Hand washing your car

[mky]

hi guys,

I live in a apartment and do not have a garage where I can hand wash my car. I am not sure if there are any hand car wash places where I can take the car and wash it myself (they charge for the location only). If not, is it still okay to have the car wash people hand wash my car than going through the automatic car wash?

 

[kn5owa]

hi guys,

I live in a apartment and do not have a garage where I can hand wash my car. I am not sure if there are any hand car wash places where I can take the car and wash it myself (they charge for the location only). If not, is it still okay to have the car wash people hand wash my car than going through the automatic car wash?

Anything would be preferable to a regular automatic car wash - they will:

1. screw up the undercarriage

2. put billions of scratches - literally - in your paint.

In my apt. days - I used to use the "quarter" machines where I could find them (they're probably a dollar today).

Maybe you could bribe your landlord into reserving a space with a faucet for washing cars?

 

[jsmit86]

Check your local bay wash places. Often they will have a touch-less automatic.

I won't go through any brush or "soft cloth" automatics. I had a major problem with one causing over $3K damage... which of course they denied.

I have had good luck with the touch-less automatics. No brushes or swirling cloths, just a spray. It does a pretty good job unless the car is extremely dirty. (In the winter, etc)

When I come out of the wash, I wipe down gently with a micro fiber cloth taking care to make that no dirt or debris is on the car.

From time to time, I go to the hand wash/detail in my area. They do a great job. The only issue is that it can be tough to get in without an appointment.

 

[Mark_888]

hi guys,

I live in a apartment and do not have a garage where I can hand wash my car. I am not sure if there are any hand car wash places where I can take the car and wash it myself (they charge for the location only). If not, is it still okay to have the car wash people hand wash my car than going through the automatic car wash?

Here is one suggestion:

Get a bucket, fill it with soapy water and get some micro-fiber clothes (have several so you are always using a clean one). You can clean your car at home if you want. Then take it to a place where you can rinse the soap off with water only and then spot-free rinse (those car wash places with the hand-wand that takes quarters).

Make sure you use a soap specifically designed for washing cars, such as Meguiar's Car Wash, otherwise it will probably remove the wax. If you do want to remove the existing wax, regular Dawn dishwashing soap is known to work well.

 

[mky]

Excellent recommendations. You guys rock as always!

 

[Seejay]

I am going to be the devil's advocate here.

I don't wash my car often. When I do, I just take it to a well-managed automatic car wash with the soft brushes and sponges. The Mr Car Wash down the street from my home does a marvelous job. I get a fuzzy feeling following an S Class or Equus (crosses fingers). The undercarriage gets cleaned. The only problem is the rear suspension aluminum knuckle that drags on the rail (left side, mine has a slight burr in it). I think Hyundai has a pending TSB for that. There is a thread on this site about it.

The best hand wash job I've had done to my car was the Hyundai dealer when they did the Auto Butler thing (every 6 months). Wow, did it look good after that! The clear coat was so smooth it felt wet. And for $20 I think I will do that more often.

My nine year old Sonata has no scratches, the paint still looks great and it was never hand washed until I gave it to my wife (yes she wanted the Sonata). She washes it in the rain because...

People in my subdivision hand wash their cars but once. After they see the hard water (lime) spots embedded into the clear coat they never do it again. You can not must not wash a car in the sun, so for most people that leaves the DIY places as the only option. Many of them have an RO water rinse like the automatics. You can wash it in the rain, of course. No sun and nature's continuous distilled water rinse.

Where I live, discussion about how one washes a car means nothing if one doesn't have a garage or at least covered parking. The Houston sun is merciless.

 

[Munch520]

Even with my own house, I sometimes go to a self wash during lunch time. Just get a bucket, soap, cloth, chamois, etc. and wash it by hand, using the pressure washer at the self wash to spray and rinse and all that.

More importantly check out Zaino products. Their car wash and Z6 waterless wash are a great addition to the wash arsenal.

 

[danygenesis]

You can use a "two buckets" wash method. It can be done almost in any place without messing around too much and eliminating water waste at the same time. After that a good sealant or wax and you are ready to go.

 

[ksoze]

There are very good "no rinse" car washes which work very well for those without ready access to water or for those winter months garage washes. I have used Optimum No Rinse, but there others also. Allows you to get a safe wash with a bucket (or two) of water.

http://www.optimumcarcare.com/onrwns.php?li=2

 

[Audio]

If you want to get a good wash, shine and protect for minimal money, doing it yourself is obviously the way to go.

If you have a do it yourself place(the wand etc), and it's not super busy when you go(buckets and hand washing is usually a no-no, especially if people are waiting), that is an option.

The two bucket method(clean/soap bucket, and a bucket to dip and wring out the sponge so you don't contaminate the clean bucket and put dirt against your paint), is definitely preferred.

