making your own waterless formula spray

H

HydroMan

New member
Hey everyone,



I am looking to make my mobile detailing business a waterless oriented one because:



1) I am a college student, and this is not a full time gig



2) I used to take an hour and a half to wash someone's car and at a horrible price (for me)... brace yourself... $20



So because of this, I want to take a much quicker route. Now why did I mention that I am a college student? Because I’m almost always broke, and that may be due because of my pricing... and it also means I can't afford to pay for waterless sprays online all the time (shipping costs kills).



So I tried some research on making your own waterless car wash spray. I came up with several formulas, but I haven't tried them out yet. I would definitely love to hear some new (and hopefully successful) formulas if anyone can offer me?



So here goes:



1) 2 drops of auto wash, a little quick detailer, and water.

(this was in the forum somewhere, anyone have the measurements?)



2) A ratio of kerosene and water (6 parts water, 1 part kerosene)

(this scares me! won't it ruin the paint?)



3) A paste consisting of baking soda, liquid castile soap, water, and, jojoba wax.

(I don't want a paste, I want a spray, for speed)



4) Diluted Greased Lightning multipurpose spray. The company says its safe to use on RVs

(this, I think could be the best option? it’s a surfactant as well…)





So... anyone have better formulas, or ideas? I know that you should dust the car off before applying QD, I will do this before using the waterless product.



Help a poor college student today :)
 
QEW = Quick and Easy Wash and is available at most RV shops. Works well and the cost is cheap per vehicle.
 
Thanks for the recommendation, but lol I would love to have a formula, that way I can not only make it when I need it, but also in bulk and cheaply... :)



Also, there arent any RV locations nearby, much less so any RV shops. And Greased Lightning can be used on RVs when diluted with water. Are RVs the same as car exteriors?
 
Can't be serious about what? I am being 100% serious...



I am not a pro car detailer, I have a niche market and these people don't have much money to spend on pro car details but still want someone to wash their cars. Its a small religious community and I want to do a good job but faster, hence a waterless wash will work. I'm too broke to keep buying sprays online and thats why I am looking for a diy method :)
 
Hey man, the waterless formulas that people here use aren't those expensive "sprays". They are mostly Quick & Easy Wash (QEW) and Optimum No-Rinse Wash & Shine (ONR). Optimum No Rinse Wash & Shine (Gl) With shipping, that comes to $49 (might be less if you are closer) and should do about 128 washes if the cars aren't too filthy, so what is that, about 38 cents a wash? There's plenty of technique threads (including for wheels and tires) if you're still with us.
 
I would have to agree. As much as it may hurt, just go for something that is proven. And as Setec already pointed out, $.38 isnt bad for 1 car.
 
I don't have $50 to spend right now... But later on I will. So none of the formulas I have posted will work? Or work good enough? Maybe I will have to buy a product but I wish I (and anyone else) could be able to make the product at home without having to depend on a company....
 
Well man you can try all of those yourself. But the problem is, you will still have to buy a certain amount of ingredients and there will be the opportunity cost of mixing your brew up.



You can make your own wax and practcally anything else that we use to detail, but most of us decide to pay a company because trial and error and the time are too expensive for us.



Another option is to simply speed up your current process. If they are paying $20 and dont expect a wash up to Autopian standards, dont give them one unles you can afford to do so.
 
HydroMan said:
Can't be serious about what? I am being 100% serious...
Click to expand...



I would seriously recommend you NOT use the methods which use kerosene or baking soda. The other two methods don't sound much better.



To run a business requires some upfront investment. If you cannot afford the $49 for a gallon of Optimum No Rinse then I would recommend get a quart of it at about half that cost. The quart should give you 30 or so washes where you should be able to make enough to eventually buy a gallon.
 
I was just about to suggest what Bert did; do a couple more hose washes and take the proceeds from that and get a smaller bottle of ONR. You need to do the marketing you suggested in your other thread so you do a few more washes a week and then you can get some cash flow going.
 
Lol!!! I wish I posted this last week but nooo I did it on April 1st. Lol



Alright guys, sounds good. I will either order a tried and true product or research my own lol



I do have one question though, if diluted greased lightning is safe for RVs, then its safe for a car right?



And just not to offend anyone, I wash my own car using the products and techniques found on autopia... I love my car just like you love yours :)
 
I'll buy a smaller amount of ONR. I don't wanna risk ruining a business unless I can make my own working product. Thanks so much everyone I appreciate it
 
HydroMan said:
I do have one question though, if diluted greased lightning is safe for RVs, then its safe for a car right?
Click to expand...



Not sure, I have never used it. How much does a bottle of Greased Lightning cost? I am just wondering if using it is saving you any money.
 
HydroMan said:
Alright guys, sounds good. I will either order a tried and true product or research my own lol



I do have one question though, if diluted greased lightning is safe for RVs, then its safe for a car right?
Click to expand...



RV's are usually some sort of fiberglas/gelcoat as I understand it...so, no, CC paint is going to be a lot more sensitive than that. If you really want to play mad scientist, try a car wash that doesn't foam that much (usually one of the more watery ones, like Meg's DC) and mix it up in perhaps a little more diluted form than usual, and give that a try as a waterless wash (NOTE: this is for non-Autopian cars that have already been thru the Scratch-n-Swirl). There is a thread around here somewhere about using 1Z Perls this way...anyway, the honey-like consistency washes are going to leave a lot of film if you try to not rinse them.



Before the rest of the membership jumps on me for this, it sounds like HydroMan is going to do this no matter what our advice, so we might as well help him ;)
 
Lol! Greased lightning is $3. I won't use baking soda or kerosene lmao no way! But I will try the auto wash+QD+water and see how that goes. Thanks for the heads up about fiberglass and cc. And thanks for the auto wash suggestion, I am using a meguiars auto wash in fact...



But for now, I will use a real product and experiment in the meantime
 
Baking Soda is a abrasive, you dont want to use that. Kerosene will work, in fact a lot of people used 1 cup of kerosene to a bucket of water to wash there cars. I myself just use the products that are made Qew and Onr .
 
HydroMan said:
Can't be serious about what? I am being 100% serious...



I am not a pro car detailer, I have a niche market and these people don't have much money to spend on pro car details but still want someone to wash their cars. Its a small religious community and I want to do a good job but faster, hence a waterless wash will work. I'm too broke to keep buying sprays online and thats why I am looking for a diy method :)
Click to expand...



you want to save money, but are risking a LOT by using a homebrew concoction on someone else's car. Just imagine your little experimental mix faded some chrome trim, or worse, some wheels or similar? I am going to guess you have no insurance, so any issues will come right out of your pocket. No way would I risk using something that wasnt tried, tested and zero risk on someone else's vehicle.



I honestly dont see how the ingredients you will be buying will really cost you any less than a small bottle of ONR and a grout sponge? Save a few $ from each wash and then buy a gallon of ONR. The finish it leaves looks like a freshly waxed surface, so should impress customers more, and actually generate more sales or perhaps even allow you to charge a higher rate...



Dont risk it all for a few $.
 
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