Clear water washing (No Soap)

[Jbirk]

It rained here yesterday for the first time in many months. I got rain all over my car and dirty water all over the sides.

What I did is pull out Quik Detailer and the Supreme Micro Fiber and spray the sides while they were still wet then I wiped it off switching to newer cloth to remove not spread the dirt around.

I did did this while it was raining because it is the dirt that will look really bad when it dries.

I also cleaned my windows in the rain.

I sprayed the wiper fluid all over the window then used the wipers to get it partially dry. Next I wiped it clean with the DUO Fiber. It turned out quite good.

[Ranger72]

when I get stuck driving in the rain, and it so happens to still be raining (and the car is still wet) when I get home, I spray the truck down with the hose. Since the nasty puddle/ road water never dried on the car, it hoses right off. I follow the spraying with a hose "roll-off" (guzzle the hose) but I would never thing about touching it with a cloth to dry.

[Accumulator]

Rusty Bumper- The #00 and #62 just seemed more to my liking than the GC, which didn't have the lubricity I'm used to. Ditto for the "consumer level" washes from other manufacturers. Haven't tried any oher Meguiar's "consumer" level washes for so long that I can't comment on them.

Before I started doing the over-the-top foamgun wash technique, I found that the choice of shampoo made a huge difference with regard to the incidence of wash-induced marring. More lubrication is better than less and so, with all other factors (sudsing, cleaning ability, etc.) being equal, that's usually the primary criterion for me.

#62 has great lubricity and is my favorite Meguiar's wash. The #00 seems to have a little less lubricity but it's a *very* mild wash; it'll barely strip off products like #5 when used with a gentle wash technique. Works fine for removing light "garage dust" from my garage queen, for instance.

Bear in mind that I'm admittedly off the deep end when it comes to wash-induced marring. What matters to me could quite reasonably be of no consequence to others

[Jeff Smith]

Originally posted by Accumulator
Rusty Bumper- The #00 and #62 just seemed more to my liking than the GC, which didn't have the lubricity I'm used to. Ditto for the "consumer level" washes from other manufacturers. Haven't tried any oher Meguiar's "consumer" level washes for so long that I can't comment on them.

Before I started doing the over-the-top foamgun wash technique, I found that the choice of shampoo made a huge difference with regard to the incidence of wash-induced marring. More lubrication is better than less and so, with all other factors (sudsing, cleaning ability, etc.) being equal, that's usually the primary criterion for me.

#62 has great lubricity and is my favorite Meguiar's wash. The #00 seems to have a little less lubricity but it's a *very* mild wash; it'll barely strip off products like #5 when used with a gentle wash technique. Works fine for removing light "garage dust" from my garage queen, for instance.

Bear in mind that I'm admittedly off the deep end when it comes to wash-induced marring. What matters to me could quite reasonably be of no consequence to others

I have ordered the Pro Catalog and am hoping it has a little better detail in it about the capabilities of each product. For someone like me who is just getting into all this, it can be very confusing. I doubt I have developed the "eye" well enough yet to be able to judge whether or not one soap does a particular job better than another. Whether it be mild cleaning ability or it's reduction in wax removal capabiltiy. I guess I should consider getting both of these products you mention. Use the #62 when the truck is dirty and the #00 when it just needs the dust washed off.

I think I need to make myself up a product usage guide to remind me what to use and when.

[rusty bumper]

Originally posted by Accumulator
#62 has great lubricity and is my favorite Meguiar's wash. The #00 seems to have a little less lubricity but it's a *very* mild wash; it'll barely strip off products like #5 when used with a gentle wash technique. Works fine for removing light "garage dust" from my garage queen, for instance.

Thanks Accumulator,

I've tried "00" before, but it seemed to me that Gold Class was the slicker of the two.....Maybe I need to try "00" again.

But one thing about Gold Class shampoo that stood out to me, was the fact that it seemed to impart something extra to the shine. I think it also has some kind of paint conditioners in it too.

For example, I had a little dried up wax residue on the window trim and GC shampoo was able to condition/penatrate? (not sure the correct words here) the trim and make the dried up wax less noticeable. After using GC, the trim area didn't have a dried out look to it, and at the time, I was having trouble finding something to fix this problem area......Until Trim Detailer hit the scene.

Never tried #62 yet, but I will in time.

All the more reason for Meguiars to make a shampoo sampler.

[Jbirk]

Doing a clear water wash is not a terribly bad thing, but it is not as effective as using a good car wash.

HOnestly, your first step is to fully rinse away any dirt taht might cause swirls before using a quality wash mit.

The suds disolve dirt and help break up road grime better than water, so it comes off easier. However, you will still be scrubbing the contaminates against the paint. Soap will make your car clean up faster though.

Most importantly, soapy suds break the surface tension of water allowing it to clean much better. You may notice that on a fresly waxed car soapy water will not bead. It is very important durring washing to have very little surface tension allowing you to fully disolve and safely clean your vehicle.

When you are all done and it is rinsed off water will bead again.

[Accumulator]

Rusty Bumper & j333_76484- I'd just do what I actually *did* do. Get a bunch of #62 and just use that I gotta admit I'm using a different shampoo these days, but you're not gonna go wrong with #62 and I don't see a real need to use #00 for one job and #62 for another unless you're using one *very* fragile LSP.

Originally posted by Rusty Bumper
I've tried "00" before, but it seemed to me that Gold Class was the slicker of the two.....Never tried #62 yet, but I will in time.

I've never used #00 on a truly dirty car, and it's been forever since I used it at all I probably shouldn't have made a direct comparison between #00 and GC with regard to lubricity. My experiences with the two shampoos were years apart.

Also, I've found that water quality/other characteristics can have a big effect on shampoos. Gotta find a happy combo.

[rusty bumper]

Originally posted by Accumulator
Also, I've found that water quality/other characteristics can have a big effect on shampoos. Gotta find a happy combo.

Yeah, It's easy to forget about that when talking about shampoos.

Fortunately, we have very soft city water here.

[Accumulator]

Originally posted by Rusty Bumper
Fortunately, we have very soft city water here.

Lucky you Our municipal water is worse than the well water I had at my first house. We're using twin filters, a conditioner ("softener") and then a booster pump to get decent pressure! And I have to change out the filters every month, you wouldn't believe the [stuff] that gets caught in them. Needless to say, we're using RO units for our drinking water

[rusty bumper]

Originally posted by Accumulator
Lucky you Our municipal water is worse than the well water I had at my first house. We're using twin filters, a conditioner ("softener") and then a booster pump to get decent pressure! And I have to change out the filters every month, you wouldn't believe the [stuff] that gets caught in them. Needless to say, we're using RO units for our drinking water

Wow, that sounds rough and expensive.

Not trying to rub it in, but I can spray dust off of my cars with a hose without having to worry about heavy spotting & such....Not that I do that often, but I've done it if I was in a pinch and had to blast off bird mess or something.

On the other hand, it's not too great in my aquariums. I have to add minerals just to keep the ph stabilized.

[Accumulator]

Heh heh, seems like there are always trade-offs with most anything. I'd rather have to (only) doctor the water for the aquariums though