How dirty is too dirty to safely use a rinseless wash?

[Mike.Phillips@Autogeek]

How dirty is too dirty to safely use a rinseless wash?

The question often comes up,

How dirty is too dirty to safely use a rinseless wash to wash my car?

Great question and while every situation will be a little bit different you can safely wash cars, trucks and s.u.v.'s with light dirt accumulation. Vehicles with a heavy dirt accumulation, especially if they are not regularly washed or if there is visible mud caked onto the paint should have the large accumulation of dirt first removed using a pressure washer or a strong spray of water. If you don't have access to a pressure washer or a a free flowing source of water, (a garden hose hooked up to a water spigot), then most towns have a do-it-yourself car wash that you can use for a modest fee.


Reasons to use a Rinseless Wash
In a perfect world everyone would have access to free flowing water, warm temperatures, no restrictions on when and where they can wash their car etc.

The problem is we don't live in a perfect world and not everyone has access to free flowing water or has the ability to use free flowing water due to water restrictions.

Here's a list of some reasons for using a Rinseless Wash....

Areas with government enforced water restrictions
In today’s reality, there are many cities and even entire countries with Government Enforced Water Restrictions. In these places it’s against laws and/or regulations to wash your car with a free flowing source of water.

Geographical areas of drought
In some places there may be no official restrictions against water use but the geographical area itself is experiencing severe drought and self-compliance as well as common sense prevents people from using a free flowing source of water to wash their vehicles.

People who live in Apartments
In some areas if you live in an Apartment, a Condo or a Townhouse, there may be no place to wash your car with a free flowing source of clean water or their may be rules against it that you have agreed to comply with.

Washing in cold winter months
In cold weather, extreme low temperatures can make washing a car with a free flowing source of water dangerous and difficult at best.


Mobil Detailers
Rinseless Washing enables mobile detailers to get their customer’s car clean without having to depend upon a water source on location or the extra hassle of transporting hundreds of gallons of water in their Truck, Van or on a Trailer. Besides that some areas require mobile detailers to contain and capture their run-off water and this is an added expense, somewhat difficult as well as time consuming.


Anytime you’re traveling
If you doing any long distance traveling, Rinseless Washing enables you to wash your car while in route.

How dirty is too dirty to safely use a rinseless wash?
There are limits as to what you should tackle with a rinseless wash and what you should take to a car wash, below are some examples...


This is light dirt accumulation
This is a good example of a vehicle that can be washed using a rinseless wash.











This is heavy dirt accumulation
This should be taken to a commercial Do-It-Yourself Car Wash and have the large chunks sprayed off with a strong blast of water.

[Mike.Phillips@Autogeek]

How To use a Rinseless Wash





Measuring the water

• You need and want a clean bucket and preferably a tall bucket

The most popular way to use a Rinseless Car Wash by serious enthusiasts is to use the Two bucket Method with one bucket holding your Rinseless Car Wash Solution and the other bucket filled with Clean Water and a Grit Guard Insert to trap any dirt and road grime you remove off the car onto the bottom of the bucket while providing you with a way to loosen and remove dirt out of your wash mitt.





Fast easy way to measure 2 gallons of water

Now if you have a 5-gallon bucket like the 5-gallon buckets that come in ALL OUR car wash kits here at Autogeek, here’s a fast, simple way to measure 2 gallons of water.

Take any standard 12 inch ruler and fill the bucket till the water level reaches the 6 inch mark on the ruler, this will be approximately 2 gallons of water, (in the Autogeek 5-Gallon Buckets).

If you plan on using a rinseless car wash often you can even use a Permanent Marker to make a mark inside the bucket for fast reference when adding water.


Place a ruler into the Autogeek 5-Gallon Bucket till the end is against the bottom and make a mark at 6 inches.



Now every time you want to add 2-gallons of water, all you have to do is fill the bucket to the mark.




KISS = Keep It Simple Simon
Little techniques like this save time by making frequent procedures easy to repeat over-and-over again without having to measure or think about it.




Measuring your rinseless wash concentrate
Most rinseless car washes on the market are mixed at 1 ounce per 2 gallons of water.

