Pressure Washing your car, does it damage?
 

Guys, please don't laugh at me. I am not a detailer. I have a pressure washer that is 2000 PSI. I have 4 different type of nozzle variable (red, yellow, white and black)

Of course, I won't use the red. Anyways, my question is if I stay 3 feet away from the car and I use the yellow or white nozzle.


1. Will it harm my paint?
2. Can I use meguair gold class in the detergent box since I don't have a foam lance :(?
3. I apply the detergent (soap in this case) with the black I believe ;) the softest setting?

1. If the stream is too thin and the lance is too close, there is a great chance that you may damage the paint, I currently wash the car with a pressure washer myself albeit a slightly weaker one but some tips I would give are:
a. unless you're rinsing out the wheels, the widest fan is from a good 2-3 feet out is a good spray pattern to use on the paint, if rinsing the wheels you can get a little closer and use a narrower fan spray pattern.
b. be careful of the black plastics and weatherstripping on the car as well. those can also be damaged from washing the car with a pressure washer, sometimes they lose the smoothness of the texture and become kind of rough if damaged when washing with a pressure washer

2. im not to sure.

3. see 2.

I don't understand why everyone doesn't just use ONR

Because it's really winter here. ONR doesn't spray very well when it's frozen solid and slush and dirt caked on my car would a bit too much for ONR. I think Bucket wash would be a disaster in a garage and couldn't be done outside. Coin wash is the only method I can use in winter.

Loooool sorry I'm in TX, we don't really have winter here. Sometimes I forget what winter is

Don't ever try!
My son just used a pressure washer machine on his corolla.
It didn't harm the paint but it stripped the chrome finish off the toyota and corolla badges.

Thank you guys for the input given. I will explain why I don't use ONR and I will explain my washing method which consists of the 4 steps: Wash, Prep (Clay), Glaze (Polish) and then paint Sealant


I don't wax, but I rather apply a polymer.


I will even stand 5 feet away if I have to. I will try to use lighter valves

Not a scientific explanation here, but every shop I have ever worked at, pressure washes their cars. If the practice routinely damaged paint, it would not occur so regularly. I have used this justification and successfully pressure washed all of my previous vehicles. Just don't get too close or use excessively small nozzle/ high pressure.

I will use a 40 degree nozzle and stand 5 feet away from the car and I will move quickly :)


Thanks for everyone's information, :). I will let you know my experience and my techniques soon.


I will also do a car journal ;)

I live in SoCal and I don't use ONR nor do I care to use ONR.

I also use very little water to wash my car outside, probably no more water than a normal 5-minute shower for myself.

-alex

Well thanks =p

Also don't aim near the tail light area.

Because a LOT of people will use it at the wrong time on the wrong amount of dirt and create more swirls than the Pacific Ocean has. There's NOTHING safer than maximum lubrication when washing and that means LOTS of water.

A pressure wash is good for ONE situation. People who go mudding with their cars. Other than that, pressure washers DON'T get your car completely clean and are thus useless for car washing.

That is, unless you don't really need your car to be clean. ;)

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxMLlRlI9Tc[/ame]

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXROQ_PsL9E[/ame]

Powerwashing does not harm your paint. Regardless of how dirty it is. You'd have to be very careless for the pressure to damage anything.

Powerwashing (unless used with very powerful chemicals) won't completely clean your car. But what powerwashing does do is remove the harmful solids from your vehicle so when you perform the actual act of hand washing the solids don't get massaged into the finish from the friction you create. If you powerwash properly, you don't even need a grit guard or multiple buckets. In fact, after I am done washing a car, my wash water is pretty clean and my paint is still perfectly swirl free.

Awesome, now about the Gold Class =p.... Anyone knows if I can use that little detergent box. I added 2oz of Gold Class and it wasn't foamy.. I will try wth 3oz

From personal experience, soap in the detergent box of a pressure washer won't work unless it's the specific one made for that pressure washer. If I were you I would just buy a foam lance if you plan to wash your car regularly. It makes things so much easier.

I like to use the pressure washer but not on a high pressure stream with Meguiars in the soap dispenser and then let it sit for a few minutes while I change to the regular tip. Rinse the whole car and then soap it up again. At this point there is usually little to no large particles left on the car so a microfiber sponge bath (theoretically) won't do any damage. If I have the time I'll switch the hose to the output from my hot water heater for the final rinse and then blow dry the car rather than towel dry. Final step is a fresh coat of Nu Finish which seems to work great on my white paint. This is a once a month deal with just a quick spray and sponge bath about once a week in between.

Pressure washing using your favorite Pre-Soak or shampoo is going to dissolve, soften, lift and remove a lot of dirt!

If your a fan of ONR, Waterless washing, and rinsless washing then enjoy the micro marring that will soon make your vehicle look horrible. What a shamless short cut that has been flooding this market for years! Like an awful infomercial you see late at night I cant believe people actually fall for this technique. It will ruin your paint!

