Winter cleaning - salt removal?

[MtopRaptor]

howdy
Wondering what everyone else does in areas where the state over applies salt to the roads. My home hoses are off for the winter and I refuse to use a carwash brush. The carwash hose just won’t get off all the grim without some elbo grease.

Does anyone know of a good prewash detergent that I can apply and let soak before I use the car wash hose? Maybe a hand pump foamer such as KWAZAR and a good chemical? The grime is driving me nuts but I don’t want to use a mitt or brush.

Thanks

 

[TK85]

Look up Waterless and rinseless wash.

 

[JohnyPython]

I’m lucky to have an indoor self wash near me. Even in an outdoor wash bay, I bring my own 5 gal wash bucket (filled with soapy water) and a mitt. Really the only way to get the winter shyte off.

 

[Wfo]

I going to hook my hose to the hot water spicket for my washing machine this morning and give her a bath.

 

[MtopRaptor]

Thanks for the ideas. TK85, which brand are you using with success? Looks to be quite a few

 

[Supergumby5000]

It sounds like you're a little more OCD than myself, but I've used a pressure washer foam cannon with a citrus-based soap and hot water (hooked up to my garage sink). It does the job well on waxed surfaces. You wont get a spotless wash but it will get most of the gunk off, then you can do a hand wash. I typically load up the foam cannon, spray the whole truck, sit for 5 mins, spray truck, sit for 5, etc until the foam cannon is empty. I usually get 3 or 4 coats (20 mins of soak).

If you want to hit the undercarriage, you can mix other chemicals in a foam cannon, ive done 50/50 tide and dish soap and it will take just about anything off. DONT DO THIS on painted surfaces though, unless you feel like doing a full wax job.

There are a few companies out there that sell foam cannon soap specifically designed for road grime and winter weather. the only one that comes to mind at the moment is Chemical Bros but I know i've used several different brands.

 

[Jtnuge]

I have been thinking of running a hot water line from utility room to my garage , my garage wall and utility room shares the same wall. Are there any electric power washers that will except hot water? Im new to power washers.

 

[TK85]

Thanks for the ideas. TK85, which brand are you using with success? Looks to be quite a few

I’ve used ultima waterless wash and McKee’s 37 with both equal results. The trick though is to use quality microfiber towels. I use these https://www.autogeek.net/best-waterless-wash-towel.html

 

[JohnyPython]

Look up Waterless and rinseless wash.

Never tried waterless wash before. Gotta try it.

 

[Kahuna]

An approach I have moved to is to stop trying to preserve the wax and just use an alkaline cleaner which removes crap a whole lot easier. Then, instead of using a paste wax which takes an hour or so to apply, use one of the quick sealants like Megs Ultimate Fast Finish or Ultima Paint Guard Plus. You can seal the whole car in 10min.

Now you have properly washed off the crud and traffic film and have a fresh protection coat which will last months. It's a different strategy.