How to choose and use a one-step cleaner/wax by Mike Phillips

[Mike PhillipsMike Phillips is verified member.]

How to choose and use a one-step cleaner/wax by Mike Phillips

In the old days, before clearcoat paints were the norm and all new cars and repaints were done using single stage lacquer or enamel, there were some very aggressive one-step cleaner/waxes on the market. In fact, I remember seeing products called compound waxes. These products were basically aggressive compounds with wax in them. In one step they could restore severely oxidized single stage paint job and leave behind a water beading shiny finish.

Those days and those products are gone since the introduction of modern clear coats. Those types of products would be too aggressive to use on a clear coat finish as they would leave the paint looking scratched and scoured. That’s not going to win you any customers or friends.

Because modern clearcoat paints are scratch-sensitive, meaning they scratch easily, and because the scratches are highly visible to the naked eye, manufacturers have toned down the aggressiveness of their one-step cleaner/waxes.



Your goal
When doing a one-step, your goal is to use the least aggressive cleaner/wax possible to get the job done because even when using high quality products, pads, tools and techniques, there’s always the risk of leaving micro-marring in the paint.



The secret to successfully doing one-steps
The secret to using a one-step cleaner/ wax without micro-marring the paint is to use the softest foam pad you can get away with. When I say,

Use the softest foam pad you can get away with….


This means you need to do some testing with both your cleaner/wax and some soft foam polishing or waxing pads and test to see if your softest pad will leave behind a clear, shiny finish without micro-marring or hazing the paint. This means you need to have a selection of soft pads in your pad collection.


Examples of soft foam pads include,

Lake Country Hybrid Pads = White & Gray
Lake Country Flat Pads = White & Gray
Lake Country CCS Pads = Pink, White, Green, Gray, Blue, Red and Gold.




Cleaner/Wax Options
There is no industry standard for categorizing cleaner/waxes by how light or how strong they are as it relates to cleaning ability. Below I’ve included a selection of reputable brands and placed them into one of three different categories.

I have purposely left out a category for aggressive cleaner/waxes as there aren’t any such products that are safe to use on clearcoat finishes. There are aggressive cleaner/waxes in the marine world for gel-coat finishes but that’s another book another day.





Three categories of cleaner/waxes

Category #1 - Very Light Cleaning
Products in this category are for the most part non-abrasive and only offer light chemical cleaning ability. Products in the category are your best bet to remove light surface staining, embedded dirt and light oxidation.

Example: Klasse All-in-One is a chemical only one-step cleaner/sealant. It doesn’t use wax for the protection ingredient but instead uses an acrylic polymer thus the term cleaner/sealant instead of cleaner/wax.

Recommended Pads: Soft foam waxing or jewelling pads for light cleaning, polishing pads for more neglected surfaces.

Speed Setting: 3-5



Category #2 - Light Cleaning
Combination of both chemical cleaners and fine, ultra fine micro-abrasives. Products I this category are limited in their ability to actually remove below surface defects like swirls and scratches. They can remove shallow depth scratches but not deeper swirls and scratches. You can increase their cutting ability by using more aggressive pads but then you must be watchful that you are not at the same time leaving behind any haze or micro-marring due to the more aggressiveness of the pad. These products do not and are not intended to be major swirl and scratch removers.

Example: Optimum G-P-S. Optimum G-P-S offers chemical cleaners and micro abrasives for very light cleaning ability.

Recommended Pads: Soft foam waxing or jewelling pads for light cleaning, polishing pads for more neglected surfaces.

Speed Setting: 3-5



Category #3 - Medium Cleaning
Products in category #3 normally use a combination of both chemical cleaners and abrasives. Cleaner/waxes in this group will offer the most ability to actually remove swirls and scratches via their abrasive technology but they also bring with them the most potential to leave micro-marring in the paint for this same reason.

Example: Meguiar’s D151 Correction Crème. D151 offers probably the most ability to remove swirls and scratches while still being safe for factory paints.

