Tunnel wash rant - Free speech thread

Speaks volumes about the quality of their car wash
 
chilly said:
That’s the funniest part

I see people pulling out of the one where I get gas and the back end is invariably still dirty

So paint damage plus half a$$ job?




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I frequently see people get their vehicle returned to them and pull out their own towels and finish drying or wiping off some of the dirt. Damn near every person I’ve told not to go through a tunnel wash says some versions of “I know. I know. And it doesn’t even get my car fully clean but I don’t have a lot of free time.”

I refuse to believe a person can’t take one hour a month to do a basic hand wash. I have to kids with plenty of after school activities, a full time job, detail on the side and I can still find time to take care of my lawn and vehicles because maintaining these large purchases matters to me.
 
Yep, it’s all about priorities. A good number of people value a clean car but they wont actually keep it clean themselves. They are the type of people who wouldnt make it a hobby, let alone a passion

Detailing gives me pleasure. Maybe to most people that’s an odd way of getting it but that’s them,not me. I never compare myself to other people. They can do what makes them happy and I’ll do what makes me happy

The nice thing about detailing is,in addition to pleasure, if you can’t get enough of it,you can make money from it by detailing a few cars on the side all the way up to doing it for a living. This isn’t so with many other pastimes

So drive by the dirty cars in your immaculate one and smile,you are a unique person. Be proud of that
 
Optimus Grime said:
Damn near every person I’ve told not to go through a tunnel wash says some versions of “I know. I know. And it doesn’t even get my car fully clean but I don’t have a lot of free time.”

I refuse to believe a person can’t take one hour a month to do a basic hand wash.
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This is so true. I wonder how many folks would "have the time" if they stopped watching tv/cell phones all the time.

Younger kids these days...i really wonder how many of them rot their brain at such young ages becasue thier parents let them have these devices to keep them occupied. On car rides...stare out the window and day dream...not watch an ipad. Good grief, Go outside and play! Or read a book!

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Things aren’t likely to go back to how they used to be. I do feel sorry for kids who are totally dependent on devices. I am concerned about what this is going to make them be like when they grow up. I sure hope the worst doesn’t happen but I wouldn’t be surprised if it does. The world is at risk of going downhill if it does. I need to stop thinking about this right now

I’m a simple man who just wants a shiny car and I’m happy. Thoughts like that are far nicer than worrying about the kids. Maybe if enough kids get exposed to the joy of detailing, things can turn around a little bit
 
Bill D said:
Maybe if enough kids get exposed to the joy of detailing, things can turn around a little bit
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The neihbor kid aint old enough to drive yet, but hopefully when he is, he stops and asks how keep a vehicle shiney so i can pass along what i have learned.

At work when we get aprentices on the jobsite, if they show a willingness to learn, i try to pass along anything that may help them get to be proficent faster

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I’m a firm believer that knowledge is power and one can learn something from anyone. You might be surprised who you can learn from too

Learning can make both the person who is acquiring the knowledge and the person passing it on feel good. That’s why I’ve always been enthusiastic about it
 
It is hard at times to do two vehicles, so every so often we send her RAV4 thru the TOUCHLESS up the street. For $9 it really does not do a bad job. But again, nothing like a proper hand wash.
 
PA DETAILER said:
It is hard at times to do two vehicles, so every so often we send her RAV4 thru the TOUCHLESS up the street. For $9 it really does not to a bad job. But again, nothing like a proper hand wash.
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Without a floor drain in my garage I have to depend on the touchless near me to keep the bottom blasted off during the winter but I want to look into one of the undercarriage sprayer attachments for my pressure washer for the remainder of the year
 
chilly said:
Without a floor drain in my garage I have to depend on the touchless near me to keep the bottom blasted off during the winter but I want to look into one of the undercarriage sprayer attachments for my pressure washer for the remainder of the year
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I like this one. It’s a great undercarriage cleaner but doubles as a water broom for patio and porch cleaning. I also discovered that if you invert it, it makes a fantastic concrete cleaner. It easily outperforms my dedicated concrete surface cleaner.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/RYOBI-Pressure-Washer-Water-Broom-RY31211/300701617
 
That’s a cool toy. I guarantee if I got one I’d be the only one in my neighborhood with one.
 
Just out of curiosity, Chilly, how far away is the closest HD store? Here in NJ we're the most densely populated state, so "closest" might be a little different.
 
