PM Question about your maintenance wash for a coated vehicle

[The Guz]

I am going to pull a page out of Mike's book and respond to this on the forum. Will give the other forum members a chance to chime in and post their thoughts.

I received this PM from asking about my maintenance wash for a coated vehicle.

Hello Guz!
I just saw your thread on Chevy Equinox and it looks fantastic!
Now I see that you did a maintenance wash one week later and I just wanted to ask couple questions regarding your wash process.
I own a black vehicle and I've been having hard time avoiding water spots even tho my vehicle is coated.
I see that you did your wash in the sun and I was wondering how you were able to avoid water spots?
Also did you use N914 as rinseless or waterless wash? and what ratio did you use ECH20 as a drying aid?
I usually have a problem with ECH20 where I will have to go over a spot with separate towel because it streaks all the time.
Thank you!

I will break the question down into separate parts to provide a more complete comment.

I just saw your thread on Chevy Equinox and it looks fantastic!
Now I see that you did a maintenance wash one week later and I just wanted to ask couple questions regarding your wash process.

I will also mention that my coating maintenance wash method works for me and may or may not work for others.

I would like to thank boradori007 for his comment before I begin.

Just to give others who have not seen my recent thread, the question was in regards to the first wash after coating my brothers new vehicle. The thread on the correction and protection process can be found here. I know cheap plug for my own thread. I could not help it.

2018 Chevy Equinox Redline - New car prep with Cquartz

I own a black vehicle and I've been having hard time avoiding water spots even tho my vehicle is coated.
I see that you did your wash in the sun and I was wondering how you were able to avoid water spots?

The first thing I will mention is that some coatings are prone to water spotting more so than others. I have not had any water spotting issues with any coating I have used. I have experienced various levels of hydrophobic properties amongst various coatings but never water spots.

I would also like to mention that I do not wash in full sun. Especially during the Southern California summer. Washing in full sun is asking for trouble. In this instance water spots. It does not matter if the paint is coated, waxed or sealed.

I wash in the early morning or late afternoon in the shade to avoid water spots. If I have access to the garage then I will rinseless wash in there.

Here is a tip. If the paint is too hot for you to keep your hand on it then imagine how water will react to the surface. Especially black paint.

Also did you use N914 as rinseless or waterless wash? and what ratio did you use ECH20 as a drying aid?
I usually have a problem with ECH20 where I will have to go over a spot with separate towel because it streaks all the time.
Thank you!

I use N914 as a rinseless wash. I am not a fan of waterless washing. I don't waterless wash during the week after I had washed the car on the weekend. Why? To not touch the paint as much and avoid the chance of inducing marring. Since this vehicle and my daily driver sit outside 24/7 it is pointless to wipe off dust every couple of days. It is not going to harm the paint if I wait until the following weekend to wash it again. Fighting dust is a losing battle.

With EcH20 I use at 1:20 for a drying aid and in general as a detail spray. As mentioned EcH20 will haze and the haze will require a light buff. The temperature and humidity will play a factor as well. So it is not uncommon to come back after applying to the surface to remove any excess just like any other detail spray.

Boradoi007 I hope I was able to help you out. Others can chime in as they see fit.

[Jeff Wagner]

CR Spotless water system and problem solved..its sold right here on Autogeek. I love mine but the cost for new resin all the time gets pricey

[JustJesus]

I am going to pull a page out of Mike's book and respond to this on the forum.

Nice!

To add, if the CR Spotless system is too pricey, consider doing like Guz and myself, and wash in the early morning, or evening. That's when I tend to wash.
OR
Use distilled water or deionized water. For rinseless/waterless, I use store-bought distilled water. On the rare occasion when I'm going to hose/pressure wash a car, I'll fill up my mobile tank set-up with DI (?) water bought at a local car detailing supply store (for like 10 cents a gallon!!!).

[OMGClayAiken]

Love my CR Spotless - really takes the stress out of washing. No hurry, no worry about water spots. Definitely worth the money for me.

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