[Closed] Who still washes their own car rather than take it to the car wash?

Car gets washed once a month, done by me about twice a year. I vacuum it out every couple of weeks. It would be done more often if I used the car more, only drive once a week and had better access to a hose/drive.

Three quid for a good wash here in Bury, thanks to the local Syrian/Iraqi/Kurdish wash team. They actually do a better job than I can because they finish it off with some kind of hydrophobic polymer that makes it shiny. If you pay a fiver they'll do the door shuts and dry the car off with a chamois.

I hope they're not slaves working for peanuts for a gang master.

I keep on top of it at home though because I never know when I'm going to get a call from an overseas customer who has turned up at the airport or the station.

Have only been to the car wash once or twice

Would much rather clean it meself at home

The local East European guys sort our car out, £5 for a wash and wax, £15 for a mini-valet. The latter means the car comes out looking perfect and gets done maybe twice a year.

I do mine when I was my bike, every few weeks or so. I drive to the trails in the car with the bike on the back, then when I get home I have to run the hose through the house to wash the bike and by the time I've done that I may as well wash the car- it only takes 10 minutes. I like my car and it's the most expensive thing I own so I don't mind looking after it. It's very rare I'd pay someone to do it.

I'll hoover it out myself too once every 3 or 4 months, usually after we've been on holiday in it.

I told myself I'd never become "that guy", always washing my car, but now I own a newish one I do it. I feel embarrassed and I think the neighbours think I'm a bit sad.

Mugboo - Member

They won't be gentle enough with my rusty bits..

stevedoc - Member

I find the couple of hours I spend doing it properly a good way to relax ,therapeutic I guess ,

This and this for me....
Although it's my wheels that would get destroyed by the cleaning gangs - the lacquer is peeling quite badly and it's really not worth spending the money having them refurbed. But, the aggressive wheel cleaner coupled with a jetwash would see them completely wrecked.

Plus, if I have the time I quite enjoy the process of cleaning the car; just switch off and do it. I find it quite therapeutic.

Annoying thing though is that my car never looks really clean as the paintwork is too old with too many scratches & scuffs. Might run a clay bar over it at some point to see if that helps....

I like to keep mine looking tidy for meeting clients etc and would like to do it my self but in reality I just don't have time so found a good local hand wash I trust to do a good job, use quality kit and not make a mess of the car.

Depends a bit on the car too, I quite enjoy washing/polishing the old Alfa but have no enthusiasm for cleaning the VRS.

I have heard horror stories about some hand wash places using quite nasty stuff to get the dirt off which ends up bleaching black plastic and rubber trims etc. Not good so always worth asking what they're using.

I'm too tight to pay anyone else to clean my car.

I washed my car a few weeks back. As I was doing it, I thought to myself, these wheels are a lot easier to clean than the last car. Then I realised it was the first time i'd done this - I'd had it 11 months 😳

My bro in law keeps his cars spotless/immaculate. I borrowed a car once and gave it back- after giving it a really good clean. His face said otherwise as he pointed out the various bits that'd missed 😯

My car gets washed at winter. Well a powerwash under arches/body. NOTHING else unless a servicing garages does it.

It has black paint too so apparently it gets dirty.

[i]I'm too tight to pay anyone else to clean my car.[/i]

Me too. It's such a quick and easy job. About once a month whenever it looks dirty.
Or when I book it in for service or MOT at my brother's place, the interior gets done as well, by his "Polish man". No way I'm paying anyone!

There was a thread on here recently with some really anal car washing techniques described - have they all left the forum now?!

Properly once a month, rub over with hot water and chamois weekly. "properly" involves waxes, polishes and toothbrushes.

I've always washed my own car(s). It gets done every couple of weeks or whenever it looks a mess - which now I have a black car can easily be weekly - For me it's a pleasure to do a bit therapeutic and gets me out of doing other jobs.

Never even been in a car wash

MrsR's view of washing a car is to get it valeted - chap did a very good job and saved me a couple or 3 hours.

Allthepies; where are the local Serbians? There used to be a place in Farnham but that's shut and i have an 'urgent' commission, given my dear daughter saw fit to redecorate the rear passenger area last night. Wetwipes and Neutrodol only go so far......

She also sharted on my settee later on, but that's leather - thank Christ.

TBH I'm mostly worried what mine might look like, under its protective coating of mud and dead animals. It gets washed once a year, for the MOT- not because I think it makes a difference but because I'd be afraid of being sued after it gives the testers dengue fever or something

Let some muppet swirl up your paint with sponge?

