Mix degreaser with waterless/rinseless to cut grime?

Machine154

Machine154

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It is winter in Alaska, so outdoor washing is out. I've signed up for unlimited touchless and plan to keep doing rinseless/waterless at home every couple weeks. After a touchless wash yesterday, I started my rinseless this morning and had a rough go at it. I abandoned drying and plan to do the whole Jeep Grand Cherokee again.

First pass:
-ONR at rinseless concentration in a 5 gal bucket
-Pre-spray with ONR at waterless concentration
-Microfiber mitt
Problem: Without pressure, it will not remove the grime buildup at the lower 1/2 of the sides and back.

I also brought out my Optima waterless and sprayed it. It also would not remove the grime, but I can tell it slides better over it than ONR. This was a good comparison test which I hadn't done before.

I tried adding a little car wash detergent (O'Reilly's) to my bucket hoping it cut the grime without reducing lubricity. No luck cutting the grime.

I pulled out some CRC Hydroforce Spray Degreaser. It made me cough a little, so not sure how healthy it is at full concentration, but it definitely made an impact on the grime. I started pre-spraying first with degreaser and then misting with waterless wash and it worked fairly well.

In the future, would it make sense to add degreaser to my waterless wash sprayer for a winter-only solution? Maybe with a little dilution, the degreaser would be easier on my lungs too.

Any other suggestions for me?

I still need to do the whole car over again with waterless at least.
 
What kind of lsp/protection do you have on the paint? Was the paint clayed and smooth just prior to laying down said protection? If so, how long ago was that?
 
I was using up Zaino over the spring and summer and then did a traditional wax approximately 3 months ago. Clayed ahead of that. I see where you’re going. :)


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Yeah, wax 3 months ago means you have no LSP now and it will stick pretty good.
 
ONR cuts serious grime for me. Not sure I'd chance a minimal improvement while possibly breaking the lubrication properties of ONR. Maybe mix up the ONR at a higher concentration.
 
yakky said:
ONR cuts serious grime for me. Not sure I'd chance a minimal improvement while possibly breaking the lubrication properties of ONR. Maybe mix up the ONR at a higher concentration.
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The ONR wasn’t making any impact multiple passes with waterless concentration (doused) but the degreaser did a lot. I think my grime must be different. Might be something they put in the sand mix or chemical sprays up here.


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yakky said:
ONR cuts serious grime for me. Not sure I'd chance a minimal improvement while possibly breaking the lubrication properties of ONR. Maybe mix up the ONR at a higher concentration.
Click to expand...

Nothing’s going to cut serious grime effectively unless he’s got a fresh and solid layer of protection layed over smooth paint at the base.
 
Machine154 said:
Might be something they put in the sand mix or chemical sprays up here.


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Click to expand...

Could be.. I have no experience with those conditions, so I can’t speculate on what that must be like. Sounds like a major inconvenience.
 
Thanks guys. I’m going to put a monthly reminder for myself to get new protection laid down while it’s winter. It was on the schedule for this weekend but definitely was too long in between, particularly with road sand physically eroding whatever was there. Especially near the rocker panels.


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Being a Geek in Alaska has to be a challenge. FK 1000p would be something I would be using up there. Wax doesn’t have a chance.
 
I wouldn't mix degreaser with any rinseless or waterless wash. That would break down the lubricants in the mix. I would use a diluted degreaser, and then use the rinseless wash to help remove the degreaser and the grime it has softened up.

I live in Alabama, though. Winter here is pretty easy.

Bill
 
rangerbay said:
I wouldn't mix degreaser with any rinseless or waterless wash. That would break down the lubricants in the mix. I would use a diluted degreaser, and then use the rinseless wash to help remove the degreaser and the grime it has softened up.

I live in Alabama, though. Winter here is pretty easy.

Bill
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I did already try to get myself unstuck from this situation, putting together a cocktail of 1.5 oz ONR, 1.5 oz Degreaser, and 12 oz water. It was slick over the clean parts and dragged over the grime parts, but did slowly dissolve the grime. Downside is it streaked like a mutha and I had to do a 3rd waterless wash.

