pressure washer and foam cannon - highly recommended. Sadly, I even have to winterize my pressure washer by injecting it with antifreeze. Either that or store it in the house.

Wheel cleaner? Pffft - Money grab IMO - I use Simple Green or other general purpose cleaners and a brush.

Your Ranger is your baby, right? So, think of cleaning it like you would bathe a baby - wash it from the cleanest part to the dirtiest. Save the wheels and tyres until the end.

Then 303 Graphene Detail Spray the heck out of it. ?

If you use a wheel and tire bucket you can wash the wheels whenever you want

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