Never let anyone else wash my car.

This

Plus I enjoy doing it. Car gets cleaned and aqua waxed every couple of weeks.

Twice a year it get a full on clay bar and hand wax / polish. Its quite satisfying seeing the car sitting shining in the sun once I'm finished

Mine gets washed once a year the day before they pick it up and drop off the new one (company car).

As an aside the Eastern European car in Guildford/Surrey is £15-18 for a wash (they do a very good job). Handwash in central London is £25

Everytime I've had the car cleaned a bird poos on the car or I go somewhere filthy

So I don't really clean it. Wife goes to the local place, it's £6 in North London!

Car is filthy though, inside and out, should take it somewhere I guess

I wash mine

A bucket costs a quid

Takes all of 15 minutes

lazy swines

I would love to be able to take the van to a hand car wash once a month, but despite the proximity to eastern Europe there aren't any eastern European run car wash places. Only hand wash option I've found costs 55€.

And with the van being a lwb with black with shiny bumpers and us living in the middle of town with only on street parking then there is little chance of me doing it by hand.

Plus I enjoy doing it. Car gets cleaned and aqua waxed every couple of weeks.

Explain aqua-wax plese. Is that the polymer I mentioned, which makes water run off? What do you use?

I actually wish I had more time to clean the cars but the wife tends to kick off a bit if I spend a full day of the weekend doing nothing but cleaning the cars. I don't go to the extent of 'detailing' them but do the pre-wash, jet wash, lambs wool mit with 2 buckets, dry with a proper AG towel and then quick detailer as well as tyre dressing and glass cleaner. If they need it then polish and wax as well. The Polo desperately needs doing properly as its not really been looked at since I got it but the van is in the body shop for a week soon so the Polo will be getting some proper TLC.

As someone else said, I find it therapeutic. Which is odd as I rarely clean my bikes and pay someone to clean my house but my cars... thats my job 😀

As someone else said, I find it therapeutic.

I can relate to that, I find cleaning the house therapeutic....

Explain aqua-wax plese.

Autoglym Aquawax: Its basically a thin wet wax.

After you've cleaned the car you spray it on the car (it actually works better if the car isn't completely dry) let it dry for a few minutes and then buff off.

It gives the car a thin layer of wax protection, its nowhere near as long lasting as a proper hand wax with something like Meguiars or Autoglym HD but its very easy to use and gives a good top up to a proper yearly or twice yearly hand wax. It takes maybe an extra 15 minutes to use the aqua wax at the end of a wash

DezB - Member

There was a thread on here recently with some really anal car washing techniques described - have they all left the forum now?!

I use two buckets; one with hot water & the car shampoo stuff in and one with just clean water that I use to rinse the cleaning mitt in between panels.
It's an easy and inexpensive way of separating all of the grit that comes off your car, from the water that you are subsequently using to wash the rest of the car. It's impressive how dirty the rinse water goes & how clean the shampoo water stays.

If I had a jetwash I'd buy some of that foaming traffic film remover that you spray on in thick suds and let sit for 5 mins. It's the equivalent of soaking a baking tray & lifts all the dirt off. I saw a forum post where a bloke used it on a filthy dirty Audi estate and without even touching the car, upon rinsing it the car was very clean.
I'll try & find the link.....

http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=200198

although I do wonder how clean it would have been with just a jetwash with water & no soap stuff.

I don't use the Polish/Somali/Cuban* ones because:

I doubt they declare the income.
I doubt they pay business rates.
I doubt they pay Vat.
I doubt they have the correct environmental controls in place.

I'm surprised so many of the good denizens of STW use and seem to approve of these 'hand jobs'.

* Please insert your local operatives country of origin here.

Marko

Romania, at least the employees are. The owner drives a Bentley and is not.

Anyway, I wash my own car. I've seen people at car washes throw a sponge on the ground, power-hose it, then straight back on the car.

A jetwash alone doesn't get dirt off; you need to rub with a sponge or cloth.

I ran a mobile Valeting/Detailing business for a while, and I was a lot more expensive than the one in the OP 🙂

Although I was doing a totally different job to be fair, machine polishing and paint rectification on the majority of jobs, and full interior detailing was the norm.

Very expensive wax jobs, concourse preparation for car show "trailer queens" etc.

I would never have used the term "car wash" though, far too low rent 😉

With my own vehicles now, I would not go anywhere near any of the drive through "hand wash" places, the stuff they use is far too aggressive (to make the job easy and quick) and the damage they do to paintwork with gritty sponges and cloths is shocking.

