Homemade Quickdetail spray - AIO awesome, UPP possible?

[naddage]

Hey all,

I read a while back that a quick detail spray can easily be made for cars that use AIO/SG.

I tried it out, and I got awesome results - the shine looked like the car was freshly AIO`ed, but with much less hassle.

My mix was pretty similar to the older post, but I added some SG to it, which seemed to work quite well. I tried putting more SG, but the product would dry too fast and leave streaks, so less is good.

3/9 water
2/9 alchohol
3/9 AIO
1/9 SG

The shine on AIO is great, but I do like the wet look of UPP a little more than the look of AIO. The favor was tipped to AIO because of its durability and ease of use, but if the UPP/UPC combo can also be mixed with water and alchohol to make a QD spray, then I think I would switch back to UPP.

Has anyone tried this? Even if you haven`t, share your thoughts! I`m dying to try it out, but I have had absolutely no time to spend on my car!

[naddage]

The thread was:
http://detailcity.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=6092

[JellyBean]

I dilute 1 part of SG with 5 parts of tap water and use that solution as a booster "wax" after washing my 2XSG silver Lexus. I don`t use it as a detaling spray because I`m still (and will remain) hesitant to remove dust without a water hose.

Now, looking at your mixture, I see the idea behind the AIO (cleaner) and the SG (protectant). But I don`t see the purpose of the alcohol. Can you explain? Thanx.

Oops. I almost forgot. The 5:1 mixture was an arbitrary starting point. I`ll dilute the next batch 10:1 because I just need it to provide a little bit of boost and to renew the shine. I skipped the AIO because I wanted a strict booster without any cleaning qualities. The mixture works extremely well and--after reading all the raves about the Klasse twins--I wonder why more people don`t use it .

[naddage]

Jellybean - yeah I don`t use it as others would use, say, Meguiar`s QD. I use my california car duster to get most of the dust off first, which takes a little over 5 minutes to get the whole car. Then I use the QD mixture to get rid of water spots, bugs, fingerprints, etc etc, and where the shine isn`t popping through. I get the entire hood since it`s where most of the metal shows =)

The purpose of the alchohol is pretty much to help disolve the SG, since many people keep saying it`s not very water soluble. Some alchohol trivia for you from my highschool chemistry classes:

Alchohol is one of the few universal solvents which dissolve both polar (e.g. salt, most molecules where there is one metal atom) and non-polar molecules (e.g. gasoline, fats, organic products, and plastic!). If you put water and cooking oil in a cup, they will seperate. But if you put some alchohol in there and give it a good stir, the mixture will stay mixed for much longer, since alchohol binds them together.

So the alchohol does two things: it helps AIO dissolve any stubborn stuff - bugs come off very easily with the mixture. Alchohol does this very gently, compared to stronger solvents like nailpolish remover etc.

Second, it helps mix the SG with the water, since SG is acrylic based (and alchohol likes dissolving plastics)

So to reiterate, I love this new formula, but like I said, I wonder if this would work on the UPC/UPP combo, since UPP gives that awesome wet look I`m looking for.

[The Fuzz]

3/9 water
2/9 alchohol
3/9 AIO
1/9 SG

I don`t know where this idea comes from. AIO is a paint cleaner. Alcohol would probably clean your paint too. Why would you use this combination of products on top of any sealant or wax? Aren`t you afraid that you are just going to wash off your top layer of wax? Why not just buy a QD? Other than the alcohol, and even that may not mix, aren`t going to just dilute and mix in the water. They are going to seperate and just sink to the bottom like snot in a swimming pool. Ratios are very important when mixing chemicals, but how do you get consistant ratios when the products don`t mix with water? SG isn`t water soluable for a reason. Its a sealant. If creating a sealant based QD was a good idea, then why wouldn`t there be one on the market already? Don`t underestimate the appearance that the Wolfgang QD or Four Star Ultimate QD can give your car. It has to be better than any bathtub product. I`m not knocking the creativity of your product there... I`m just saying that I don`t think its doing what you think it is doing. If the AIO is mixing with the water and getting on your car, then it is going to streak like a biatch. The alcohol will assist in compromising the wax and sealants on the car. The SG doesn`t work when diluted. The rest is just water. I just don`t see how those products mixed together will do anything positive for your car. Perhaps I`m missing something. Is this an idea that you would use on a customer`s Mercedes, or is it something that is still in the testing mode?

