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wtf am i doing wrong!!!!

3K views 18 replies 9 participants last post by  dannyboy281 
#1 · (Edited)
Detailing Problem!

okay so maybe its because i had to learn everything from a black guy that lived across the street because my dad never taught me anything in life, but i am really having problems with washing a car.

Heres my steps

One:wet car
Two:apply amour all car wash and wax
three:Scrub entire car with padded hand mat or whatever that thing is
four:clean wheels
five:wash down car
Six:Dry

Now I'm reallly having a problem with the drying part.
I CAN'T GET THE ****ING DRY WATER SPOTS TO GO AWAY!!!!:mad::mad:

I have tried everything. Microfiber towels, shammies, hell even a god damn leaf blower.

The water spots will not come off. Now granted you can't see them until you really really get close to the car but maybe i have ocd or something cause i really want them off the car.

And i have no idea how to wax a car......:eek::(

Help
 
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#2 ·
Just give me your car before you scratch it up. That will fix the problem. :p

I'm no expert but I never wash the ENTIRE car before rinsing the soap off. My steps are this:

1) Rinse the entire car off
2) Rinse top of car and windshield. Wash with thick microfiber wash mit
3) Rinse soap off top of car and windshield

I then repeat steps 2 and 3 for the hood, top of trunk, top of fender, top of doors, top of rear quarter panels, and windows. I don't like to leave soap on the car very long at all. After I get the top of the car done I switch to another wash mit that I use for the lower half of the car. I then repeat the wash and rinse process on the bottom half of the panels. Then I switch to ANOTHER wash mit for the wheels.

Basically, I don't want to wash the dirty dirty bottom of the car and then drag that dirt across the top of the car (creating small scratches). Then I rinse the whole thing off one final time and dry with a microfiber cloth.

*EDIT* Make sure the car is cool and in the shade.
 
#5 · (Edited)
Just give me your car before you scratch it up. That will fix the problem. :p

I'm no expert but I never wash the ENTIRE car before rinsing the soap off. My steps are this:

1) Rinse the entire car off
2) Rinse top of car and windshield. Wash with thick microfiber wash mit

You don't want to use a Microfiber mitt for washing. They hold onto dirt particles which will causes scratches and swirls.

3) Rinse soap off top of car and windshield

I then repeat steps 2 and 3 for the hood, top of trunk, top of fender, top of doors, top of rear quarter panels, and windows. I don't like to leave soap on the car very long at all. After I get the top of the car done I switch to another wash mit that I use for the lower half of the car. I then repeat the wash and rinse process on the bottom half of the panels. Then I switch to ANOTHER wash mit for the wheels.

Basically, I don't want to wash the dirty dirty bottom of the car and then drag that dirt across the top of the car (creating small scratches). Then I rinse the whole thing off one final time and dry with a microfiber cloth.

*EDIT* Make sure the car is cool and in the shade.
Try this method instead.
  1. Pour a decent amount of soap into a 5 gal bucket
  2. Add water to get it to foam up. Fill nearly full.

    You want to fill up the bucket with water FIRST then add the soap and mix it. That way you end up with a bucket full of soapy lubricated water. Not half water and half foam. Foam does nothing for cleaning and keeping particles from scratching.
  3. use a good fluffy car wash mitt and toss it in the bucket to wet up
  4. Spray the car down and wash as much dirt off as possible
  5. Wash front fenders, front bumper and hood. (less if its hot out, or super dirty)
  6. spray off all soap, and wet down the rest of the car
  7. wash the next section
  8. spray off entire car

The goal is to never let the water dry on the car. Use a high quality natural chamois. The synthetic chamois don't work near as well. Get it super wet before you start to dry the car. Don't screw around and get it done as fast as possible. I dry the windows first, then the rest of the car. (I also spray the car with reverse osmosis water before i dry it. It will leave the car spotless, even if i don't dry it, but its an expensive and complicated setup for most people.)

Alright...

Theres a few things you need to invest in.

  1. Two 5 Gallon Buckets
  2. A GOOD soap (OTC would be Meguire's Gold Class)
  3. A Labswool or Sheepskin wash mitt
  4. An electric leaf blower
  5. A Microfiber Waffel Weave towel

You also need to use a method called the "2 Bucket Method"

This method calls for having your normal soapy bucket and a 2nd bucket filled with nothing but water. This provides you a place to "rinse" your wash mitt each time it leaves the car.