That's the reason they spray on the liquid wax stuff at the end, it's full of fillers to mask the swirl marks and micro scratches caused.

I spent loads of my time stripping paint clean of it, and repairing/removing the swirls with a fast rotary machine and then putting proper protection on.

I shouldn't complain as they kept me in business pretty well, but if you want to look after your car, avoid them like the plague.

A jetwash alone doesn't get dirt off; you need to rub with a sponge or cloth

Depends how powerfull it is and how close you get.

[ runs and hides from the [s]OCD car cleaning types[/s] [i][b] detailers [/i][/b]]

As for the origainal question, occasionaly, but livingi a flat it's a major PITA so usualy only if we're round the inlaws, if you leave it on their drive long enough it cleans itself, must be some sort of magic rain in Winnersh!

£15 to get the local eastern european car washers to do it, including hand wax on the bonnet/wings and de-greasing the inside of the windscreen*.

*this isn't on their normal list, but it needs more than a quick wipe by the time it's dirty enough that I'll take it in!

Wheel's need refurbing now, but they'r more flippin costly than getting some s/h off a breakers on ebay!

but if you want to look after your car, avoid them like the plague.

Different ends of the scale though.

[Your car is jusdged under harsh fluorescent light in a big exhibition hall somewhere in the midlands]---------------[your car is drug dealer black]-----------------[you occasionaly call chips away]--------------------[you think a rattle can from halfords is an acceptable colour match]

Handwash in central London is £25

That's about 2% of the value of our car.

I can relate to that, I find cleaning the house therapeutic....

I lease a Skoda Octavia, it's a grim looking thing dirty or clean. It's used to cart kids and bikes around. Picked it up in November 2012, not cleaned yet, it seems to have reached a sort of dirty equilibrium. On a misty day, all the import data that was stuck on the windscreen re-appears as an apparition.

I might take it to the local car wash types though, the interior is annoying me now.

The van gets done properly twice a year, takes about 12 bloody hours, never buy a red car people, they fade.

We spend a fair amount of time making sure hand car washes are in the business rates list around here. Once we've got any translation issues resolved!

Different ends of the scale though.
[Your car is jusdged under harsh fluorescent light in a big exhibition hall somewhere in the midlands]---------------[your car is drug dealer black]-----------------[you occasionaly call chips away]--------------------[you think a rattle can from halfords is an acceptable colour match]

Yes there are different ends of the scale, some people just don't care, and that's fair enough, I've got no issue with that.

But generally they aren't the people who go to these places every week or fortnight.

In my experience, the people that do use the local drive through hand car wash regularly, are people that do actually want to look after their cars, and they think they are doing so by getting it washed by hand rather than by a machine (which is technically correct, but not much of a difference generally)

And it's not just just visible under scrutiny either, it's visible any time the car is relatively clean, and in sunlight. I see it every sunny day and pretty much any car that darker than mid grey.

Anyone who wants to protect their car and not damage it would do well to avoid them. Do it yourself or get someone who knows what they are doing to do it for you. If you get a decent quality hard wax application, you could leave it six months between washes and it won't do it any real harm (maybe jet wash under the arches occasionally if you go anywhere muddy)

I wish I could, I've got a drive, but we live in a terrace and as much as I've tried, I can't get a hose to the front and rinsing with buckets is a thankless task.

Many years ago I used to wash cars for a job and I'm not bad at it now - maybe when I move.

The OP's link looks okay, but IMO standards of 'professional' washes are pretty poor these days, it's all about 'wonder fluids' in a bottle these days, spray on 'polish' and waterless cleaning, which invariably means silicon shine.

Mine had to go in for a service the other day, a full "exterior valet" was included in the price, great because I've got a few scratches and being a black car it shows every little mark, anyway I picked it up and despite me removing the roof bars especially for them, they 'forgot' to clean it - but no worries, they'd have it back in to replace the rear discs and pads at only 150% of the going rate and they'd treat it to a "full valet" the very same one they give their nearly new stock.

Great, it's a company car so I don't pay for maintenance and it would be nice to have it clean and tidy - got it back and it was certainly shiny, the dash was thick with silicon, as was the body and the wheels, and the carpet, and the tyres, and the pedals, oh they went to work on the pedals, I nearly stalled twice on the way home and slipped of the brake at one point.