Setec Astronomy said:
Just out of curiosity, Chilly, how far away is the closest HD store? Here in NJ we're the most densely populated state, so "closest" might be a little different.
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12-14 miles depending on which of 3 routes I take, according to Apple Maps

It is in a neighboring town and for Alaska, that is considered right down the street
 
I think maybe one of the reasons we don't see people washing their own vehicles is because so many driveways are now filled with SUVs. They are definitely not as easy to wash as traditional sedans, wagons or hatchbacks. I'm average height, 5'9.5", yes, the .5 is important, and I can only just reach the middle of the roof of our Nissan Qashqai (Rogue Sport), and I have long arms. To make sure it's properly cleaned and dried I often use a heavy plastic tub to stand on. So probably half, or more, of the people who own SUVs are shorter than me and it's too much trouble to wash their SUVs and don't want to go to the trouble of finding something to stand on, so they go through an automated car wash, or pay someone to do it for them.

On lawn care, there are a few houses in my neighbourhood that are absolutely meticulous about it, I pass this house quite often, and the guy is out mowing a lot, he likes the strips as well, he uses a cylinder mower like this. Up close his lawn looks like a cricket pitch or golf green. The picture of his lawn is from Google Street view, which normally makes things look worse. The same street also won the prize for the best Christmas light displays in our state.
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Big Dave said:
I think maybe one of the reasons we don't see people washing their own vehicles is because so many driveways are now filled with SUVs. They are definitely not as easy to wash as traditional sedans, wagons or hatchbacks. I'm average height, 5'9.5", yes, the .5 is important, and I can only just reach the middle of the roof of our Nissan Qashqai (Rogue Sport), and I have long arms. To make sure it's properly cleaned and dried I often use a heavy plastic tub to stand on. So probably half, or more, of the people who own SUVs are shorter than me and it's too much trouble to wash their SUVs and don't want to go to the trouble of finding something to stand on, so they go through an automated car wash, or pay someone to do it for them.

On lawn care, there are a few houses in my neighbourhood that are absolutely meticulous about it, I pass this house quite often, and the guy is out mowing a lot, he likes the strips as well, he uses a cylinder mower like this. Up close his lawn looks like a cricket pitch or golf green. The picture of his lawn is from Google Street view, which normally makes things look worse. The same street also won the prize for the best Christmas light displays in our state.
a4673e5e76e793d47de2b80b470937eb.jpg
220d5975f851e75d127aa822710d1d97.jpg


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I’m right there with you on this one

Unless I can stand in an opened doorway and reach the center plus a bit I use this

I hate leaning on a wet soapy car and possibly causing scratches just from my clothes rubbing against the car

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I’ve got another matching Kobalt that’s a step or two taller for anything higher than an SUV

I’ll use both together, one on each side


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Like a decade ago, my wife bought me one of those folding platforms so I can get to the front and back of the roof of my CUV without having to get down and move it. While watching a detailing video, the guy was using one of these and the legs locked into place automatically. I thought since mine was older, it was made before people figured out it was kind of dangerous to have the legs free to fold if you didn’t open them up all the way. I was actually thinking of replacing mine for one of these newfangled locking ones. Fast forward a few months later and my daughter was helping me wash the car. At the end I asked her to fold up the platform and she was having trouble. When I went over, she asked me what the buttons on the corners were for. I didn’t remember any buttons and when I looked…it was the locking mechanism for the legs!!!!

View attachment 77264
 
That looks just like my platform ladder. I hope to use it to work on my dad’s Jeep
 
hooked said:
Like a decade ago, my wife bought me one of those folding platforms so I can get to the front and back of the roof of my CUV without having to get down and move it. While watching a detailing video, the guy was using one of these and the legs locked into place automatically. I thought since mine was older, it was made before people figured out it was kind of dangerous to have the legs free to fold if you didn’t open them up all the way. I was actually thinking of replacing mine for one of these newfangled locking ones. Fast forward a few months later and my daughter was helping me wash the car. At the end I asked her to fold up the platform and she was having trouble. When I went over, she asked me what the buttons on the corners were for. I didn’t remember any buttons and when I looked…it was the locking mechanism for the legs!!!!

View attachment 77264
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I do have one of those as well, but even at its lowest height it's too high for the Nissan, but it's a good height for the FJ, but then the extra width of the FJ makes it a pain to move it around it inside the garage. Also our driveway has a reasonably steep angle and I don't trust the legs, even with the locking mechanism, to not fold under on an angled surface. I'm sure there's something in the instructions about only using it on a level surface.

I find myself just using my favourite tub, it's easier to step up and down from, I can kick it into whatever position I need it in, and for some reason it grips our painted driveway really well, even when it's wet and soapy. It also doubles as a spray painting table.
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