Incessant Rain...do you leave it on? Or wash it off every night?

[Blade]

I am a busy husband and father of two. Detailing cars is a new found hobby. It's getting to be an obsession (after 2 large orders from AG) but I can only spend so much time on it, and it's usually just on the weekends. So I have a question regarding rain, incessant rain that is.

I live in the Pacific Northwest, where rain in the winter months can drone on for days. The rain is drizzly misty kind of cold wet that does not stop.

My question is maintainance related. Say I had washed and waxed the car on a Sunday. I drive out Monday and it's raining. What do I need to do after I get home Monday night, the car dripping wet and muddy in the garage, knowing full well it's STILL going to be raining the next morning? Should I even bother wiping the car down with a quick detailer or ONR? Or, should I just let it sit and dry out in the garage day in and day out until I wash it again on the weekend, hoping it's all going to be okay?

Remember that it could be raining here for days at a time, even weeks, I cannot spend hours every night on the car so it must be something I can do very quickly after a hard day's work day in and day out (if it's raining). So what is the minimum I should do so as not to lose any of the hard work I put on it every weekend? Please don't tell me to take the bus!

[Waxmax]

You could do a quick 2 bucket ONR every 2-3 days even with the rain...20-30 minutes, but other than that...the bus?

[ScottB]

be like most of us and wash it ... then hope you dont need to drive it tomorrow afterall or weatherman is wrong.

[dengood1]

Spend the time with your kids! Otherwise your obsession will get worse. Once a week wash is mostly all I do, except when I am on vacation, then I do a full detail on the vehicles. Otherwise, I try to spend the rest of the time with my girls because sooner than later they'll be on their own and gone out of the house and I could possibly not see them for long periods of time!

Or........you could teach and show your kids what you are doing to maintain the vehicles appearance while spending time with them

[sal329]

I would use ONR whenever I had the chance to and not really stress it.

[buja]

or if the car is really not that dirty / muddy ,
use the Poorboys Spray and Wipe . It is a waterless wash/detailer.
but caution must be exercised to use the correct technique , or it could turn against you .

or just use a running hose , no spray head, and let the water flow and sheet off the panels. whatever wax or sealant you have on the car will allow that, and the water will evaporate without leaving water spots if the protection is still strong on the car.

times when it is raining outside, it is always good to just relax indoors and as mentioned above, spend time with your loved ones

[Blade]

Thanks for the replies. In between waxes every weekend, I've been using Meg's UQD which, I'm finding, is great against water. The AG package I'm waiting for contains the Pinnacle Crystal Mist Detail Spray, and I expect that it's just as good as the Meguiar's product, if not better.

Therefore I am leaning towards the suggestion of a simple running hose (flooding and sheeting to avoid water spots) every night before I park it. Shouldn't take more than 5 minutes. If it's really dirty, the once-in-a-while ONR "without-stressing-about-it" is also a good suggestion. Or maybe do a combination of the running hose and a QD on the dirty spots, like behind the wheels. I will allow myself 15 minutes max, in this case, before I come up. Maybe my wife won't even notice the difference!!

Thanks again! (The good thing is it doesn't get too cold up here in the winter months - usually mid 30s - that I can still work outdoors if it's dry. It's just this frustrating misty cold rain in the winter that gets to most folks...)

[buja]

I agree on the ONR too.
used correctly, it will take a short time and safe too.

as long as you have a reasonably fresh and good layer of wax or sealant on the car, removing most of the surface dirt will be a breeze