Touchless Car Wash Idea? Will It Work?

[Marc08EX]

Ever since Alex and I got to talking about foam canons and foaming the car before washing it (in addition, Alex starting up the thread: http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/show-n-shine/48130-s-foam-party.html), I just thought about the idea of a touchless washing technique.

TOOLS:

• A decent pressure washer (the higher the PSI, the better? I'm not sure)
• Autogeek Pressure Washer Foam Cannon HP, foam lance, foam wash gun, pressure washer foamer
• The Metro MasterBlaster is Metro's most powerful blower/dryer at 8hp! Blow dry your motorcycle & your vehicle with this big blower. (or a high MPH leaf blower could work
• High foaming car soap such as DP Xtreme Foam Formula High Yield Foaming Auto Shampoo- Foamaster gun car wash

PROCEDURE:

1. Foam up the entire vehicle to loosen up the dust and light dirt.
2. Pressure wash off the soap after 3-5 minutes or when the soap has run down or when it starts to dry
3. Use the Master Blaster or a good leaf blower to blow dry the entire car.

I would think that this idea could work provided that your vehicle:

• Well maintained with a fresh coat of sealant/wax.
• Only light dust or dirt is present. (maybe 1 week's worth)

I'm not even sure if it will knock off the dust or light dirt with this procedure. I don't have a pressure washer and a foam canon to try this out so maybe someone (ALEX!!!!) can try to do this and report back. I think that dirt from driving in the rain won't get cleaned off by this procedure but you'll never know.


What do you guys think? Will this work? If this idea works, then there's more reason to buy a pressure washer, a foam canon and the master blaster!!! Again, if anybody has the tools mentioned, can you please try it if you have time and report back to us what your findings are? TIA!

 

[rider9195]

I have thought of this idea before. I agree that it will only remove very very light dust. The whole point of using a wash mitt is to agitate the dirt remove it. Who knows if using a shampoo at a safe dilution will replicate using a wash mitt.

Wish I had a foam cannon!!

 

[Marc08EX]

I have thought of this idea before. I agree that it will only remove very very light dust. The whole point of using a wash mitt is to agitate the dirt remove it. Who knows if using a shampoo at a safe dilution will replicate using a wash mitt.

Wish I had a foam cannon!!

When I say light dust, it's the type of dust you'll use QD on. I think than thin layer of dust will make it easier for it to be lifted from the surface. In addition, the water pressure during the rinse phase could help blast off the dust.

This could work so long as the car doesn't drive through rain like I said. But I'm not sure if light rain mud/dirt can also be washed off. At that point it's better to use the standard washing technique to remove all the dirt properly. But if this idea works with light dust/dirt, then you can keep your car clean without inducing swirls to your paint.

 

[RaskyR1]

Hey Marc,


I would say a good pressure washer is important, but anything more than 2-3 GPM and 1500-2000psi is overkill and increases the risk of damage.


As far as the above working I think this could work pretty well on a vehicle that is coated with Opti-Coat/Guard and has only seen light dust (no driving in the rain). Anything more than that and I feel you risk leaving something behind. Also keep in mind that if anything is left on the paint after a touch-less wash that it stands a better chance of bonding with the paint the longer it is on the surface, thus requiring claying more often then if you had done a traditional 2BM wash.

IMO, properly washing a car requires some amount of mechanical agitation to get the surface as clean as possible. However, by adding that agitation (hand washing) to your above process, one should be able to maintain a virtually marr free finish for years to come! rops:


Just my $.02,

Rasky

 

[Marc08EX]

Hey Marc,


I would say a good pressure washer is important, but anything more than 2-3 GPM and 1500-2000psi is overkill and increases the risk of damage.


As far as the above working I think this could work pretty well on a vehicle that is coated with Opti-Coat/Guard and has only seen light dust (no driving in the rain). Anything more than that and I feel you risk leaving something behind. Also keep in mind that if anything is left on the paint after a touch-less wash that it stands a better chance of bonding with the paint the longer it is on the surface, thus requiring claying more often then if you had done a traditional 2BM wash.

IMO, properly washing a car requires some amount of mechanical agitation to get the surface as clean as possible. However, by adding that agitation (hand washing) to your above process, one should be able to maintain a virtually marr free finish for years to come! rops:


Just my $.02,

Rasky

Wow thanks for your valuable input Chad especially on the pressure washer! I have no experience with pressure washers and I don't know which one to get.

I agree with you that an opti-coated car will have the most benefit from this process.

 

[BlueZero]

As long as your not trying to towel dry after I think it's a good idea for quick touch ups. Better than the harsh soap at the car wash!

Darn now I need to get a Metro!

 

[Marc08EX]

As long as your not trying to towel dry after I think it's a good idea for quick touch ups. Better than the harsh soap at the car wash!

Darn now I need to get a Metro!

Yup no towels after hence touchless. Just a master blaster or a strong leaf blower.

 

[alko]

Marc...man you and I are on the same page alot of times...when I get a PM from you I'm 9 times out of 10 thinking of the same thing. Anyways, I had planned on doing this today because I'm here at my fiancee's house tonight.

Alrighty...here we go!!!

I used 4 ounces mixed with warm water:

Here's what my car looked like before:

WE GOT [FOAM] ACTION!!!

I was able to make SEVERAL passes. I may cut the recipie in half next time- 2 ounces of shampoo to half warm water.

