Van Roof---Is a Touchless Car wash ok?

[1flyfisher]

I have LOTS of questions about touchless car washes and waxing a van roof.


I have a full size van and have been doing the hood, side and rear with Klasse AIO and KSG with good results. But I use a wheelchair and can't do the roof. I use this vehicle for flyfishing, camping and hauling my kayak inside so it gets worked. The roads I drive are very dusty and every week my van gets covered with dirt road and gravel road dust. I rinse and wash it off at the coin-op place often and when the roof gets real dirty I have taken it to their touchless to get it rinsed off twice so far(New 2010 GMC AWD Savana). Then I just Klasse the sides hood and rear doors. This is a nice new place with 2 touchless. I do my wash at this place. I just tried their touchless and it was ok. If I didn't need it for the roof I wouldn't use it I would just use the coin-op hand wash and rinse and wax with Klasse.

SO Is it worth it to pay for the extra's at these touchless car washes? If they have spray on wax or some other upgrades are they worth it? Does a spray on wax on the roof IF they have it do anything? If it does protect it might be worth it for me to pay a few dollars extra for it. I think the cheapest touchless rinse is like $5 and the more expensive was $9. I can't remember if they had spray on wax. I will check next time I go there. I tried the $9 full cost touchless wash and it was OK. I am sure it got some dirt off the roof. I guess I will try the $5 touchless next and see if there is any difference.. A spray on wax or something on the roof would be nice. Then I can just quick rinse the body off and put the KAIO on the sides and front and rear and the roof is already clean from the touchless.

Does the touchless wash take off all my Klasse AIO and KSG?
I am basically trying to keep my van as clean and well protected as possible and I don't want the roof paint to fade or peel. So what is the best way to take care of this roof? I can't get up there and wax it.

Also are these touchless places safe or can they damage your paint? This place is brand new and very nice. I imagine they are safe or they would be getting sued left and right, despite their attempts to use disclaimers or waivers which do little to stop a lawsuit.

I can hire a college kid that can do the roof if need be and what would be the easiest way to wax it? How should I deal with waxing the roof and what products should I use to keep the roof clean?


It is kind of hard to get to the middle of the roof up there.

[Mike Phillips]

SO Is it worth it to pay for the extra's at these touchless car washes?

A spray on wax or something on the roof would be nice.


Sometimes,

"Something is better than nothing"

And you're right, washing the roof of a van or any S.U.V. is a challenge even for able bodied people.

I don't like speaking about the quality, or lack of quality, for commercial car washes because I honestly don't know about the products they're currently using and new technology is always being introduced.





Does the touchless wash take off all my Klasse AIO and KSG?
I am basically trying to keep my van as clean and well protected as possible and I don't want the roof paint to fade or peel. So what is the best way to take care of this roof? I can't get up there and wax it.


The best way in your situation would be to have someone you trust and is qualified do the work you cannot do.

IF that's not an option then it could be this is the next best option...





Also are these touchless places safe or can they damage your paint? This place is brand new and very nice. I imagine they are safe or they would be getting sued left and right, despite their attempts to use disclaimers or waivers which do little to stop a lawsuit.


Forum consensus over the years is that in order to clean the dirt and road grim off the paint without anything "physically touching the paint", like a wash mitt, sponge or brush, means the wash water has to contain some type of chemicals strong enough to dissolve the dirt so that it will rinse off.

The assumption is that if there are chemicals strong enough to dissolve road grime being used then chances are good they are strong enough to remove any previously applied wax or paint sealant.




I can hire a college kid that can do the roof if need be and what would be the easiest way to wax it? How should I deal with waxing the roof and what products should I use to keep the roof clean?


This sounds like a good option for your situation. For the roof a good, simple but effective process would be to,

Wash and dry
Clay
Use a one-step cleaner/wax


:)


It is kind of hard to get to the middle of the roof up there.[/QUOTE]

[longdx]

Is this a conversion van? If it is, it is a pretty tall vehicle. This would require a ladder at the least. It would probably be a good idea to hire someone to clean and seal the top (otherwise the fibeglass top have a tendency to fade and oxidize faster than the rest of the vehicle).

[1flyfisher]

This is not some after market conversion van just a regular van with a stock painted roof. Which still requires a ladder.



Is this a conversion van? If it is, it is a pretty tall vehicle. This would require a ladder at the least. It would probably be a good idea to hire someone to clean and seal the top (otherwise the fibeglass top have a tendency to fade and oxidize faster than the rest of the vehicle).

[1flyfisher]

Yeah I do not like the idea of using a touchless as those cleaners they use have to be pretty effective at removing dirt so they must take off the wax too. As long as they are safe for clear coat and your paint then I am ok with using them. I have never heard about them damaging a vehicle. I would probably just run through one at most 3 or 4 times a year just to get the dirt off the roof.

So what i have done is just run the touchless and got the roof clean and then rewaxed the rest of the vehicle with KAIO and KSG. So if the touchless gets the wax off I can then just do a quick wash/rinse when it gets dirty again or a few days later and then I am good to go.
So with using the touchless I got the roof rinsed off which at least gets the roof clean. Keeping the roof clean should keep it ok. No one sees it anyway, but I'd like to avoid any problems especially rust.

I think I should be OK with an occasional touchless.

Maybe I will try and find someone to do it for me. I was thinking about an ad in the local college news paper to see if any college kids want to make a few quick bucks for some beer money.

What should I pay someone to wash the roof and put some KAIO on there????



Sometimes,

"



Forum consensus over the years is that in order to clean the dirt and road grim off the paint without anything "physically touching the paint", like a wash mitt, sponge or brush, means the wash water has to contain some type of chemicals strong enough to dissolve the dirt so that it will rinse off.

The assumption is that if there are chemicals strong enough to dissolve road grime being used then chances are good they are strong enough to remove any previously applied wax or paint sealant.




[/QUOTE]

[1flyfisher]

anyone have any idea on how much I should pay some college kid to do the roof or what would be a fair price to pay to a detailer business.