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-   -   A superb Car cleaning, polishing & detailing guide (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/technical-stuff/102011-superb-car-cleaning-polishing-detailing-guide-600.html)

Has anyone use this steam cleaner to clean car interiors and engine bay?
http://www.flipkart.com/black-decker...d-af5ed38f9e5d

I am interested in buying one, but not sure how effective this small thing is.

For a steam to clean effectively it must be at sufficient pressure. And these small ones hardly generate required pressure. See if you can get a demo of it somewhere. Nothing beats seeing and buying






That Meguiars shampoo is not a good one as you said. Even I went through one bottle of it and did not find it effective. I expected better, especially since it's priced pretty high. The far cheaper sonax does a better job

Guys,
I am really out of breadth. My wife drives my civic and her office does not have a covered parking. Their marked parking is below trees and everyday, the car has a minimum of 10 crow shit a various places. Most of the days, she sprays ONR and wipes the shit away using a soft tissues and again sprays ONR and wipes using a MF cloth. Some days she just drives home and does it the next day.

Still within a week of waxing and et all the car starts looking bad. You can see multiple spots. I have to shampoo and clean the car almost every weekend and polish again. Now, I cannot find another parking arrangement but is there any other way to maintain the car? She cannot cover the car at the office.

Help!

Hi,
Got the meguirs wash mitt and the sonax is on its way. Thanks, and will let you know the experience after I use it.

Bird poo is acidic and will cut through sealants within minutes. Even glass coating like cquartz will not be of much help because of the daily bombardment of bird poo.

Your best bet is get a clay or elastrofoam. Get a sealant called Ultima paint guard plus. They are available on eBay. Wash the car, clay and apply the Ultima. Apply 3 coats with a gap of one hour each. Thereafter apply a coat every week after a wash.

Two reasons for suggesting this sealant.
1. It's a wipe on walk away and no buffing required. Saves you time. One coat can be applied in 10 mins

2. It is a very strong sealant. Although it can't subvert bird poo, because of the ease of application you can replenish the lost protection within minutes. But yea it will resist and put up a tough fight.

Please avoid the "soft" tissues. They are not as soft as they seem, but are actually rather abrasive.

I learnt this lesson in a very practical way when, a few decades ago, I took up making jewellery as a hobby. I though I could wipe, or even polish, silver with a paper tissue: no way! It scratches.

But I don't know what to suggest for getting rid of the bulk. Last time I wiped a large amount of crow crap off my car, and took the cloth back inside, it stank! :Frustrati

What do people do?

EDIT: keeping some throw-away cotton waste is one idea that occurred to me after saving the post.

Thanks buddy. From the ebay, it shows one bottle will last 20 application, which means I can use it for around 3 months. How long will an elastrofoam last?

Assuming both last for 3 months, its cost of 3200 + 1850 = 4000 rs for 3 months.

Also, I have a wruth car shampoo is that good for washing?

Thanks Thad. Just bought 1 kg of waste from a hardware shop for 40rs. Its very soft cotton waste so should be good.

A 12 Oz bottle will easily last 40 full car applications. Very less product is required to apply to the whole car. Less is more when it comes to sealants.

And if you apply 3 coats it will easily last 3 months. I am not suggesting you apply a coat to the whole car whenever you wash it.Re-apply to only those areas where the bird poop is affected. With this , a bottle will last forever!

Ultima elastrofoam can clay 20 full cars easily before its effectiveness starts going down. Since you clay twice or thrice a year that also will last a long time. You can either buy Ultima Waterless wash plus concentrate as a clay lube which is also a very good quick detailer. Will lift bird poop easily! Or if you dont want a quick detailer, you can use car wash mixed with water as a clay lube. Whichever sails your boat :)

I have not used Wruth shampoo so cannot comment on it. However , if the shampoo is PH neutral and is removing the dirt easily i would not bother much about looking for a better one!

Regarding bird poop, I keep some old newspapers and a spray bottle filled with water. This is to throw away the wiped paper and avoid stink.

Wondering if this is safe.

Newspaper is quite a course form of paper.

Hi, after seeing your situation, I think this is pretty much the only option. Just curious - but why is it that she cannot cover the car at office? Is it not allowed or is it because of the effort involved?

Regards

They don't have a parking inside the office. Its on the road and they move the car based on needs. So you are not allowed to cover your car.

Anyone in Hyderabad who can lend me good quality DA polisher for a day?

I have procured stuff like collinite 845, Meguiars Ultimate compound, Bilt Hamber clay, Meguiars NXT shampoo, wash mitt, microfiber towels. All I need to get started is a DA polisher and plates for applying compound and wax.

Please feel free to suggest anyone/anyplace who does it all(washing, claying, compound, waxing) with supplies from my side.
After buying all the stuff myself, visting 3M car care would be the last thing in my mind.

Do you have prior experience using a DA? Else you cant do much even if someone lends you a DA. The machine has a learning curve. And it would be very difficult to complete the whole job in a day

No prior experience but thats no barrier to make a start..thought of taking a quick run down from the one who's willing to lend:)
I thought orbital polisher is for experienced while DA is for amateurs..

Much rather prefer an experienced detailer do it for me for a reasonable price.
Anyone out there?!