looking for research info, i came across this

[Envious Eric]

http://www.hannacarwash.com/resources/handversus.pdf



how valid the tests are I have no idea, but its an interesting read....its a short one too

[clnfrk]

That article is a perfect example in proving the age old saying that "You can`t believe everything you read". From it`s perspective, it is implying that all hand washing is harmful to a car`s finish, but doesn`t take into account the many variables involved in the process. The point that it is trying to convey is that full service car washes are in fact better for your car`s finish than hand washing, which simply isn`t true.



Just like anything else we do in this world, there`s a right way and wrong way of doing things. Hand washes are no different. Yes, if you don`t use proper wash techniques, use sponges instead of high quality clean wash mitts, don`t pre-rinse well, use dirty water, dry with dirty/abrasive towels, etc. etc., then you can do damage with hand washing. But, the article doesn`t discuss these things only stating that full service washes are superior.



Just look at the people conducting their tests. One was using a brush and the other one was washing by the lake! The guy at the lake probably got all his water from there as well. In these types of situations, of course there`s going to be damage induced. But, instead of educating readers on the proper methods of home hand washing, they hype up how "safe" it is to have a full service outfit wash your car, failing to mention all the dirt and grit caught up in those velvety soft tunnel wash cloths coming off of the hundred and thousands of cars going through and the cheap quality usually dirty towels used in the drying process. They even mention the low water pressure of garden hoses as a contributing factor. The pressure from my garden hose is more than adequate and i use my thumb to increase the pressure significantly for pre rinses and such, but have you ever seen any tunnel wash with a pre-rinse cycle? I surely haven`t. All the ones I`ve seen simply throw soap on the car and scrub away. So, where`s the benefits of the high pressure water there?



So, long story short... hand washing peformed by someone who has knowledge of the proper techniques, materials and has basic common sense regarding car care, is many times safer than your local full service car wash. Unfortunately, the vast majority of the hand washing population has neither of these attributes, which wrongly leads to beliefs such as that depicted in the article.

[imported_Tex Star Detail]

^^^ Very well said

[PhaRO]

I`d like to see the test done with normal (not staged) dirty vehicles and have the hand washes done by professionals not the average joe. Of course that would never happen because the results would likely be opposite.

[David Fermani]

This article makes perfect sense coming from the car wash industry. I think it`s a scare tactic to get people into the tunnel washes. All the car washes I`ve gone through scrub down all the hard to reach places with a nylon bristol brush before going onto the conveyor. That`s gotta hurt more than any sponge. I`d put a car hand washed 100 times by me up against one washed in the safest drive thru car wash 25 times any day of the week. I think the article is a little skewed.