Detailer’s Pride Rinseless Wash & Gloss = 1 ounce for 2 gallons of water
Optimum No Rinse Wash & Shine = 1 ounce for 2 gallons of water

You can use a measuring cup or check out this Pro Blend Bottle Proportion which makes measuring any concentrate quick, easy and accurate. The Pro Blend Bottle Proportioner comes in to popular sizes.

Pro Blend Bottle Proportioner 32 ounce size
Pro Blend Bottle Proportioner 1 gallon size (128 ounces)


Simply attach the correct Pro Blend Bottle Proportioner to your bottle of concentrate and then adjust the regulator to the desired level.



Next squeeze the bottle till the concentrate just fills over the top of the regulator.





Then simply remove the small plastic dust cap off the Pro Blend Bottle Proportioner and pour the concentrate into your bucket of water.



After you add the rinseless wash concentrate to the water stir to create a thoroughly mixed cleaning solution.



Then add 4-5 gallons of clean water to your rinse bucket. Use this to rinse you wash mitt or sponge before gathering fresh cleaning solution. You can place a Grit Guard Insert, (Or 2 Grit Guard Inserts), into the bottom of your rinse water bucket to help remove dirt particles off your mitt and trap them on the bottom of the bucket.



You're ready to use a rinseless wash to wash your car!
If you don't have a dual bucket dolly you can get one here.




Someone asked me about using a Grit Guard Insert in your cleaning solution bucket and you could but understand that by the time you insert the Grit Guard Insert into the bucket and then add 2 gallons of water you're only going to have access to a little over a gallon of cleaning solution to draw from as you wash the car.





Problem
As you work around the car you'll be using up your cleaning solution and you'll find that the Grit Guard insert will prevent you from gathering up half of your cleaning solution.


Optional
A workaround if you want to use a Grit Guard Insert in your cleaning solution bucket would be to add 4 gallons of water and 2 ounces of rinseless wash.


Washing your car
Start at the top and work your way down
The idea behind using a rinseless wash is to wash and dry one panel at a time. If you start out washing and drying a lower panel than the roof, then when you wash the roof you'll likely have cleaning solution running down and re-wetting a dry panel, which you’ve already washed and dried, causing you to have to dry the panel again or possibly wash and dry the panel a second time. So start at the top and work your way down.


Wash one panel or section of a panel at a time
The idea behind using a rinseless wash is to wash and dry a panel or a section of a panel at one time. If you try to wash to large of an area before drying the cleaning solution can dry onto the panel.

Two factors that determine how large of a panel or section of a panel you tackle at one time,

1) Size of the panel
If you have a small panel to wash like the hood of a Mini Cooper then it’s small enough you can wash the entire panel and dry it before the cleaning solution can dry. If however you’re washing a Chrysler 3000, you might find it easier to break the hood up into two section or halves and wash and dry one half at a time.

The goal is to wet the panel, loosen any dirt or road grime and then wipe or blot the panel or section dry.

Again, if a panel is too large you could risk having your cleaning solution dry before you have an chance to wipe or blot the panel or section of panel.

2) Temperature and Air Flow around the car
On warm or hot days, or in areas where theirs a strong air current or wind, these two factors can cause your cleaning solution to dry faster than in lower temperatures an no-wind environments. So take this into consideration when deciding how large of a panel or section of a panel to tackle at one time. The goal is to wash and dry the paint before the cleaning solution can dry on it’s own.

Slicing your car up into sections
Here’s how I slice up a car when washing with a Rinseless Car Wash, I start at the top like most of you but add a twist… that would go like this…

1. Roof
2. Side Glass
3. Horizontal Panels like the Hood and Trunk lid
4. Vertical Panels - But only the upper portions as these tend to be cleaner than the lower portions
5. Front Bumpers and Grills
6. Rear Bumpers and Rear Vertical Panels like you find on s.u.v.'s, some passenger cars or for example, the tailgates on trucks.
7. Vertical Panels - Now do the lower portions of the vertical panels, these are the dirtiest sections.
8. Lastly, the wheels & tires and for the wheels and tires you may choose to use a brush instead of a wash mitt.

Admittedly, washing the wheels, tires and things like grills is harder to do without a brush and source of free flowing water so improvise and do the best you can. For drying off wheel and tires I'll make a suggestion and include a link towards the end of this article.

Note: Air currents swirl around the rear of cars, truck and s.u.v.'s as you're driving at highway speeds sometimes depositing an oily road film on to these rear, vertical panels.



