Planning on taking your car to a do it yourself car wash? We all want our cars to be shiny and clean. It just feels good to drive around in a clean, attractive car as opposed to a sloppy-looking, dirty car. Here are some great tips the next time you take your car to a do it yourself car wash. Follow some of these tips and your car will look so good, and you’ll look great driving around that spiffy, glossy car!
Avoid Harsh Detergent
Don’t use dishwashing or household detergents when you are hand washing your car (definitely avoid glass cleaners on paint!). Most do it yourself carwash places will dispense their own car washing soaps. In fact, it’s better to buy and bring your own car-wash product designed for automotive cleaning. Dishwashing and household detergents will strip away the protective wax coating on your car. This is something you definitely do not want.
Don’t Use Those Disgusting Brushes
One thing you see people do at do it yourself car wash places do are use those disgusting brushes! You don’t know where those brushes have scrubbed. Even if those brushes were clean, you’ll just be smearing all that dirt and mud all over your car with those brushes. Not only that, the hard brushes may scratch your paint and wax protectant. So don’t use those brushes at the car wash places to clean your car.
Use a Soft Car Wash Sponge
When it’s time to apply the soap product, use a soft, natural sponge. You can find these at any automotive section in stores. You can even use those wool hand mitts, as these work well also to apply the soap. Finally, rinse away the soap and then start on another section. Keep repeating with each section of your cars until you finish the whole car.
Work on one section of your car at a time. Use the spray gun on rinse and wash away any dirt and debris. Then apply the soap product with a soft sponge. Don’t use circular motion but a back and forth motion.
Don’t Forget the Wheel and Lower Areas
Remember that your car’s wheel wells and lower body edge will accumulate road tar and grease. These areas are so close to the road that everything you drive over will get spewed up and stick in these areas. These substances are quite resistant to being removed and may require something like a bug remover. To remove these substances, use something like a non-abrasive soft cloth and physically scrub out these substances.
Air Drying Leaves Spots
Some people just let hope in their car and drive away after washing it, thinking the air will just dry out the water. This is fine and convenient but it’s the lazy way and may cost you by leaving watermarks on your car surface from the water drying. What you want to do is use a soft towel of chamois and blot away the water (don’t scrub the water away) until the water is gone. This way, you don’t end up with water spots caused my minerals in the water.
Clean Your Lights
Don’t forget your lights. Modern car todays have so many lights on them (headlights, tail lights, fog lights, blinker lights, etc.). Use a window cleaner and apply over the covers of the lights and wipe away any remaining dirt or residue with a soft towel.
Clean Your Wiper Blades
Another part of the car that most people forget are the windshield wiper blades (both front and back ones). If they are dirt, they’ll smear dirt all over your windshields. One popular recipe is use about a twenty-five percent ammonium mixture is water and wipe both side of the wiper blades with a towel soaked in that solution. Wipe the blades clean before putting them back down on your windshields.
Clean Your Windshields
Your windshield catches everything you drive through, from bugs, dirt, grime, bird droppings, etc. Most people will wipe their windshield down with a good automotive glass cleaner product. Actually, this is fine for most people and that is all you really have to do to keep your windshield spotless.
Brush and Vacuum Method
To tackle the inside of the car, you can use the vacuum at these do it yourself carwash place. One trick is to get a brush and start brushing up the dust as you vacuum.
Toothbrushes are great dirt and annoying particles from all the nooks and crannies in your car. You can also use this in conjunction with the vacuum. Just scrub up those particles as you’re vacuuming them up.
Clean Those Car Mats
For those with disgusting car mats (which is probably most of us), you can use an upholstery cleaner and spray it on those car mats. Scrub those mats with a brush and they’ll look spiffy and neat again.
We hope you enjoy some of these tips and find them useful when you go to the do it yourself car wash place to get your car cleaned. It’s satisfying to put a little effort into your automobile and then drive away with a feeling of pride that you’re sitting in an attractive, shiny car.