New (better?) Take on The Grit Guard / 2BM

[swanicyouth]

So, ever since I first saw a Grit Guard (GG) used, I haven't done a 2BM wash without one. When I'm done, I always look in the "rinse bucket" and see how much dirt is is there. That dirt would have been in my wash bucket if a second bucket with a GG wasn't used.

Recently, I started doing a Gary Dean Wash Method (GDWM) type wash using high quality microfiber towels and conventional soap. The idea is, you will never let a dirty (used) portion of a towel touch your paint once your done with it. This works great for rinseless washes.

The problem I found while doing this with conventional soap is by the time your on the 3rd or 4th side of the towel, much of the soap has ran/dripped out of the towel. Your no longer using that foamy soapy towel you began with. The towel is still wet, but the "glide factor" seems gone from the towel. A towel doesn't hold as much soap as a mit. Not to mention, if you want to use something like a Wookie's Fist or a Chenille Wash mit, you would need to buy a dozen or so of them.

So, I went back to the conventional 2BM. To me, the one short coming of the 2BM has always been after you start, your essentially rinsing your mit in dirty water. A GG helps separate your mit from the dirt at the bottom of the bucket. But, there is still some dirt floating in that bucket.

I always wanted to come up with a way to constantly rinse my mit with clean water. So, my mit is as clean on the last panel is it was when I started the first. One way is just to keep changing the water in your rinse bucket during the wash, or using many rinse buckets. But, that's time consuming and a little
impractical.

I've been thinking of this for a while. I even thought of a crazy idea to have a rinse bucket with some type of filtration system built into it. Almost like a fish tank, where your rinse bucket water is constantly getting filtered. That wasn't going to happen.

So, I came up with a pretty simple idea that I think will work great. Basically, it's a bottomless rinse bucket. The idea is, to blast your mit clean with your hose or pressure washer after each use - using a never ending stream / supply of CLEAN water. It's awkward to do this with a hose, as you have to sit the mit down to do it, the surface has to be perfectly clean, and the mit always wants to fly away. Do it in the rinse bucket, and your just stirring up dirt and swishing around dirty water. Try and hold the mit in your hand, you get soaked and full of soap.

I thought of the easiest way to do it. Basically, I "lined" the outside of a regular GG with 3/8" fuel line hose so it sits up higher in a 5 gallon bucket. Then, I cut about 2/3 of the bucket away below the level of the GG so the "dirty" rinse water I'm blasting the mit with just flows away. I'm using it with a bucket caddy, so its nowhere near the ground. It looks like this.

This is the GG line with hose to make it "wider" so it sits higher up in the bucket:





This is the "cut away" bucket:



The bucket has 3 large cut always down to the bottom of the bucket. The bottom is still in place.

This is the "system" put together:





Upside down. The fuel line wedges the GG in place tightly.



This is how you would use it. Your mit is on the GG, and you just blast it clean with your hose (I would use a pressure washer) and unlimited clean water. All the dirt / dirty water runs out of the cut-outs of the bucket, away from your mit:



You can also use it to blast pads / applicators clean with a pressure washer, and they won't go flying across the floor.



I'm testing the idea now to see how it works in real world washing. The only detriment I could see is that if your using it on the ground, you could get some splash back on the mit. I'm using it on a homemade bucket caddy that has a platform. It may use more water, but your not filling up a second bucket to begin with.

We'll see how it goes.

[SuperiorAutoLLC]

You, my friend, are a genius. I'm very excited to see how the testing goes.

Keep us posted and A++ for creativity!

[swanicyouth]

I plan on monitoring the wash bucket bottom. I always check it when done to look for dirt. My goal is wash bucket 100% dirt free. Now there is a little dirt, not much. But if I can get the mit 100% clean before placing it in the soap, it may help.

[Lexi65]

Confused ... Would your method mean the clean water would be running all over the driveway/garage floor because it wasn't contained?

[SR99]

A good effort! I may misunderstand, but I'd tend to think that floating the grit out by submerging into water would be more effective than a stream which might push grit into it.

Since the goal seems to be to avoid stirring up the grit that settles to the bottom of the bucket, how about a cone-shaped bottom, so the grit settles to the point of the cone, and you have a little foot-operated valve at the bottom of the cone and you flush out the settled grit before each dunk of the wash mit, with a little blip of the valve?

[sproketser]

Wonder where you take all these ideas swanicyouth ! Just great .

[Klasse Act]

Swan, you'll be a rich man in no time, congrats!

Sent from my SPH-M930 using AG Online

[random]

Recently, I started doing a Gary Dean Wash Method (GDWM) type wash using high quality microfiber towels and conventional soap. The idea is, you will never let a dirty (used) portion of a towel touch your paint once your done with it. This works great for rinseless washes.

