How To: Maximize Surface Prep Time

Greetings friends!



We have seen a lot of advancements in wash methods, wash chemicals such as rinseless and waterless, and advancements in surface prep products such as clay alternative towels and pads in recent time. This is great for our community because it allows us to be more efficient with our time, which we all know time is money, so anything to get ahead may help. Well the following prep method is something I have been using lately and it has cut my time down quite a bit. This method combines a rinseless wash and surface prep using a clay alternative towel. It`s great on light colored paint and details where you have sold an All In One (AIO) or 1-step polish for dark colored paint.



*For this detail I was able to pressure rinse the vehicle to knock down most of the grime, so the panels may not appear dirty.





We start with the basics of two bucket rinseless washing, make 1 light pass with the mitt to remove surface grime, then flip the mitt to make a 2nd pass scrubbing stubborn areas.



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Next, using a 2nd type of wash media simply wipe the panel to provide additional lubrication and pick up any loose debris. Here I am using a handy little microfiber sponge picked up from Home Depot @ $1.60 for a 2pk.



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Notice in this picture how the wash solution is running? Don`t wring out your 2nd wash media, keep it saturated.



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Now we begin to decontaminate the surface before drying and without going back with a spray bottle of solution.



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If the solution starts to dry as it did here because I was in direct sunlight, simply dip your 2nd wash media and wipe the panel. An additional step that I do is dip my prep towel in the wash solution bucket without wringing it out.



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And finally dry the panel.



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Well that concludes this basic write up and hopefully somebody finds it useful. Just remember to use common sense when dealing with heavily soiled paint, especially when a pressure washer is not handy. For situations like that I tend to mix a heavy solution of rinseless or waterless wash in a spray bottle and pre-soak each panel before washing. I understand this may not be for every situation or every detailer out there, but invite you to give it a shot to see if it is something you can incorporate into your detail.



- Richard

We have been using this meathod in our shops fro a few years, and yes it,s very efficient. In a shop situation with everything at hand, and no direct sun to worry about, most cars can be preped for a detail in less than 30 mins.

not including a through wheel cleaning, my usual wash/clay is about 60 min. Those towels do not get all the contaminants off the paint like a true clay tratment does. It knocks the debris to a "suitable level", but its not good enough for me 90% of the time...I have thrown out the fine and medium grade towels...only other thing I want to try is the opti-erasure for fine claying...I have clay magic red for aggressive stuff when I will two step a car after

Nice working putting this thread together Richard. Thanks! It`s advantageous for not just pros, but also novices to consider time conscious alternatives to prepping their work for a complete detail.



Question: If you didn`t pre-rinse the vehicle, would your dry the car partially prior to clay toweling? The reason I ask is because wouldn`t there be a higher likelihood of introducing additional marring by the possibility of picking up loose debris particles that may be left on the surface as your rub your clay towel across it?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by toyotaguy

not including a through wheel cleaning, my usual wash/clay is about 60 min. Those towels do not get all the contaminants off the paint like a true clay tratment does. It knocks the debris to a "suitable level", but its not good enough for me 90% of the time...I have thrown out the fine and medium grade towels...only other thing I want to try is the opti-erasure for fine claying...I have clay magic red for aggressive stuff when I will two step a car after

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I agree that this is not a clay bar replacement. In my opinion I think this product was geared more toward the volume environment like Meguiar`s originally claimed the microfiber system was. I don`t know the type of work you encounter 90% of the time but I have only experienced a few times even the medium grade towel would not work.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by David Fermani

Nice working putting this thread together Richard. Thanks! It`s advantageous for not just pros, but also novices to consider time conscious alternatives to prepping their work for a complete detail.



Question: If you didn`t pre-rinse the vehicle, would your dry the car partially prior to clay toweling? The reason I ask is because wouldn`t there be a higher likelihood of introducing additional marring by the possibility of picking up loose debris particles that may be left on the surface as your rub your clay towel across it?

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Hi David,

As you know any time we touch the paint we risk the chance of marring it. I personally believe that a thorough pre-rinse is more important than toys like a foam gun. Not to say foam guns don`t have their place in a detail, but the more grime you remove in your rinse stage the less you deal with when washing. I understand there are times a person can`t use high pressure but most of the time a coin-op is close by that would allow a good pre-rinse if one did not have a pressure washer. With this method you eventually end up with 3 passes prior to touching the paint with a clay alternative product, which in theory should reduce the chance of residual grime being caught between the towel and paint. The first light pressure pass should pick up most grime, the second pass usually cleans up any remaining grime missed by the first pass, and the third pass will pick up any miniscule grime and also flush the panel should anything actually run down the paint from something like trim. I`m not saying this is full proof which is why I stated common sense should always be exercised, but in most cases this method works well. To be honest with you I only use this when I plan a 1-step polish or the use of an all in one. If the detail is a simple wash and wax then I personally exercise more caution. One final note, if a person comes up with a better solution or even an improvement to this method, I am open to their thoughts or experience here in this thread. :)

Nice tip Rich! I think there is a fine line between cutting corners...and cutting time. I definitely think this sides with cutting time and still being effective. Nicely done.

I used this method on our Regal this weekend. I am very protective with this car so to even think about using it shows the confidence I have in the method. Not sure if it can be picked up in the attached picture but this is all the marring I could see. This is consistent with the marring prior to using the prep towel.



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Just on the outer edge of the light, pretty much in line with the bracket on my garage door.

I understand this is not for every situation and I would only use it on dark paint when following up with an all in one or polish step.

This is how I pretty much do every car I detail - with the exception that I use the GDWM, and never use the towel on dark cars anymore.