"Tripper" (tripe46)
11/23/2015 at 13:59 • Filed to: None
2
37|
"Tripper" (tripe46)
11/23/2015 at 13:59 • Filed to: None | 2
| 37 |
I avoid automatic car washes whenever I can. However it gets cold in PA during the winter.
Over the weekend I lined up at the local car wash only to be stopped inline by another patron in a new Ford Fusion. “Hey buddy, this car wash just took my mirror off, and the owner is basically telling me to piss off!” He said. I thanked him and said “that’s all I needed to hear, seeya!”
So now I’m wondering what I’m going to do all winter. There is a detailing place that is nearish to me that does hand washes for $25 which isn’t terrible, but you have to schedule it and drop the car off. There is one of those DIY car wash places, but every time I have used it I have spent at least $15 and I have to bring all of my washing shit with me, unless I want to use the “push broom” that they supply you with.
I was spoiled for the last few years, my old apartment had an underground garage that stayed around 60 degrees (winter and summer). There was also a hose and wash bucket with access to hot water! (The super was also a gearhead).
I’m planning to add a hot water line to my driveway side hose connection, but that will do me no good once it gets really cold.
So, how does Oppo wash cars in cold weather?
CalzoneGolem
> Tripper
11/23/2015 at 14:01 |
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I don’t. I barely wash it when it is warm.
Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras
> Tripper
11/23/2015 at 14:03 |
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I wash it on a good day before shit hits the fan...then avoid doing it until spring comes
bob and john
> Tripper
11/23/2015 at 14:04 |
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Auto car wash, but touchless. the goal is to get the underside clean, as thats where the majority of the salt hits.
Party-vi
> Tripper
11/23/2015 at 14:04 |
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“Hey buddy, this car wash just took my mirror off, and the owner is basically telling me to piss off!”
There are probably signs posted to fold in your mirrors, and that damage to mirrors or wheels is not the responsibility of the car wash owner.
jariten1781
> Tripper
11/23/2015 at 14:06 |
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I do auto-washes on the DDs over the winter. The way I figure it, if I'm willing to subject them to road salt and potholes the brushes/jets are the least of my worries.
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Tripper
> Party-vi
11/23/2015 at 14:09 |
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I don’t doubt that, but I’d rather play it safe. I’m not faulting the car wash, I would just rather avoid the situation all together. I’ve also never folded my mirrors before entering a car wash.
Takuro Spirit
> Tripper
11/23/2015 at 14:10 |
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I used to wash it at work in our drive-by carwash mashineamajigger, but at new job we don’t have one. I could ask or pay a porter to wash it but... I’ll just take it to the gas station down the street and run it through the touchless when its warm-ish out.
deekster_caddy
> Tripper
11/23/2015 at 14:11 |
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I just go to the quarter spray job place and only use their brush on the wheels. The spray stuff does good enough. Also, wait until it’s well above freezing to do it. Having doors frozen shut kinda sucks.
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Tripper
> Supreme Chancellor and Glorious Leader SaveTheIntegras
11/23/2015 at 14:11 |
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Haha, I’ve done that with my beaters, but with my DD(s) I try to at least hose them off once a week.
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deekster_caddy
> Takuro Spirit
11/23/2015 at 14:12 |
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It’s strange, there just aren’t many touchless car washes around here! All of them have the hanging fabric stuff...
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Tripper
> deekster_caddy
11/23/2015 at 14:13 |
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Yea this will probably be my go to, the place near me isn’t even open when it’s anywhere close to freezing.
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Tripper
> bob and john
11/23/2015 at 14:16 |
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There is only one “touch free” place that I know of, and it’s not close :(
mcseanerson
> Tripper
11/23/2015 at 14:16 |
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So, how does Oppo wash cars in cold weather?
I don’t.
Smallbear wants a modern Syclone, local Maple Leafs spammer
> Tripper
11/23/2015 at 14:17 |
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Touchless wash. It’s never going to look good in the winter anyway except for like this:
So all I really wash it for is to take salt off once in a while. The touchless does the job just fine and doesn't scratch the paint by smearing road grime all over it.
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Takuro Spirit
> deekster_caddy
11/23/2015 at 14:17 |
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Pretty much all the gas stations around here are touchless. I almost prefer the brush type. Gets more dirt off.
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bob and john
> Tripper
11/23/2015 at 14:22 |
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*shrugs* get used to it.
asenna
> Tripper
11/23/2015 at 14:23 |
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it sounds like you had a pretty sweet setup I would try to make a deal with your old Super pay him $50 a mo to use the wash bay down there
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Tripper
> bob and john
11/23/2015 at 14:24 |
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Yea, I will probably just stick it out with a bucket of hot water in the driveway until it gets really cold
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bob and john
> Tripper
11/23/2015 at 14:26 |
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the BIGGEST thing in the winter is the salt that you get underneath the car.
though, you DO have an audi, and their under-body paneling is usually retty good. id still take it to the auto once in a while. maybe while doing groceries?
BigBlock440
> Tripper
11/23/2015 at 14:26 |
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I wait until spring and wash it in my yard. Probably not the best advice if you actually care about it though.
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Tripper
> asenna
11/23/2015 at 14:28 |
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Lol, I considered that! However, I burnt the bridge with the rental company when we moved out. We had a disagreement on the final balance, so I told them that they could keep my extremely low security deposit and hire an attorney.