Use a gentle touch
When using a rinseless car wash, the idea is to carefully move your wash mitt over the surface only enough to loosen the grip any dirt or road grime has on the paint and then stop.

It's pretty common to see people washing their cars without thinking about what they're doing and pushing their wash mitt over the same section of paint dozens of strokes when in reality, one or two passes would have been sufficient. So focus on the task-at-hand and only make as many gentle passes as you deem necessary to loosen and dirt or road grime then STOP.


Place wash mitt into your rinse water bucket
Place your wash mitt or sponge into your rinse water bucket as you can deal with it in a few seconds.

First things first - Dry that paint!
The first thing you want to do after washing a panel, or a section of a panel, is to wipe the panel dry.

Dry the panel off
To dry a panel off you can either wipe the panel dry or blot the panel dry, either technique can be used.

If you're working on a daily driver or getting ready to buff out the paint then wiping is plenty good, if you're doing a maintenance wash on a car with a excellent finish or a car you've already buffed-out then you might consider the blotting technique with a light wipe afterwards.


Rinse your wash mitt and re-gather fresh cleaning solution
After you wipe the panel dry and you're ready to wash another panel, that's when you'll clean your wash mitt or sponge by scrubbing it against the Grit Guard Insert, (this acts to extract dirt particles out of your mitt or sponge), and then wring out the excess water before gathering some fresh cleaning solution.


Repeat the above process as you work your way around the car.

When washing wheels and tires using a Rinseless Wash, instead of using your high quality wash mitts and/or sponges or even brushes, maybe consider using a microfiber or cotton towel from your tatty microfiber and cotton towel collection. See this thread for more information.

The 4 minimum categories of wiping cloths



See below for recommendations on washing tools and drying towels.

[Mike.Phillips@Autogeek]

Which Type of Wash Mitt, Sponge or Car Wash Brush?

My comments...
Below I try to show as best as I can the relative size of the various mitts, sponges and brushes buy including a standard 12" Ruler in the photos and to also hold the different tools in my hand for perspective.

You know I get asked all the time, what’s the BEST washing mitt, sponge or brush and the fact of the matter is, all the washing tools Autogeek.net carries are top quality and best-in-class for their category. They all work exceptionally well and when it comes to which one is best, that really comes down to personal preference and the best way to find out which one is best is to test out a few different types until you find the one that’s best for you and your car’s unique shape and size.

If you already have a wash mitt, sponge or brush that you like then use that, if you're looking for a new replacement, then consider the below tools and maybe test out 2-3 that interest you the most and then stick with the one that works best for you.


Lake Country Foam Car Wash Sponge also known as the Big Blue Cube
The working face of the Big Blue Cube is crosscut into 1/4 inch cubed or slotted tabs. These cubed tabs help to channel dirt and grime away from the paint. The foam is very soft after it becomes wet, the porous design of the foam helps it to hold and releases plenty of Rinseless Wash Solution to keep the surface lubricated AND when you rub the Big Blue Cube against the Grit Guard Insert inside your fresh water bucket, these cubed fingers will open-up to release any removed dirt so that it will fall past the insert and become trapped on the bottom of your bucket.









Ulti-Mit
Similar to the Big Blue Cube is the Ulti-Mit wash sponge which also incorporates ¼ inch cubed or slotted tabs which are crosscut across the working face of the sponge. The foam is very soft and gentle and actually becomes softer when it becomes wet plus like the Big Blue Cube it holds plenty of Rinseless Wash Solution to lubricate the surface as you’re washing each panel. Dirt is guided into the channels between the slotted cubes and then released into the rinse water when the mitt is rubbed against the Grit Guard Insert.










Mother’s Genuine Lambswool Wash Mitt
Natural soft Lambswool becomes very silky and gentle when it becomes wet especially with the slickness provided by the Detailers Pride Rinseless Wash & Gloss or Optimum No Rinse Wash & Shine in your cleaning water bucket. The natural fibers pull dirt away from the finish and then release trapped dirt when rubbed against the Grit Guard Insert.








The Real Deal
This is a shot of the inside of the mitt to show that this is real lambswool, that's what animal skin looks like inside a wash mitt. This is how you can tell a fake or synthetic wash mitt from the real deal.





