How to maintain the detailing result??? Any advice will be accepted!!!

JefriLay

JefriLay

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Hi guys, since I have detailed my car, I want to know the secret recipes to maintain the result. Wheter how to wash and clean it, any advice would be better.
For example if there are so many muds on the paint after I take the car out and then wash it (off course with the correct methods), after several wash, there are some light swirls occured. And I guess it's impossible and not efficient if I polish the car every two month. There must be some way I don't know to prevent the swirls occurance.
So guys, please give me some advice about it....
Thanks in advance guys for the advice..
Feed back please
 
I guess make sure you are using proper washing techniqes and make sure you get rid of any grit or dirt from the wash mit. Clean the mit frequently.

If your paint is really soft you could correct it and then apply something like Opti-Coat or Cquartz which will help release dirt and crud from the paint much easier making washing safer. I have read it is supposed to help reduce wash induced marring as well. I dont know from personal experience yet but Im sure someone will chime in on that.
 
Paint is scratches usually by the way in which it's touched.

So make sure in every way you "touch" the paint, you're doing so as carefully as possible and using the best quality products you can obtain.

Jon aka PAR Detailing suggests applying a "coating" that is less likely to mar or scratch than the paint itself and that is another option.


Hmm... wonder if car manufactures or dealerships will start using these new coating technologies to provide a better product to the customer?
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Of course, if the environment the vehicle is exposed to is hostile to start with, (muddy roads etc., then sometimes these are the kinds of things a person should take into consideration before putting a show car shine on the paint. Otherwise you might be setting yourself up for frustration.

I buffed out a Ford F150 for a Dairy Farmer once, he wanted his truck to look like brand new again so I buffed out all the swirls and scratches. The next time I saw him and his truck he was wearing muck boots and he was all muddy and his truck was all muddy. That's the normal appearance for a Dairy Farmer in Oregon and his truck. No way around it. He didn't care that his work truck would get all muddy again, so I matched my services to his wants.


:)
 
its all about your last step product. a good wax/sealant to protect all the work youve done makes future cleanup a breeze.

My mustang is a swirl magnet. I have an acrylic sealant topped with souv wax and use an ONR QD formula for in between washes. Every couple days ill take a cali duster and remove any polen and then QD and it looks GREAT as long as you keep it waxed. (I tend to use Duragloss Aquawax on a weekly basis...lasts and does a great job keeping up appearances)
 
Just use a spray wax/qd often. That will maintain that high gloss.
 
PAR Detailing said:
I guess make sure you are using proper washing techniqes and make sure you get rid of any grit or dirt from the wash mit. Clean the mit frequently.

If your paint is really soft you could correct it and then apply something like Opti-Coat or Cquartz which will help release dirt and crud from the paint much easier making washing safer. I have read it is supposed to help reduce wash induced marring as well. I dont know from personal experience yet but Im sure someone will chime in on that.
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Greetings PAR Detailing, about the washing tecnique, I have use the technique given by this forum, two buckets methods and using megs wash mitt too. But still there something missing which cause swirls, your opinion will be noted and thanks for sharing too..:xyxthumbs:
 
Larry A said:
Just use a spray wax/qd often. That will maintain that high gloss.
Click to expand...

Greetings Larry,
It's not only about maintaining the high gloss but also to prevent swirls to occur too. And for now I only use UQD to remove dust. By the way, will UQD remove the wax protection???
 
Rafimos said:
its all about your last step product. a good wax/sealant to protect all the work youve done makes future cleanup a breeze.

My mustang is a swirl magnet. I have an acrylic sealant topped with souv wax and use an ONR QD formula for in between washes. Every couple days ill take a cali duster and remove any polen and then QD and it looks GREAT as long as you keep it waxed. (I tend to use Duragloss Aquawax on a weekly basis...lasts and does a great job keeping up appearances)
Click to expand...

Greetings Rafimos,
I'll try digging some information about the products you told me but it seemed the products you use is hard to find in indonesia...
Anyway thanks for sharing:cheers:
 
JefriLay said:
Greetings Larry,
It's not only about maintaining the high gloss but also to prevent swirls to occur too. And for now I only use UQD to remove dust. By the way, will UQD remove the wax protection???
Click to expand...

No. UQD contains polymers that actually enhance wax protection.
 
Larry A said:
Just use a spray wax/qd often. That will maintain that high gloss.
Click to expand...
I disagree. :) You want to touch your paint the least amount possible.

To Jefri, depending on the environment, driving conditions, etc......sometimes there's just not much you can do to avoid swirls, even with proper washing techniques.
 
Some paints/clears are just very soft and scratch easier than others in my experience and no matter how careful you are during washing/drying some light marring/scratching may occur. Thats how it was with my 2000 Mazda Miata, it drove me nuts! My 2011 Mazda Speed3 seems to have much harder clear coat and I haven't had this problem.

07 z-oh-6 said:
I disagree. You want to touch your paint the least amount possible.
Click to expand...

I agree with 07 z-oh-6!

I learned to avoid quick detailers and waterless washing on very soft clear coat. At least use many different towels and shake out the towels often to remove dust if you have to quick detail.

Even for light dust. I personally wouldn't touch it at all unless you rinse it off/pre-soak first, but I understand its not always enough time or dirty enough to justify a full wash.
 
Mike.Phillips@Autogeek said:
Paint is scratches usually by the way in which it's touched.

So make sure in every way you "touch" the paint, you're doing so as carefully as possible and using the best quality products you can obtain.

Jon aka PAR Detailing suggests applying a "coating" that is less likely to mar or scratch than the paint itself and that is another option.