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Tripper
> bob and john
11/23/2015 at 14:29 |
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Yea that I will do, there is a nice one near my parents house. It’s expensive, but I have never had a problem there.
cuts_off_prius
> Tripper
11/23/2015 at 14:32 |
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Theres two full service hand washes near me that offer $10 car washes and they even have a weekday early bird discount. They vacuum, wash the mats, wipe down the dash, and clean the windows inside and out. I usually go there once a month during winter. Another option near me is lifetime washes from the dealership my car was bought from, but I ususlly avoid it due to swirls.
Rico
> Tripper
11/23/2015 at 14:33 |
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What you want is a Rinseless wash. I just started rinseless washing earlier this month because it’s too cold to keep bringing out the hose. Rinseless washes are concentrated washing solutions used in 2 ways: 1 you fill a bucket with hot/warm water 3 gallons for every Oz. of solution is usually the dilution and you fill a spray bottle with the appropriate dilution ratio to pretreat the panels on the car.
Rinseless washes avoid you needing to rinse the car off after washing, you can jump immediately to the drying stage.
You’ll need 2 buckets one with soap and one for rinsing your wash mitt between panels.Directions basically are: Pre-treat panel by spraying the solution, dunk a rinseless wash mitt into the rinseless solution wipe down the panel and watch the dirt roll off, then immediately follow up with a drying towel to dry the panel. You can also spray a little spray wax on the drying towel/panel to assist with drying/add a layer of gloss and protection to make your next washing even easier. If you want some links to the stuff I bought let me know. Also consider putting a sealant on to make winter washing easier, it’ll prevent dirt and grime from bonding to the paint.
Also advice if your car is really really filthy from salt and grime it’ll be best to use one of those coin-op pressure washers to blast off all the gunk first before going home and doing a rinseless wash. After seeing how good RWs are I probably won’t be doing a traditional 2 bucket wash with a hose for a really long time if ever.
Also my car has never ever seen an automatic wash. I wouldn’t go near one, not even those “hand wash” places which use the same towels over and over and instead are scratching your paint as they wipe it down with dirty ass towels.
McMike
> Tripper
11/23/2015 at 14:51 |
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I wait until a 40+ degree day (that won’t be followed by a below freezing night), then I do it in the driveway
lunr
> Rico
11/23/2015 at 15:06 |
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Can concur that the rinse-less wash has always given me a better result than the touch-less car washes. I also use a spray-wax-detailer-liquid-thing that you spray on as you’re drying, helps to get the water off and give it a streak-free shine.
I agree that you might need to run through the touch-less to get the underside and extra grime off the body before a rinse-less wash if the car is really dirty.
I use Optimum No-rinse, 2 buckets of water, and 4 micro-fiber towels (2 dry, 2 wet) to do my whole car in about 20 minutes and I can do it in my garage with the heater going and bundled up in layers.
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Rico
> lunr
11/23/2015 at 15:11 |
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Boom exactly. It makes washing the car super easy and with a spray wax/detailer it’ll keep the shine up. I tried ONR and it worked okay but my car stays outdoors all day and I didn’t feel like it was very slick (it seems better for cars that are garage kept). I just tried Wolfgang Rinseless and it definitely has the slickness I was looking for and dilutes 1 oz per 3 gallons. I still use ONR in my rinse bucket though since I have about 8 oz left.
vicali
> deekster_caddy
11/23/2015 at 15:26 |
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Same here, quarter places are the best, my current local one runs on tickets; you get the ticket when you go in and pass it to the cashier on the way out.. No time for spot free rinse, and I wouldn’t touch that push brush.. it usually costs $4..
I towel off the inside of the doors, broken handles are the only thing worse than frozen doors..
Speed
> Tripper
11/23/2015 at 15:41 |
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NEPA here. I use an automatic touchless every couple of weeks and local spray bay weekly. The water is heated so as long as I get it off the windows quickly the freezing isn’t that big of a deal.
AM3R shamefully returns
> Tripper
11/23/2015 at 16:10 |
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Many gas stations around me are touchless. Sure, the car won't look perfect afterwards but it gets all the grime off and doesn't damage the paint. Check out some local Shell gas stations, those are almost exclusively touchless around me.
MM54
> Tripper
11/23/2015 at 18:13 |
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Late last winter I went to a touch-free to get the salt rinsed off the underside, it ended up blowing so much former-metal off my car that I just waited until spring and did it with the hose. That said, my crown vic is very much a beater and I’ll surprised if I still have door sills this spring (the last of my rockers disappeared this past summer).
This winter will be the first time in my life I’ve been able to park inside, so I may actually wash my car once ot twice between December and March, though at present it hasn’t been washed since early June so I can’t imagine suddenly wanting to just because it’s cold out.
ranwhenparked
> Tripper
11/23/2015 at 19:42 |
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Sometimes, you get lucky and find a self-serve car wash that stays open through the winter. Just try to hit it on a day when its above freezing, so you’re not sliding around on ice in the stall. Otherwise, it has to be an automatic wash - not the greatest, but you do have to get the caked on salt off.
TheD0k_2many toys 2little time
> Tripper
11/24/2015 at 00:24 |
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I don’t wash it. winter beaters FTW
jkm7680
> Tripper
11/27/2015 at 18:59 |
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I honestly don’t, or rarely will and hope the hose isn’t frozen. First winter with the A6, so I’ll have to see.
I never washed my A4 during the winter though.
davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
> Tripper
12/11/2015 at 12:01 |
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Ever try something like this? http://chadwickstripleplay.com/
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Tripper
> davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com
12/11/2015 at 12:06 |
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No but that looks interesting, I’m gonna give it a whirl.
V12 Jake- Hittin' Switches
> Tripper
01/04/2016 at 12:32 |
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I have access to a fire station garage with heated water on a hose.