Alright, new to this, never once applied wax or done anything besides washing my car (which i've apparently done wrong, used dish soap :facepalm: I'm ashamed). This thread is to get some questions answered about the art of proper detailing.
1. What are all of the things one should buy in order to get a proper, clean, and sexy shiny surface out of the car? Like the towels, mitts, waxes, car wash brands, all of that sort of stuff? I saw the big thread about beginners, but it's all kinda jibberish to me for the most part. I'm not looking for 'show quality' just looking to start treating the paint job better on my car and having the washes I do last a little longer.
Youll need the proper products and equipment to do the following:
Washing
-I suggest the 2 bucket method with grit guards as a MUST standard for hand washing, this will reduce wash induced swirls and marring. Youll need 2 5gal buckets, 2 gritgaurds, a quality soap (i use chemical guys), a quality microfiber/wool mitt.
Drying
-The cheapest way to go here is using a big Microfiber made for drying, like a waffle weave. BUT after you wash your car you want to rinse with an open-ended hose, this will sheet most of the water off, then follow with a Quick Detail spray and towel. The QD spray will help protect your paint as you dry
Claying:
You will need to claybar your paint. Simply search this term and youll understand why.
2. Any recommended brands you think have the best effects with rain protection? (florida has a lot of rain obviously)
Florida, i would use a paint sealant topped with a good wax. Youll here alot about BFWD paint sealant, its great BUT...
For cheaper, and just as good protection, I would get Four star ultimate paint protection its similar to BFWD and top it with Chemical Guys XXX paste wax. Both of those are rather cheap and will give you months of protection
3. i see these threads about clay-bar, IPA wipedown, all these steps for the car to be waxxed and polished and sealed (idk what I'm talking about with that stuff..) but How often does someone need to do that sort of deep cleaning? I know the wax can last a good month or so at least, but how often should you re-do the whole process? besides washing the car once a week just washing it.
It all depends on how well you maintain your ride man. IPA is for cleaning the paint of oils so your wax or sealant can bond well. It can be mixed at any desired ratio
Sorry for the long post, i'm just starting to be interested in this whole detailing scene and looking to gather as much info as possible before i waste time and money doing something incorrectly.