Wax tomorrow. I’m done with this day.


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I gotta believe whatever they are putting on the roads up there is seriously different than even what we have here in the rust belt. What is your daytime high time and nighttime low like this time of year?
 
Right now it’s 20’s/30’s, but we’ve already been single digits. It’s greatly affected by weather patterns in the Gulf of Alaska.

They generally don’t use salt here, except to keep the ‘sand’ from clumping (which is really gravel). Not sure what else might go in it. If you drive the highway every day like me, you’re guaranteed a broken windshield over winter pretty much. I’ve got my first crack going this season and it’s migrating.

They also lay down a chemical spray in certain key areas like on ramps and bridges at particularly hazardous times.

It’s best when it just stays cold once it freezes but lately it’s been a mess of freeze/thaw cycles. Even though I’m getting the Jeep cleaned up, it will still be trashed Monday because it’s supposed to snow and melt.


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I would put some P21s Total Auto Wash diluted 30:1 in a pump sprayer. Spray the lower panels and use a fine brush to adgitat. Do a rinseless over it and you should be fine.

If you need something a little stronger, add some Power Clean.
 
ducksfan said:
I would put some P21s Total Auto Wash diluted 30:1 in a pump sprayer. Spray the lower panels and use a fine brush to adgitat. Do a rinseless over it and you should be fine.

If you need something a little stronger, add some Power Clean.
Click to expand...

Thanks - a citrus degreaser is a good idea and should be easier on the lungs. I like the brush idea, I am always hesitant to use brushes except around my emblems and I need to get over that.


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Megs degreaser at 5 to 1 spray and let dwell. Use a plush mf towel soaked in rinseless solution and wipe away grime and salt. Once clean lay a quality sealant on clean paint.

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Do you have an option to use a degreaser before you drive in to the touchless wash? That way you would have a more thorough cleaning there. And the new dirt build up would be easier for the ONR or what else waterless wash or rinseless wash you chose. Maybe not wait over the night to wash it at home but directly when you get home.

The road salt is often sodium salt or calcium salt. But what they often uses in it so it will stay on the roads is gypsum. And I think that is the why you get that white build up grime on the side and back of the car. Or over the whole car when it's a lot of wet roads.

Then what also gets when they start to use the road salt. Is that it starts to desolve the grime build up on the roads. And will get on your vehical too. It's often oil based grime that is most problems with to clean of the vehicals. In Sweden we have something called Cold Degreaser we use in the winter months here. It's basicly a tar remover based on some kind of petroleum. I use one based on kerosene. That has the benefit to be applyied on a set surface. As most of them you need to be applying on dry paint. Otherwise you get a milky looking mess. If you can not get one of those petroleum based degreasers I would go with a citrus based degreaser. 3D Orange 88 Degreaser or 3D Grime Out is some of them. Optimum Power Clean I think they uses a degreaser step before ONR wash I s done. But look that up as I'm not certain you are recommended to use that way before ONR wash.

Hope it helps a little with the experience with road salt here in Sweden which we have around 4-5 months on the roads here during a year.

/Tony
 
Are you doing these washes in your garage? If so, is it insulated or somewhat so? I ask because there are options out there for power washing without a hose, the Worx Hydroshot. Is it the be all, end all, no but it will be able to get off that top layer, then allowing you to do a much better RW for sure. If you wanna take it a step further, get yourself an IK Foam 9 hand pump sprayer to do pre-washes, then you can use the Worx Hydroshot to do a traditional 2BM

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SWETM said:
Do you have an option to use a degreaser before you drive in to the touchless wash? That way you would have a more thorough cleaning there. And the new dirt build up would be easier for the ONR or what else waterless wash or rinseless wash you chose. Maybe not wait over the night to wash it at home but directly when you get home.

/Tony
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Agree with this here. I wouldn't go mixing rinseless with degreaser. Is your touchless wash a tunnel wash or self-serve bay with a wand?
 
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