Car Wash – That’s How It Works!
If you want to wash your car properly, you should pay attention to a few basic things.
To keep its value If protect your car’s paintwork by washing it yourself. But be careful, there are a few things you should pay attention to, so that the joy of a car cleaning does not disappear so fast.
Car Wash Cleaning Tools Which You Should Prepare Before Getting Started
You should prepare at least the following car wash tools:
a soft hand brush or sponge
a bucket
microfiber cloth
car shampoo, seat cleanser and rim agent
a vacuum cleaner
a pressure washer
gloves (opt.)
Wash your car properly – that’s how it’s done!
Especially after the winter season, a car should be thoroughly cleaned to remove salt and other aggressive dirt from the road. But even otherwise a clean car looks much better than a dirty one. Many car drivers wanna wash their beloved car by themselves but beware, washing in the domestic driveway is sometimes prohibited or just allowed under certain conditions. If you want to clean your car yourself, it is better to go to a special self-service washing box, which is often located at petrol stations and car washes.
Anyone should be able to wash his car but experience teaches us that this popular belief is not always true. Even when washing your car you can make some mistakes and damage the paint surface. Sponges and detergents have long been no longer sufficient to cope with the highly sensitive car paints. It is therefore important to wash the car properly.
Before you tackle the dirt, your hands should first be freed from any jewelry, otherwise you risk a scratch when hand washing quickly. Instead of a sponge, which absorbs the dirt badly, it is best to use a microfiber glove that encloses dirt particles. Even a car shampoo makes sense (e. g. Cilajet Car-Shampoo). This is carefully mixed according to the dosing instructions of the manufacturer in a bucket. And here too “Less is more”. Too high a dosage can attack the protective layer of the paint. The car should also not be washed in the blazing sun, the shade is the better choice. If the paint is heated, water and detergent dry too quickly and cause unsightly stains, which you later may have to polish away.
If you want to wash your car absolutely properly, start cleaning with the rims first. A pressure washer performs well for prewashing and dissolves the coarse dirt. However, the pressure washers hard jet of water should not be aimed directly at the tires because the rubber could be damaged.
For many drivers it is just the rim that matters
Many millions of car owners give plenty of attention, but unfortunately rarely enough care to rims. But that is especially important in alloy wheels.
Cleaning rims – these tips will give great results
Especially in winter salt harms the alloy wheels and reduces the appearance. A clean car rim is not only a good thing from an optical point of view, it is also good for driving safety. Because only if an aluminum rim is free of impurities, condition can be examined and scratches or a damage be revealed . A scratch can quickly lead to a dangerous and irreparable hairline crack. The carrying capacity of the wheel is no longer guaranteed and the expensive rim is unusable. Therefore, you should clean the rims regularly and inspect them for damage.
Most car owners know, however, that in the car wash only the coarse dirt gives way, but not stubborn deposits. Often, fine brake dust settles in depressions, which is difficult to remove. If the washer and the cleaning by a high pressure water jet are not enough, then only manual labor helps. To get to hard to reach places, you can best clean the rim with a toothbrush. In order not to attack the material and to protect the tire, one should resort to an acid-free cleaner such as the Voodoo Ride Acid Free Wheel Cleaner. But it does not necessarily have to be the expensive wheel cleaner, a few home remedies that almost everyone has at home, are enough to help the rim to regain its shine.
Oven spray and toothpaste against the dirt
Baking oven spray really does wonders and is an agent of choice for cleaning rims. First, you should pre-clean the rim to remove the coarsest dirt particles. Then bring the oven spray such as the Easy-Off Heavy Duty Oven Cleaner, Regular Scent on the dry rim and let the spray act for about 15 minutes. The dirt can then easily be rinsed off with a sponge and clear water. When spraying the rim, however, caution is advised. The brake blocks should be left out in order to avoid impairment of the braking effect. A commercial toothpaste also provides a good remedy for heavy contamination. With a damp cloth you put the toothpaste on the polluted places. Rub them and you will see how the dirt is peeling away noticeably. Then you apply clear to free the rim from cleaning residues.
In order to preserve the gloss for a long time and to prevent a quick re-wetting of the light-alloy wheels, it makes sense to apply a rim seal after the rim cleaning. At the same time, this protects against small damage caused by rock chips. Incidentally, steel rims can be easily cleaned with a pressure washer and, if necessary, with a coarse sponge.