Recommended Pads: Soft foam waxing or jewelling pads for light cleaning, polishing pads for more neglected surfaces. For light colored cars you can get away with foam cutting pads but be aware that just because you don’t see haze or micro-marring doesn’t mean it’s not there.

Speed Setting: 3-5



Sage Advice
If you follow the sage wisdom shared in the philosophy of using the least aggressive product to get the job done you would choose a product in category #1 or #2. The problem with this is that if you’re working on a finish that is neglected, then a product in this category is realistically not aggressive enough to undo years of neglect and create noticeable improvement that will satisfy the expectations of your customers.



Have a full tool box
My best advice for doing one-step production work is have a cleaner/wax from each category in your arsenal and always start by doing some testing and inspecting the results before buffing out the entire vehicle. In other words, have a full tool box.




Category #1 - Very Light Cleaning

Klasse All-In-One

Finish Kare #2180 Ultra Polymer Sealant

Meguiar’s Mirror Glaze #21 Synthetic Sealant 2.0

Meguiar’s Mirror Glaze #20 Polymer Sealant




Category #2 - Light Cleaning

Optimum G-P-S

Finish Kare #215 One Step Cleaner Sealant

Pinnacle XMT 360

BLACKFIRE Total Polish & Seal

Meguiar’s Mirror Glaze #6 Professional Cleaner Wax

Griot’s Garage One-Step Sealant

Menzerna Sealing Wax APO

Dodo Juice Need For Speed Cleaner Wax

Auto Finesse Tripple Al In One Polish

3M One Step Cleaner Wax




Category #3 - Medium Cleaning

Meguiar’s Detailer #D151 Paint Reconditioning Cream

Meguiar’s Mirror Glaze #66 Quick Detailer




Cleaner/Waxes

 

[addysdaddy]

bump for reference - thanks Mike

 

[Mike PhillipsMike Phillips is verified member.]

The key to using one-step cleaner/waxes on neglected cars is to use these types of products heavy or wet.

It's always stated,

Apply a thin coat of wax

And that's true for a non-cleaning LSP that's being applied to paint in perfect condition.

But when using a one-step cleaner/wax or AIO on neglected paint you want plenty of abrasives, chemical cleaners, cleaning solvents and lubrication to be working for you to undo the damage.

That's what is meant by using a product heavy or wet.

Don't overuse a product just don't skimp when using cleaner/waxes. Save the skimping for the thin layer of a show car wax or sealant.

 

[Klasse Act]

I for one appreciate this bit of info Mike, thanks!

Sent from my SPH-M930 using AG Online

 

[Mike PhillipsMike Phillips is verified member.]

I for one appreciate this bit of info Mike, thanks!

Thank you.


The above is actually just a smidgen of a larger project. The above portion answered the questions another member had in another thread.

 

[David Hayward]

I just ordered your book the other day. Is there stuff like this in there or does it mostly go over higher end finishing work?

 

[Bunky]

There is also Poorboy's Polish with Sealant or Carnauba. Of the above, it seemed to have more but than BF TPnS.

 

[Mike PhillipsMike Phillips is verified member.]

I just ordered your book the other day. Is there stuff like this in there or does it mostly go over higher end finishing work?

Both editions explain how to use both one-step cleaner/waxes and non-cleaning waxes or finishing waxes or finishing sealants.

The primary difference is,


With a one-step cleaner/wax, in most cases the whole reason a person would use this category of product is to save time and if detailing for money, to maximize profits.

Because a one-step cleaner/wax is going to clean, (abrade the finish), you need to use higher speeds and the softest pad you can get away with. (like I explain above).




With a finishing wax, or a finishing sealant, that is products that don't offer zero cleaning ability, you use lower speeds and the softest pads you can buy because you're not trying to remove defect you're just trying to spread the product out.

By definition, a non-cleaning product should only be applied to paint that is new or like new. When I say like new, that means "you" or someone has clayed and polished older paint so that it is like new. New paint should be clear, clean and smooth.



Make sense?


Please share how you like the book....

