no real place to clean my car?

[Daven75]

OK guys, I have a dilemma. I have no garage or any covered car port. I have large trees over my driveway that shade the whole driveway. Now I need to polish and wax my car. Would it be better to polish/wax it in the sun or keep it under the trees to keep it cool and shady? I know the wax will dry really quick In the sun but I'm afraid if I do it under the trees ill get tree crap all over it while I wax.

[jtuds]

Lots of products recommend application in the rain but there are more and more now that can be applied in the sun. The crappiest thing about your situation, in my opinion, is the stuff that will end up on the car form those trees. Maybe look at tougher, longer lasting applications other than wax, like a good sealant (Klasse, Zaino, Collinite, CG Jetseal, and many others) or even Opti-coat or CQuatrz.

[Daven75]

Right now I don't have the money to spend really on some good stuff. I plan to before winter but i hear ya. It sucks. I'm just glad I have enough time to rewax it when needed

[kevincwelch]

Why don't you drive to one of those covered self car wash locations? You can try doing some of it there.

[Dr_Pain]

Why don't you drive to one of those covered self car wash locations? You can try doing some of it there.

:whs: Took the words right out of my mouth. I've done that on more than one occasion. There is nothing better to start a small detailing business than to bring your arsenal to one of those self serve car wash and do a full job right there on the spot.

[jtuds]

Self serve car wash is a great idea.

And on the money issue - there are some good, long lasting products out there for the same price as a decet wax. Collinite 845 for example is pretty cheap and I have not used it but it great great reviews.

http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum/how-articles/40243-collinite-845-definitive-how-guide-legendary-wax.html

[tach18k]

what you might do is look for a 12 foot square easy up cover. For about $99 or so.

[Klasse Act]

You could go to a park nearby, take your 2 five gallon buckets, rinseless wash and wash media, your drying towels and your polish/wax and make a day of it.

Sent from my SPH-M930 using AG Online

[Calendyr]

Right now I don't have the money to spend really on some good stuff. I plan to before winter but i hear ya. It sucks. I'm just glad I have enough time to rewax it when needed

Well if you don't want to have a quality sealant shipped to you from online store, a cheap solution would be to use NuFinish. The only downside I have found to NuFinish is that it stains moldings, fixtures and other plastic parts (especially the black ones).

So if you decide to use this to protect your car, make sure to tape anything that can be stained before you apply it. When money is less of an issue, I suggest you switch to Menzerna Powerlock.

[Daven75]

Sadly I've done the self serve car wash and got kickee out for "taking to long".... this was at 9pm on a tuesday lol.... as for a pop up tent thing I have one, at home, 4 hrs away lol. Ugh. And yea, I'm working on building up my arsenal of supplies. Lol its takes time for me

[Calendyr]

:whs: Took the words right out of my mouth. I've done that on more than one occasion. There is nothing better to start a small detailing business than to bring your arsenal to one of those self serve car wash and do a full job right there on the spot.

How long do they let you stay in there once the wash is completed?

I have the same issue and have been trying to figure out a way to find a suitable location for a while now.

[Daven75]

Basically I dry it and they're like ur done. Its horrible

[Dr_Pain]

How long do they let you stay in there once the wash is completed?

I have the same issue and have been trying to figure out a way to find a suitable location for a while now.

Here is what I did and how it worked for me!

1) I met with the owner. It took a little to find out who he was but was able to get his phone and arranged a meeting
2) I asked what his off-peak time was, so I could coordinate coming over then
3) I did ask if I could use an electrical connection and offered to compensate him for the cost of electricity (no matter how nomimal it was)
4) I asked if he would have any problems if I came to use the facility and stay a little longer to finish the processes (which I explained to him in grave details)

At first he was very reluctant but I offered a point which he could not deny, which is people would talk, stare and come over if they saw me doing a full job on my car.... which they did. I also offered the possibility of coordinating (during off peaks) with friends to come over, which he understood the marketing value right away. For those guys, an empty place is not good for business, and a busy (even just busy looking) place much better for business. In addition, one person leads to another and so on!...

I have to admit that I sold it goooooodddd! and repayed his generosity in spades. I guess he was happy to have me onsite (more often then not) checking on the place, and constantly rinsing the bays and racking up the wands, and picking up trash. Not to mention I would be at the place late evenings. It did help that he came to see what I was doing the second week of our agreement, and I was sweeping the place :) He ended up giving me a key to the storage area where I kept my extension cord and some of my products and never charged me for electricity.

[rmagnus]

Here is what I did and how it worked for me!

1) I met with the owner. It took a little to find out who he was but was able to get his phone and arranged a meeting
2) I asked what his off-peak time was, so I could coordinate coming over then
3) I did ask if I could use an electrical connection and offered to compensate him for the cost of electricity (no matter how nomimal it was)
4) I asked if he would have any problems if I came to use the facility and stay a little longer to finish the processes (which I explained to him in grave details)

At first he was very reluctant but I offered a point which he could not deny, which is people would talk, stare and come over if they saw me doing a full job on my car.... which they did. I also offered the possibility of coordinating (during off peaks) with friends to come over, which he understood the marketing value right away. For those guys, an empty place is not good for business, and a busy (even just busy looking) place much better for business. In addition, one person leads to another and so on!...

I have to admit that I sold it goooooodddd! and repayed his generosity in spades. I guess he was happy to have me onsite (more often then not) checking on the place, and constantly rinsing the bays and racking up the wands, and picking up trash. Not to mention I would be at the place late evenings. It did help that he came to see what I was doing the second week of our agreement, and I was sweeping the place :) He ended up giving me a key to the storage area where I kept my extension cord and some of my products and never charged me for electricity.

I just had to say that's awesome. Great job thinking out side the box. :cheers:

[CharlzO]

I've been lucky in that our small town areas haven't said anything. I used to (before I got into more than just washing), take my buckets, and soaps and towels to the car wash. I would fill up with their water, and rinse the car off, let the time expire, hand-wash, then rinse it back off again, and dry it. Then I'd pull it outside and wax it. I figured that way, I wasn't using the bay any longer than someone else who was just being extra thorough with the wands.

I'm also in the same boat as the OP though, in that my current house is on a hilltop, with NO shade at all. I don't even have trees that would shade me. Definitely looking into either a pop-up to keep on hand, or even piecing together a PVC carport type thing with a tarp, something I can stake down, but then take apart and store in the shed or something, or even put in my trunk to take with me if I need to do something elsewhere.