Its always best to remove as much dirt as possible before touching the paint.

Kam

Very nice, ;). I have few questions lol, whuch Meguiars soap you use? How much do you use? Does it foam and grip?


OFFTOPIC; HOW YOU GET SUCH A GREAT MPG LOL...

Thanks kam, appreciate this :D

Meguiars Deep Crystal. http://www.meguiars.com/en/automotiv...lreg-car-wash/ I like it because it doesn't have any wax additives and it's cheap. It seems to suds up pretty well and stays on the car nicely as long as the temp is not too warm and doesn't dry too quickly if the car is in the sun. Because it's cheap I don't worry about how much, I just fill the soap jar and that usually gets me both wash sessions but sometimes I need to refill for the second if the car was really bad. Unfortunately where I park on the street at work I get lots of pigeon poop on the car which is why I need to do it weekly.

I do lots of highway miles. My commute is 38 miles each way of 55-75 mph highway and a mix of NYC streets and low speed traffic for the other 17 miles. On the morning commute I tend to do a fair bit of those miles drafting much larger vehicles which helps a lot as well as the fact that there is a 700 foot drop in elevation giving me 36-38mpg on the way in and 28-30 on the way home without drafting but usually no stop and go on the city portion. The "low" average is due to the time spent running around where I live on my days off when I'm lucky to get more than 25/26.

Okay, thanks. I got it now =p


I appreciate the information about the mpg as well.

You appear to be a professional detailer and I am just a novice who likes to take car of his car's paintwork, but if you are getting marring from using a rinseless wash, then you are doing something wrong.

If you have visible grit or particles on your paintwork, then of course you are going to remove them first with a rinse from a hose or high pressure washer, you don't just go straight in with the sprayer and go at it with some cloth you found laying around. For light road grime, a riseless is perfect.

I have been using the Garry Dean method and his Infinite Use Detail Juice for nearly a year now, a rinse with a pressure sprayer and then a rinseless wash using top quality MF every 2-4 weeks and a coat of carnauba every 4-6 weeks.

No marring at all and the only swirls I have are the ones that the dealership put in when I stupidly forgot to tell them not to wash it in their PDI. At least my car is white so it's harder to see them anyway.

Protip: NEVER let the dealership wash your car, always tell them when booking your service that you do not want it washed, then confirm when you drop it off that the instruction is on the work order. If you are getting a new one from a dealership, tell them not to wash it as part of their PDI. Preferably, get them to leave the protective film on.

A LOT, and I mean a LOT of people do that all the time. Just go to a car show and watch in awe.

That completely depends on how you take your towel across the paint. I have videos posted about that so I won't rehash it here. I don't care how little dirt is on the car because if ANY dirt is present, the last thing that I am going to do is use a quick detailer and towel to wipe on my car without properly washing it first.

I should clarify that I am still somewhat skeptical about waterless washes, IE, just spraying it on and wiping. But it looks like that is the way the technology in the products is going. Also, a QD is different to a waterless or rinseless wash product.

But a rinseless does use water and the product is designed to lift and encapsulate the contaminants to protect the paint surface.

Some nice info from Meguiar's:

http://www.meguiarsonline.com/forums...l=1#post543057

I would love to see a proper scientific test showing just how well these polymers in the waterless and rinseless washes encapsulate the dirt and lubricate the surface, and possibly even magnified images of the trapped dirt. But so far I have not found any.

That's the way manufacturer's want YOU to believe that it's going. But even in the back of your mind, something is telling you that the emperor has no cloths!

Million dollar question... HOW? Is there something that I can see if I pour the two products in a glass and inspect them side by side? Can I see the difference? Do I need a microscope to see the difference? Can I feel the difference? Can I believe my lying eyes?

HOW? Can I see this "lifting and encapsulation?" Here's what I am willing to bet the title of my Corvette on. I can mix up some soap and water, put it in a bottle and it will do EXACTLY what these waterless wash products CLAIM to do. My bottle of SOAP AND WATER, which cost a fraction of what these waterless washes do is JUST AS EFFECTIVE (or non-effective) as the waterless washes claim to be.

I have yet to see one video of some encapsulation. Throw me a fancy word, call it technology and try to shove it up my wazoo? Not here, The Junkman don't fall for gimmicks, fancy terms and pretty labels. If the technology is sound, then it should be as easy to explain and see as anything that I show in my videos. Do NOT be afraid to question the technology that these manufactures try and shove up your butts. They want you to feel uninformed about the crap they spew. That way, you won't question the emperor's new cloths! I will question that crap IN ALL CAPS so that everyone knows exactly where I stand on believing their "technology" AND I can recreate the same thing in my little ol' garage for a FRACTION of what they are selling it for.

Anyone want to buy my waterless wash? It's nothing more than a few drops of soap and some tap water in a cool looking bottle with a fancy label. I'm going to claim that it is a derivative of tears from baby seals. Only the most scrutinizing of detailers will want to buy it because I'm going to charge $500 and ounce! Yea baby! :confused0068:

Now, how much of that can we actually prove?

