Is it washing or drying that's giving me marring? Need advice...

[FitSport]

Good idea. You can try bringing a bucket with your specific car wash soap and hand wash it at the car wash. What I like doing is rinsing with the hot wax and leaving it on the vehicle and then drying it into the finish. It adds a little extra protection that way.

Hehehe...I don't know how it is down there, but all of our coin-ops here have that stupid tri-foam wax. When I move to my condo, I might just start bringing a bucket to the coin-op. For now though, it's easier for me to bring the car back and continue on with my usual wash routine. I'll see if I can get some photos done tomorrow since I got to get started with my stone chip repair.

 

[PROServices]

Water water everywhere... Remember that what washes your car is the water. Soap/shampoo just helps the water penetrate or carry more debris. your really just trying to coat the car with soap not scrub it. once the soap is applied the rinsing action should carry away the dirt. I use a california blade to remove the access rinse water (firm grip gentle touch!!) and then there is minimal towel usage to dry the rest of the car. Also, if you are not washing your MF properly (or not using a good quality) that could cause problems, too much heat and they are done.

 

[FitSport]

Also, if you are not washing your MF properly (or not using a good quality) that could cause problems, too much heat and they are done.

What do you mean by too much heat? You mean by drying? I put mine in the dryer along with the rest of the MFs I used that day. I don't overheat it though, just enough that the towels are dry and a tad warm to the touch.

 

[phamkl]

Water water everywhere... Remember that what washes your car is the water. Soap/shampoo just helps the water penetrate or carry more debris.

Swirling and marring really is an albatross around the neck, isn't it.

 

[Accumulator]

[...[when] testing my drying towel on a CD - well - I tried it and it didn't seem to scratch it. It left some lint though, which is making me wonder if the lint is scratching the clear while I drag the towel to dry...

While it can be irritating, MF lint generall won't mar paint, and if the MF that's still part of the towel doesn't, then the lint that gets shed shouldn't either.

Since I don't have a foamgun nor a pressure washer, I decided last week to try the nearby coin-op to loosen the dirt (and clean the undercarriage more importantly). Then, come back and do a proper wash & dry. I want to hear your thoughts on this step since the nearest coin-op is about 5 minutes away..[/FONT]

I had to do that when I was younger, and it can be a royal PIA. But I think it'll work out OK. I sure would consider that foamgun for the at-home washes though...I forget what they cost, but at maybe ~$50 IMO it sure beats having marred paint all the time.



Oh, and sometimes straight-line marring can appear "swirl shaped" depending on the lighting. I forget the Mr. Science explanation though..



PROServices- You must have one mighty hot dryer to kill MF! DFTowel has posted the melting temps of MF before (which I've forgotten ) but it's well over boils-water temperature and well, most homeowner-level dryers just don't get that hot.



I'd been drying mine on "low" but after the abovementioned discussion I cranked it up to "medium" and even "high" with no problems. But all dryers aren't the same, so I suppose it's risky to issue blanket statements about which settings are OK.

 

[backwoods_lex]

A few questions may help to clarify. How old is the car? What make and model? When did you begin using the two bucket method? If the car is old(er), the cobwebbing has probably always been there. I know that I had to surf autopia for a while to help me train my eyes to properly recognize paint defects. Some makes or repaints have super soft paint. Some have super hard. And when I originally bought my car, I was a habitual t-shirt and dawn washer. Luckily my paint is on the harder side and my paint was not severely marred. And don't forget to cover the entire surface area. Missing one spot will easily marr during drying.



I do use the wool mitt while wearing it on my hand. I drench it and hold my hand above the surface only letting the weight of the lower mitt touch the surface for the initial passes. This is for both ONR and traditional washes.



Good luck! I'm sure you will figure things out quickly enough!

 

[FitSport]

Alright fellas, here's an update. I washed the car today. Took it to the coin-op to wash the undercarriage and fender wells. While I was at it, I washed the body also using the High Pressure Soap and High Pressure Rinse cycle only. Didn't bother drying it, I went straight home right afterward. I then started doing my normal wash routine - 2 bucket method w/ grit guard, MF mitt, Megs GC Shampoo, & Garden Hose. Now mind you, this is only the second time I've washed the car using a MF mitt. I've been using a sheepskin beforehand and have now recently switched. Anyway, I washed following the direction of air flow. Next, I dried with a MF drying towel (not WW) wiping in a perpendicular motion relative to the direction of my washing. Street lamps show that I have cobwebs, but the direction follows air flow. For now, this eliminates drying as the culprit. Having said that though, I do believe the marring was caused by the sheepskin mitt I used previously rather than the MF mitt...if it is in fact my washing is causing my marring.



