Does it have to be Dawn?

termigator

termigator

New member
I know regular Dawn is the preferred detergent to strip the car of wax, but won't the other dishwashing soaps work, like Palmolive or Ajax? My wife just bought some antibacterial Dawn I don't see the point in going out to get regular Dawn if what I have will work also.



Augustine
 
Theres really no need to use Dawn in the first place. Four Star makes a Concentrated Auto Wash thats safe for surfaces, unlike Dawn may be......

I mean when the maker of the product says not to use it on auto surfaces, a little bell should go off!?
 
AFAIK, Ajax is an abrasive powder, not something I would use on my car. Any liquid dish soap should be OK. The point is to lift the grease (ie old wax residue and other gunk) off the paint, similar to how dish soap lifts grease off of pans.
 
termigator-The wax-stripping effects of detergents are vastly over-rated anyhow. I think you should just wash it with a strong mix of regular shampoo and plan on using some kind of paint cleaner to get the old wax off.



Heh heh, I'd probably wash it with the "A" part of AutoInt's ABC, which makes Dawn seem like tap water ;)
 
BrianJ said:
AFAIK, Ajax is an abrasive powder, not something I would use on my car. Any liquid dish soap should be OK. The point is to lift the grease (ie old wax residue and other gunk) off the paint, similar to how dish soap lifts grease off of pans.
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Ajax manufacturers a liquid dish soap similar to Dawn and all the other dish soaps you see on the market. You're thinking of the Ajax scouring powder similar to Comet.:cool:
 
Basically, any dish detergent brand (Blue Dawn) that does not contain all the perfumes, skin moisturizers etc. Just pure detergent will work fine if you choose to go that route. Realistically, it's a pointless step and car wash will do just fine.



The alkalinity and properties could actually be harmful to your clear if you use it too often. I do not want to start a flame war but not long ago, there was even a belief here by some that even a single wash could be harmful. However, it's generally believed that a wash every now and again (2x per year), when used as part of full detail would be fine.
 
I've always been told that dish washing detergent is far worse for your rubber seals than it is for the paint/clear. So if you do wash quite regularly with Dawn etc, make sure you get that rubber/vinyl protector out afterwards!



Personally I never use dish washing detergent as a wash because on a full detail you're going to be using far more aggressive products after you've washed the car anyway. And if they can't get the crap off then there's no point in using Dawn anyway!



Ben
 
I had waxed my car with Blackfire and then topped off with S100 about a month ago, but I bought a PC since then and I wanted to go the whole route with swirl remover, glaze, followed by blackfire and then S100 again. I just want to make sure the wax is off so the Blackfire will bond with the paint.

Also, will Blackfire lose durability if I use 3M IHG underneath? I heard it both ways.
 
termigator said:
..will Blackfire lose durability if I use 3M IHG underneath? I heard it both ways.
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Probably. The IHG is merely a bunch of oils and solvents (look at the ingredient list on the label). Such things aren't really conducive to the adherence of stuff like BF. If it's *not* gonna work you'll know it, because you'll get smearing/etc. when you try to buff the BF off. I wouldn't try it myself.
 
If you're removing swirls, then there's really no need to strip wax. The polish will strip everything by itself. Just be sure to clay.
 
MongooseGA said:
If you're removing swirls, then there's really no need to strip wax. The polish will strip everything by itself. Just be sure to clay.
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I clayed last month and my car is garaged and then driven about every other day. Do I really need to clay again?
 
termigator said:
I clayed last month and my car is garaged and then driven about every other day. Do I really need to clay again?
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No, probably not.



I've become way too obsessed with claying about every month. Not necessarily a full clay, but just spot claying on horizontal surfaces. I've been using Patrick's method of "No lube, just water" for ever and it's so much faster than using a QD. Basically, keep a steady stream of water over your hand for a little while while claying the panel, then you can leave it off for about 30 seconds. This might help salve some water, and dfinitely saves on QD. While it's not as thorough for me, it's a great alternative to busting out the QD and extra towels.
 
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