And here it is after I dried with my leaf blower:

My Final Thoughts:

I absolutely LOVED doing this. If I had to guess how long it took me (minus the picture taking)...it took me about 30 minutes. I didn't have much road grime on my car, considering I washed it on Sunday, however I had a nice protective layer of pollen on it. It rained last night but it was that weird spotty rain so it didn't wash the pollen off...only made it look worse.

This is a great alternative as a touchless wash, however I wouldn't recommend it to REPLACE a traditional wash. Prior to completely drying the car, I flooded the car with water. When I was drying the car with the leaf blower, it looked like it had water spots all over it but it wasn't...it was rings of settled pollen from the rain drops. It took alot longer to dry the car and the water beads seemed like they had some resistance against the surface-due to the surface not being 100% clean.

Since I'm limited to weekends (for now) for traditional washes, my only option is to go to the one and only "do-it-yourself" wash bay, near my house, and rinse my car off. I could do a rinseless wash however I've come to the conclusion that I'm not a big fan of them. Although they are great I can't get past my paranoid stage of scratching my paint.

 

[ichogger]

My routine is:
Foam the car, let it sit.
Pressure rinse.
Foam again.
Use wash mitt with the suds from the second foam, refoam areas that may have dried.
Rinse with garden hose at full strength to sheet the water.

I do the initial foam and pressure rinse to get the chunks off dried mud etc off before they get ground in by the wash mitt. I've tried just foaming and no wash mitts, but unless it's almost pristinely clean already, I get leftover dirt.

This is just the way I do it, just my opinion. I have two black vehicles btw, that's why I'm so anal about not grinding in dirt. Black is beautiful, but it's like having a part time job.

Chuck

 

[Marc08EX]

WOW!!! Thanks for getting that done so quickly Alex!!! A bottle of beer for ya!

Your car definitely looks a lot better compared to the beginning. It improved it 95% except for the water spots. I guess if rain is involved, then we can't get it completely clean but if it's only dust then I think it can work.

And BTW, I won't be complaining about our pollen situation here. Your car looks yellow. That'll drive me nuts!

 

[Wills.WindowsAndWheels]

Marc...man you and I are on the same page alot of times...when I get a PM from you I'm 9 times out of 10 thinking of the same thing. Anyways, I had planned on doing this today because I'm here at my fiancee's house tonight.

Alrighty...here we go!!!

I used 4 ounces mixed with warm water:

Here's what my car looked like before:

WE GOT [FOAM] ACTION!!!

I was able to make SEVERAL passes. I may cut the recipie in half next time- 2 ounces of shampoo to half warm water.

And here it is after I dried with my leaf blower:

My Final Thoughts:

I absolutely LOVED doing this. If I had to guess how long it took me (minus the picture taking)...it took me about 30 minutes. I didn't have much road grime on my car, considering I washed it on Sunday, however I had a nice protective layer of pollen on it. It rained last night but it was that weird spotty rain so it didn't wash the pollen off...only made it look worse.

This is a great alternative as a touchless wash, however I wouldn't recommend it to REPLACE a traditional wash. Prior to completely drying the car, I flooded the car with water. When I was drying the car with the leaf blower, it looked like it had water spots all over it but it wasn't...it was rings of settled pollen from the rain drops. It took alot longer to dry the car and the water beads seemed like they had some resistance against the surface-due to the surface not being 100% clean.

Since I'm limited to weekends (for now) for traditional washes, my only option is to go to the one and only "do-it-yourself" wash bay, near my house, and rinse my car off. I could do a rinseless wash however I've come to the conclusion that I'm not a big fan of them. Although they are great I can't get past my paranoid stage of scratching my paint.

Did you use soft water to rinse? We have rock hard water out in Az and often times even after doing a regular 2BM wash and attempting to leaf blow tight cracks/spaces...serious water spotting will occur. I see the car looks much cleaner and all....i just worry about with Az water creating extra work to have to remove hard water spots the next time you do a regular wash. If you have OC the car, it shouldn't be too hard, but for regular wax or sealant do you guys really feel its a smart idea? BTW, HyperWash is a much cheaper route to get good foam that DP Foam ...IMO...

 

[alko]

Will...

I believe we have fairly soft to slightly medium water in Maryland, but I do get water spots when washing the car in the sun. I plan on picking up a canopy here real soon as I need it BAD! I do get some spotting, but when I put in the spray wax it goes away for the most part. I have a feeling this may not work as well with the hard water out there in AZ.

Good look on the hyper wash. Have you used Maxi Suds II?

 

[Wills.WindowsAndWheels]

Will...

I believe we have fairly soft to slightly medium water in Maryland, but I do get water spots when washing the car in the sun. I plan on picking up a canopy here real soon as I need it BAD! I do get some spotting, but when I put in the spray wax it goes away for the most part. I have a feeling this may not work as well with the hard water out there in AZ.

Good look on the hyper wash. Have you used Maxi Suds II?

Haven't tried Maxi yet no. Id like to though . Hyper foamed much better than i anticipated. I'd say around 3 oz is ideal and i can turn out some really thick foam. CG Snow Foam worked quite well from the sample i tried.

ANd yeah water out here is gross. Its hard a hell you can often times smell the chlorine. It sucks. I wanna get a mobile soft water set up SO BAD. As soon as i get a truck of any sort, thats gonna be my first purchase for sure.