Blow drying after washing?

[atclew]

Another gentleman from another forum is considering using his leaf-blower to dry his car after washing it. Personally, I would never do such a thing. Would like some feedback and some of the pros to weigh in on the subject.

[Mike Phillips]

Drying your car with leaf blower enables you to remove water off the car without touching the car, this is a benefit as you will reduce the possibility of instilling any wiping scratches. Mostly this would be important if you already have a flawless, swirl-free finish.

I personally don't own a leave blower and have never tried this, but am interested as the owner of a black car.

Have an open mind, new products and techniques are always being introduced, you wouldn't want to miss out on something that helps you or is a benefit to the process.

Mike

[RamAirV1]

A lot of detailing enthusiasts swear by leaf blowers, but I did not have much luck with one. I found that it dried the paint too fast in some areas of my black Trans Am and it created bad water spots that were very difficult to remove.

Leaf blowers are helpful in getting water out of the nooks and crannies of a car where it would normally trickle out over the period of several hours. You know those areas where water continues to drip when you thought you finally had the car dry.



It takes a powerful leaf blower to get the job done, 215 MPH plus is usually recommended. The problem is that they tend to stir up dust too.


In summary I was not impressed with the leaf blower.


RamAirV1

[mrtech]

I like using the blower. I gets the water out in between the "cracks". I think it is pretty safe to use.

[Fidel]

hmmm, I use one to get to the nooks and crannies of my vehicle. it removes water found behind trims, gas cap, side mirrors, etc... speeds up the drying time...

BTW, my ride is black too and with regards to watermarks, its not much of a problem if you do a pass with a drying towel first to wipe off the excess water before actually firing up the blower..

it also helps if you use NXT wash. it has some water softener in it.

hope this helps.

[Setec Astronomy]

Many (tunnel) car washes use air knives to get the water off the car as the last step. I have also seen dealer wash bays use compressed air to blow the water off. After hearing about the leaf blower idea some months ago, and mulling over the above, I decided to buy a small compressor that was on sale at Sears at Christmas. This has an adjustable output pressure. I was able to acquire a flat blow-off nozzle. When spring comes, I'll try out this combo...if I don't like it...the compressor is small, wasn't that expensive, and I can use it for other things.

[atclew]

Under controlled conditions, I could understand trying this. BUt to just blow dry my car out on my driveway? No. Maybe pulling it into my garage and doing it there would be useful. Something more to consider. Thanks for all the input!

[Carrera]

It is too time consuming to use a leaf blower to dry a car. I use my Weed Eater brand leaf blower to get the water out of the crranies, aftter drying the car. On the other hand I can completely dry my motorcyle with a lear blower. It only takes more time.

I highly recommend a leaf blower. I consider it a very useful tool.

[mike_svt]

I purchased an electric leaf blower w/ the sole purpose of drying my vehicles. As others have mentioned, it works really good at getting the water out of the nooks and crannies, espically roof racks on SUVs. It doesn't get all the water off, but the water that remains is in such small beads (on my car anyways) that when it dries I don't get water spotting issues. I've used it quite a bit this winter, when I only have a chance to pressure wash my car. I would never dry the car w/out washing it w/ a sponge, so the blower does a nice job in that regard.

[Rockpick]

As a current owner of a BLACK truck and the past owner of SEVERAL dark colored vehicles, I've used this technique several times to minimize the time that I'm spending touching the paint.

This doesn't totally replace a great waffle-wave MF towel in my opinion but, it greatly reduces the time I spend with drying...

Just as a side note, everyone who uses this technique gets over the fact that all your neighbors think you're absolutely looney. LOL!

RP

[mike_svt]

Neighbors and family members! My wife thought I was crazy for wanting to try this, but after the first SUV that we detailed w/ this technique, she was a believer! No more (or atleast a lot less) water dripping/running over that freshly applied wax (pre removal)!

[Carrera]

My techique:

1) Dry the outside of the vehicle
2) Use the lead blower
3) Then open the doors, trunk, hood and dry the inside of the doors, hood, and trunk

[gb387]

Originally posted by Setec Astronomy
Many (tunnel) car washes use air knives to get the water off the car as the last step. I have also seen dealer wash bays use compressed air to blow the water off. After hearing about the leaf blower idea some months ago, and mulling over the above, I decided to buy a small compressor that was on sale at Sears at Christmas. This has an adjustable output pressure. I was able to acquire a flat blow-off nozzle. When spring comes, I'll try out this combo...if I don't like it...the compressor is small, wasn't that expensive, and I can use it for other things.

.


Where did you find a flat blow-off nozzle? I have been looking for one. Was going to try and make one but if I can buy one first.

[RCBuddha]

I don't blow the car completely dry, just enough to evacuate the water from all the seams, cracks and crevices. I then use a WWMF towel, and a little QD, to help with streaking. ALWAYS wash/dry in the shade (for conventional washes). Works well for me. It also may help determine if there is wax left, as the water will run off faster....

[the other pc]

There's an outfit that sells a product called the Air Wand, basically a hand held air knife style nozzle for a leaf blower.

There's a manufacturer called the Metropolitan Vacuum Cleaner Company that makes a line of blowers and blower/vacs for automotive and motorcycle detailing (they also make blowers for dog grooming). You can find their products at lots of online detailing suppliers.

Personally, I only use air for blowing out crevices and then blot it with a towel. My water is pretty hard and would leave a residue if I tried to dry the whole car with air.

A small compressor won't deliver enough flow to dry much surface area. They're high pressure, low flow devices as opposed to a leaf blower, which gives low pressure at high flow.


PC.