 

[Keefe]

Thanks! Very useful information.

Sent from my GT-N5120 using Tapatalk

 

[hernandez.art13]

Have any of you guys used this as a 1 step?


Meguiars DA Microfiber Finishing Wax

 

[Mike PhillipsMike Phillips is verified member.]

Have any of you guys used this as a 1 step?


Meguiars DA Microfiber Finishing Wax

I have not... interesting though as I never thought about the "name" for this product till you posted it to this thread.

Historically a "Finishing Wax" is a NON cleaning wax or show car wax. The reason being is because all the work or other steps are already performed or the paint is already in new condition so no cleaners or cleaning action is needed in a "finishing wax".


In the context of the Meguiar's Microfiber DA Correction System "system" then it is a finishing wax because it's doing the final step of the process by cleaning up any haze left by the first step so it is "finishing" but it's technically not a finishing wax it's a polish/wax.


I would highly recommend doing a Test Spot first if a person wanted to use this as a one-step cleaner/wax or AIO and I'd also recommend to test with both microfiber and foam pads. Test to see which pad is working the best and also leaving behind the best looking finish.


While I know the intent behind the choice for using the words

Finishing Wax


For this product that's part of a system, historically a finishing wax is the same as a pure wax or show car wax in that it's doesn't have any cleaning ability, thus you "finish" off a car using a finishing wax after having already used a dedicated compound and dedicated polish.


Finishing wax = non-cleaning
Finishing sealant = non-cleaning
Paint coating = non-cleaing


Cleaner/wax = cleaning
AIO = cleaning
Meguiar's Finishing Wax = cleaning

 

[Stark99]

Hi Mike

Thanks for the great info on the uses and strengths of the various AIO products. I am hoping you can help me with the following questions?

1) In what categories would you place the new Menzerna 3 in 1 and Wolfgang Uber AIO?

2) Can safely use an AIO every 6 months on a car without damaging the paint over several years.

3) If I am planning on applying a carnauba wax like collinite 915 as an LSP would I be better of just using a polish instead of a AIO as the 'first' step.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Dereksdtail]

Have any of you guys used this as a 1 step?





Meguiars DA Microfiber Finishing Wax

Interesting, I'm going to have to experiment now!

 

[Mike PhillipsMike Phillips is verified member.]

Hi Mike

Thanks for the great info on the uses and strengths of the various AIO products. I am hoping you can help me with the following questions?

1) In what categories would you place the new Menzerna 3 in 1 and Wolfgang Uber AIO?

Great question since I wrote this article before these two products were introduced. The answer would be category #3 - Medium Cleaning.

2) Can safely use an AIO every 6 months on a car without damaging the paint over several years.

In my opinion yes because they really are not all that aggressive. Keep in mind how aggressive they are is in part controlled by you and how aggressively you work them and WHAT you work them with.

There's a HUGE difference between applying a cleaner/wax with a wool pad on a rotary buffer and gently applying the same product by hand using a foam applicator pad.


The BIG PICTURE is to take care of a car's paint i a way that you don't put swirls and scratches back into the paint requiring the more aggressive cleaner/waxes or AIOs to undo the damage.

Instead, wash the car carefully either you do it by hand or take it to a touchless car wash and then use a one-step cleaner/wax as a maintenance product to remove road film and other surface impurities that build up over time to daily drivers.

See my article here on how paint gets dirty and not the kind of dirty that washes off...


Road Film - If you drive your car in the rain your car has road film

3)

If I am planning on applying a carnauba wax like Collinite 915 as an LSP would I be better of just using a polish instead of a AIO as the 'first' step.

Thanks in advance.

In my opinion the answer is yes.

If you're going to invest the effort and time into applying something to the paint to prep it for the LSP might as well be a dedicated polishing step using a dedicated fine cut or medium cut polish and then seal the paint.

Just stick with products that use great abrasive technology so you're doing great work in the first place.

