Hi All,
Does anyone else experience a 30 second delay when changing between chemicals in a hand carwash? Ie; when changing from "bug remover" to "high pressure soap" it takes 30 seconds for the soap to actually come out. As I change between 5-6 different chemicals during the wash this can use 30-50% of the time that I have paid for depending on the total length of the wash.
Does this annoy anyone else and are any carwashes better than others?
Cheers.
… and paying for the disservice
So youre saying theres better alternatives?
Better alternatives to scratching your paint? Yeah…I think the best alternative is to NOT scratch the paint using mechanized scrubbers….. :|
Takes me around 20 mins to clean Mrs' sedan. Around 30-45 mins for my 4WD using rinse free cleaning.
"rinse free cleaning" care to elaborate? Links to products from Supercheap Auto for example?
Add couple caps of Turtle Wax Rinse Free in a bucket of water and soak 2 micro fiber cloths in it over night.
Next morning, use those micro fiber cloths to clean your car. Fold the cloth in 4 folds so it gives you a small square and unfolding it gives you 4 surfaces to clean with. Don't have the cloths dripping wet, just wet with some water in it. Start from top and work your way to the bottom, and only do 1 panel at a time. All you will be doing is wipe the dirt away while applying teeny bit of pressure on the cloth. Depending on on how dirty your car is, you might need 2 or 3 swipes through an area. Put the cloth back in the bucket with water+solution mix to clean the dirt off it. You will see dirt accumulating at the bottom of the bucket while the water still stays clean. So no fear of cross-contamination/scratches.
Once a panel is clean, spray some Meguiar's Quick Wax on a clean microfiber cloth and wipe it dry. Just needs 1 wipe. If you are getting dirt on this dry cloth, then you haven't cleaned the car when you were wiping it with Turtle Wax.
Wring this microfiber cloth so it doesn't have any water, but always stay moist.
Takes around 5 minutes each side of the car. Rinse and repeat the above process.
My bike takes longer than my cars because of all the small nooks and corners and the amount of chrome. You need a total of 4 microfiber cloths per car. Once done, put them in for a wash.
Result: (It's a 2013 motorbike btw)
http://i.imgur.com/KPSwzDz.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/xQuQQXt.jpg
Wow, thats an amazing result. I will definitely try your process next time instead of the public car wash, thank you.
yeah i've noticed this at most carwashes.
have to think about the time it takes for the equipment to switch over to another feed and then the distance you are from the main equipment i guess?
That's a very good point. Perhaps the central dosing station for the cleaning liquids is in the main/large building so the closest bay to that will switch over fastest? I'll try it next time and report back.
i try and use car washes when there's no one there. sometimes it feels like you get more pressure also
Washing cars pppthhhh - next you'll be telling us how you regularly clean your BBQ :P
The 1 month old left over bacon grease on the grill added flavor to the pork neck I cooked last weekend!
Good ol' pork neck, the official meat of OzBargain ;-)
It takes time for the chemicals in the line to travel from the storage area through the system and out the pressure lance. The old chemical must be purged from the line by the new chemical.
Makes sense to me.
When you turn your hot water tap on at home do you get hot water instantly? No*. The cold water must be purged from the line by the hot water. (This analogy works with the assumption you have not recently used the hot water)
So, knowing there is a delay in the switching of chemicals. You "could" switch chemicals BEFORE you need to. Knowing that you will have time to finish using the current chemical. And the new chemical will be in the lines ready use instantly.
The chemicals used at commercial car washes are (generally) very aggressive. Stripping wax/sealant protection from the paint. And accelerating the drying out and discoloration of plastics and rubber.
You could wash your car at home using steel wool dipped in a bucket of sand if you're after commercial car wash results.
You could wash your car at home using steel wool dipped in a bucket of sand if you're after commercial car wash results.
LOL
I had no idea it was so harsh. I always thought it was the opposite (not strong enough to get the dirt off).
You can tell when someone uses a public car wash - their paint has swirly scratches when you look at it in the light.
No, that's usually when they have had the car polished by someone that doesn't know how to do it ( a lot of panel beaters)
Car wash places are great if you want to rinse off any caked on mud etc, horrible if you use those broom handle brushes that spit out foam. I use the touchless washes if i've been camping for a few days to knock off the majority of the dirt and baked on bugs and hand wash after.
What's more annoying is you using a process which is pretty much brushing wet and dry high grit sandpaper on your car…..