Cobra Blue Micro-Chenille Wash Mitt
This wash mitt always catches everyone’s eye because it looks so strange, kind of like some kind of colony of blue ALIEN CATERPILLARS. The word Chenille is actually a French word meaning caterpillar, only these caterpillar-looking things are actually thin microfibers woven into plump caterpillar-like strands that are both absorbent and non-abrasive. This design gently removes dirt and road grime off clear coat finishes and then releases any collected dirt easily when rubbed against the Grit Guard Insert.










The Wookie’s Fist
Don’t worry, this isn’t alive! This is called the Wookie’s Fist and it’s probably the largest, fluffiest, furriest wool wash mitt you’ve ever seen. The wool used to make this wash mitt comes from the Merino Sheep and is regarded as one of the finest, softest wools available from any sheep. Because of it’s large size it is capable of holding lots of water and for this reason it doesn’t really lend itself well for using with a Rinseless Wash because it will absorb and then empty your 2 gallons of Rinseless wash solution with just a few dips into the bucket.

But because it’s so cool looking I included it anyway for times when you’re using the Normal Car Wash Process with a source of free flowing water. While this is a very luxurious natural Lambswool Wash Mitt, due to it’s long fiber strands, the manufacture DodoJuice actually recommends you brush it after it’s dried with a Pet Brush to restore the fluffiness. From my personal experience, this is an accurate recommendation, get a pet brush to clean and fluff the fibers after it dried.







The Real Deal
This is a shot of the inside of the mitt to show that this is real lambswool, that's what animal skin looks like inside a wash mitt. This is how you can tell a fake or synthetic wash mitt from the real deal.





Large, All Natural Sea Sponge
Natural Sea Sponges hold tons of car wash solution that is easily released with a light squeeze as you’re washing a panel to drench the paint with lubricating and cleaning suds. After they become saturated with water they are very soft and pliable with plenty of cushion to shape to the panels of your vehicle.










The Bone by Cobra
The Cobra Bone is a thick, porous foam pad in the shape of a bone covered with tiny SUPER PLUSH microfibers and what makes this microfiber unique is that the fibers themselves are OPEN-ENDED, not shaped into a loop. This creates MILLIONS of TINY microfiber FINGERS that gently clean delicate clear coat finishes. The pile is deep enough to enable loosened dirt to migrate into the fibers instead of being dragged against the paint. And then because these fibers are open-ended, dirt is easily released when rinsed rather than being trapped inside the loops of fibers.








Meguiar's Microfiber Wash Mitt
Meguiars Microfiber Wash Mitt is made of quality microfiber that is both absorbent and ultra soft. The dense microfiber loops remove dirt particles from the paint and trap them within the fluffy pile. Dirt is lifted away from the paint where it cannot mar or swirl the finish.

[Mike.Phillips@Autogeek]

Continued...

Cobra Chenille Wash Pad
Cotton Chenille is made using a very specific type of cotton that is non-abrasive, super soft and absorbent. It also attracts dirt onto itself when used to wash your car but when you place it into a bucket of rinse water it releases dirt quickly and easily and this self-cleaning characteristic is further enhanced when you use a Grit Guard Insert.









Carrand Microfiber MAX Premium Wash Sponge
The Carrand Microfiber Max Premium Wash Sponge is two wash tools in one! 5 sides are covered in luxurious plush microfiber fingers to safely wash your car’s clear coat finish while the other side is covered with Polymesh Netting to gently remove dried bugs and other stubborn contaminants. There’s even a built-in pocket on the Polymesh Netting side to enable you to comfortably hold the Carrand Microfiber Max Premium Wash Sponge without the fear or risk of potentially dropping it onto the ground.






Built-in pocket for your hand




Carrand Microfiber MAX Total Clean All Over Wash Mitt
This is 4 wash mitts in one! One side is a microfiber chenille and the microfiber chenille strands are 30% longer than most microfiber chenille wash mitts providing even more dirt lifting and removing POWER.

The other side offers their plush, deep-pile microfiber that lifts and carries dirt away from your car’s finish. On both edges you’ll find their Polymesh Netting to get under and remove bugs and other stubborn contaminants. To top it off, there’s a waterproof lining inside the mitt to keep you hands clean and dry and away from the wash solution with an elastic cuff.








