How would you Dry at a car wash / as an apartment dweller?

[04lss]

Hi all,

I (unfortunately) live at an apartment complex. I typically either do a rinseless in the parking lot, or take my cars over to the local pay and spray for a bucket wash.
Right now, I use drying towels with whatever drying aid currently has my attention. Im wondering if there is a better way. one particular pain point for me is the wheels and tires. half the time, my towel ends up brushing the ground.

The obvious answer would be a leaf blower, but im not sure I can get away with pulling a full size ego out of my trunk at the pay n spray.
Adams has something new, a handheld air cannon thats cordless. It seems a lot like a rebranded amazon air cannon (TTC did a good review on a lot of these) But for the price, I suspect they have done more to it.

I am wondering what you folks would do here.

 

[Setec Astronomy]

I just looked that Adam's blower up--Makita has had something similar for a long time, and I just searched Home Depot under "mini blower" and there are a lot more options. So if it were me that's what I would do, you just have to pick your favorite. You will still need some sort of drying towel because you will have some drips etc. on the wheels.

 

[04lss]

I just looked that Adam's blower up--Makita has had something similar for a long time, and I just searched Home Depot under "mini blower" and there are a lot more options. So if it were me that's what I would do, you just have to pick your favorite. You will still need some sort of drying towel because you will have some drips etc. on the wheels.

Definitely not looking to get rid of the drying towel, just something to help the process. noted on the mini blowers. Thanks!

 

[BLM]

I have two battery powered blowers that I only use for detailing.
When I do a foam/bucket wash and am rinsing with a hose I use my full size Ego as there is a lot of water that needs removed before I use my drying towels.
However when I do a rinseless wash I can use my compact Ryobi blower which works quite well. When doing a rinseless there is much less water left on the surface so I am really only using the compact blower for grill/ moldings/ mirrors/gas cap recess/wheels and tires. One could use it for the entire car but the Ego is much quicker for that.

RYOBI ONE+ HP 18V Brushless Cordless 220 CFM 140 MPH Compact Leaf Blower (Tool-Only) PSBLB01B - The Home Depot

Provide an essential and ultimate addition to with this durable RYOBI 100 MPH 350 CFM ONE+ Brushless Cordless Variable-Speed Lithium-Ion Jet Fan Blower.

www.homedepot.com

 

[BLM]

Hi all,

half the time, my towel ends up brushing the ground.

I don't use the same drying towel on my wheels that I use on my paint so if it brushes the ground it's no bid deal. They are washed after every use.

 

[04lss]

I have two battery powered blowers that I only use for detailing.
When I do a foam/bucket wash and am rinsing with a hose I use my full size Ego as there is a lot of water that needs removed before I use my drying towels.
However when I do a rinseless wash I can use my compact Ryobi blower which works quite well. When doing a rinseless there is much less water left on the surface so I am really only using the compact blower for grill/ moldings/ mirrors/gas cap recess/wheels and tires. One could use it for the entire car but the Ego is much quicker for that.

RYOBI ONE+ HP 18V Brushless Cordless 220 CFM 140 MPH Compact Leaf Blower (Tool-Only) PSBLB01B - The Home Depot

Provide an essential and ultimate addition to with this durable RYOBI 100 MPH 350 CFM ONE+ Brushless Cordless Variable-Speed Lithium-Ion Jet Fan Blower.

www.homedepot.com

How loud is the mini ryobi? think I could get away with using it at a car wash that has vacuums? I would probably use it for my wheels, tires, and the horizontal surfaces/ glass that tend to hold the most water.

 

[Karl_in_Chicago]

What size towel are you currently using? If you are going to use the same towels for body and wheels you may be better off downsizing the towel - larger towels are going to do what you are experiencing and you'll just spend extra effort and aggro with that size fighting against it. I don't use the larger format anyway but I also don't use the same towels for paint and wheels.

