ONR wash?

[drastic_detail]

Got some of this on the way and was woundering how yenz use this to do a rinseless wash. Just curious about everyones process.

 

[Emile]

Fill up a bucket with 2oz ONR with 4 gallons of water.

I use a Lake Country Grout Sponge and soak it in the bucket, then wring it out half-way. I like to have the sponge very damp for good lubrication, but without holding too much water so that all the excess pours out all over the car.

Next, I'll proceed to wipe the roof with the sponge just as if there was soap and water on the car. Then toss the sponge into the bucket and use one waffle weave towel to wipe the roof down to pickup any remaining dirt. Then I'll use a second waffle weave towel to completely dry the roof.

Just be sure that you really wring out all the dirt from the wash mitt when moving from panel to panel so that you don't re-apply dirt to the vehicle. A lot of people do ONR washes with the 2-bucket method using Grit Guards in each bucket and one bucket of ONR and one bucket of rinse water.

Once you get used to ONR washes, you should be able to work on several panels at a time. For example, I like to wash one whole side of the car at once and then move onto the next side.

Do wheels and tires last using your wheel and tire brushes. A lot of us use scottwax's method of spraying Optimum PowerClean diluted 3:1 on the rims and tires before brushing them down for more cleaning power. Opt PowerClean at 3:1 is good for this because it's spray on, wipe off. But you should use some shop rags or cheap Walmart microfiber towels to dry the wheels and tire sidewalls because that's when you will pickup most of the dirt.

 

[Mikejl]

Next, I'll proceed to wipe the roof with the sponge just as if there was soap and water on the car. Then toss the sponge into the bucket and use one waffle weave towel to wipe the roof down to pickup any remaining dirt. Then I'll use a second waffle weave towel to completely dry the roof.

I am new to using ONR and my experience consists of having done 3 ONR washes on my black Camry. I use the Lowe's grout sponge and lots of Meguiar's Ultra Wipe and Supreme Shine microfiber towels for drying.

After washing a section with the sponge, I use one MF to start the drying process, If I see any dirt on the MF at all, I stop drying and go back over the area with the ONR again. Am I being overly cautious in my process? Is the ONR preventing the dirt from causing scratches in your method?

Mike

 

[AeroCleanse]

Mix as per the directions. Then I either spray it on and wipe it off or use the bucket method.

 

[BenzDetailer]

I rinse off large debris and surface dirt then mix per instructions for best results.

 

[Bunky]

After washing a section with the sponge, I use one MF to start the drying process, If I see any dirt on the MF at all,

Mike

Absolutely. if you are seeing dirt in the drying phase the paint is not clean. You may need to go over each section more than once. Also, consider using a pre-soak (like spray some ONR mixture over the paint prior to starting) to loosen the dirt. I do use a grout sponge so maybe that is a variable.

As others said, be sure to mix per directions as a minimum. I end up using 2 oz per 3 gallons of water. If you have especially hard water, Optimum recommends using a bit more since the cleaning components will bond with the minerals from the hard water and therefore reduce the cleaning ability.

 

[akimel]

I have been experimenting with my ONR method for nine months. Here is the process I used yesterday on my S2000:

1) 2 gals. of water, 2 ounces of ONR. We have hard water here in Roanoke County, so I go with the maximum prescribed amount. I only use one bucket, with grit guard.

2) I gently rinse one or more panels with ONR with a Lowe's Proline grout sponge. This effectively removes most of the dirt, and the grout sponge easily releases the dirt into the rinse bucket. The sponge is particularly helpful on the very lowest panels, which are typically the dirtiest.

3) I then go over the same panels again with a microfiber mitt. Because most of the dirt has already been picked up by the grout sponge, the mitt doesn't get as dirty if used exclusively, and I do like the feel of the mitt on the paint surface. I repeat as necessary.

4) When I believe that I have thoroughly cleaned the surface, I then begin to dry with either a waffleweave towel or a thick napped microfiber towel. As recommended by Scottwax, I use two towels.

5) I wash and dry the door and trunk jambs immediately after I have washed the door and trunk, respectively. I prefer doing this at this point rather than coming back to them.

6) When the entire vehicle has been washed and dried, I then wipe down hoses, coverings, and painted surfaces in the engine bay.

7) Wipe off the exhaust tips.

8) Finally, I wash the tires and wheels with the remaining ONR rinse, using the appropriate brushes. On my wheels I find that I need to also use a dampened microfiber towel to remove all the brake dust and dirt. I then dry the tire and wheel with a microfiber towel.

The glaring weakness in this method is the failure to properly attend to the wheel wells and rim barrels. I haven't found a brush yet that is narrow enough to slide easily between the narrow space between fender and wheel, and while I do wash the barrels with my spoke brush, I haven't figured out a way to effectively wipe off and dry the barrels. It's easier to clean tires and wheels the old fashioned way, I think.