I've turned the wash mitt inside out at the opening to show the fabric that covers the water-proof lining.



Autogeek’s Sheepskin Wash Mitt
Autogeek’s Sheepskin Wash Mitt offers a one and a half inch thick pile made from the best all natural wool imported from Australia. This mitten-shaped wash mitt provides a separate place for your fingers and thumb to help you wash the car and even mold the wash mitt around the various components on the car like contoured edges rear view mirrors, spoilers, grills, antennas air vents and scoops.






The Real Deal
This is a shot of the inside of the mitt to show that this is real lambswool, that's what animal skin looks like inside a wash mitt. This is how you can tell a fake or synthetic wash mitt from the real deal.




The SchMITT
This is another foam sponge type washing mitt that uses the same foam used to make the ultra soft foam buffing pads by the Edge company to create show car finishes when machine buffing paint. The foam itself is incredibly soft and gentle to automotive clear coats and the soft foam cell structure holds plenty of rinseless wash solution to provide plenty of lubrication while washing a panel. The SchMITT offers two designs for the working face, one is flat while the other is convoluted with hills and valleys so it won’t trap dirt particles against the paint.

All White ShMITT - Both sides are super soft and super gentle to paint







There's an opening slot to place your hand inside and a safety cord to prevent accidental dropping of the mitt onto the ground.



White/Yellow Wash ShMITT - One side is super soft for gently washing paint and the other side is for scrubbing bugs, tar and other stubborn contaminants





The yellow side is the scrubbing side




Black Wheel ShMITT - An aggressive cleaning foam formula for scratch-resistant surfaces








Yellow/White Interior ShMITT - Use for interior vehicle cleaning and to apply dressings

[Mike.Phillips@Autogeek]

Continued...

Montana Boar's Hair Brushes
Boar’s hair is nature’s most durable hair. This soft yet strong hair is more durable than camel hair and sheds less than horse hair. It’s no wonder that so many car collectors and aficionados use nothing but genuine boar’s hair brushes to gently clean their fine vehicles.

Boar’s hair is naturally thick and sturdy. It doesn’t fall limp when wet and it holds a tremendous amount of water. These features make it the ideal paint-safe wash tool for fine finishes. The bristles easily release dirt into the wash bucket rather than rubbing it on the vehicle. And, because there are no nylon or other synthetic bristles, a boar’s hair brush will not scratch delicate surfaces, like clear coats, gel coats, glass, Plexiglas or fiberglass.


8 inch Montana Original Boar’s Hair Wheel Brush
20 inch brush Montana Original Boar’s Hair Wheel Brush





Montana Original Boar’s Hair Car Wash Brush PLUS



Grit Guard Inserts
the Grit Guard ® Insert, a radial grid that sits in the bottom of the wash bucket. The grid acts as a washboard: when you dip your mitt or sponge in the bucket, drag it across the grid to remove dirt and sand. The contaminants will fall to the bottom of the bucket and stay there thanks to the four quadrant design of the Grit Guard® Insert. The four quadrants prevent the water at the bottom of the bucket from becoming unsettled so dirt cannot rise to the top. The wash water stays clean and separate from the dirty water at the bottom of the bucket.



These are Grit Guard Inserts, they fit into all the Autogeek 5-gallon buckets and most other conventional 5-gallon buckets



2 Grit Guard Inserts stacked one on top of the other will give you FIVE INCHES of Dirt Trapping Depth to help trap dirt on the bottom of your bucket plus it makes it easier to reach your hand down into the bucket to scrub your wash mitt, sponge or brush against the grid system.



The Grit Guard Insert works to remove dirt particles when you rub or scrub your brush, wash mitt or sponge against the grid system design, this loosens dirt so it can fall to the bottom of the bucket where it's trapped by the vanes that keep water from swirling and thus bringing removed dirt back to the top portion of water in your bucket.
















Wash & Rinse Bucket Labels
Make identifying which bucket is your cleaning water and which bucket is your rinse water quick and easy!



Double Dolly
The Two Bucket Dolly makes it easy to move your Two Bucket Wash System around the car as you work around the car. There's a locking mechanism to lock the wheels so the dolly can't roll away too.

