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Detailing question


jack172sp
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Hi all,

my Fiesta seems to be getting very dirty very quickly so I want to invest in some good cleaning and detailing products. Any chance you can give me recommendations including a good but not too pricey pressure washer please?

Thanks! 

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as for pressure washers most are good like me iv bought a mac alister washer and if your looking at going down the snow foam route its hard to find a seller of snow foam attachments as some members on here have found out, they do sell them but your looking at £30-40 for an mac alister attachment. as for detailing brands there are many best bet is to try different ones till you find the one right for you, iv bought auto glym stuff mainly due to my discount card iv got for Halfords and it gives a good quality finish, but end of the day is all personnel preference.

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Kleen freaks glass cleaner and water repellent is a good shout. Front windscreen cleans itself :) 

 

I also use collinite 476 for the paintwork.  Careful not to get it on black trim. 

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7 hours ago, jack172sp said:

Hi all,

my Fiesta seems to be getting very dirty very quickly so I want to invest in some good cleaning and detailing products. Any chance you can give me recommendations including a good but not too pricey pressure washer please?

Thanks! 

Check out Autobrite Direct for detailing products, they do some great stuff.

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For pressure washers you can't go wrong with Nilfisk.  Available in Argos and Screwfix in various variations.  Karcher are the easiest to get accessories for though.  Detailing products wise it depends very much on what you are looking for, how much you are willing to spend, and how much ongoing maintenance you intend to do.  Its probably worth having a look around the detailingworld forum if you haven't already.  

Im a big fan of Powermaxed products at the moment.  Their range is effective and not too pricey (and some are available in 5l concentrate form).  Also available from Euro Car Parts (and discounted in their many sales).  IN terms of LSP (wax/sealant), I'm using Sonax Extreme Protect and Shine Hybrid on the bodywork.  Its a spray you simply wipe on and wipe off (including on black trim if you want) - a bit pricey but job done for at least 3 months and no elbow grease required at all!  No matter what products you use the key is in the preparation though.

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Have a look in the detailing your ford section on here there is alot of advice there. +1 for Nilfisk, I bought one and I'm extremely happy with it, if you plan on using snow foam I'd get the lance from here and just make sure you choose the right attachment. It's the cheapest I've seen one and very very good.

https://www.directhoses.net/collections/foaming-equipment/products/snow-foam-lance

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Pressure washer wise stay away from karcher. I recomend Nilfisk or kranzle 

Lance wise mine are from Directhoses 

 

Product wise, check out www.yorkshiredetailing.co.uk . Theres a discount code for FOC supporters.

Also dont hesitate to drop us a message at www.facebook.com/eyorkshiredetailing 

 

You can also message me on here but ill reply quicker on facebook 

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I just use the normal hozlock pipe lol. Hozlock sprayer haha. Also the products I use are meguirs wash and wax step 1. Then I use meguirs polish step 2. Then I use meguirs carbuna wax to finish it off. comes up like new.

hope this helps :)

 

IMG_2941.JPG

IMG_2959.JPG

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You cant go wrong with Nilfisk. I used to go through Karcher jet washers like nobody's business, Ive lost count of how many Ive killed.

I have a Nilfisk jetwash and a wet and dry vac at the moment and they are excellent, They are much more robust than karchers for the same sort of price.

Product wise, You cant go far wrong with Autoglym imo.

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13 hours ago, Spanish_Fiesta said:

You cant go far wrong with Autoglym

to right iv got a large plasitc container that only containbs auto glym in my boot. need to expand the collection.

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Always love how it looks when it rains... 

IMG_20170317_194229_022.jpg

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Agree with everything RE nilfisk.. Although not a fan of aytoglym at all. Expensive for what you get 

 

It'll do fine for Most weekend warriors. But for professional use I can't stand the stuff :p. Weak beading/hydrophobic behaviour compared to alot of products. 

 

SRP is full of fillers, useful as a quick fix, useless if you're looking to correct the paintwork 

 

Durability really isn't that great on their protection products once you throw a little abuse their way 

As I say though, for a weekend warrior, you're not gonna have problems, and we all start somewhere :)

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I use a karcher jet wash and two bucket wash method.

If the car is really dirty I will use snow foam or a pre wash on the car first
I normally buy my products from either cleanyourcar.co.uk autobrite direct or polished bliss.

