Best car wash equipment?

i just received my gallon of optimum no rinse .....i ordered from amazon at $34.99 plus 7 shipping....i was skeptical, but washed two cars including my new prius...all with one pail of warm water and an ounce of optimum.... i used soft mitt to wash, and micro fiber cloth to dry. it did a great job.... i tried several other car cleaners and waxes, but wasn't happy with any of them....that blue metallic prius is difficult to keep clean.... this product seems to be the best on the market right now...

 

Mac,

You can save a few bucks getting Griot's microfiber wash mitts (2 for $11.99) as opposed to one sheepskin for $16.99

I don't see claybar on your list, don't miss that. Yeah, the kits cost about $16 even at Walmart. Your paying mostly for the clay, but you can clay several times with a kit.

I only clay when I'm going to wax. Watch a video on how to do it. You know it's a good thing when you clay the roof and brown deposits come up on the clay. At first you feel friction, then when it's cleaned, it's smooth.

So, when I'm going to wax, it goes like this -

1) Wash whole car
2) rinse
3) leave car mostly wet
4) clay - most of claying needed on horizontal surfaces as not much falls from above onto vertical surfaces
5) lightly wash car again to get clay lube / residue off
6) rinse / dry
7) then you wax

* don't let anyone tell you to put wax on thick. Don't want thick as it will be much harder to buff off. label will likely confirm - apply thin coat of wax.

All this and that's not even trim or interior detailing. eeek.

 

And for wax, I just use Meguiar's NXT 2.0 Tech Wax liquid applied in a thin coat. I like it quite a bit and smells interesting too.

I don't bother with mail order boutique waxes and sealants, but that's just me.

 

Griot's sheepskin wash mitt has never come close to falling off my hand. I like it a lot and it's worth the $17

 

Be a little careful with trim protectants - 99% sure I was getting some fade on black plastic near side mirrors. It was not wax reside or anything else.

Read somewhere else gel protectant best on textured black plastic.

For the most part 303 is very good.

 

Mac,

Let me assure you that claying does not take a long time. Put another way, I would never, ever wax without claying first.

Could probably clay a roof and hood in 5 minutes. Doors and other verticals don't even need it.

Just keep it in mind. At first I thought, I don't know, clay on a car, eeeek, might scratch or something. It's an essential part of detailing. Every detailer recommends it.

cheers.

 

Everybody's hands are different. I have slim hands and long fingers, and I have to spread my fingers out to keep any mitt on my hand when its loaded with water which cramps out my hand. For me, using a pad or sponge is much more comfortable.

It all depends on what your goals are. If you want to go through the whole process and get the best results possible, then you need good tools and products. In reality though, the process matters much more than which particular product you're using.

A lot of the higher end products are easier to use, give better results, and are more durable for what really isn't a lot more money.

Its more of an issue when you look at polishes and compounds than waxes and sealants. There really aren't many good over the counter polishes or compounds, except for the Meguairs professional line which you would need to go to an autobody supplier to get anyways. When working with a buffer you need good polishes that break down properly to get the results you're looking for.

Especially on Amazon they may not really know what they are talking about. Most people think when they see beading the paint is protected, but its not necessarily. When you're dealing with a wax the durability of the wax really has a lot to do with how robust it is, in that waxes that are harder to apply and remove in general have better durability. Collinite paste waxes, Meguiar's #16 have a reputation for being hard to work with, but they also have a reputation of being very durable. Pinnacle Souveran which I really like for dark colors is incredibly easy to apply and remove, but durability is very poor. It also costs $70 a jar LOL.

There's just really no way to create a spray product that has good durability when you are dealing with a wax...same is true of a liquid wax. The ease of use comes from adding oils, and oils cut back on durability. In a spray product it has to be the thinnest, with the most oil...hence the worst durability.

Sealants are a different ballgame because they chemically bond and set on the paint, a wax is nothing so fancy. So there are durable spray on sealants, but not waxes. Zaino makes a good one, so does Optimum the maker of Optimum No Rinse.

If you're planning on applying every wash its a non-issue. Thats why I reccomended the Wax as U Dry because you can include it in your drying step saving you time.

Claying is an important step. The reason I like to clay is that a well clayed surface will be much easier to wash, dry and polish and will also stay cleaner longer.

You heard that from me

I like Griot's tools (except for their towels and "finest sprayer"), they have good mitts, sponges, pads, brushes, polishers, vacuums, etc. I just don't care for their products. The finest sprayer is a joke...its the finest if your definition of finest is to use up as much product as possible as fast as possible.

In fact the only chemical product I have used of Griots that I liked is their leather scent spray, its very nice. I have been 100% dissapointed in every other product I have ever bought from them.

 

Mac, I'll answer your question but first want to tell you something ...

I discovered I missed claying a small area over the rear fender while in middle of waxing. As I went to wax that area, I could feel the junk on the paint and it got onto my wax applicator pad which I decided to toss and use another because it took on a dirty color just from that small area.

If I had not clayed the car, I would have been smearing junk all over the paint while trying to rub in wax. Granted this is a new car that was PDI'd in September and sat for 3 months outside, but still.

There was a lot of smudge that came up in the clay bar. This was after hand washing very thoroughly.

 

I don't bother towel drying the car before claying. I did use the Jelly blade a little bit just to get the big water drops off certain places before claying.

I don't use water or dawn or anything else when claying, just plenty of quik detailer. Some say use Dawn solution as clay lube, tried it but didn't seem right.