Think about it.... you just washed a dirty section of you car. Your wash mitt has all that dirt on it. Do you want to dip it into your nice clean soap? No... dip it in water, rinse it, THEN dip it back in your soapy bucket and go to the car.

Never... and I mean NEVER Scrub the car when washing. You are not scrubbing dirt off, your WASHING it off. You simply need to use the weight of your wash mitt. Also... never go over a section more than 2-3 passes with your wash mitt.

Refer to this as well:

How To Properly Wash and Dry a Car – Detailed Image


As for the water spots. If they are etched then you would need to do one or both of these steps:

Claybar will sometimes remove them. This also removes any wax so you must wax afterwards.
If the Claybar does not do it, the paint needs to be polished. This is done with a high quality buffer, pads, and automotive polish. You can NOT do this with a cheap buffer from Walmart/Autostore.

Look at the sticky at the top of this page... all of these questions can be anwsered there.
 
#3 ·
Try this method instead.
  1. Pour a decent amount of soap into a 5 gal bucket
  2. Add water to get it to foam up. Fill nearly full.
  3. use a good fluffy car wash mitt and toss it in the bucket to wet up
  4. Spray the car down and wash as much dirt off as possible
  5. Wash front fenders, front bumper and hood. (less if its hot out, or super dirty)
  6. spray off all soap, and wet down the rest of the car
  7. wash the next section
  8. spray off entire car

The goal is to never let the water dry on the car. Use a high quality natural chamois. The synthetic chamois don't work near as well. Get it super wet before you start to dry the car. Don't screw around and get it done as fast as possible. I dry the windows first, then the rest of the car. (I also spray the car with reverse osmosis water before i dry it. It will leave the car spotless, even if i don't dry it, but its an expensive and complicated setup for most people.)
 
#4 ·
First, I agree...don't soap the entire car at once...do it sections at a time...and NEVER use the same microfiber on the car and the wheels. That said, when I first got my Mustang in 2005, I had the same problem. I know how to wash a car, so I couldn't understand why when I would dry it and then would I would REALLY look at the car, there were water spots. Turns out they were acid rain spots :eek: and no amount of washing on my end would remove them. Had the car buffed out, but they were still not completely gone...and I'm OCD...so it bugged the hell out of me until I got the car painted :mad:. Now, no more water spots :)..Obviously, that may or may not be your problem, but I thought I would throw it out there.
 
#7 · (Edited)
Chemical Guys Water Spot Remover - 16 oz | Detailed Image

You can try this product just read the description on how to apply it so that it works best for you. Zat you beat me to posting the DI washing and drying article:)

As for waxing use this article.

http://www.detailedimage.com/Auto-Detailing-Guide/Carnauba-Waxes/

http://www.autogeek.net/video-wax.html

watch the second video man the first is for sealants the second it for carnuba waxes the straight line method is the same though for both, but the carnuba wax video is informative on how to get wax out of the jar or tin in case you dont know how.
 
#8 ·
this has been a great help guys. Heres my new steps.

One:Wash entire car down.
Two:Get two buckets one filled with water and soap the other with just water
Three:wash bumper hood, and front panels of car with was mit with Mcguires Gold Class
Four:wash down front of car and then rinse washmit in second bucket

Now do i dry the front part after i was it or continue doing this process for the middle and the rear and then dry the whole thing? And will walmart shammys work?
 
#9 ·
I always re-wet the entire car after rinsing a section I just washed. Since I never let it dry until I am done washing and ready to hand dry, I never have any spotting issues. And I never wash in direct sunlight.