Of course, if the environment the vehicle is exposed to is hostile to start with, (muddy roads etc., then sometimes these are the kinds of things a person should take into consideration before putting a show car shine on the paint. Otherwise you might be setting yourself up for frustration.

I buffed out a Ford F150 for a Dairy Farmer once, he wanted his truck to look like brand new again so I buffed out all the swirls and scratches. The next time I saw him and his truck he was wearing muck boots and he was all muddy and his truck was all muddy. That's the normal appearance for a Dairy Farmer in Oregon and his truck. No way around it. He didn't care that his work truck would get all muddy again, so I matched my services to his wants.


:)
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Hi Mike :)
Glad you reply this thread.
About the condition, I rarely use the car, maybe 4 times a month average but sometimes it rained when I take the car out, that's where all this mud come from.
FYI: the car's year is 2008, the kilometer is 32,145km.
So when the car is really dirty, I wash it. But if the car is not to dirty, just got some dust on it, I only apply UQD to remove dust.
Mike, is it okay to use high pressure washer to remove dirt which is so sticky to the paint? And will high pressure washer leave the swirls when it remove the dirt?
Thanks Mike for the info.:props:
 
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Jon makes a good point about the coating and like Mike said always have the utmost care when touching your paint.

Yes, touch the paint as little as possible but wash it often enough that you don't have to scrub. If you feel like you have to scrub then you need another soap or a different wash media for that area. Depending on how soft the paint is it may be impossible to avoid swirls. On my Sky I am able to go an entire year and still have (being completely honest here believe it or not) barely any... maybe just one or three of those hairlines that are visible in the sun. On my Saturn SL's on the other hand I have quite a few more hairlines visible in the sun within just a couple months. I attribute this to a couple things. The paint on my Sky is much harder than on the SL's Also I take much better care with my Sky when washing. Rather than wash a full panel with the mitt before turning it or rinsing it I wash just a small section and then flip and then rinse.

When I wash I use a mf chennille mitt and therefore I spray the mitt out good after every section with the hose. The mf mitt grabs the dirt of the paint very nicely but it also holds onto dirt like it has claws. Thats why I hose it off. I don't believe rubbing mf against any grit guard is going to get all the dirt off it. With another type of wash media that is more likely. Lately I have been considering doing away with the rinse bucket with my technique because I don't hink it does any good since I spend so much time spraying my mitt down.
However, I have been thinking about buying a couple top quality merino wool mitts in which case my wash technique might change some and a rinse bucket might be sufficient.

Remember to rinse the car really good with a good pressure nozzle.

You may consider adding 1/2 oz of ONR to your wash bucket.

What car wash do you use?

What wash media do you use?

What towels do you use?

What is your toweling method?
 
I think I found the perfect way to maintain a detailed car.
I did my wife's car over the weekend and this week is spring break. We both took the week off and her car hasn't left the garage since I detailed it.
Now if only I can get her to take the bus to work from now on.
 
you might also consider adding a foam gun and leaf blower to your arsenal.

I haven't used a foam gun since I wash weekly and don't get alot of mud or other buildup on my car very often but it is supposed to help soften and loosen the dirt beforehand so the pressure washer has an easier time getting it off (see the M Phillips article about getting a dried bird turd off your paint -- same idea).

The leaf blower is for blowing most of the water off the car and out of crevices like the side mirrors and gas cap areas. Then you can use a QD and waffle weave to blot the rest. Avoid using a rubbing motion when drying.
 
07 z-oh-6 said:
I disagree. :) You want to touch your paint the least amount possible.

To Jefri, depending on the environment, driving conditions, etc......sometimes there's just not much you can do to avoid swirls, even with proper washing techniques.
Click to expand...

Hi Mark...
Before I got frustrated after my detailing project, I should know how to prevent the swirls occurance. If there are no exact methods to prevent it, at least I have try my best to prevent the swirls for coming again to my car.
Thank you my friend :righton:
 
embolism said:
The leaf blower is for blowing most of the water off the car and out of crevices like the side mirrors and gas cap areas. Then you can use a QD and waffle weave to blot the rest. Avoid using a rubbing motion when drying.
Click to expand...


I use an air compressor to get wells, and all crevices. Then to get the last drops off the hood and horizontal surfaces I spread the ww towel across the hood and very slowly drag it back to me.
 
TornadoRed said:
I think I found the perfect way to maintain a detailed car.
I did my wife's car over the weekend and this week is spring break. We both took the week off and her car hasn't left the garage since I detailed it.
Now if only I can get her to take the bus to work from now on.
Click to expand...

I think that would be too much TornadoRed :laughing:LOL
What's the point if after detailing a car we can't show it to public and keep it in our garage...
But I think that surely maintain the result of our detailing project :)
Anyway thanks for the respond TornadoRed
 
embolism said:
you might also consider adding a foam gun and leaf blower to your arsenal.

I haven't used a foam gun since I wash weekly and don't get alot of mud or other buildup on my car very often but it is supposed to help soften and loosen the dirt beforehand so the pressure washer has an easier time getting it off (see the M Phillips article about getting a dried bird turd off your paint -- same idea).

The leaf blower is for blowing most of the water off the car and out of crevices like the side mirrors and gas cap areas. Then you can use a QD and waffle weave to blot the rest. Avoid using a rubbing motion when drying.
Click to expand...

Greetings from Indonesia embolism,
I have a plan to buy high pressure washer so the dirt will easily removed before I wash it... I'll try digging some info too about
leaf blower. Thanks embolism for the respond :dblthumb2:
 
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