[naddage]

Oo this is the first time the Fuzz has replied to one of my posts! *bow down*

I see your concerns Fuzz, but let me clarify a statement I made in the first post up top:

"I read a while back that a quick detail spray can easily be made for cars that use AIO/SG."

So this mixture is strictly for use on cars with AIO and/or SG with no wax or any other products on top. With anything on top, I agree that Wolfgang`s or 4 Star QDs would work much much better.

However, on a car with only AIO and/or SG on it, this mixture boosts the acrylic layer without introducing any other chemicals that were not in the AIO and SG to begin with. (I am assuming the alchohol and water are pure and evaporate with no traces, but obviously there will be trace minerals and such.)

"They are going to seperate and just sink to the bottom like snot in a swimming pool. "

The alchohol actually helps to prevent this - I tried without alchohol first, and the AIO did indeed snottify at the bottom. As soon as alchohol was introduced, it helped emulsify the solution, and when I came back after 2 weeks to the spray bottle, the mixture is still pretty evenly mixed.

I`m using this product on my own car - I am just a lowly amateur detailer, but I`ve had great results so far, and it seems from the other threads that others have too. But like you said, don`t use this on any other product, since it will strip waxes and sealants, etc.

[JellyBean]

Naddage, Fuzz, thank you both for your very insightful comments. This is turning out to be a very good thread.

I`m new to detailing, but very experienced at life. I`m surprised at the marketing similarities between detailing and cosmetic products. I can`t help but feel like a mushroom because the makers of both products refuse to list their ingredients, but routinely exagerate performance claims without offering proof. (Does the latest permutation of Oil of Olay really works? If it does, then why does my wife keeps wrinkling?)

Anyway, I was inspired to dilute SG to use as a booster after I read the ad for Sonus Acrylic Glanz--a product that`s mainly water. It claimed that "the unique SONACRYLIX™ formula contains the same German acrylic resins used in the award winning Klasse formula." So I asked myself: Where can I get my hands on "the same German acrylic resins used in the award winning Klasse formula"? Well, in the same award winning Klasse formula: SG of course. So I diluted it with tap water and it works like a charm. And yes, it takes very well to water. Unlike WAUD where some ingredients precipitate out, my batch of diluted SG is still in suspension. It mixes wonderfully. And best of all, it works.

I use it just like WAUD. It easily wipes off (just like WAUD), and doesn`t streak my silver car. It also leaves it as shiny as a fresh coat of SG, and just as slick too. What more do I want?

So now I probably have an equal or superior product (but we`ll never know for sure because the manufacturer won`t reveal any ingredients or testing results), and have a few more bucks to invest in my growing MF towel collection.

And again, thank you both for gracefully offering your insights. Its because of comments like yours that I really enjoy Detail City, the smoothest board online (thanks LoveBuzzard!!!!!!!).

[CharlesW]

Originally posted by JellyBean
And again, thank you both for gracefully offering your insights. Its because of comments like yours that I really enjoy Autopia. Gosh, with all the information you received here, I would have thought you might have had a few kind words for Detail City.

Charles

[JellyBean]

Hey folks, that reference to the "other" forum there is embarrassing. I was switching between the two sites and got confused. Mod, feel free to change the reference to "Detail City". I just tried to edit, but my 8 minutes were up. DETAIL CITY IS ABSOLUTELY THE VERY BEST!!!! How`s that for a few kind words? And I mean it too.

[JaredPointer]

Originally posted by JellyBean
Hey folks, that reference to the "other" forum there is embarrassing. I was switching between the two sites and got confused. Mod, feel free to change the reference to "Detail City". I just tried to edit, but my 8 minutes were up. DETAIL CITY IS ABSOLUTELY THE VERY BEST!!!! How`s that for a few kind words? And I mean it too.

I made a lil` fix there for ya JellyBean...and hopefully got you in the good graces of the LoveBuzzard!! :lmfao

[naddage]

Hey Jellybean,

I`m glad we helped, and that your homemade brew is working well too!
Happy detailing!

Josh