Eco-polishing

[PaulMcGrath]

Hi everyone,



My wife has this obsession with environmentally friendly products and she`s always on at me about pollution and dangerous chemicals whenever I`m working on my car. Does anyone know of any eco-friendly car care products that are available? I`d be interested to find some, just to keep her off my back for a while, even if I don`t use them. Does anyone else have this problem?



Paul

[Lowejackson]

Good question and one I had not really considered before. Maybe someone like DavidB could give the technical information on this area.



In a sense I guess many of the products are eco-friendly as they would need to comply with the VOC regulations in the USA.

[imported_truzoom]

I would be more worried about what these chemicals can do to our skin and respiratory systems before I worry about whether or not my wax/polish residue is killing off a species of insect necessary to the chain of life. The only thing I can think of for you to do is to switch to QEW wash as it is biodegradable, and avoid using acidic/basic/harsh wheel cleaners.

[Arved]

I can`t see much wrong with the stuff that`s available, but I have to admit it`s not my #1 priority. A good first start would be to review the Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) for the products you`re using, and the ones you`re considering to use.



Might also be better to consider steam cleaning interiors over using degreasers, and extractors over carpet shampoo. Watch what kind of propelents are used - squirt bottles are more environmentally friendly than propane.



Probably the best thing you can do is to recycle the empty plastic bottles of polish and cleaners than to dump them in the trash.



And of course, washable MF towels are more environmentally friendly than disposable paper towels, right? Assuming the wash water is treated by your municipality properly.

[wannafbody]

I would be more worried about what these chemicals can do to our skin and respiratory systems before I worry about whether or not my wax/polish residue is killing off a species of insect necessary to the chain of life. The only thing I can think of for you to do is to switch to QEW wash as it is biodegradable, and avoid using acidic/basic/harsh wheel cleaners.





Tell your wife about SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST-if any animal can`t survive your detailing chemicals then evolution has deemed that it become extinct

[imported_Neothin]

Poorboy`s All Purpose Cleaner is biodegradable...

[White95Max]

This is a characteristic which I look at when I buy new products. Many products are biodegradable, which is good. But that doesn`t mean they won`t hurt anything when these chemicals get washed into a local body of water. Any organic compound still contributes to the Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) of that water body. As these compounds break down, bacteria in the water breathing through aerobic respiration use up dissolved oxygen (D.O.) which causes the D.O. level in the water to decrease. Less oxygen means that any other organism that utilizes that D.O. will be stressed. If the levels are reduced enough, die-offs will occur. That means fish, mussels, invertebrates, etc... These organisms are likely part of a large food chain including terrestrial animals as well, so the damage may not be limited to the body of water.



Things like engine degreasers and wheel cleaners are often harmful to the environment, but you can get around these. For engine degreasing, use something like 303 Aerospace Cleaner, which states that it is non-toxic, biodegradeable, and is safe enough to use full-strength to clean vegetables. When cleaning engines, I almost always clean them by hand, which greatly reduces the runoff of chemicals into the storm sewers.

As far as wheel cleaners, you will never have to use a wheel cleaner again if you clean the wheels very well and then use a sealant on them. They will always wash clean with ordinary soap and water. This reduces your personal contact with strong chemicals, and also reduces the potential damage of these chemicals to the environment.

When using a tire cleaner, opt for a diluted solution of 303 Cleaner for that too. I use a 10:1 (water:303) dilution and a scrub brush to clean my tires.



QEW is also a good choice for washing, because there is little to no runoff caused by washing with it.

[imported_truzoom]

Tell your wife about SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST-if any animal can`t survive your detailing chemicals then evolution has deemed that it become extinct



The earthworms in my front lawn are fine, thank you. I spoke with the committee yesterday and they mentioned they were not having issues with the runoff from my GC wash.



The Wife says "Hi", btw.