Warm water wash?

A

abbeysdad

New member
An OCD pondering moment ...



We typically wouldn't think about washing dishes, most soiled clothes or ourselves in ice cold water... Anybody use warm water to wash a vehicle ?



Reasons not to other than easier straight from the hose ?



Benefits besides it probably removes some grime with less 'scrubbing' ?



Harder on the LSP ?
 
abbeysdad said:
An OCD pondering moment ...



We typically wouldn't think about washing dishes, most soiled clothes or ourselves in ice cold water... Anybody use warm water to wash a vehicle ?



Reasons not to other than easier straight from the hose ?



Benefits besides it probably removes some grime with less 'scrubbing' ?



Harder on the LSP ?
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I use warm water in my bucket. I just fill it up in the house. My main reason is because I don't like sticking my hands in ice cold wwater unless it is super hot out. :lol
 
Danase said:
I use warm water in my bucket. I just fill it up in the house. My main reason is because I don't like sticking my hands in ice cold water...
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I always use warm water in the buckets for winter washes for the above reason--doesn't stay warm long on the car though.
 
Though I'm too foggy on the exact details from my Jr. High chemistry class to explain it properly, warm/hot water cleans better than cold. I turn on both the hot and cold taps and use the resulting warm water, unless I have a specific job where all-hot is a better idea.



Note that in the winter warm water will dissolve salt a lot faster than cold water will.
 
Accumulator said:
Though I'm too foggy on the exact details from my Jr. High chemistry class to explain it properly, warm/hot water cleans better than cold.
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Well grease, contaminants, etc are bonded to the surface weakly. You need energy to break those bonds, you can use heat, pressure or chemicals, hot water packs a lot more energy than cold.



That's why you can get away with a heated pressure washer or steamer and less chemicals than you would typically use.
 
I plumbed in a mixing valve into my outdoor faucet for just car washing.....I can regulate the water hose temps..cold water for the summer....I keep it warm for cold fall washings...70-80 degrees......I do not use it in the cold winter..a pain....by the time you disconnect the hose..drain it..it is stiff as a board and a pain to coil up...



But I always use warm water in wash buckets...



AL
 
AL-53 said:
I plumbed in a mixing valve into my outdoor faucet for just car washing.....I can regulate the water hose temps..cold water for the summer....I keep it warm for cold fall washings...70-80 degrees......I do not use it in the cold winter..a pain....by the time you disconnect the hose..drain it..it is stiff as a board and a pain to coil up...



But I always use warm water in wash buckets...



AL
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Ive always wanted to do that! I think i have a project to do now! Thanks for reminding me! :spot
 
+1 on using warm water. I luckily have a hot/cold sink in the garage and I always use the hot water to wash the cars. It feels like the soap makes better suds however that could be a pure figment of my imagination. But like everyone else is saying it certainly seems to melt the grease and left over tire dressing and everything off the paint.



I wonder how hot water use effects the longevity of wax and sealant? Pure carnubas I bet melt right off.
 
I wash my truck with QEW or DP Four in One about 90% of the time. I don't go off road or have salt or sand worries here in Texas so the complete shampoo only comes out every so often. I fill up my QEW buckets with hot water from the kitchen sink - as hot as I can stand it. Sometimes I pre-soak with a pump up sprayer and it too is filled with hot water.
 
LastDetail said:
I wonder how hot water use effects the longevity of wax and sealant? Pure carnubas I bet melt right off.
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I don't use really *hot* water when I wash/rinse, but I don't see a problem with waxes melting. IMO there's more to the melting point of *cured* waxes than some might think otherwise Souveran wouldn't last for one day on the hood of my Jag, which gets *hot*, much less last for weeks on the black vehicles ScottWax does in Texas.
 
Yep, warm water user also

I find it helps to keep the paint slick and easier cleaning
 
I can see how warm/hot water makes for a cleaner, more effective wash (especially for road grime and oily road film.... my concern is the affect on the LSP.



Hot soapy water would seem more 'agressive' than a cold water wash (perhaps especially on waxes) as to reduce their long term durability.



Thoughts on this?
 
Abbeysdad- IMO waxes (once they cure) are much to tough for this to be a factor. The other relevent points (i.e., getting the dirt off safely, the differing harshness of various shampoos) are much more important anyhow and we oughta watch letting the tail wag the dog. With waxes like Collinite lasting through tough winters, I don't see any (presumably minimal) compromising from the hot water as being significant. It can't, IMO, be any worse than sitting in the sun on a hot day.
 
I have always used warm water in my wash buckets year round.



I fill the cup to my foam gun first with warm water then add the soap, top and shake. Warm water really helps the suds to generate and flow nicely.
 
abbeysdad said:
I can see how warm/hot water makes for a cleaner, more effective wash (especially for road grime and oily road film.... my concern is the affect on the LSP.



Hot soapy water would seem more 'agressive' than a cold water wash (perhaps especially on waxes) as to reduce their long term durability.



Thoughts on this?
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That's an interesting thought, but like Accumulator, I don't think that 80-90 degree water is really going to affect the durability of the LSP. However, the durability would probably be affected if the paint surface was 120+ degrees after having the sun beat down on it for the whole day.



I usually use regular water from the hose (cold) to wash the cars. Maybe I'll try to use warm water next time. For the winter, I know for a fact I'll be using warm water.
 
Accumulator said:
Abbeysdad- IMO waxes (once they cure) are much to tough for this to be a factor. The other relevent points (i.e., getting the dirt off safely, the differing harshness of various shampoos) are much more important anyhow and we oughta watch letting the tail wag the dog. With waxes like Collinite lasting through tough winters, I don't see any (presumably minimal) compromising from the hot water as being significant. It can't, IMO, be any worse than sitting in the sun on a hot day.
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"Yea, but it's a dry heat"...



I don't think it's a fair comparison with regard to heat in the summer sun (or the hood of a hot car). Even though there are those that claim carnubas don't last very long in the southern sun, but waxes like collinite are like iron in the Canadian winter).



But, if we can agree that hot water and car shampoo (detergent) is more effective at cleaning it may also reduce the effective term of the LSP. The question is whether the reduction is real and if so, is it enough to warrant any concern.



I don't want to argue the point, merely ponder the pros and cons of the warm water wash - the pro being that it is likely to be more effective at cleaning road grime, a con being that it may be effectively more harsh on some LSP's.



After all, we all know any LSP only lasts so long (some not very long at all!) .... why is that? Sun, rain and WASHING wear it away. It would seem logical that warm water washing may wear it away quicker than cold water washing ????
 
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