Cold Weather Tactics

Dave Medvic

Dave Medvic

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Looking to see if any of you Mobile Detailers have discovered any tricks for working outside when the temp. starts to drop below what our compounds/Waxes prefer. Meguiars tech line said not to work below 55 degrees, I've tried keeping products warm by a fireplace and washing the vehicle with hot water to get the metal where I want it. Past that I have no other ideas to keep working.
thanks,
Dave
 
Well for me personally I have a heated garage with warm and cold softened water taps.

BUT at -4(-20C) and -13 (-30C), i have a few tactics to keep it warm!

First on ebay for $50 i bought myself an electric patio heater that i turn on roughly 10 mins before I start washing and correcting, i can be comfortable in jeans and a tee for hours on end.

If the paint is still too cold after a hot wash, i point the heater at it for a couple of minutes to bring it up to around 70 (20C).

Having one of these guys is really helpful, especially for certain sealants that require specific temperatures
MicroTemp MT-PRO Digital Infrared Thermometer

Really for your products, as long as it stays above freezing, your soaps, APC, cleansers, and compounds will be fine. Ive always kept them in my garage, never had a problem. Although super cold days id just put a space heater on the shelf and turn it on!

Wax and sealants on the other hand Id recommend keeping them inside, when the wax freezes or gets to near it ruins the "temper" making it a goopy consistency, rendering it useless.

But if you have any questions feel free to ask! :)

-ps welcome to the forum!
 
I did a LOT of cold weather detailing as a mobile detailer. Many times the water froze on the panels after a wash. I realized that the side of the car that's facing the sunshine would thaw so I'd work that side and then turn the car around to do the other side. At some point I just started telling potential customers "no heated garage, no detail.. It's just too cold out."

My landlord up at the shop was tripping about me not having heat at the shop. He was much more worried about it than I was. I told him, "Dude...you have no idea how nice it is just to have 4 walls and a roof this year." I eventually did buy a kerosene heater to knock the chill off.

Freezing temps was a real pain to work in. I'd put my clay in a ziplock bag and shove it down my pants during the wash..lol I never really had too much of a problem with polishes not working but I would use AIO products like Poorboy's PWS or Optimum's Poli-Seal. Whether it cured properly or not I couldn't really say...Other than to say that no customer ever complained down the road.
 
Coscto sells a really good fan space heater I have seen. You might want to put it on the ground as heat will rise quickly
 
Bill1234 said:
Coscto sells a really good fan space heater I have seen. You might want to put it on the ground as heat will rise quickly
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If nothing else he could heat his hands with it. Heck I've taken a heat gun along and warmed panels (and my hands) before working on cars out in the cold.
 
Andre3Wilson: Thanks for the welcome and the advice, I feel like since I've joined the forum that a lot of you guys are like long lost brothers.It's great to be connected to folks who have "been in the trenches" as I am newer to this.Been waxing most of my life but only in the last year seriously and with a DA buffer.
Tuscarora Dave: pretty good idea with the claybar baggie trick,i'm logging that one in.
Bill1234: we have a Costco right in town now and I'll take a look at their space heater and also the Piano style. What makes me nervous is that Meguiar's is firm about application Temp. and if the compound won't perform I could not charge someone to detail their car after I promised to remove their swirls/scratches.
 
dmedvic said:
Andre3Wilson: Thanks for the welcome and the advice, I feel like since I've joined the forum that a lot of you guys are like long lost brothers.It's great to be connected to folks who have "been in the trenches" as I am newer to this.Been waxing most of my life but only in the last year seriously and with a DA buffer.
Tuscarora Dave: pretty good idea with the claybar baggie trick,i'm logging that one in.
Bill1234: we have a Costco right in town now and I'll take a look at their space heater and also the Piano style. What makes me nervous is that Meguiar's is firm about application Temp. and if the compound won't perform I could not charge someone to detail their car after I promised to remove their swirls/scratches.
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Now problem!!

I cant speak for megs compounds, but i know with my Menzerna stuff, the DA polisher will heat up quite a bit, warming the panel and compound. Also I have polished a car with the panel temperature easily below 50, i think of it this way. Compound is abrasive no matter what, is sandpaper abrasive below freezing?
Really where temperature affects polishing is the how hard the Clear Coat gets. When a CC is hot, its soft and malleable, cold its harder.. But really with a space heater on it I dont think you will have too much problem :)

As a Canadian all i really gotta say is "give er"
 
My girls, stepdad, hooked up a gas heater in his 2 car garage. He is in upstate ny and in the dead of winter we will work on cars, with short sleaves on and still sweating. It takes about 5 minutes to warm it up.
 
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