Winter in Ohio snow, ice, salt

[cyber3fan]

Hi all, I live in ffice:smarttags" />Ohio and winter is coming. I use Maguire’s products NTX 2.0, SwirlX, Car Wash, Deep Crystal Polish, etc. My adult children have all moved out but they seem to never want to take all their stuff with them. So I have a full garage and left to washing and detailing outside. My cars are fairly new and daily drivers. At what temperatures is to cold for Quik Detailer etc. I hate the thought of going to a car wash. Any tips on car care from any fellow northerners.
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Cyber3fan

[paudashlake]

Re: Winter in Ohio snow, ice, salt

snow on friday. None of us are ready!

[Murr1525]

Re: Winter in Ohio snow, ice, salt

Well, QD can be used at fairly low temps.

But QD is for light dust, most of the grime from winter will be much to heavy for a QD.

[JLMex]

Re: Winter in Ohio snow, ice, salt

Hint:
What is more expensive? All the junk of your adult children, or two fairly new cars? ;-) that said, apply the following 3 steps car care:
1.- Garage sale
2.- donate to charity, throw away remaining junk
3.- put your cars back to where they belong: garage

[Blueline]

Re: Winter in Ohio snow, ice, salt

Any tips on car care from any fellow northerners.
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Cyber3fan

The diehard fans here will not approve of this, but I don't wash mine after November at all and only resume cleaning in MArch. I give it a claying, ColorX, and M16 wax, and that is it until the winter is over. I heard a long time ago it is best not to wash a vehicle in the northern winters as it only liquifies the salt and that is worse. Dry salt is harmless. Last year when I washed the car in MArch, it was still beading and the paint was perfect (to me). Maybe under fancy lights someone might see flaws, but to the above average eye, it looks fine. Each to their own.

[Blueline]

Re: Winter in Ohio snow, ice, salt

Silly one minute edit rule... Just to add to the above I get the car sprayed underneath and in the body panels every fall.

[cyber3fan]

Re: Winter in Ohio snow, ice, salt

Thanks, I was thinking about just skipping the wash and detailing DEC, JAN and Feb. Unless we get some kind of freeky warm weather

cyber3fan

[mis3]

Re: Winter in Ohio snow, ice, salt

There is just so much you can do in the winter.

My car is a daily driver and while I have a garage, it is not heated. My friend lives in a condo with a huge water-hose (like a fire hose) and I would go there occasionally to rinse off the car (esp the bottom). Other times I would go to a touchless car wash to rinse off the salt and dirts.

I used UQD for light grimes and bird drops but certainly not for the whole car. As for dust, I use California Duster.

[mis3]

Re: Winter in Ohio snow, ice, salt

I did just what Blueline suggested, I applied NXT then M21 to my car last weekend.

During the winter months, I often rinse the car (top/bottom) but not wash/dry. Don't really want the salt to stay on my car too long.

[RGP]

Re: Winter in Ohio snow, ice, salt

Forty six years in Cleveland. Used car every day for U.S. Mail. I ran my garden hose out from my basement slop sinks and rinsed the car nearly every day with hot water. Just run the engine during the "wash" and a few minutes after to avoid freezing. Pull the hose back in and coil it in the slop sink for the next use...

[Justin A]

Re: Winter in Ohio snow, ice, salt

I go through the touch-free wash every week or so to get the salt off. I think the second package up around here includes the undercarriage spray, so I get that one. Only when the weather is supposed to be nice for a few days though, otherwise it's a total waste of money. If I had a drain in the garage I'd wash in there.

[Justin A]

Re: Winter in Ohio snow, ice, salt

I go through the touch-free wash every week or so to get the salt off. I think the second package up around here includes the undercarriage spray, so I get that one. Only when the weather is supposed to be nice for a few days though, otherwise it's a total waste of money. If I had a drain in the garage I'd wash in there.

I'll be applying Menzerna FMJ in the next week or two, it should last through the winter. In past years, I've used NXT2.0, but I found that it doesn't actually make it through the winters here and I need to reapply it about once every five weeks or so. I'm hoping that FMJ lives up to its claims.

[mis3]

Re: Winter in Ohio snow, ice, salt

Forty six years in Cleveland. Used car every day for U.S. Mail. I ran my garden hose out from my basement slop sinks and rinsed the car nearly every day with hot water. Just run the engine during the "wash" and a few minutes after to avoid freezing. Pull the hose back in and coil it in the slop sink for the next use...

I assume you're doing this inside a heated garage, right?

Also, is hot water good for the car?

[RGP]

Re: Winter in Ohio snow, ice, salt

I assume you're doing this inside a heated garage, right?

Also, is hot water good for the car?

No. Right out in the twenties and thirties. I used straight hot, but if you have hot and cold running through a common threaded spout, you can adjust it to however you want. I always kept the heater on full blast and after I was finished, I'd let it idle for five or ten minutes just to dry things out. I did this for the entire 17 years I worked for the USPS and never had one hard start or one frozen door. The walk from my house to the detached garage got a tad slippery though ; a small price to pay for a fairly clean car. My favorite step was when the huge clods of salty snow finally let loose from the wheel wells.

[paul.segovich]

Re: Winter in Ohio snow, ice, salt

I go through the touch-free wash every week or so to get the salt off. I think the second package up around here includes the undercarriage spray, so I get that one. Only when the weather is supposed to be nice for a few days though, otherwise it's a total waste of money. If I had a drain in the garage I'd wash in there.

I've heard that those are not good for your car. But i don't know if there is any truth behind this. Maybe a show car i wouldnt' take to a touch-free wash, but a daily driver, i don't know what other options there are?! Especially when for 2/3 months you don't see a day above 30/40. D:!