clay treatment

A

AndyC

New member
I have some clay which I bought from Griots about 2 years ago. The third which I didn't use as been sealed in its container since then. My quetions are simple.



1. Can I still use it safely? It is still soft to touch



2. Can I use Megs Quik Wax as a lubricant?



3. Is it best to do a 2nd wash after claying, then polish then wax?



Thanks.
 
You can still use the clay. You could probaly use the Quik Wax as a lubricant but I would prefer to use water/soap if nothing else can be found.



I never wash the car after claying, I don't see any need for it.
 
Thanks for that!



When you mention soap & water is this simply a weak solution of shampoo or is there an alternative?



Also, what is Dawn Wash?
 
"Also, what is Dawn Wash?"



It's what you use for washing dishes ;-)

There are different opinions on this but it's also used to wash a car to prepare for detailing.



As for the 'clay' question; all it needs is lubrication so a mild soap or as suggested (good tip, I'll try it)shampoo.



hope this helps.../



justadumbarchitect
 
Fantastic! Thanks to those who responded.



Let's hope my girlfriend still loves me tomorrow after hours of detailing - probably means I'll have to do her car too and that's whole load worse than mine (5 year old Ford Ka in dark metallic green and covered in swirls, scratches and chips plus a great big ding in the rear 1/4 where some thoughtful soul did a hit & run recently)



Will let you all know how it went next week
 
The GF car thing.....when it's finished walk her around it....man are they grateful, and they show it. Trust me on this ;-)



justadumbarchitect
 
I'm surprised as I always thought that dishwashing detergent should never be used for cleaning your car.



I'm assuming then that it's only used effectibely as a solution to strip all old polish and wax from car prior to rewaxing, repolishing etc.



I see plenty of reference to Dawn Wash so am also assuming that this is the preferred product in the US - any ideas what would work in the UK or does it not really matter as they all do pretty much the same basic job?
 
Zaino says the Dawn nuetralizes the acids from pollution. I've used dawn as my first step in detailing my cars for years with no bad results whatsoever.



I did use it for awhile as the lubricant for my claying but didn't like the fact it was drying on the paint. So now I use weak solution of carwash shampoo and water in a spray bottle, Megs Soft Gel is what I use but think almost any would do the trick. And I wash the car with water only afterwards to get all the soap residue off before I start in on the rest of the detailing.



Hope this helps and goodluck! It's nice to talk to all these people with the shiney cars!
 
AndyC- Griot's clay tends to disintegrate when used with a shampoo mix. I *DO* sometimes use it that way, but it'll work (much) better with a QD as lube. BTW, *I* sometimes get some clay residue with Griot's, usually when doing the soap-as-lube. Not bad, but if I RE-clay the same area with the Autopia clay, I pull off some yellow (Griot's) clay residue. So maybe you'll need to rewash, maybe you won't. Using a QD instead of soap will lessen the possiblility.



You're right about the dish soap being an infrequent-use thing.
 
The nearest thing we have to Dawn is Fairy. It is made by the same people but is not identical to Dawn - not sure if the difference is significant or not but I would doubt it.



If you wish to wash after claying I cannot see any harm and might be useful if you have any residue from the clay. I have used shampoo whilst claying (3M) with no problems but I have no experience with Griots products.



The easiest way to impress your GF is to clay one panel and let her feel the difference. Clay also works well on your windscreen.
 
I just want to say thanks to all of the Autopians who gave me advice. My #9 didn't get here Saturday so I had to just wash & wax but boy what a difference. I got myself a cotton wash pad (was all I could find at Homebase!) but I could feel the difference immediately. Less waste & friction although swirls still evident so will need to use that #9 ASAP!



Will try to post some photos later today.
 
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