[Mike.Phillips@Autogeek]

What to use to dry the car?
After washing a panel or a portion of a panel, use a premium quality microfiber towel to remove the washing solution and wipe or blot the paint to a dry shine. Repeat this as you're working your way around your vehicle, that is be sure to dry each section immediately after washing that section or panel.

Wiping
When wiping water off a car, focus on the task at hand, try to wipe the paint gently, not like you're trying to scrub a chalk board clean.

Blotting
When blotting, the idea is to remove water without physically moving the material over the surface.

There's all kinds of high quality drying chamois and microfiber towels available and like choosing a wash mitt sometimes you need to test a product out in person to find the perfect match for your preferences. Below is a selection from the Autogeek store, to see everything that's available click the link below.

Microfiber Products


Cobra Guzzler Waffle Weave Drying Towels
Cobra Guzzler Waffle Weave drying towels their names because they simply guzzle up the water!

The Ultimate Guzzler Waffle Weave By Cobra 28 x 44




Supreme Guzzler Waffle Weave By Cobra 20 x 40




The Guzzler Waffle Weave by Cobra 16 x 24




Visual size comparison between the 20" by 40" and the 16" by 24" Guzzlers




Cobra Guzzler HD Waffle Weave Drying Towel, 16 x 24 inches
This has an inner open cell foam core and works GREAT for the Blotting Technique




Mother's Microfiber Drying Towels
The Waffle Weave is like the HD Guzzler in that it has an open cell foam core and acts like a sponge to soak up water and it's easy to wring out so you can continue working your way around the car either gently wiping water off or using the blotting technique.

The microfiber wheel and door jamb towel is a correctly described with the strong recommendation about what not to use it for after you dry your wheels with it.

Mothers Wheel & Jamb Towel is a high quality waffle weave microfiber towel that dries and cleans the dirtiest parts of your vehicle, such as the wheels, the grill and the door jambs.

Give this towel its own special place in the garage marked wheels only because, once it’s used on them, it should never touch the paint again. Even after you’ve washed the wheels, some lingering brake dust can stick to the towel and be transferred to other parts of your vehicle. By designating Mothers Wheel & Jamb Towel for the work-horse parts of your vehicle, you can prevent cross-contamination.

Mother's Waffle Weave Drying Towel (Foam Core, works great for the Blotting Technique), and Wheel & Jamb Towel




Meguiar's Microfiber Drying Towels
Premium quality microfiber drying towels, the Water Magnet uses the popular waffle weave design while the Soft Touch is really, really soft to the touch, thus the name.
Meguiar's Water Magnet Waffle Weave Microfiber Drying Towel and Soft Touch Microfiber Drying Cloth (smooth surface cloth, stays soft even when dry)





Traditional Leather Chamois
Genuine chamois, such as this one, are 100% natural leather, tanned using cod oil, which gives it the softness and its leather smell. If you like the smell and feel of real leather, you won’t be happy with a synthetic. Prince of Wales Chamois come in a variety of sizes, from 2.5 square feet, to 3.5 square feet, to the 4.5 square feet of superb, high end leather. The 4.5 version is obviously the most popular for its size—sufficient for any job. Chamois are meant to be used without cleaning solutions or chemicals. If you use it for polishing and drying only, and care for it correctly, your chamois may outlast you.
Prince of Wales Chamois - 2.5 square feet
Prince of Wales Chamois - 3.5 square feet
Prince of Wales Chamois - 4.5 square feet
Jumbo Wales Chamois - 6 square feet





All the microfiber drying towels Autogeek offers can be machine washed in your washing machine and then dried on the low heat setting of your dryer. And it’s best to use a dedicated microfiber washing solution like the Detailer's Pride Microfiber Cleaner



No matter which type you want to use, one thing for sure, you want to have plenty of clean, dry microfiber drying towels on hand to safely and efficiently dry your car.

[elk42]

thanks Mike for all your hard work.

[CEE DOG]

Thank you Mike!



Excellent!!!

[Grizzly]

Nice writeup Mike, very helpful.

Do you have a process for cleaning wheels, tires, and wheelwells? One of the reasons I do not like rinseless washing is because I feel I have to drag out the house anyway to do a good job of cleaning the wheels, tires, and wheelwells.

[gioprivatemvoe]

Very... very... nice write up.
I want it all.... especially boar's hair brush.