What do I need??

Author
Discussion

Meerkat90

Original Poster:

20 posts

65 months

Tuesday 22nd January 2019
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Hi all just after some advice!!

I’m looking to invest into all the necessary cleaning products I need to keep my car looking as nice as possible and protected!!!

My question is what do I really need and would products do you guys reccomend, I’ve been looking at the Karcher pressure washer that includes the snow foam lance, is this lance any good??

On my list I’ve got

3 buckets with grit guards
Polish?
Wax?
Wheel cleaner
Clay bar and lube?
Wheel Woolies

Also what brands do people reccomend?? I hear good things about auto finesse

Thanks in advance

belleair302

6,833 posts

206 months

Thursday 24th January 2019
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Look over at detailing world for an in depth appreciation of what people use. The simple issue is budget, storage space, is the car inside or outside, colour and how much time do you have. Then we can answer some questions in greater depth.

brad ukcarscene

224 posts

132 months

Monday 4th February 2019
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the snow foam lance you get with the pressure washer won't be as good as some of them you can get. It depends which one you've got, the adjustable one isn't too bad i don't think, the one that comes with the nilfisk washers are dreadful though.

In terms of products:

Pre-Wash for winter - something you can dilute and spray on then pressure wash off to get rid of the majority of crap (make sure it's wax safe / ph neutral)

Shampoo - Do you want a basic shampoo or a wax-enhancing shampoo? If you are going to decontaminate the car after washing then you don't want a shampoo that contains wax (I like ODK Arctic Snow Foam and ODK Breakdown citrus pre-wash)

Wheel cleaner - i prefer concentrated wheel cleaners myself, bilberry is a good shout, good dilution ratios and good cleaning power

tar remover & fallout remover - depending how far you want to go you could do with these, especially if you want the best surface possible to wax

polish - are you using by hand? If so then you might be better with a glaze type product which contains fillers to temporarily hide light swirling

wax - completely up to you on that, there is no shortage of good waxes around

You probably also want to think about what wash mitt and drying towels you'll be using, lambswool, microfibre mitt, wash pad etc... as with most things, buy something expensive and it'll last you. I am currently using KL!N wash mitt and drying towel and glass cloth, all really impressive.

For when you want a quick wash you'll probably want a quick detailer too, one of the best i've used is Infinity Wax Rapid Detailer.

My two main brands are Infinity Wax and ODK. Used to use Auto Finesse a fair few years ago but quickly realised there is a lot better out there for less money. They do a couple of good products (quick detailer mainly) but a lot that I don't rate at all (particularly their tyre dressing and snow foam)

Any more questions feel free to drop me a message smile


Edit: as for wheel woolies, not used them personally but I can recommend EZ Detail brushes, they get pretty much anywhere. I use a EZ Detail brush for spokes and barrels and then an old mitt to clean the alloy face.

Alex_225

6,225 posts

200 months

Thursday 7th February 2019
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Detailing World is a fantastic place for all info on this kind of thing.

The products below are just suggestions and ones I like from experience but by no means definitive. smile

2x buckets - at least the rinse bucket with a grit guard.
Shampoo - Dodo Juice Basics of Bling, Gyeon Bathe
Wash Mitts - Meguiars microfibre wash mitts (can go in the washing machine)
Drying Towels - I use blue microfibre towels, unbranded off eBay (again washing machine friendly)
Polish - Autoglym Super Resin
Wax - Collinite 845
Clay - Most clays are very similar but I'd opt for a medium clay, Meguiars do a kit which works well enough

Those items are what make up a staple part of my kit. I have 10 waxes though, a handful of polishes, shampoos, glazes, quick detailers, sealants but a simple clay, polish, wax will leave your car looking great.