Grit Guards: needed or not?

[prr]

Post deleted

[prr]

Re: Grit Guards: needed or not?

I'd appreciate it if ONLY PEOPLE WHO HAVE USED GRIT GUARDS WOULD VOTE IN THE POLL.

If you have an opinion or anything to say about the use of grit guards, please feel free to post below, but I'm trying to get an idea of how helpful these are, based on actual experience of folks who have used them.

I'm wondering if simply using the two-bucket method itself, without a grit guard, would be just as good at removing rocks and dirt from what is being used to wash the car with.

[the other pc]

Re: Grit Guards: needed or not?

What do you mean by "needed?"

Millions of people wash their cars without grit guards. So in an absolute sense, nobody needs one.

But yes, I always find lots of grit at the bottom of my buckets when I wash a car. I definitely prefer having a grit guard.



pc

[Murr1525]

Re: Grit Guards: needed or not?

You dont 'need' to wash with soap either... but why not use something inexpensive that helps.

And yes, always some grit, esp in the fall/winter even more.

[prr]

Re: Grit Guards: needed or not?

If you look at the poll's answers, "yes" means "I have seen debris accumulate below the grit guard". That is how I've defined "needing" a grit guard--if it protects your car from debris that would otherwise get rubbed onto its surface.

I realize that in a strict sense that you might not "need" them, any more than you "need" money to survive, but it sure helps.

[RPPM]

Re: Grit Guards: needed or not?

Grit Guards are probably the cheapest investment you can make in paint care, and one of the best!! I never wash my cars without them. One for the wash bucket, one for the rinse bucket.

[BlueZero]

Re: Grit Guards: needed or not?

I get lots of junk on the bottom of my bucket. The dead bugs float to the top and the sand, etc sinks below the grit guard. Typically I shake out the mitt in the water with my hand and not rub it on the grit guard. I try to keep it as far away from the sediment as possible. I also skim the top of the water with my hand to catch some of the bugs if there gets to be a lot. Most of the time I just use one bucket to wash, when I do use two most of the grit is in the rinse bucket.

[prr]

Re: Grit Guards: needed or not?

Well, 5-0 in the poll, and the comments above, make a pretty convincing argument to getting one. I just don't recall seeing much debris in my buckets at all. I'll definitely be on the alert for it the next time I wash a car, and I'll get one from amazon (they're selling the guards there for 15 including tax) if its there.

[JET_Fusion]

When I was my car I don't need them. When I wash my truck I do. And that's even after I've (1) rinsed the entire vehicle, (2) washed the wheels & tires separately, and (3) washed the wheel wells separately.

[prr]

Re: Grit Guards: needed or not?

Hmmm I just emptied the pail from my weekend car wash, and the only thing that could count as debris was a small amount of tiny black particles. No rocks, stones, or large things that could have scraped the paint.... The small stuff was at the bottom, where one would expect heavier stuff (that is, heavier than water) to fall.

[Pure Luxury]

I really like my grit guards. Their only $10 at ADS in AZ. You can find ADS online too. Because I wash all levels of cars. I rinse before every car and rinse again after every car. If it is a nicer car, I do the two bucket wash. the grit guards are not needed. It is a form of convenience, and professionalism. Plus, it keeps your mitts cleaner and gives a nice end result.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Grit Guards: needed or not?

Hmmm I just emptied the pail from my weekend car wash, and the only thing that could count as debris was a small amount of tiny black particles. No rocks, stones, or large things that could have scraped the paint.... The small stuff was at the bottom, where one would expect heavier stuff (that is, heavier than water) to fall.

Well, you don't need rocks, stones or something large to scratch the paint. The tiny black particles you saw in the bottom of the bucket are more than enough to swirl your paint. This is what the Grit Guard is so good at helping to prevent since it acts like a baffle at the bottom of the bucket, dramatically minimizing the amount of swirling (no pun intended) of the water as you move your wash mitt around in the bucket to pick up fresh, soapy water. Even without a Grit Guard this particulate matter will fall to the bottom of the bucket, but swirling your mitt around will churn that stuff back up into the water. The Grit Guard keeps it at the bottom of the bucket and away from the mitt, and keeping it away from the mitt keeps it away from your paint. Of course, two buckets is best of all, with Grit Guards in both.

Oh, and by the way, we were huge proponents of the Grit Guard looooong before we ever started selling it directly.

[prr]

Re: Grit Guards: needed or not?

Michael, ok, you've talked me into it. That does make sense. I've put a grit guard back on my shopping list.