imported_doug
06-15-2002, 12:46 PM
I never thought I`d say this - and most of you know me as pretty cautious - but I have found a dry washing method that works very well and is no riskier in terms of scratching than a regular wash. I am thrilled.
A while back I posted a thread about testing the California Car Duster (http://www.autopia-carport.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=10615) very carefully under excellent lighting, and I concluded that it truly doesn`t scratch - even with a moderate layer of dust on the car. (It would probably be prudent to think of it as "minimizing" scratching, as opposed to "not" scratching. However I haven`t seen one scratch go in with it, in several applications. I usually brush 90 degrees to my usual rubbing pattern so I will know where the scratches came from.)
I`ve had the black Porsche home for several weeks, and I started dusting it every day. I can re-inforce that the CCD is an excellent product and it doesn`t seem to scratch. I did learn that if the surface is too hot it will leave some paraffin streaks - but these are easily QD`d away. I dusted frequently to minimize dust adhesion and to keep the layer thin, and QD`d when there was any oil-type smudges or fingerprints left. With so much dust removed, this makes QD`ing much safer, and brings the car back to its "recently waxed" condition. Well - I managed to keep up this routine over the weeks and I didn`t need to wash the car once! (And I can see the dust after a single drive.) Before, I was so scared to wipe when there was much dust at all that I felt I HAD to wash to safely remove it.
The other day it was very foggy at the Golden Gate Bridge, and I drove through it. I figured "moisture + dust = adhered dust" - CCD won`t get it off, will have to wash. But when I got home, I did in fact CCD the car, and then detail it. Because I was so concerned I did this in my dark garage with my "obsession lights" turned on - to be absolutely sure I wasn`t doing damage. I can`t believe it - but it worked. I`ve gotten more cavalier with the duster, too, using a little pressure to get adeqate fiber contact with the lower regions of the car.
All the "dry car wash" products I`ve seen are "spray on, wipe off" ones - I do not recommend this! BUT - if you dust first, and then use your fav. detail spray (in fact, in this case I`m using one with some carnauba in it) - it really, truly seems to be OK. What a pleasure! Of course I wouldn`t do this if the dusty car had been rained on, or had mud.
One caveat - dust can be hard to see. and wiping over dust is dangerous. So if you want to try this, PLEASE dust in the best lighting conditions you can get. Strong single-point light, as far from 90 degrees to the surface as possible, is the best way to light to see dust.
A while back I posted a thread about testing the California Car Duster (http://www.autopia-carport.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=10615) very carefully under excellent lighting, and I concluded that it truly doesn`t scratch - even with a moderate layer of dust on the car. (It would probably be prudent to think of it as "minimizing" scratching, as opposed to "not" scratching. However I haven`t seen one scratch go in with it, in several applications. I usually brush 90 degrees to my usual rubbing pattern so I will know where the scratches came from.)
I`ve had the black Porsche home for several weeks, and I started dusting it every day. I can re-inforce that the CCD is an excellent product and it doesn`t seem to scratch. I did learn that if the surface is too hot it will leave some paraffin streaks - but these are easily QD`d away. I dusted frequently to minimize dust adhesion and to keep the layer thin, and QD`d when there was any oil-type smudges or fingerprints left. With so much dust removed, this makes QD`ing much safer, and brings the car back to its "recently waxed" condition. Well - I managed to keep up this routine over the weeks and I didn`t need to wash the car once! (And I can see the dust after a single drive.) Before, I was so scared to wipe when there was much dust at all that I felt I HAD to wash to safely remove it.
The other day it was very foggy at the Golden Gate Bridge, and I drove through it. I figured "moisture + dust = adhered dust" - CCD won`t get it off, will have to wash. But when I got home, I did in fact CCD the car, and then detail it. Because I was so concerned I did this in my dark garage with my "obsession lights" turned on - to be absolutely sure I wasn`t doing damage. I can`t believe it - but it worked. I`ve gotten more cavalier with the duster, too, using a little pressure to get adeqate fiber contact with the lower regions of the car.
All the "dry car wash" products I`ve seen are "spray on, wipe off" ones - I do not recommend this! BUT - if you dust first, and then use your fav. detail spray (in fact, in this case I`m using one with some carnauba in it) - it really, truly seems to be OK. What a pleasure! Of course I wouldn`t do this if the dusty car had been rained on, or had mud.
One caveat - dust can be hard to see. and wiping over dust is dangerous. So if you want to try this, PLEASE dust in the best lighting conditions you can get. Strong single-point light, as far from 90 degrees to the surface as possible, is the best way to light to see dust.