Is your car your pride and joy? Even if that’s a bit of an overstatement for you, it’s likely that your car was a considerable investment for you. Either way, if you’re reading this, you probably want to keep your car looking shiny-new.
Doing that will either be a manual task involving car cleaning products or you might opt to pay to have it valeted. Any detailing expert will agree that washing your car is an essential part of vehicle maintenance that helps keeps it looking great and prevents damage to the exterior.
However, we know not everyone has access to a hose pipe (never mind a pressure washer) for washing their car, and that's where alternative methods come in handy.
We've got some tips for washing a car without a hose pipe.
What's included:
- Gather your car wash supplies
- Clean in a shaded area - avoid washing in direct sunlight
- Pre-rinse your car
- Use 2 car wash buckets for washing and rinsing
- Don't ignore your wheels
- Rinse and fully dry - don't allow to dry out naturally
Gather your car wash supplies
Before you start washing your car, you’ll need to gather all the necessary supplies. You'll need two large car wash buckets, your chosen car wash shampoo, a microfiber towel or car wash mitt, and a clean, drying towel.
It’s worth mentioning that there are waterless car wash solutions or quick detailers, which are specially formulated products that clean your car without water. However, these are more suited to times when a more lightweight clean is required. Deeper cleaning is best achieved with water and specialist car wash shampoo.
Clean Your Car in a Shaded Area
OK - so we know the UK isn’t the hottest spot on earth, but we also know that those warmer days are the ones that pull you out of the house to do a spot of car maintenance.
That bright sun also highlights any dirt on a car and you'll want to get your vehicle sparkling clean for Summer drives.
When washing your car it's important to park your car in a shaded area to prevent the shampoo and water from drying too quickly and leaving water spots. Direct sunlight can also cause the car to heat up, which can make the shampoo dry out faster and lead to streaks on the car's surface – and who wants that?
Pre-rinse Your Car
The first stage on any car wash is a pre-rinse and if you're not using a hosepipe, you can do this with buckets of water.
This step is to remove the thickest dirt and loosen other dirt or grime that has accumulated on the surface. If your car is particularly dirty, it’s could be worth rinsing it a few times.
Don’t be tempted to wipe it with anything whilst pre-rinsing – this makes you run the risk of scratching the paintwork with any grit stuck in the mud or dust.
Even if it’s tiny specs of grit, it can cause minor scratches or imperfections which will affect the shine off the surface of your car.
Two Buckets Please
When it comes to a full contact wash the two bucket method is tried and tested.
Why two buckets?
One is for your car shampoo and water mix, the second should contain fresh, clean water for rinsing your car wash mitt.
Rinsing your mitt regularly between shampoos ensures that any grit that has got trapped in there gets washed out into the bucket, instead of scratching your paintwork.
It's likely you'll need to refresh the clean water in the second bucket regularly so that there’s not a build up of soap in that as well.
Get Cleaning!
It's time to put some graft in to get your car looking fresh.
A pH neutral car shampoo is essential to prevent stripping any protection product on your car, such as wax. Get your mix right and don’t use more than the instructions tell you to. Start at the top of your car – this will serve to loosen any dirt that is sitting lower down on your car as the suds make their way down the car.
Remember to rinse your wash mitt in your clean water between each dip into your soapy water.
A good quality car wash mitt is worth the investment as well. Sponges can allow dust and grit to get trapped between itself and the cars bodywork, heightening the risk of scratching.
Don’t Forget your Wheels
Seems obvious doesn’t it? But actually it’s really common for people to forget their wheels when cleaning their cars. Getting a specifically designed car wheel cleaning brush to do this job is a great tip here.
A brush is best for getting into nooks and crannies, plus takes better care of expensive alloys.
Rinse and Dry
When you’ve gone over every inch of your car with soapy suds, dissolved all the dirt and got into your wheels, get rinsing. Sloshing the car with plenty of clean water until all your shampoo has been rinsed away means that you can dry it with confidence without the risk of leaving any pesky streaks.
Don’t be tempted to let your car air dry – this will only leave water marks and spots which negates all your hard work. Dry your car down with a special, high absorbency car drying towel.
