Washing Your Car the Right Way

Contents

Swirls and small scratches in the paint ruin a vehicle’s appearance. Those swirls occur when small particles of grit and dirt rub against the car’s paint, often from dirty rags or towels. They are especially visible on darker colors. If the paint already has swirls and micro scratches, consider polishing the car first to remove the imperfections.

Going to a typical car wash with rotating brushes and slapping strips of fabric commonly results in a flawed paint finish. Hand washing your car might also add swirls, marring, or damage to the paint. Thats’ what you can avoid by following these guidelines.

What You’ll Need

It’s helpful if you can add these tools for wash day:

Pressure washer with foam cannon
Foam gun
Air dryer
Leaf blower

Get Ready

Evaluate the car

Before dragging out the hose and buckets, take a good look at the car. How long has it been since the last wash? Is there any tree sap or contamination bonded to the car’s surface? If so, claying the car’s paint before washing is in order.

Have you ignored the layers of brake dust resting on the rims? If so, plan to spend extra time to make them spotless. And if you have a collection of bug parts on your hood, you might need to pretreat that area to help eliminate the mess.

Prepare your car washing area

You need a clean patch of driveway or concrete to wash the car. Access to water is essential, and nearby electrical plugs can prove helpful. The site should be away from direct sun and have enough room to open all the doors.

Pressure washer

You can use a gas or electric pressure washer for some parts of a car wash. These washers help direct the water and cleaners more efficiently. This tool is optional, but pressure washers use less water and can be used for other household chores.

7 Steps for a Clean Car

It’s time to gather your gear and get started. If a cloth or wash mitt drops to the ground at any point, do not reuse it. Remember that any specks of dirt can mar the paint. Set aside a dirty cloth for a thorough cleaning and get a new cloth instead.

Set your hose nozzle for a strong stream of water and rinse your car, starting at the top of the vehicle and working your way down and around. Make sure to direct the water at the wheel wells and rims, too.
Optional use of power washer: If you use a power washer, only use a wide fan setting. A narrow, focused stream of water can easily damage your car’s paint. If your pressure washer has a pressure setting, start low and increase if necessary to dislodge dirt.
Apply a quality liquid concentrate soap using the two-bucket system with grit guards so dirt from the wash mitt doesn’t scratch the car’s paint. We prefer Meguiar’s Gold Class Car Wash. Do not use a powder detergent as the powder might not dissolve completely and mar the paint. Do not use dishwashing soap, which can remove wax or sealants previously applied to the car.
Start at the top of the car and apply as much foam as possible to remove dirt without unnecessary force. Work your way down and around with your wash mitt, moving the mitt in straight lines.
Wash below the “beltline” of the car (usually below a subtle fold in the panels) last, frequently rinsing the wash mitt. This area will likely have the most dirt and grime, so frequent changes in wash water are essential.
Optional use of foam gun or foam cannon: To maximize the amount of foam applied to a car, use a foam gun or cannon. A foam gun is attached to a water hose and holds a small container of concentrated car wash. The water mixes with this detergent and produces a moderate amount of foam. If you want the maximum amount of foam, a attach the foam cannon to the pressure washer. It, too, holds a concentrated car wash cleaner, and thick foam is produced when applied via the power washer. Car detailing suppliers offer soaps specifically for these devices. Chemical Guy’s Honeydew Snow Foam Auto Wash is a great option.
Use a tire brush or dedicated tire cloth to apply soap to the tires and rims.
Rinse off the car, again starting at the top and working your way down. Scrutinize the car for any remaining dirt. Reapply the car wash detergent as needed.
For the final rinse, remove the hose nozzle and let the water stream freely over the car. The water will “sheet” off the vehicle rather than beading up, making it easier to dry.

Shop now for foam cannons

The Post-Wash Process

Drying the car needs to be done quickly. Remove the water before it dries and leaves spots all over your newly clean vehicle. Drape a plush microfiber cloth on the car’s roof, then slowly drag it off the top. The microfiber will absorb the water, and you should have a dry car panel. Don’t let the cloth touch the ground as you pull it off the roof.

Move along to the hood and trunk, then dry off the glass. You will return to do the final touch on the glass but try to remove any water now to reduce spotting.

Now, fold your microfiber cloth into fourths. For each body panel, swap the used portion of the microfiber for a fresh section. Starting at the top, dry the sides of the vehicle. Use long swipes of the microfiber along the car’s body. Go right-to-left or up-and-down, but avoid going in circles. One pass should remove all the water.

The exterior mirrors and trim pieces often contain extra water that dribble out. Examine the car when done for any remaining water to remove.

Optional drying technique: Detailing supply companies sell handheld concentrated blowers to blow the water from the body panels, so the need for microfibers is significantly reduced. Again, start at the top of the car and allow the water to blow off the panels. The blower should remove additional water trapped behind trim pieces and molding, so pay special attention to those areas.

Shop now for microfiber towels

You can use a leaf blower to do the same technique. Since the leaf blower is longer, it is awkward to use at first. Be careful not to hit the car with the edge of the nozzle. You can also use the blowers to dry the wheels.

The Devil’s in the Detailing

Now’s the time to use glass cleaner and a fresh microfiber cloth on the windows. We prefer an aerosol can of cleaner, like SprayWay Glass Cleaner, to get good results. Remember to do the side mirrors as well.

Use a dedicated microfiber cloth to wipe down the wheels and remove any remaining brake dust.

Look over the car and touch up any water spots or overlooked areas of grime.

The first time you wash a car, expect to spend an hour. You can reduce this time to under 30 minutes with practice and routine maintenance. This is a minor investment in time to behold your shiny, clean car.