The problem I found while doing this with conventional soap is by the time your on the 3rd or 4th side of the towel, much of the soap has ran/dripped out of the towel. Your no longer using that foamy soapy towel you began with. The towel is still wet, but the "glide factor" seems gone from the towel. A towel doesn't hold as much soap as a mit. Not to mention, if you want to use something like a Wookie's Fist or a Chenille Wash mit, you would need to buy a dozen or so of them.

I think it would be more cost effective to simply buy more high-quality, thick microfiber towels to use with this wash method.

I thought of the easiest way to do it. Basically, I "lined" the outside of a regular GG with 3/8" fuel line hose so it sits up higher in a 5 gallon bucket. Then, I cut about 2/3 of the bucket away below the level of the GG so the "dirty" rinse water I'm blasting the mit with just flows away. I'm using it with a bucket caddy, so its nowhere near the ground. It looks like this.

How much water does this method use? It seems a bit excessive, so perhaps you could couple this with a water collection system so that the water can then be used to water a lawn or something other than just flowing out of the bucket completely wasted.

[silverfox]

The Gary Dean method has two distinct advantages. You never touch the paint with dirty media, and it saves a lot of water which is turning into a precious commodity. To be able to safely wash a car and save water is the challenge.

I honestly think the answer to many of our washing challenges is to adopt what a majority of Europeans are using and that is essentially the touchless wash. It's not perfect as nothing is because you still have to rinse, but its as close as you can get to hand wash quality without ever touching the paint.

It seems there are a few companies that have developed a presoak product that is applied with a garden sprayer. It does not harm the LSP, but it leaves the paint almost perfectly clean once its allowed to soak then rinsed off.

It's not an all purpose cleaner or some variation thereof. It's designed from the ground up as a specialized pre wash product that has the advantages of an all purpose cleaner without harming the LSP. They have put a premium on bringing such products to market. I don't know of a single American company that has such an offering outside the convention all purpose cleaner which strips off wax or sealants at high concentrations.

I know of one particular company in Ireland that has perfected the formula to such a level that the others are playing catch up. Seems conventional foaming, rinseless washing, and the 2B method are suddenly being replaced with pre soaking in Europe where water is not restricted.

This is not perfect as I said because you do require a water source in which to rinse, but bringing us closer to a touchless method to wash a car without hurting the LSP is where I think the next breakthrough is going to be.

Most of us apply something to the paint after we wash so that step is not eliminated but to have a car essentially squeaky clean without touching the paint before we apply a post- wash product is exciting news to me.

Eliminating or significantly reducing the need for wash mitts, buckets, foam guns, and lots of MF towels seems like a natural thing. Those who manufacture and sell those things won't be too thrilled but they will have to change as better methods of safely washing cars are developed. It's all good for us.

Incredible thought went into your idea. Now if only you were a chemist!

[swanicyouth]

Confused ... Would your method mean the clean water would be running all over the driveway/garage floor because it wasn't contained?

Yep. Out of the bucket and away. Just like the water that rolls off the car. Not in my garage though. Conveniently enough, I wash my car on a slope. The goal is to always clean the mit with clean water, not contain water (or any dirty water in the bucket). Again, I have to spend time testing it to see if it pans out in real life washing.

A good effort! I may misunderstand, but I'd tend to think that floating the grit out by submerging into water would be more effective than a stream which might push grit into it.

Since the goal seems to be to avoid stirring up the grit that settles to the bottom of the bucket, how about a cone-shaped bottom, so the grit settles to the point of the cone, and you have a little foot-operated valve at the bottom of the cone and you flush out the settled grit before each dunk of the wash mit, with a little blip of the valve?

Great idea as well!!! Although a cone shape bucket would want to tip, so you would need a special caddy.

How much water does this method use? It seems a bit excessive, so perhaps you could couple this with a water collection system so that the water can then be used to water a lawn or something other than just flowing out of the bucket completely wasted.[/QUOTE]

The thing is, you are not starting with 5 gallons or so in the bucket. My pressure washer is 1.25 gpm. So if I add up all the time I run the pressure washer to clean the mit, say 20 times a wash, I can figure out how much water I'm using.

Lets say I limit it to 5 gallons. That would mean I could run my pressure washer 240 seconds to rinse (1.25 gpm x 4mins = 5 total gallons). If I rinse the mit, say 20 times that gives me about 12 seconds or so each time to pressure blast the mit clean (20 times a wash) to use a total of 5 gallons "rinse water" each wash.

Not too excessive. Also, I figure you won't be left with a soapy / dirt filled rinse bucket at the end when your done that needs to be cleaned and rinsed. For me, I use at least another gallon or two to clean that. Theoretically, when I'm done, I should only have to dry this grit blaster with a towel or by air, all the "dirt" will already be flushed away.