You roll the clay into a ball about an inch or so in diameter, then press it flat and make it into a thin patty. It's good to spitz some Quik Detailer onto the clay. Spritz the area you're going to clay, then rub area until it's smooth. You will feel friction while picking stuff up, then it becomes smooth. You will soon learn there is nothing to fear about scratching the car with clay as long as clay is clean.

One thing to note - Do not use clay on chromed plastic. I don't think there is any of that on the Prius though.

You will see the stuff picked up on the clay. Flip it over to use other side. Then you knead the clay to make it clean, roll into a ball and flatten out.

The clay bar is reusable. I keep a good eye on it to make sure nothing is embedded in it. Try not to drop it, but that will happen eventually. They say to toss it out if do drop and I pretty much do that.

So, you clay all over the car. Then you've got quik detailer residue. Rinse that off. I follow with a quick swipe of wash mitt all over car, then rinse as if just finishing wash. then dry, then wax.

With this new car, not much clay needed on doors. It always horizontal or sloped surfaces that need it.

First claying will take a while. After that, not nearly as long. I only clay about every 5 months, so not so bad. And it's always before waxing.

 

I've never gotten into polishing. I'm actually kinda scared of it and have an unfounded fear that it is a process of polishing down the clear coat to get rid of imperfections. That tells you how much I know about polishing.

About mitts and sponges - it's a matter of personal taste of course.

As for products, I usually prefer things I can get at local auto parts stores (and WalMart) .... their prices are just flat out .. cheaper.

$6.99 for quik detailer at AutoZone ... $4.97 for same thing at WalMart.

 

I've never seen claybars sold alone in auto parts stores.

Meguiar's answer was the majority of cost of clay kit is the clay, so they sell it bundled, not seperate.

I won't even buy 1 clay kit per year, probably 1 1/2 years.

 

by Macmaster
Many users on Amazon and Meguiar's forums vouch that Quik Wax is pretty durable. But even if you're right, I think it'll be okay. I don't want a build up of wax and planned on re-waxing after each wash anyway. I guess I'll have to find out for myself!

Good Heavens, I would never wax after every wash, way too much work.

I think Quck Wax might be a good way to go to finish the car.

I'm finding it pretty difficult to really dry the car with a drying towel. It's more like just get most of the water off with drying towel, then finish with a polishing cloth that is lubed up really good with something like quik wax. At that point I wouldn't spritz quik wax onto car because there would be overspray all over (but that's against how they say to use it)

I'm thinking of the folks that polish up cars during an auto show - seems they don't spray onto the car, just onto the polishing cloth.

Still working on that though.

 

Would you say it is better to use a high quality sealant every 5 months or so (for a daily driver, not show car), than what I've been using which is the meg's NXT Tech Wax 2.0 ?

I don't think there are any sealants in auto parts stores that I know of, so they are little known to me.

 

The problem with that method is you're still rubbing contaminated parts of the clay bar on your paint--not sure how kneading it makes it clean. The best method is to use one side of the clay bar on a section of the car, fold the dirty side over on itself, flatten out the bar and repeat. This way you're always using a nice, clean part of the clay bar.

 

The NXT Tech Wax is a polymer, which is often used interchangeably with "sealant" in the auto care world. Many (most?) "waxes" you'll find in auto parts stores (including the NXT) aren't really wax (as in carnauba), but polymers/sealants.

 

If I flatten out the clay bar, there are 2 sides, like a hamburger patty.

If I clay with one side, it will show the stuff that comes up. When I turn it over to the other side, that side looks like the first side did when it was clean, so what's the problem with using the 2nd side?

Whan I talked of kneading the clay, I meant folding it over and 'working' it for a minute to get a uniform looking ball of clay.

I don't see a problem with flipping a piece of clay over that's only been exposed to your bare hand that's squeaky clean anyway (my hands are clean when car detailing).

 

I don't bother with carnauba wax. I heard it looks really good, but doesn't last very long. I used that Zymol liquid a few times. Was likely slathering it on too thick, then it was really hard to buff off. I hate anything that is hard to buff off. Tech Wax comes off very easily.

I used Meg's Cleaner Wax for about a year. Was probably putting it on too thick. What I don't like about it is the white flakiness you get when buffing it off. I don't get any white powdery flakes from the Tech 2.0 Wax. it is pretty good stuff for the money.

 

Well...thats what polishing is. You even out the clearcoat to remove imperfections and improve gloss. However, when you use fine polishes and a orbital polisher there is no way you can get through the clearcoat, its hard and thick. Now, if you are using a wool pad, a heavy compound, and a rotary polisher than sure, you can easily burn through the paint, but those are professional tools.

Like anything else you get what you pay for. Have you ever tried using higher quality quick detailers? You might be really impressed with how much easier they are to use and the nicer finish they leave behind...

You're correct, you need to order good sealants online. Really NXT is the only one.

It depends on what your goals are, where you live, how often you wash, what you use to wash. NXT for instance is long gone from the paint after 5 months, unless you live somewhere with no weather.

Thats not correct, its the other way around, few are sealants most are waxes.

Its all about the quality of your products. The Zymol you buy in a car parts store isn't even manufactured by Zymol, its manufactured by Turtle Wax and branded as Zymol. Its not a very good product. Any cleaner wax has polishes within it, I'm not a fan of cleaner waxes.

You need to try a high quality paste wax...there just aren't any sold in stores. If you have a Harley Davidson dealer around you can buy "S100" from them, its a very good paste wax manufactured by P21S.

Its true that waxes won't last as long as a sealant, but the lines are blurred. My guess is it would last as long as NXT.

Using P21S/S100 is so easy you really could do it every wash.