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-   -   DIY: How to clean 'Tough' Stains from the body (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/diy-do-yourself/136577-diy-how-clean-tough-stains-body-2.html)

I had also struggled with these stains, and found that plain synthetic household vinegar also works wonders. Guess it's similar to the lemon/tamarind mix. Infact, later, i read more about it online and realized that vinegar is mild enough to not cause damage to surface or paint. Dab the stain a few times for a couple of hours, and usually you can just wipe away without need for any brush/scrub.

As protection against frequent build up after cleaning, wash thoroughly with RO water, dry and then apply vaseline (white petroleum jelly) to the area and rub it in. It's water resistant and fills up the gaps between lettering etc and delays the build up.

Yeah it was a bit disappointing when he said that.

In my case, hard water isn't the culprit since none of our other 3 cars have this problem despite being washed with the same water source and almost identical washing schedule. I'm guessing it's the result of some waxing/polish which dried up and accumulated dirt and grime over a long period of time. I've taken a sample of the build up and given it to my colleague. He's agreed to have it tested for it's content and composition. Hope he can give me the results. But that will take time.

Yes you are right. Most naturally occuring citric acids such as in lemon etc are mild enough to not cause any major chemical reaction.

Perhaps I will try vinegar in future if this problem persists.

I find applying vaseline interesting. But I have a feeling that vaseline is rather sticky, so it can attract/hold dust particles easily. I travel close to 50km a day and my office is situated in the most polluted part of the city. So I am certainly wary of using vaseline to prevent build up. But thanks for your suggestion anyway!



Thanks for your suggestion.

Yes you should it try it perhaps. It's almost like a weight loss technique :D Thanks to all the squating, vertical ab crunch, bending down etc :D

Yes "Imli" it is!

This reminds me of the age old technique used at our households to clean brass vessels, show pieces and lamps.
But does this cause any kind of damage to the painting ? as the cleanser used is acidic in nature and considering the usage of brush bristles. I too have the same problems around the badge, chrome and other hard to reach areas, but little skeptic to go for the same treatment.I am thinking of doing formula1 wax polish immediately after such a wash to counter any problems to the paint. Does anyone know if that will help to counter any effect of acidic cleanser?

So far I haven't seen any changes on the cleaned surfaces. Modern car paint is rather sophisticated and chemically inert.

Picture this, humans consume lemon juice! :-D

So nothing much should happen to the car body in my opinion!

Most of these dirt marks tend to come around the badges. My solution, debadge your ride entirely lol.
On a more serious note, good home remedy there. Thanks for pointing it out. Although, a slightly faster process would probably be using a high pressure washer after applying car wash soap.
Works wonders.

Cheers,
Sam

[quote=vishwasvr;3125859]Hello everyone,

For several months, I'd noticed strange build up of stains around my car and only the grooves, lettering etc. I enquired with 3M, HSR layout but it was of no use since the guy who supervises the place said ''It won't go sir!''

I found it hard to believe that it would never go! It started becoming an eye sore thanks to the white color of the car.


Hey vishwasvr,

A very useful thread :thumbs up , really nice to know that there exists a home remedy for this.
Hard water is not the only reason for these stains to develop, these stains do appear even when 'soft' or treated water is used, they are caused mainly due to the drying up of residual water containing traces of dirt and soap after washing the car. Because places like these are not easily accessible to the cloth while wiping dry after a wash.

Very surprising that 3M people did not have a solution. I got these stains removed by them during my last visit 2 weeks back, they used a similar procedure (not lemon and tamarind but a cleaning liquid along with a tooth brush) and it worked well. Suggest you speak to Mr.Siddhu or Pradeep on your next visit.

If you are DIY in car washing, post washing and mopping it dry use your Vacuum Cleaner in "Blow Out" mode and target the hard to reach areas. It will dislodge all the water particles and loose dirt if any.clap:

Hey, does anyone know how to remove this stain/residue from a car?

This stain/residue was caused when I tried to remove the dealer sticker off the car. It is not very visible, but I know it is there and it irritates me a lot!:Frustrati
I have tried using soap water and a cloth, but it did not work.

Any ideas? please:

You can try rubbing with a little acetone.

If the stain/residue is due to the adhesive you could try using some petrol.

Any suggestions on how to remove stain caused by leakage from building basement pipe? I usually check for any leakages/drops before i park everyday in my office basement but couldnt spot one the other day. By the time i noticed in the evening, it had dried up and the bonnet area has become white and rough. Don't have a photo yet.

1. Wet the surface with hot water, then directly apply dry home detergent (Surf/Ariel) on the wet surface and give a strong rub with fingers(not nails) it should come out. Wash again and repeat for all letters.

2. try Isopropyl (Rubbing Alcohol for injections) available with chemists can also be used directly to remove.

3. go to a nearby denter/painter he would rub those stains out for not more than 20 rupees

I have tried all of the above on variety of dealer stickers on maruti 800, esteem, santro, i10, optra.

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Does any one of you guys used steam washing, I have seen youtube videos of all sorts of grease/grime removed in the process.

http://excelsteamcarwash.com/steamCl..._services.html
http://steamandshine.in/

I wish to get all family cars cleaned.

Went through the above two sites, while I have not got my car steam washed.

I have tried steam cleaning my cars interiors(only the foot mats and the footwell area) when they got really muddy during the last monsoon using my vacuum cleaner/steamer at home, the results were not upto my expectation since I could not get the tougher soil stains to be completely removed but they were minimised to a great extent.

Have not tried steam cleaning on the exteriors and dashboard as I was apprehensive if it would cause any damage to the plastics or to the glass area(the glass getting cracked due to the temperature). But after going through the videos and the website, probably should give it a try.

There already exists an old thread about this, hope this helps.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian...wash-what.html

For any sticky stain left after removing stickers. Use cooking oil. Take a drop or two of any cooking oil and gently rub over the sticky stain. the oil will dissolve the stickiness. then use soap/shampoo to take the oil off.