As is the way with that stuff, it looked like shit the next day, the wheels were black as the shiny crap they used absorbed all the dirt and all the scratches just looked worse - a quick polish and wax and they'd be gone - 48 hours later and it looked worse than it did before they 'cleaned' it, and the pedals were still slippery.

I use the mobi portable jet washer that plugs into the cigarette lighter. Plenty of power and enough water to wash an estate. A quick refill for a rinse and job done. I get to wash the bikes as well. Probably already paid for itself and still working after 1.5years. A large tub of shampoo and wax from costco.

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/mobi-v-15-portable-bike-pressure-washer/rp-prod34761

Cracking thread!

Always* wash my own car. As noted by several others I really quite enjoy doing it. Put some tunes on and just zone out for a couple of hours. Love this time of year as I'm able to do it after work rather than having to wait for the weekend.

Another user of Autoglym aquawax here. I used to use a chamois to dry the car but after a friend recommended aquawax and a microfibre cloth and I tried it the chamois went in the bin. The stuff is like magic in a bottle! Some other brands have similar products but after reading the instructions it's all "don't get on plastic this and keep away from glass that" - the Autoglym stuff is good on any part of the car body. It's 9/10th's the appearance of a proper wax but only 1/10th's the effort (I'd imagine the level of protection is nowhere near a proper wax mind)

I use a new sponge every time I wash the car which then gets relegated to wheel washing sponge for next time round, then the bin. 30p from Wilko. This combined with the 2 bucket approach reduces risk of scratches/swirls to an acceptable level. Every other wash the exhaust tips get a metal polish as well.. Sat at work thinking about washing the car now! Think (know) I need to get out more...

* I was at a family wedding daaan saaaarth and car was hacky from weather/back roads so took it to the local hand job place (once in two years of ownership)on the recommendation of a family member and I could barely watch as they cleaned it.. hacky sponge going from bottom of doors straight to bonnet, jet wash brimmed with concentrated TFR, etc. etc. Never EVER again.

I use a new sponge every time I wash the car which then gets relegated to wheel washing sponge for next time round, then the bin. 30p from Wilko.

I'd steer clear of sponges if I were you.

You would be better getting a decent mitt, and machine washing it between uses. And a wheel brush too to do it properly.

Sponges don't allow any grit to move away from the paint surface, and just move it around damaging the finish over time.

pressurewasher is for taking the salt and shit off from under your car over winter - which incidently is about all i do to my cars barring MOT time when i give them a wash and a hoover as theres nothing worse than being given someone elses manky piece of shit to work on. I just use what ever sponge was lying about i dont give two hoots about "swirl marks"

Also ..... hora says i cant wash it as berlingos need to look dirty and unloved apparently.

To be fair, I'm a borderline fundamentalist when it comes to keeping vehicles clean and well looked after.

But I wouldn't wash a berlingo either 😉

Also ..... hora says i cant wash it as berlingos need to look dirty and unloved apparently.

No.... Pandas, (old shape) Berlingo's and Fiat Doblo's look cool dented and dirty.

Clean they look like they are owned by

[img] [/img]

I think I've always liked the convenience of a stack of new sponges as opposed to having to wash a mit in between washes but I think I'll give it a go and see how I get on. Cheers Neal.

I wash my car at tesco for £3.20 every few months. Probably costs me a bit more than a tenner each year with the rain doing the rest.

Edit: Just read the prices of the gowashmycar site. If it was £15 I'd do it myself.

Tesco takes 5 minutes and it comes out sparking.

Finally buying a nice car and being handed a big hold-all of Autoglym cleaning products by the dealer was all it took to turn me into a complete clean-car freak.

Anyone who says you can clean a car in 15 or 30 minutes is, frankly, not doing it right. I fairly regularly spend 4 or 5 hours obsessing over tiny details and getting everything spotless. I have wasted hours of my life fruitlessly chasing perfection.

Occasionally I don't have time in the week and it looks filthy, so I pop in to a handwash place. They do a decent job for the money and it saves a lot of time and effort, but they don't get it anywhere near as tidy as me. Since I have become completely irrational over this, this state of affairs has a highly corrosive effect on my remaining sanity.

I wish I didn't care, but I can't seem to help myself. I am also a proud addict to Autoglym Aquawax. The fact that our garage has a classic car in it slowly rusting away, meaning the other car has to sit on the drive, so it only takes about 6 hours for it to get rain/condensation spots on it is frankly maddening.

I've even considered putting a 'car-port' type construction up to keep it tidier for longer.

I need help.