Don’t use these items
We are a car culture and of course we love to keep our vehicles clean. Of course car wash is super convenient but there is nothing more American than soaping up and cleaning your ride in the driveway. However, there are some bad habits and a lot of misleading information out there. So whether you are maintaining that new finish from Hollingsworth Auto, or just keeping the ride clean, here are a few products you should never use when you clean or detail your car.
1. Dish Soap
Your dad probably used it, and at first glance, washing your car with dish soap is a good idea. It gets super sudsy, safe enough to clean you dishes, and it’s always on hand. But because detergents are excellent at removing grease, oil, and dirt from various surfaces, many believe that they are good at cleaning cars. However, these same attributes work against your sealer wax. This can compromise the paint’s protection and risks oxidation and rust. While laundry or dish soap won’t wash away the entirety of your car’s finish in one go, it will certainly begin the process.
Spend the extra couple bucks and get soap made especially for cars. Look for a product that contains surfactants: they will remove dirt and carry it off the surface of your car instead of dragging it around.
2. Recycled Clothing and Towels
Many car owners save old T-shirts and bath towels to clean or dry their cars with. Unfortunately, these cloths are unfit for the job, because they leave tiny scratches on your car’s clearcoat. Sponges and paper products have the same effect. Even if your recycled items feel soft, most of them include polyester, which is a synthetic fiber. Polyester is essentially plastic, which means that it’s abrasive and will leave marks on your car. Sometimes these scratches are visible, and sometimes they are not — either way, they damage your clear coat, which will drive you towards an inevitable and expensive repair.
Use sponges and wash mitts developed especially for cars. And we highly recommend having a second bucket in addition to you soap bucket filled with fresh water to rinse your sponge or mitt between a dunk in the soapy water. This will help release any particle that can scratch the finish. Also, if you drop that cleaning sponge or mitt on the ground, you need to rinse it thoroughly.
3. Overly Expensive Wax
The phrase “you get what you pay for” applies to many things, but it doesn’t apply to car wax. A jar that costs $50 or less will likely perform just as well as one that costs more. Rather than cost or type of wax, your first concern needs to be longevity. Using a carnauba wax will give you a deeper, wet-look shine, but a polymer-based sealant will protect the paint significantly longer, which is important living in a region with a blistering hot sun. Either way, adding that barrier between your paint and the outside world is key to keeping falling leaves, salt water, road grime and UV rays from causing further damage.
Do You Need Collision Repair in Savannah, Georgia?
Hollingsworth Auto Service is a collision repair facility located in Savannah, Georgia. For over 100 years, we have been building relationships with our customers and have a proven track record of providing quality repairs for generations.
If you are looking for a Savannah auto body shop you can rely on, call Hollingsworth Auto Service today at: 912.234.6651
