Tried organic car wash

[JG_Detailing]

I went to a autoparts store and saw some new car soap. I thought to give it a try. Just because it is organic. They say its better for the enviroment. Well I can see why it is. It doesn't give you any suds in the bucket. Well at first it does but after you turn the water off they go away. I try to use things that are eco friendly when I can. I will always use Meguiar's soap. Just thought I would see ho good this product is.
Question: Is Meguiar's products good for the enviroment. Alot of people ask me that.

[Justin A]

Re: Tried organic car wash

Suds aren't the end-all-be-all of a soap, what you really want to look for is lubricity - the product's ability to lubricate the surface (preventing scratches) as your wash mitt lifts away the contaminants.
Suds are fine and dandy for lifting away some loose dirt and grime on their own, but you really need a foam gun to take advantage of that effect.

Meguiars washing products are all biodegradable IIRC.

[Calais]

Re: Tried organic car wash

I don't really concern myself with what is or is not environmentally friendly; my actions are only a drop in the bucket (no pun intended). That being said, in today's market it would be fairly foolish for a company as big and well-known not to cater to the more eco-conscious masses.

[Murr1525]

Re: Tried organic car wash

Yeah, they say the soaps are bio-degradeable, so that must be soemthing.

[the_invisible]

Re: Tried organic car wash

Organic is a term used widely by the marketing departments of companies to advertise products. From what I learned in year one chemistry course, most household products are biodegradable (thus organic) even though they are not advertised as such. Also, there is currently little restriction regarding the use of the term organic.

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: Tried organic car wash

I remember a reply to this question by Mike Phillips. Meguiar's car wash soaps are bio-degradable. However the bigger concern is the residue on the car. Are they bio-degradable? So I gathered from that, the soap is a small part of the equation.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Tried organic car wash

All of our car wash soaps are indeed biodegradable, but we can't address that which is actually removed from the surface of the vehicle when using these products.

In California there are certain restrictions regarding waste water collection so you see mobile detailers with fresh water tanks and water reclamation tanks. This is to prevent runoff from getting into storm drains and out to the ocean. Commercial car washes have similar processes, but on a much larger scale as they're washing large numbers of vehicles every day. Many of the car wash products sold in our Detailer line are used by commercial car washes nationwide.

Of course, the road grime that builds up on a vehicle's surface over time is the big culprit here, so water reclamation in these cases is a good thing. But since it rains so seldom here in SoCal, and there are so many millions of vehicles leaving rubber, oil, grease, etc all over the roads, what happens to that when it does finally rain? Yep, it gets washed off the roads, into the storm drains, and out to the ocean.

Still, whatever we can successfully prevent from doing so would be a good thing.

[Mike Pennington]

Re: Tried organic car wash

Also, there is currently little restriction regarding the use of the term organic.

Maybe not in the Car Care Industry, but I believe there are in the US regarding food, but I am clearly not the expert

FMI article regarding Organic on the FDA.gov Site

Organic article on the USDA site

[Superior Shine]

Re: Tried organic car wash

Reclaim, its the law for mobile auto detailers. Mobile detailers not reclaiming are breaking the law!

[the_invisible]

Re: Tried organic car wash

Could the detailer wash the customer's car for free "as a friend", so he does not have to reclaim?

[Superior Shine]

Re: Tried organic car wash

Not wearing his/her colors or using his/her rig.