 

[yakky]

Sign up for directtools emails and grab a Ryobi 40v blower and battery combo. They hit $70-80 regularly, occasionally with free shipping. It's as powerful as a plug in leaf blower.

 

[Vegas1]

Sign up for directtools emails and grab a Ryobi 40v blower and battery combo. They hit $70-80 regularly, occasionally with free shipping. It's as powerful as a plug in leaf blower.

Purchased one a month ago and it’s been great.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[BrrrBrrr is verified member.]

I use the water drying method, which is just a running garden hose that sheets the water off, then I use Klasse’s concoction for a drying aid with a large 1500 gsm drying towel, then i use a leaf blower to do the wheels

 

[Karl_in_Chicago]

I use the water drying method, which is just a running garden hose that sheets the water off, then I use Klasse’s concoction for a drying aid with a large 1500 gsm drying towel, then i use a leaf blower to do the wheels

Access to hose/water setups to do that aren't all that common for many apartment dwellers (speaking as one for ~10 years now).

 

[BrrrBrrr is verified member.]

Access to hose/water setups to do that aren't all that common for many apartment dwellers (speaking as one for ~10 years now).

That is true. Ahh just fill up a couple of 5 gallon buckets and dump em on the car lol

 

[BLM]

How loud is the mini ryobi?

It produces 90 decibels.
One nice thing about the Ryobi. You can hold the Ryobi in one hand and a drying towel in the other. Can't do that with the Ego.

 

[Bri26]

I definitely recommend using a different towel to dry the wheels and tires. I use the HF Grants edgeless towels for that purpose. In my opinion, a quality drying towel should only be used for the body of the car.

 

[04lss]

I ended up just buying A dewalt Leaf blower. (yeah, i know Ego and Ryobi are the standards, But ive got a lot of dewalt tools and batteries) Going to test it out tomorrow. I had every intention of buying the Ryobi, Until I got to Home Depot and found out they only sell the kit online, and that for the same price as buying a battery and charger + the blower, I could buy the dewalt, that comes with a battery and charger that work on my other tools.
I also have a Dewalt Cordless Vac and hand held pressure washer, so the extra battery is definitely useful even for my detailing. That reminds me, I need to post a review on here for those.

 

[Optimus Grime]

I have two battery powered blowers that I only use for detailing.
When I do a foam/bucket wash and am rinsing with a hose I use my full size Ego as there is a lot of water that needs removed before I use my drying towels.
However when I do a rinseless wash I can use my compact Ryobi blower which works quite well. When doing a rinseless there is much less water left on the surface so I am really only using the compact blower for grill/ moldings/ mirrors/gas cap recess/wheels and tires. One could use it for the entire car but the Ego is much quicker for that.

RYOBI ONE+ HP 18V Brushless Cordless 220 CFM 140 MPH Compact Leaf Blower (Tool-Only) PSBLB01B - The Home Depot

Provide an essential and ultimate addition to with this durable RYOBI 100 MPH 350 CFM ONE+ Brushless Cordless Variable-Speed Lithium-Ion Jet Fan Blower.

www.homedepot.com

This is what I was going to recommend. I still use my EGO for wheels and grills but it’s a bit loud in my garage. As you said, there’s a lot less water doing a rinse less and this seems more than enough to get the job done.

 

[yakky]

I ended up just buying A dewalt Leaf blower. (yeah, i know Ego and Ryobi are the standards, But ive got a lot of dewalt tools and batteries) Going to test it out tomorrow. I had every intention of buying the Ryobi, Until I got to Home Depot and found out they only sell the kit online, and that for the same price as buying a battery and charger + the blower, I could buy the dewalt, that comes with a battery and charger that work on my other tools.
I also have a Dewalt Cordless Vac and hand held pressure washer, so the extra battery is definitely useful even for my detailing. That reminds me, I need to post a review on here for those.

If you are already in a system, you did the right thing. Multiple battery standards are a waste of money.