Agreed with above comments though that products like autoglym, demon shine etc that are sold in places like Halfords are expensive for what they are. Much better brands out there! Although autoglym polish isn't bad to be fair.
Products I'm using on my car at the moment are
Carpro or bilberry wheel cleaner
Autobrite or chemical guys snowfoam
Dodo juice basics of bling or chemical guys shampoo
Fusso 12 month wax/sealant
Gyeon wet coat (spray on spray off hydrophobic coating)
My wheels and glass are sealed with gtechniq products

Not sure if you do, but don't use a sponge!! Lambs wool or microfibre wash mits are a must. Good luck and I'm sure you'll start getting addicted aha :)

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To be fair Autoglym products aren't all that bad, depending on what (and how) you use.  Many pro's started out with autoglym and plenty of people into the trade use their products daily.  Super Resin Polish is a real love or hate product - it gets a lot of bad rep, but if you understand its a temporary fix rather than permanent correction it is a good product.  Especially if you are working with thin paint that wont survive a proper correction.  Its handy for oxidised paint as well.  I always quite liked autoglym bodywork shampoo and conditioner.  I'd put Autoglym with Meguiars above the likes of Carplan and demon shine (and their various brands), which are more your cheapo products.  There are many, many products out there and even more in the way of marketing!  Its not unheard of for one product to appear with different manufacturers labels on unfortunately, nor is it uncommon for more than one brands products to be made in the same factory (to different specifications) either.  Personally I never saw what all the fuss was about with Bilberry wheel cleaner, and snow foam seems to be driven by clever marketing rather than being the wonder solution it seems to be promoted as - we managed fine without it before someone had the idea of putting extra foaming agent into a soap solution and marketing it to death!.  Personally I find shampoo works fine as a 'snow' foam, but then i live in a soft water area.

 

My advice to the OP would be to start with the basics.  Get a couple of buckets and a decent mitt and treat your car to a good safe (as can be, theres always a risk when anything contacts your paint, all you can do is try to minimise that risk) wash.  Be sure to rinse as much loose dirt off as possible with a hose or pressure washer (with or without a snow foaming stage) before touching your paint.  Spend what you can afford and dont commit serious money until you see if you need to - as you move up the price scale for products there tends to be diminishing returns in terms of what you spend versus the difference the product makes. The exception is probably the nano sealants that are now on the market.  If you can afford it get yourself a clay bar or mitt as well and use every 6 months or so (more if you live near a railway line or heavy industrial) - you will be surprised how much stuff it draws out of your paint and how much better the paint looks as a result.  Most of all, enjoy yourself!

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Look even better/neater if you put the reg' plate were it should be! Oh hang on you can't! 

IMG_2941.thumb.JPG.9a98251001bce545a7d0b87c7c641fb1.JPG

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never understood the hate towards autoglym from the detailing crowd , AG's aqua wax and conditioner shampoo are 2 of the best products i've ever used.

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5 hours ago, biff55 said:

never understood the hate towards autoglym from the detailing crowd , AG's aqua wax and conditioner shampoo are 2 of the best products i've ever used.

Rightly or wrongly a lot of the detailing 'scene' seems to be led by marketing and gentleman's sausage waving!  Im sorry, but 999/1000 people are probably going to struggle to tell the difference in finish between a £30 tub of wax and a £300 tub of wax if the paint has been prepped correctly.  Granted, more expensive products can perform much better and require less effort, BUT there does seem to be a lot of people trying to justify why they paid so much for a product rather than being objective and saying 'its better but not twice the price better' or similar.

I always say that so long as you are happy with the results then it doesn't matter what the brand is.  I recently called someone (I know personally) a f**king idiot for even considering spending a 3 figure sum stocking up on a certain well known brand's products before having tried even one!  The lure of marketing is THAT strong.  Places like detailingworld are great for getting samples (sometimes members will buy a more expensive product and decant it for multiple people at cost as well) and even part used bottles of product in the sales section.  Some of the group buys are well worth looking at too.  I am lucky to have a couple of mates also in to looking after their cars, so we pass stuff around.  Sometimes I like something and they don't, and vice versa.  I couldn't care less if my snow foam doesn't smell of strawberries or produce a green foam!  If my (100% carnauba - really?  How does it spread then given carnauba is extremely hard!) wax wasn't squeezed between the thighs of 5 virgins or developed in a top secret soviet lab I don't care either, so long as it looks good on the car!  When I first started the whole 'detailing' thing I used to get complemented on the appearance of my car all the time and asked to do others - the only things I had used on it were autoglym super resin polish, one of those buffer machines out of argos with the HUGE pad that cost £20 (which was so well made I had to glue the polystyrene backing pad back onto the machine with contact adhesive), a coat of FK1000p sealant (the £20 tub still isn't finished 6/7 years later), some armourall tyre foam, and a couple of microfibres.  

The majority of what I use these days is Powermaxed or Sonax branded, with a couple of bits of autosmart and the odd rogue product I'm trying out or simply using up.  Both of powermaxed and sonax are towards the bottom of the cost scale.  For trim gtechniq is hard to beat for finish or longevity, so long as you do the prep 100% correctly - i also liked nanolex on Ford exterior trim, though sonar's extreme exterior trim product produces a nice finish at a fraction of the cost (and the tube size goes a long way to addressing the poorer longevity).  Much like photography I feel people get too hung up on brands when it comes to cleaning their car, when the real difference in results often comes down to the technique rather than the equipment used.