My friend, that's your common sense kicking in!!! You and I BOTH want to see that! But guess what... we will be waiting for hell to freeze over because THAT ain't happening my friend! That's the kind of proof that I like to bring to the table. Don't take my word for ANYTHING, let your eyes SEE the truth! Behold, if it smells like crap, it is probably crap!

The emperor has no cloths! Believe that! Understand this. I'm not saying that there is no such technology, I'm saying that you don't have to spend all your hard earned cash on something that YOU can make in your own kitchen. :cheers:

Garry Dean's infinite use detail juice is a quick detail spray and is also part of his "perfect wash method" which is a waterless wash.


I use this product as well and I do like it a lot for claying and wiping up quick water spots after a wash.
The one time I used it as a waterless wash it gave me soooo many swirls compared to the traditional soap/water and 2 bucket method.


Now I just won't wash my car at all unless I can do it the right way, with water.


Big thanks to the Junkman! :thumbup:

I use Martha Stewart's dirty deed detail juice. Shit works wonders yo!

Anyone want to buy my waterless wash? It's nothing more than a few drops of soap and some tap water in a cool looking bottle with a fancy label. I'm going to claim that it is a derivative of tears from baby seals. Only the most scrutinizing of detailers will want to buy it because I'm going to charge $500 and ounce! Yea baby!

You have me on the floor laughing! Literally.

Ohhh how this industry is so doomed by these companies promoting a horrible shortcut that just want your dollar bills.

Ryan

Hands down a rinseless and waterless wash is the worst idea possible! Who ever came up with the idea clearly just wants a quick buck and whoever sells a product like this, does not care about your investment!

The safest way to wash a car is by pre-soaking the surface numerous times and pressure spraying away as much contamination as possible. Keep in mind, you want to touch the paint as less as possible.

AND when you do touch the paint, you want as less contamination on the surface.

I can give you some slack if you pull up to a car show and use this method, but take your time and be gentle!

Ryan

What I do depends on the amount of stuff on my car. I'll wash my car once every week or two weeks, and "wash" it once a month.

If I am using ONR with nothing else, I make sure to spray the surface down first, then spray some on the towel to make sure nothing is dry. That makes it almost like washing it with water. Then I make sure to wipe it down again, then I dry it. It uses a ton of towels, but sometimes it's less trouble than getting everything else out.

If it looks like too much dirt and grime has built up, I pull out the mitts and the two buckets. Just makes it more efficient than constantly having to respray with ONR and such.

If that doesn't even look like it'll work, then it's time for the "wash". Pressure washer with Foam cannon attachment. Foam it once and rinse off to loosen stuff up, then foam it again and rinse off to get down to a stage where I can just wash off with ONR or the two bucket method. Then wax.

I think this misconception here is this! Nothing about waterless washing or rinseless washing has properties as being a mild cleaning agent.

If I put water in a bottle and sold it as a waterless wash would you buy it? of course not!

The reason why you should Pre-soak the paint is to decontaminate the surface. Letting the car sit and soak drastically cleans the surface, especially if you are using a pressure sprayer.

I have yet to see any proof about encapsulation process!

That's because you and I are not smart enough to see the emperor's new cloths! :D

We just need military grade eye magnifying technology.:eyebulge:

Agreed. If there's heavy grime, $2 into my local coin-op to quickly pressure wash to get it off. If not, I just presoak with a spritz of ONR, and then right to ONR with GDWM. I've never found any paint damage due to this.

Have you performed the "flash test" on your paint?

No clue what a "flash test" is, but since I started doing ONR washes I haven't noticed any more wear on the paint than normal. The first couple times I tried it, I went over the paint meticulously with the bright light I use for machine polishing and did not find any new marks.

I do keep a durable sealant/wax layer, which may help.

Mind posting some pictures?

In the summer sure. Car is covered with road salt right now.

What is "normal" wear? Can you describe it? As for the flash test, take a look.

This guy, like yourself told me that his paint was flawless, although he dusted and washed his paint with detail sprays and waterless washes all the time. I asked him if I could see what his paint looked like. I could immediately see the damage that he couldn't. This is what HE saw:

http://i257.photobucket.com/albums/h.../chrynats4.jpg


This is what I saw:

http://i257.photobucket.com/albums/h.../chrynats3.jpg

Now after I "rubbed" on it for a few minutes, it looked a LOT better and made his daughter gleeful with joy because she was inheriting that car. :D

http://i257.photobucket.com/albums/h.../chrynats5.jpg


So here's what I always say to the ONR, waterless wash and detail spray cleaning guys...

http://i257.photobucket.com/albums/h...s/slo-cut4.jpg

http://i257.photobucket.com/albums/h...s/slo-cut5.jpg


I will be looking forward to your flash test. ;)

:bow::bow::bow: