Alternatives to Hose Rinsing or QEW?

M

motobuild

New member
My car's dirty, it's a beautiful day outside, and I'd like to wash my ride.



I have some Optimum No-Rinse, but, I'm not terribly comfortable using it on my car with the amount of dirt it has on it.



I was thinking...I could rinse my car off somewhat using a 5-gal bucket of hot water...wash as normal...and then do a final rinse with the 5-gal bucket again...my only apprehension of this is the lack of pressure the initial rinse would have to remove loose dirt and grime.



Any suggestions? There are coin-op places around...and I COULD use them late at night...but I don't feel comfortable using one in the middle of the day and their "No Bucket" rules....



Thanks!
 
Beason said:
my local place has the no bucket rule, yet no one is ever there to enforce it.
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Yeah, same for the most part with my local shop...except the last time I was there I got called out on it...it was my own stupidity as I went there around noon time...if I go there in the evening or early morning it wouldn't be a problem...like I said...it's nice out and I'd like to wash my car...I'll wait if need be...
 
You can use the Opti No Rinse. I have used it on a dirty car with no problems. It's all in the technique. First, I recommend a garden sprayer, easily found at Lowes, Home Depot or even Wal-Mart. A strong spray bottle will do fine as well.



Mix up some No Rinse with H2O in the spraty bottle and hit the dirty panels to loosen the heavy dirt. Then wash with a slightly stronger solution of No Rinse using your choice of a very,very soft wash device with perfect technique. Use back and forth motions, never scrub in circles. Go over the panels lightly at first and then wash them again with your usual technique. You'll be fine. Check the mit/sponge, etc. frequently to make sure it hasn't picked up anything and only use the two bucket method and have more water available to make up extra solution and an extra rinse bucket but you may not even need these.



There is an amazing thread here on the use of QEW,(same type of rinsless wash) and the poster has pics and describes his techniques and as I recall, this was done in the Winter with terrible dirt and salt on the car. Do some searching and you will find this and other awesome posts on the use of QEW and No Rinse.



I am water restricted in a townhouse because of a community shared well. These are my only wash alternatives. You can do this easily.



Eric
 
I've done some nasty cars with a single bucket of Optimum No Rinse or QEW without any pre-rinsing. You'd be suprised at the cleaning power without marring from both products.
 
Scottwax said:
I've done some nasty cars with a single bucket of Optimum No Rinse or QEW without any pre-rinsing. You'd be suprised at the cleaning power without marring from both products.
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You're right. I ended up going with the Optimum No Rinse Route. I went slow (2 hours to just wash the car) and was very careful, but it worked wonderfully.



I think my fear of using a product like this is my microfiber towels get so dirty after a few passes that I feel like I'm just allowing dirt and grime to be spread around the car...I did some tests with a CD and that isn't the case at all. I took a microfiber towel after a fresh pass, went over a CD with the same amount of pressure I used on the vehicle, dried it, and not a single scratch on the CD. I did use a dedicated rinse bucket for the car, but the towels never came out completley clean...they were yellow supremes.



The stuff really works!
 
In the ONR washes I've done, I've used my WWs, but was thinking that maybe some of the softer MF buffing towels would be better? What type of MF?
 
RAG said:
In the ONR washes I've done, I've used my WWs, but was thinking that maybe some of the softer MF buffing towels would be better? What type of MF?
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I used Yellow Supremes from ExcelDetail.com . They are economical, and one of the softer MF's I've used.
 
I was concerned as well about dirty mf wash sponges. I'm not entirely sold on MF in general. Its great at trapping dirt but its also stubborn in letting it go. I've washed MF wash sponges/towels several times and still found myself picking particles out with my hand...demoted to wheel duty!

And I have reservations about the prickly ends of MF, its overkill for well maintained surface.



I now use a sea sponge and some are using grout sponges. I find these stay cleaner DURING the wash and the holes allegedly suck in the debris and keep them off the surface. Washing afterwards is a piece of cake. I use Meguiar's Gold Class brushes for the bumpers and wheels and side skirting.

The brushes worked well with ONR this weekend. I think we have a winner.



p.s.

I think it helps to go in the direction of the wind when cleaning.
 
racingbeat said:
I was concerned as well about dirty mf wash sponges. I'm not entirely sold on MF in general. Its great at trapping dirt but its also stubborn in letting it go. I've washed MF wash sponges/towels several times and still found myself picking particles out with my hand...demoted to wheel duty!

And I have reservations about the prickly ends of MF, its overkill for well maintained surface.



I now use a sea sponge and some are using grout sponges. I find these stay cleaner DURING the wash and the holes allegedly suck in the debris and keep them off the surface. Washing afterwards is a piece of cake. I use Meguiar's Gold Class brushes for the bumpers and wheels and side skirting.

The brushes worked well with ONR this weekend. I think we have a winner.



p.s.

I think it helps to go in the direction of the wind when cleaning.
Click to expand...



I've never experienced that problem with the MF TOWELS that I use. They get dirty yes, but after I leave them in the rinse bucket the grit, dirt, and what-not all fall in the rinse bucket. My hesitation with them is that they stain...which makes sense and shouldn't be something that I worry about but I'm anal...



However, I feel the benefit with using MF towels is that I can go 8 passes before I need to drop it in the rinse water. The sheepskin mitt can go, what, 2 passes?



I love using my sheepskin mitts for conventional washes, but for ONR I like using my MF towels.
 
Scottwax said:
I've done some nasty cars with a single bucket of Optimum No Rinse or QEW without any pre-rinsing. You'd be suprised at the cleaning power without marring from both products.
Click to expand...



I agree, I've at times had to go over certain areas a few times , but it eventually all came out.
 
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