Afternoon folks,

Picked up my new PCH car last weekend.

Well I have now had the car a week and although it still looks shiny in this rare British sunshine, the motorway miles to and from work last week have meant that the car has acquired a few flies and bugs along the way.

I will be the first to admit (cover your eyes if easily offended) I used to take my old car to the HAND CAR WASH round the corner from our house for its "clean". Having read some of the posts around here I know that is seriously frowned upon. Haha.

So, I am looking to try and stop being lazy and clean the car myself once a week.

I have a karcher k12 pressure washer in the garage that has been previously used to clean our patio / walls etc.

Karcher k2.14 :- http://www.tesco.com/direct/karcher-k214-pressure-washer/209-6877.prd

Would this be suitable for rinsing the car ? It's branded as 100 bar max.

I will be the first to admit I think I cleaned my old car maybe less than 5 times myself and that included just wacking some shampoo in a bucket and slapping it on with a mitt.

I see from other posts that ideally the following may be needed :-

Rinse the car with pressure washer

Apply snow foam with an attachment (if the karcher is suitable I assume there is a foaming attachment I can buy ? )

Let the foam sit for x amount of minutes.

Rinse with pressure washer?

Then apply some shampoo ? Is this done using the same attachment that you apply the snow foam with ?

2 bucket method and clean down the car from roof downwards with suitable microfibres mitts or other suggestions ?

Rinse with pressure washer and then dry with a chamois leather or other suitable drying towel ?

Does that pretty much cover it for a weekly routine ?

Cheers guys !

Edited 4 July, 201510 yr by Jimmymc

Looks like a good plan. To maintain the polish, you can use soap with polish and hand wash with a special microfiber "spounge" or spray a wet polisher over the car before drying the paint with the microfiber towel. You don't need high pressure rinse at last stage. The most important thing is to remove all shampoo/chemicals from the paint. It is sufficient to hose it down thorougly with your garden hose.

Hose with an open end is better for rinsing, if the car is well waxed the water will bead straight off leaving a dry car, pressure wash doesn't.

Your weekly routine looks pretty decent mate. I wash my wheels while the snow foam dwells, so around 5 mins. Bilt hamber autofoam is my favourite.

After the snow foam and rinse, no need to apply shampoo through a lance. Just wash via the 2BM. Clear water in one bucket, shampoo solution in the other. A good wash pad is the Adams wash pad. It is on ebay.

When buying a snow foam lance, just select the Karcher attachment and that will see you right.

A decent drying towel is the paragon yellow drying towel. Chamois leathers may scratch the paint if you get grit underneath it.

Any more questions, just fire away.

A decent drying towel is the paragon yellow drying towel. Chamois leathers may scratch the paint if you get grit underneath it

Anything will scratch if you grit under surely.

 

I'm still old skool and chamois, but that's more because I'm learning, but after trying a drying aid and MF cloth recently I'm sold, that's can, dry in an instant AND  wax.

Anything will scratch if you grit under surely.

 

I'm still old skool and chamois, but that's more because I'm learning, but after trying a drying aid and MF cloth recently I'm sold, that's can, dry in an instant AND  wax.

With a chamois, there is nowhere at all for the grit to go. It will sit on top of the leather and ruin your paint. With a MF, the grit has the fibres to work its way into therefore not causing as much damage if any at all. This is exactly the same reasoning behind not using a sponge and using a lambswool mitt/microfiber mitt/wash pad instead.

OK, I see.  So nothing to worry about if you've done a thorough wash anyway.

Grit gets everywhere buddy. Dust carried through the air can contain sandy particles and will scratch as you wash bud. I wouldn't personally use a chamois. It would undo all that hard work of machining the finish. That's why we all use MF cloths and not leathers. As with all car detailing, it's entirely up to you how you do it though. If you're not too fussed then it's not an issue.

Thanks for all the responses guys. Much appreciated. Will get the bits and bobs ordered this week and give it a go .

Edited 5 July, 201510 yr by Jimmymc

Your weekly routine looks pretty decent mate. I wash my wheels while the snow foam dwells, so around 5 mins. Bilt hamber autofoam is my favourite.

After the snow foam and rinse, no need to apply shampoo through a lance. Just wash via the 2BM. Clear water in one bucket, shampoo solution in the other. A good wash pad is the Adams wash pad. It is on ebay.

When buying a snow foam lance, just select the Karcher attachment and that will see you right.

A decent drying towel is the paragon yellow drying towel. Chamois leathers may scratch the paint if you get grit underneath it.

Any more questions, just fire away.

What do you clean your wheels with mate ? A brush of some sort ?

Will this do the job bud ?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B00HH9QI1C/ref=dp_ob_neva_mobile

http://www.directhoses.net/products/snow-foam-lance

This is a decent lance mate.

http://www.cleanyourcar.co.uk/wheels-and-tyres/vikan-wheel-brush/prod_389.html

I use this brush for the insides of the wheels and an old Micro fibre mitt for behind the spokes and the wheel face.

Hope this helps.

Grit gets everywhere buddy. Dust carried through the air can contain sandy particles and will scratch as you wash bud. I wouldn't personally use a chamois. It would undo all that hard work of machining the finish. That's why we all use MF cloths and not leathers. As with all car detailing, it's entirely up to you how you do it though. If you're not too fussed then it's not an issue.

Ok thanks.

Also don't use the Dirtblaster attachment,that's the one in your picture with the cone shaped end. 

The output is too harsh for your paint.

You might like to add one of the many other detailing/maintenance tasks each time you clean, keep track and over time they are all done and there's no need for one of those 'big' cleaning/detailing sessions.  Eg, one week add to the normal wash with a wipe of the inside of the windows, next week is back to black on the external black plastic, next week is external rubber seals conditioned, and so on.  This is what I do.  I have a list written in a note all on my phone, tick and date against a job when I do it, next wash take a look and do the next job due.

Cheers guys. Will take the advice on board.

I have ordered some KKD snow foam

I am about to order a wash mitt and the snow foam attachment for the karcher.

A couple of buckets too..

Just looking for some advice on shampoo to use for the 2 bucket method please folks ?

Cheers

First wash went well

Although the only real issue I have is getting the bugs off the front grill / front of the car.

Maybe I am being a little light handed and not putting enough elbow grease in with the microfibre wash pad but some of it is not keen on being washed off at all.

Any tips folks ? I understand there are a plethora of products specific to getting rid of bugs but is it really required ? If so, any suggestions as to products that work well ?

Cheers !

Being to hard handed increases the chance of creating light scratches when a piece of tar or dried out bug does let go.

 

There are plenty of specific products to attack those bugs.

I use Gyeon Q2M Tar after foaming, let it soak for a couple of minutes, rinse it with high pressure and most of it is gone. For those really clinging on i use it again a couple of minutes before using the washing mit.

Also have read great things about AutoFinesse citrus power.

 

I also have a Metal Grey vRS, loving it. Color has a great blue-ish tone to it.

Snow foam left to dwell until it has nearly all run off softens the flies enough to allow them to be easily washed off

Thanks both. Appreciated.

I have snow foamed each time I washed the car but it still hasn't got rid of some of the bugs. Maybe I need to alter the concentration. I have ordered some AutoFinesse citrus power in the interim.

Cheers folks.

Yeah I love the metal grey mate. Really please I chose it over the race blue which I was originally set on !

*pleased