Now, I want to add a couple of factors here. First, I often QD the car after a regular wash. I do this using a quality buffing towel and Megs #34 using the Mist-on/Wipe-off/Buff method. And second, I've been using KAIO by hand using a 4" LC white polish pad.



What do you fellas think? I'm leaning towards the wash right now as the culprit. Should I use a more quality shampoo other than Megs GC? Should I think about the Shmitt or Sea Sponge?



PS: Car is a 2007 Honda Fit. The dealer has scratched the vehicle, but I'm not sure if the marring was there in the first place since I never bothered to look at my paint this way until I signed up to Autopia. Bought the car in Feb. Cleaned the car through the winter using the coin-op using the high pressure washer only. Been hand washing the car since mid-April.

 

[Accumulator]

FitSport- Good job of checking things out :xyxthumbs



IMO it's the wash, and not the wash *media*. I believe you're pressing the dirt against the paint and moving it under pressure.



If you CD-test your wash media (soak in wash solution first, don't test dry) I think you'll find that both types of mitts are OK in-and-of themselves (all my sheepskin/MF/cotton mitts were OK).



I'd:



-Use a foamgun to provide constant lubrication and flushing (spray between mitt and paint)



-Move the mitt in the previously recommended frequently interupted, "jiggling" motions



-Rinse the mitt out more often (I'll do it several times for a single panel) so you're never dragging a dirty mitt across paint



-Use a "self-cleaning" LSP that doesn't hold onto dirt



-Use a shampoo with greater lubricity (I don't like GC for this reason, Griot's, Meg's #62, and also supposedly DuraGloss, would IMO be better choices)



-Check your QDing media- if it gets dirty then there was still dirt on there after the wash and the QDing probably grinds it in



-Polish out the existing marring

 

[imported_jaobrien6]

Glad to see the update. I agree that it sounds like the wash is your culprit, and Accumulator has given you some great tips. I'm personally not a big fan of Meg's GC wash myself, but before keep switching shampoos and mitts, I'd continue to focus on your technique. Make sure you're rinsing the mitt often, and using gentle pressure. It definitely sounds to me like you're making good progress. Also, very good point about dirt on the MF you're using when QD'ing... it could definitely be the QD step if you're not getting everything off in the wash.

 

[SuperBee364]

Water water everywhere... Remember that what washes your car is the water. Soap/shampoo just helps the water penetrate or carry more debris. your really just trying to coat the car with soap not scrub it. once the soap is applied the rinsing action should carry away the dirt. I use a california blade to remove the access rinse water (firm grip gentle touch!!) and then there is minimal towel usage to dry the rest of the car. Also, if you are not washing your MF properly (or not using a good quality) that could cause problems, too much heat and they are done.

Oh man, I've been trying sooo hard to not enter the california jelly blade discussion, but I just can't help it...



You will, eventually, put some RIDS in your paint using a jelly blade. I am (and always have been) extremely OCD when it comes to car washing. I always made absolutely sure that every single last microscopic bit of anything at all was off of my paint prior to using a jelly blade. I used it on my first charger for almost a year. Result: several RIDS that could only be attributed to the jelly blade. I used it on my new charger a few times, being even more anal than normal about contamination prior to usage. Result: several RIDS that could only be attributed to the jelly blade.



Now I've read all the posts from people that swear by them, so no need to repost "i've used one for years, and never put so much as a spiderweb in my paint" posts. Good on ya. Hope you continue to have such great luck.



Some people smoke for years and years and never get cancer, either.



/end of thread hijacking and rant... sorry. : /



Edit: any drying-induced marring put in your paint as a result of drying your car with an MF towel would be much, much easier to correct than the RIDS a jelly blade will put in your paint. Trust the man that owns such RIDS to make that statement.



Yet another edit: I just re-read my post and realized it sounds a bit harsher than I intended; I just remember how incredibly upset I was when I found the scratches left in my car from the jelly blade. For those of you that use it, and find it to your liking, great! I sincerely hope you never find a scratch. I just wanted to point out that, IMO, a jelly blade is a five out of six chambers loaded game of Russian Roullet with your paint job, and that there are far safer alternatives out there.

 

[thesacrifice]

If you wash with a traditional hose or foam gun as opposed to a no rinse, you shouldn't be inducing any marring during drying...as all contaminants should have been washed away with your rinse. That would mean your towels are bad or there's still stuff on your paint.