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17 hours ago, tarbyonline said:

Rightly or wrongly a lot of the detailing 'scene' seems to be led by marketing and gentleman's sausage waving!  Im sorry, but 999/1000 people are probably going to struggle to tell the difference in finish between a £30 tub of wax and a £300 tub of wax if the paint has been prepped correctly.  Granted, more expensive products can perform much better and require less effort, BUT there does seem to be a lot of people trying to justify why they paid so much for a product rather than being objective and saying 'its better but not twice the price better' or similar.

I always say that so long as you are happy with the results then it doesn't matter what the brand is.  I recently called someone (I know personally) a f**king idiot for even considering spending a 3 figure sum stocking up on a certain well known brand's products before having tried even one!  The lure of marketing is THAT strong.  Places like detailingworld are great for getting samples (sometimes members will buy a more expensive product and decant it for multiple people at cost as well) and even part used bottles of product in the sales section.  Some of the group buys are well worth looking at too.  I am lucky to have a couple of mates also in to looking after their cars, so we pass stuff around.  Sometimes I like something and they don't, and vice versa.  I couldn't care less if my snow foam doesn't smell of strawberries or produce a green foam!  If my (100% carnauba - really?  How does it spread then given carnauba is extremely hard!) wax wasn't squeezed between the thighs of 5 virgins or developed in a top secret soviet lab I don't care either, so long as it looks good on the car!  When I first started the whole 'detailing' thing I used to get complemented on the appearance of my car all the time and asked to do others - the only things I had used on it were autoglym super resin polish, one of those buffer machines out of argos with the HUGE pad that cost £20 (which was so well made I had to glue the polystyrene backing pad back onto the machine with contact adhesive), a coat of FK1000p sealant (the £20 tub still isn't finished 6/7 years later), some armourall tyre foam, and a couple of microfibres.  

The majority of what I use these days is Powermaxed or Sonax branded, with a couple of bits of autosmart and the odd rogue product I'm trying out or simply using up.  Both of powermaxed and sonax are towards the bottom of the cost scale.  For trim gtechniq is hard to beat for finish or longevity, so long as you do the prep 100% correctly - i also liked nanolex on Ford exterior trim, though sonar's extreme exterior trim product produces a nice finish at a fraction of the cost (and the tube size goes a long way to addressing the poorer longevity).  Much like photography I feel people get too hung up on brands when it comes to cleaning their car, when the real difference in results often comes down to the technique rather than the equipment used.

the 100% Carnuaba means the wax content is 100% carnuaba. There's still other oils/solvents in there too... 

 

A product to try for trim is a new trim wax from Infinity wax. To be fair infinity wax are a company I'm in talks with about stocking as their products are dirt cheap yet absolutely brilliant and all made in house

 

Visit cleanyourridesamples for loaaaads of product samples. Andy is also happy to hand out any advice 

 

I agree marketing wise too. Auto finesse are buggers for it amongst others 

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If you have the time autoglym are selling a claybar kit for about £20-25

I wash my car with just normal wash and wax, clay bar kit, then Meguiars polish and wax, all in all costs about £50 (think I bought the polish/wax/shampoo when cleaning products were 3 for 2 in Halfords

Takes about 4 hours to do but the end result is definitely worth it! The clay bar gives it an amazingly smooth finish! Only needs to be done a couple times a year too

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I think also the mix ratio of snowfoam comes into play, I prefer a thinner mix compared to a almost shaving foam thickness. I only really use it if the car is really soiled.

And I agree autoglym is love or hate, I think the body shampoo isn't to bad.

Everyone will have there own preference on brands and how they wash their car. If you're happy with the results then that's all that matters.
I do think spending hundreds on a pot of wax (unless you do it as a profession) is silly.

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3 hours ago, JoeZS19 said:

I think also the mix ratio of snowfoam comes into play, I prefer a thinner mix compared to a almost shaving foam thickness. I only really use it if the car is really soiled.

And I agree autoglym is love or hate, I think the body shampoo isn't to bad.

Everyone will have there own preference on brands and how they wash their car. If you're happy with the results then that's all that matters.
I do think spending hundreds on a pot of wax (unless you do it as a profession) is silly.

I've always found thinner foam is better for cleaning, thick foam is better for looks :) 

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I've got a karcher k2.36 and a nilfisk C110- 3 not sure which one to keep

the nilfisk has a patio brush and the karcher has one of their own snow foam bottles- I'd like to try snow foam - both are in top condition 

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The karcher snowfoam Lances drink fluid and are generally poor. Personally I'd buy a good quality £20 lance for the Nifisk

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27 minutes ago, GingerFlame said:

The karcher snowfoam Lances drink fluid and are generally poor. Personally I'd buy a good quality £20 lance for the Nifisk

Well I sold the Karcher and kept the nilfisk and I'll look for a snow foam as you've suggested

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