Cheers,
Al

 

[Bunky]

The glaring weakness in this method is the failure to properly attend to the wheel wells and rim barrels. I haven't found a brush yet that is narrow enough to slide easily between the narrow space between fender and wheel, and while I do wash the barrels with my spoke brush, I haven't figured out a way to effectively wipe off and dry the barrels. It's easier to clean tires and wheels the old fashioned way, I think.

For wheel wells, I just use a regular household sponge (about 1-in thick, tight wells for me) and wipe down with the residue ONR (or DP Rinseless product which I am using at the moment). I have sprayed some APC too in the area and use the residue more like a rinse agent. I am quite liberal with it so the area around the wheels is fairly wet compared to rest of the perimeter of the car.

 

[CharlesW]

The glaring weakness in this method is the failure to properly attend to the wheel wells and rim barrels. I haven't found a brush yet that is narrow enough to slide easily between the narrow space between fender and wheel, and while I do wash the barrels with my spoke brush, I haven't figured out a way to effectively wipe off and dry the barrels. It's easier to clean tires and wheels the old fashioned way, I think.

Cheers,
Al

Not to hi-jack the thread since my question does fall into the "How to ONR wash" caregory.
Cleaning tires and wheels "The old fashioned way" probably refers to washing and then rinsing with a hose, right?
Isn't it just as difficult to get into the tight areas with a regular wash? It is for me.
Being able to high pressure rinse the wheel wells and the rim barrels with a hose afterwards no doubt helps remove some of the loosened dirt.
While it wouldn't be high pressure, would using a pump up garden sprayer with just water in it help remove the ONR/dirt residue you can't reach with a towel. Never tried it, but I think I might.

 

[Mikejl]

Absolutely. if you are seeing dirt in the drying phase the paint is not clean. You may need to go over each section more than once. Also, consider using a pre-soak (like spray some ONR mixture over the paint prior to starting) to loosen the dirt. I do use a grout sponge so maybe that is a variable.

As others said, be sure to mix per directions as a minimum. I end up using 2 oz per 3 gallons of water. If you have especially hard water, Optimum recommends using a bit more since the cleaning components will bond with the minerals from the hard water and therefore reduce the cleaning ability.

Thanks for the reply. The ONR presoak sounds like something I will add to my process. I think I will also steal Al's idea of drying the jambs while I am washing that section instead of doing them all at the end of the wash.

My my current process is:

2BM w/ Grit Guards (I use 3.5 Gal Buckets)
2 Gal of DI water from my CR Spotless w/ 1oz ONR in wash bucket
2 Gal of DI water w/1 half oz ONR in rinse bucket
Lowe's grout sponge and MF towels for drying.

Right now I really like the Lowe's grout sponge. You can see it release the dirty in the rinse bucket and it comes out clean ready for the next pass across the paint.

I go around the car a panel at a time. I don't go for speed so much I try to prevent marring and swirls in my black paint.

Mike

 

[Emile]

I am new to using ONR and my experience consists of having done 3 ONR washes on my black Camry. I use the Lowe's grout sponge and lots of Meguiar's Ultra Wipe and Supreme Shine microfiber towels for drying.

After washing a section with the sponge, I use one MF to start the drying process, If I see any dirt on the MF at all, I stop drying and go back over the area with the ONR again. Am I being overly cautious in my process? Is the ONR preventing the dirt from causing scratches in your method?

Mike

You're doing the right thing. You should use the grout sponge to pickup all of the dirt. But sometimes I have noticed that on my first waffle weave drying towel, the towel can get very lightly soiled. Sometimes the panel may have very little dirt or dust on it remaining that you just cannot see until you pick it up with the towel, that's why I recommend using waffle weave towels because they are a big help in reducing/eliminating scratches while performing an ONR wash.

akimel, I agree with you 100%, wheel barrels and wheel wells are out of the question when it comes to ONR washes.

 

[akimel]

For wheel wells, I just use a regular household sponge (about 1-in thick, tight wells for me) and wipe down with the residue ONR (or DP Rinseless product which I am using at the moment).

A sponge! Of course I didn't think of it--it's just too obvious. What a dullard I am! And I have the perfect sponge for the job, too. Thanks for the tip. :cheers:

 

[akimel]

While it wouldn't be high pressure, would using a pump up garden sprayer with just water in it help remove the ONR/dirt residue you can't reach with a towel. Never tried it, but I think I might.

Good suggestion! Thanks. :cheers:

 

[Emile]

The pump-up garden sprayer is a good idea to rinse off the ONR residue and remaining dirt, but doesn't that just put all the dirt on your garage floor?

 

[PaintPolisher]

The pump-up garden sprayer is a good idea to rinse off the ONR residue and remaining dirt, but doesn't that just put all the dirt on your garage floor?

I put dog potty pads under the tires to contain any run off from the sprayer to keep my floor clean.

al