 

[TheAverageMan]

Hi Mike, great article.
I read that most consumer commercial wax products have some kind of a cleaning ability in them. So my question is, does Ultimate Liquid Wax or Ultimate Paste Wax count as a cleaner wax to you?

If it does, where would they rank in your three categories?

 

[trekkeruss]

does Ultimate Liquid Wax or Ultimate Paste Wax count as a cleaner wax to you?

I am definitely not Mike, but I'm quite sure Ultimate waxes have no cleaning or polishing abilities at all. They are also not waxes, but sealants. Meguiar's only chooses to name them waxes so as not to confuse the general public. Nevermind that it still leads to confusion.

 

[Mike PhillipsMike Phillips is verified member.]

Hi Mike, great article.

Thank you.

I read that most consumer commercial wax products have some kind of a cleaning ability in them.

Possibly you read that in my article here as I explain that the majority of consumer or retail car waxes are cleaner/waxes and more important I explain WHY.



The Difference Between a Cleaner/Wax and a Finishing Wax

Subtitle: How To Choose The Right Wax or Paint Sealant for your Detailing Project

So my question is, does Ultimate Liquid Wax or Ultimate Paste Wax count as a cleaner wax to you?

No. These products are for paint already in new or like new condition, that is clear, glossy and clean.



Good questions!


:dblthumb2:

 

[MIsnowman]

Mike, what would be a good AIO for single stage paint then? I see in your first post you said that aggressive cleaner waxes went away after the move to base/clear coat paint on autos, but there is still a lot of SS paint in the Ag industry. Most of our tractors and combines are in good condition, but they need more than the OTC "cleaner" waxes to get them back to great condition. With the size of them, using a compound or polish followed by a wax or sealant would take forever!! I'm looking for something that will clean up the paint and provide protection. Thanks

 

[Mike PhillipsMike Phillips is verified member.]

Mike, what would be a good AIO for single stage paint then?

I see in your first post you said that aggressive cleaner waxes went away after the move to base/clear coat paint on autos, but there is still a lot of SS paint in the Ag industry.

I also said that aggressive cleaner/waxes were still available in the marine industry for gel-coat boats.


From my article,

How to choose and use a one-step cleaner/wax by Mike Phillips

Cleaner/Wax Options
There is no industry standard for categorizing cleaner/waxes by how light or how strong they are as it relates to cleaning ability. Below I’ve included a selection of reputable brands and placed them into one of three different categories.

I have purposely left out a category for aggressive cleaner/waxes as there aren’t any such products that are safe to use on clearcoat finishes. There are aggressive cleaner/waxes in the marine world for gel-coat finishes but that’s another book another day.

Most of our tractors and combines are in good condition, but they need more than the OTC "cleaner" waxes to get them back to great condition.

With the size of them, using a compound or polish followed by a wax or sealant would take forever!!

I'm looking for something that will clean up the paint and provide protection. Thanks

Here's what I would recommend, get a quart of our Marine 31 Gel Coat Heavy-Cut Cleaner Wax.

Marine 31 Gel Coat Heavy-Cut Cleaner Wax

Put a note in the comments section of your order to let Nick know you're getting this product upon my recommendation.

Or call Nick and cite this thread.

1-800-869-3011 x215


Be sure to take some good before and after pictures.


:dblthumb2:

 

[Hoytman]

Mike,
From reading at MOL I recently learned that Meguiar's White wax is a cleaner wax or AIO product with SMAT abrasives in it. This brought to mind the questions of; what types of abrasives are used in some of the other products mentioned in this thread. That leading to another question of abrasive size and another less talked about question of how much of a particular type of abrasive is in a given product/bottle. Obviously, the categories you put some of the products into can help us decide which product to use for a given paint condition and is very helpful in that regard.

Perhaps those questions would be questions for a chemist though.


Not wanting/trying to over think this, just more curious than anything.

On forums I haven't read too many posts talking about abrasive technology in AIO products, but that doesn't mean those threads/posts aren't "out there".


EDIT:
Been meaning to try some Marine31 products. Still need to do that.