My personal recommendation for a good wash on a budget:
2 buckets
A soft wash mitt
Adam's Polishes "H2O Guard & Gloss"
Microfiber towels

Wash the car, give it a good rinse, the guard and gloss is sprayed on while wet, wipe dry. Simple.

Don't be scared to put the guard and gloss on headlights, taillights, and glass. It will help keep water spots and other minor stuff off the paint the same way wax does, but doesn't build up as much, and may need to be applied more often. It's not a "glossifier" like a wax, just a protectant.

That's my recommendation for an economical way of hand washing. The only downside is using those car wash places, you're paying for the time. If you have buckets with good lids, you can fill them with the water before you go to the car wash so you aren't paying for time filling buckets, and only for the time you're rinsing the car.

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[ksoze]

I don't wash my car often. When I do, I just take it to a well-managed automatic car wash with the soft brushes and sponges. The Mr Car Wash down the street from my home does a marvelous job. I get a fuzzy feeling following an S Class or Equus (crosses fingers)

Automatic washes with any brushes or cloths are generally not a safe choice. Besides the inherent issues being dragged along a track. I also would not judge a car wash by the type of cars being run through it - that S class owner probably leases the car and could car less about the minor scratches and swirls that are the result of those washes.

 

[Mark_888]

The best hand wash job I've had done...

Best hand wash I have had done was in Bangkok.

 

[Audio]

Best hand wash I have had done was in Bangkok.

 

[ksoze]

Best hand wash I have had done was in Bangkok.

 

[StarPower]

A hand wash place does not guarantee a quality job. After one such place it looked like they dried my car with sand paper while the owner was showing me pictures of the show cars they've done. They worked and presented the car under an awning, so I couldn't see the scratches until after I'd left. I'd check reviews very carefully before letting anyone touch your car.

I'll use a touchless automatic if the car is really dirty (e.g. driving on dirt roads). However, I've never had a touchless wash get the car truly clean. There's always a slight film left behind (easily visible on the windshield once I use the wipers). I only use the ones where you drive in and the wash moves around you with no track to screw up the undercarriage.

 

[Seejay]

Automatic washes with any brushes or cloths are generally not a safe choice. Besides the inherent issues being dragged along a track. I also would not judge a car wash by the type of cars being run through it - that S class owner probably leases the car and could car less about the minor scratches and swirls that are the result of those washes.

Agreed. I have been lucky, but I leased my Genesis. There have been no scratches on either of my cars on track type car washes in Houston over the past nine years. Is the bar set high in Houston for car wash managers? I think I am just lucky.

When my friend from Orange County saw the I-10 and Beltway 8 interchange in west Houston he said, "LA is the church to the automobile, but Houston is the cathedral."

 

[Seejay]

Best hand wash with happy ending I have had done was in Bangkok.

There, fixed that for you.

 

[kn5owa]

Agreed. I have been lucky, but I leased my Genesis. There have been no scratches on either of my cars on track type car washes in Houston over the past nine years. Is the bar set high in Houston for car wash managers? I think I am just lucky.

When my friend from Orange County saw the I-10 and Beltway 8 interchange in west Houston he said, "LA is the church to the automobile, but Houston is the cathedral."

Houston is the cathedral for red light cameras - I spent a few days at the Galleria a coupla years ago. They allegedly had 16 cameras at the intersection of Westheimer & 610.

 

[Seejay]

Houston is the cathedral for red light cameras - I spent a few days at the Galleria a coupla years ago. They allegedly had 16 cameras at the intersection of Westheimer & 610.

They were declared a heresy and were burned at the stake. All of them were removed in Houston proper. Some still remain in the bedroom communities of Fort Bend and Montgomery counties.

One of the funniest mash-ups on You-tube at the time they were first installed were caps from the cameras showing Houston metro buses, police, and fire running the lights.

 

[Jaeger]

Check your local bay wash places. Often they will have a touch-less automatic.

I won't go through any brush or "soft cloth" automatics. I had a major problem with one causing over $3K damage... which of course they denied.

I have had good luck with the touch-less automatics. No brushes or swirling cloths, just a spray. It does a pretty good job unless the car is extremely dirty. (In the winter, etc)

When I come out of the wash, I wipe down gently with a micro fiber cloth taking care to make that no dirt or debris is on the car.

From time to time, I go to the hand wash/detail in my area. They do a great job. The only issue is that it can be tough to get in without an appointment.

Agereed. I hand wash for three seasons but that is not an option in the dead of winter. Touchless automatic washes are fine. No way I would go through anything with "soft" (LOL!) brushes. In fact, I can't tell the last time I even saw one of those retro automatic scratch machines locally - all the washes within a pretty wide radius here are touchless.