-just my 2 cents
 
#10 ·
  1. Assemble all materials
  2. Fill up Rinse Bucket and Wash Bucket with water
  3. Pour indicated (look on bottle) ammount of soap into your wash bucket
  4. Mix water/soap with hands
  5. Spray a quick spurt of water into the wash bucket to activate foam
  6. Drop wash mitt in wash bucket
  7. Rinse down the entire car from top to bottom
  8. Wash top panels first (Roof, Hood, Tunk, Spoiler, Tops of Fenders, Sail Panels, A Trim)
  9. Next wash the Front and Back
  10. Next wash the sides/lower sections
  11. After each section (use your judgement on how big a section should be) rinse wash mitt in Rinse Bucket. Do this a LOT.
  12. Ring water out of Mitt
  13. Dip back in Soap
  14. Continue to the next section
  15. After finishing one "Division" of the car (a divison would be say, the top of sections of the car, each side, front, and back) rinse the soap off
  16. After entire car has been washed and rinsed Dry with an electric Leaf Blower. Starting from the top blow off as much water as possible
  17. Grab a Waffle Weave MF Towel and blot dry the spots of water left over
  18. Go over the car with a GOOD Quick Detailer and MULTIPLE Microfibers to remove any left over spotting from the soap or water.

Tips:

  • Never use a Water Blade
  • Never use a "Shammy"
  • Never use one bucket
  • ALWAYS follow the soap's guidlines. More soap is not always good.
  • Never.... and I mean NEVER skip drying
  • Don't Scrub... simply slide the wash mitt over each section 2-3 times, rinse wash mitt, add soap to mitt, and move on.
  • Always wash in the shade. If you can't, Constantly wet/rinse the car.
  • Do NOT let soap dry on the car.
  • Keep your buckets clean
  • Add Optimum No Rinse to your rinse bucket for extra insurance
  • Purchase a foam gun to "Pre-Soak" the car.
 
#11 ·
I wash in sections and dray it at the end. May help to use the shower spray pattern on the garden hose nozzle if you have one, helps with sheeting.

If you are looking for something to dry your car with, I dry mine with the following. (I've been told it's a swirl monster but it works so I'm sticking with it.)



Good thing it's a chamois and not a "shammy" Zat :shiftyeyes
 
#15 ·
That thing will cause scratches and swirls galore... trust me... the only thing that will dry a car correctly is a Waffle Weave Microfiber Towel

MICROPAK 25" x 36" Ultra-Soft Waffle Weave Micro Fiber Towel

when i live in florida i dont even drive the thing cause i live in downtown miami and walk to work. Second im in ohio right now with my family cause thats where they live. My problem was I was doing this in direct sunlight


+1 zat that is aweosme. One thing about the blower, can i use a shammy with that for blotting because sometimes the blower doesnt get the entire job done.
Like I said, use the blower to get the majority of the water off the car. Then use a Waffle Weave towel to blot dry the rest.

Something I forgot to mention was the "Sheeting Method". This calls for rinsing the car a second time with free flowing water. This allows the water molecules to attach to each other and "Sheet" off the car. It will remove about 50% of the water left on the car after rinsing the soap off.
 
#12 ·
Problems listed in order....
a) You live in Florida.
b) The water has a high sulfuric (acid) and mineral content.
c) You must wash it in the shade & dry it off before it "air drys".
d) You cannot have sprinklers spray you're car while you're away= instant non-removable water spots that are etched into both you're paint & glass...
e) Only way to get it back to "like new"= pro detailer with a buffer....
f) Finally you have the finish looking like new.... Re-read list and cringe anytime you have to park where a sprinkler may be within "reach" of you're Steed.....;)

P.S. Drive around the "lovebugs" that swarm every 6 months & happen to have bodies filled with acid.... You won't have too worry about water spots IMHO....:devil:
 
#13 ·
when i live in florida i dont even drive the thing cause i live in downtown miami and walk to work. Second im in ohio right now with my family cause thats where they live. My problem was I was doing this in direct sunlight


+1 zat that is aweosme. One thing about the blower, can i use a shammy with that for blotting because sometimes the blower doesnt get the entire job done.
 
#17 ·
#19 · (Edited)
Yes they are just as bad, you need a Waffle Weave Quality MF man trust us. I have this exact towel and its great but I got the starter kit which includes more towels these are from Detailed Image. Pakshak.com has probably the best in the biz either way you go you wont be disappointed. Also you need microfiber detergent

DI Microfiber Waffle Weave Drying Towel - 36" x 24" | Detailed Image

http://www.pakshak.com/ultra-soft-waffle-weave-micro-fiber-towel-25x36-1.html

DI Microfiber Micro-Restore Microfiber Detergent Concentrate - 32 oz | Detailed Image
 
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