What's your plan for winter and snow?!?!?!

J

jjfrehe

New member
I was curious what you guys do when the weather is 20 degrees and snow is on the ground. Obviously you have to wash the car, but what's your plan of attack? Do you:



1) Go to a auto car wash?

2) Go to a self-service bay?

3) Drive to a warm weather state, wash the car, and drive back? ;)
 
I wont bother to wash, if temp are below freezin level (32f?). If its above 35+ deg, I bust out QEW w/2 bucket method :bigups
 
I like option #4. Don't live in anywhere that snow and ice is a regular winter occurance. ;)



QEW works fine down to the upper 20s as long as you work fast.
 
I go to a wash that has no brushes and has a blow dry at the end. It doesn't get the car extremely clean like a hand wash, but it gets the road salt off which is better than leaving it there. Also, the brushes in the usual car washes will put cob webs in your paint so I steer clear of them. The brushes in the self serve washes can do the same. I would do QEW, but I don't know how on earth you could possibly not get your hands frost bitten without a heated garage.
 
Mikeyc said:
I would do QEW, but I don't know how on earth you could possibly not get your hands frost bitten without a heated garage.
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I wear knit gloves with rubber gloves over them.
 
I head for Cape Coral and leave the snow and cold for others to worry about. My car likes this plan a lot.
 
Wash with QEW in the garage. I drive the car first to heat up the engine and cockpit, then pull it in the garage, shut the door, and open up the hood and car doors. I take advantage of all that heat. Then I get some warm water and my QEW towels and get to work.

Two winters ago, I washed the car when the temp outside was 3*F! It was about 25*F in the garage though so it wasn't too bad.

This winter I'll have the luxury of having a garage that faces the sun all day. In the summer, it was 15-20* warmer in the garage than outside. Hopefully it will be the same way in the winter. It was still 50*+ in the garage this morning, with frost outside. Lookin' good so far!
 
That is a good idea, but I prefer to use towels rather than mitts for QEW. With Scott's idea, you can use towels, or just your normal mitts if you want to.



If my car was really dirty/salty, I'd need several of those mitts for one wash, and that would get expensive at $16.99 each + shipping.
 
jjfrehe said:
I was curious what you guys do when the weather is 20 degrees and snow is on the ground.
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SNOWPLOW :bigups

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Serisouly, I try and go to a self service car wash and use the high pressure washer.

I take a detail spray and quickly dry the truck before it freezes(Keep the doors open so they don't freeze shut) Don't ask me how I know :furious:
 
klnyc said:
I wont bother to wash, if temp are below freezin level (32f?). If its above 35+ deg, I bust out QEW w/2 bucket method :bigups
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So what exactly is the "two bucket method"?
 
I normally wait until a nice day (45 and up) occurs and perform a normal full water, Z7 and bucket wash for the Escalade. In between I just trust my protectant (Zaino) to do its job.



The wife's car (black Lexus) get a careful QEW in the garage over the established Zaino. Z5 once a month during the winter to hide micromarring until Spring polishing. :xyxthumbs





We have extremely mild winters here (24541) (~3" snow/ice all of last winter) and Zaino has done extremely well not only protecting paint but also maintaining appearance between these washes.



Love the stuff and peace of mind it brings during the winter!!! :woot:
 
QEW in the garage here if the car isn't really bad. But if there is alot of salt and grime on the car then to the car wash to hose it off then QEW in the garage.

Chubs
 
As long as there's no salt, I usually hand wash at 32 degrees and above. I strictly adhere to my once a week routine. If conditions become extreme (like last winter), then my line of defense may include:

1. Washing once a week (rain or shine, no buts). I accomplish a lot with this routine.

2. If its below 32 degrees, then the car will stay dirty until it reaches 32 and above.

3. If you can, have the car hand washed at a facility if its too cold out.

4. If there's salt, and its been more than 4 days, and its still freezing out and/or your schedule doesn't permit time for handwashing, then plan to hit the carwash as early as possible. I don't recommend the automated places at all, but its better than letting lingering salt stay on the car's body.

5. Be determined. Rust and corrosion still exists, even with galvanized steel. The aim is to have less to correct in terms of paint issues when detailing season restarts (esp. for the northeast region).
 
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