Then it goes to the paint on the dirt. For this purpose, the car shampoo is used. With a soaped-in microfiber glove, you work your way down from the top. In order not only to rub the dirt on the paint, it is important not to exert pressure, but gently glide over the surface. Then It is best to wash the glove in a second bucket before picking up new shampoo.
After that the car should be sprayed from top to bottom with a pressure washer or a water hose. Finally, it should be wiped dry with a soft microfiber cloth. Gentle action is required!
Cleaning Car Seats Properly
It is necessary to clean the interior from time to time, if you don’t want your family coach looking shabby.
Depending on the material of the car seats, you have to use different means to remove dust, dirt and stains. But be careful before using. Always test your cleaning agent in an inconspicuous area to ensure the color-fastness of the seat cover.
Before you start to clean wet and to remove stain, you should free the entire interior of dust and road dirt. The best way to do this is to use a cordless vacuum cleaner. Pay special attention to the cracks and the gaps between the seats.
Clean stained car seats
It makes a big difference whether you want to remove chewing gum stains, blood stains, coffee stains or grease stains from the seat pad. Therefore, you should always perform a stain analysis before stain removal. The easiest way to clean stained car seats is to treat the stains immediately. Since this is not possible in most cases, you should try it at least as soon as possible.
Grease stains, coffee stains or blood stains on fabric seats are best handled with gall soap (This is not suitable for leather seats!)
First fill a bowl with lukewarm water and dip a microfiber cloth into the bowl and wring it out. Then moisten the gall soap with the water well. If you have tested this car cleaning agent in an inconspicuous area of the seat and found it to be good, rub the stains thoroughly with the gall soap. Let the soap work for some time. Before then dabbing with water. Dab again and again over the soapy spot with the damp microfiber cloth. In between, wash the cloth in the bowl and dab again. Finally, pull the moisture out of the seat pad with clean kitchen towels. If the kitchen towels do not absorb water, you should still leave the car with opened windows for three to four hours, so that the residual moisture in the car seats can dry.
For removing chewing gum stains an ice spray which you can get in the pharmacy is the agent of choice. Spray the spray directly onto the stains until the chewing gum is frozen. Then lift it off carefully with a spatula.
Clean leather car seats
Alcantara consists of polyester and polyurethane. It feels soft and looks like suede. Although the soft microfiber tiling is quite easy to clean, you should try each remedy first in an inconspicuous area of the car seat. For Alcantara car seats, as well as for suede car seats, it is best to use a special cleaning foam agent such as the BMW Foam Leather Cleaner, which ca be used for all smooth natural and faux leathers.
After you have tested the cleaning agent in an inconspicuous place, carefully roughen spots on your seat cover with a special leather brush. Then spray the entire seat cover with the cleaning foam. In stained areas, gently massage the foam with a brush and let the agent act according to the manufacturer’s advise before you vacuum it thoroughly.
For car seats made of smooth leather, is is also recommended to use a special car seat leather cleaner (refer above). Spray the cleansing foam on a soft, lint-free cotton cloth and rub the leather car seats carefully with the cloth. Let the medium interact for a short time and then rub the dried foam with a microfiber cloth from the seat. Finally, polish the leather seats with nylon tights. (No joke!)
Tips for car seat cleaning
If you use distilled water instead of tap water when cleaning, water marks on the cushions can be avoided. If you need to work on old stains, you should work with a bit more water. Nevertheless, try to avoid that the wet penetrates too deep into the upholstery. Freshly made spots may be subject to initial cleaning with carbonated mineral water. Carefully pour some mineral water onto the stains and dab it right away out with a tissue.
To avoid stains when cleaning car seats made of leather, always keep the spray distance of the leather spray agent specified by the manufacturer.
Since Alcantara is a very easy to clean fabrics, just try to clean dirt and stains with a damp (not wet!) microfiber cloth, before buying and expensive cleaner . Often you can even remove dried-up dirt with lukewarm water, without cleaning additive. When dried use a soft brush for a final treatment.
For leather do not forget to apply a special leather care to the seat after a wet cleaning. Often, a colorless shoe polish helps to give a special shine.
With a steam cleaner such as the Bissell 1544A Powerfresh also an effective and gentle cleaning of your car seats can be achieved. Especially for light car seats a steam cleaner is recommended to be used.
If you won’t get rid of stains and dirt from your car seats no matter method or material, then only the one remains professional car cleaning company as the last solution.