Need Winter Hand Washing Tips
Thread Starter
2nd Gear Member
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 167
From:
Need Winter Hand Washing Tips
Winter is coming pretty soon. My 05 'stang is the first vehicle that I have to wash by hand in long time. My last was a 92 miata that was stored in the winter. Any tips for washing a 'vert in the winter? I been washing it the Mr. Clean AutDry System but actually drying it by hand. BTW I like this system it does a great job of cleaning w/o stripping previous coats of wax.
Back on topic now, being in Michigan, it gets damn cold to wash by hand at home and water hoses are usually frozen. What's the best option, wash at home while storing hoses to keep from freezing or use the local quarter wash bays? What about waxing? Need to protect the car and paint from the salt. Any experiences waxing outside? or should I go tazmanian devil and 'clear' everything out of the garage(currently taken hostage by the misses and daughter with their 'stuff') to wax in there?
Back on topic now, being in Michigan, it gets damn cold to wash by hand at home and water hoses are usually frozen. What's the best option, wash at home while storing hoses to keep from freezing or use the local quarter wash bays? What about waxing? Need to protect the car and paint from the salt. Any experiences waxing outside? or should I go tazmanian devil and 'clear' everything out of the garage(currently taken hostage by the misses and daughter with their 'stuff') to wax in there?
5th Gear Member
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 3,645
From: Northern New Jersey
RE: Need Winter Hand Washing Tips
Wash and wax outside. The 40 degree water in the bucket won't kill you, but it sure as hell will make your hand numb. I know from experiance, but I always try to wax in the garage anyway to keep it out of the sun.
4th Gear Member
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 1,555
From: San Diego, CA
RE: Need Winter Hand Washing Tips
you can put warm water in your soap bucket, wear rubber gloves(hands wont be quite as cold bc they are dry), take your water hose inside your garage whenever you arent using it to keep it from freezing. you can dry it with a leaf blower or air compressor, or something like that to keep from freezing your hands on a chamois. id wax it inside if possible, i dont think that it would hurt it to be waxed outside, but it would be alot easier on you to be inside for a couple hours, insted of in 40* weather for a few hours.
1st Gear Member
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 108
From:
RE: Need Winter Hand Washing Tips
Here is the best advice: Give her an awesome cleaning, buy a cover and bury her in the garage for the winter, you don't want to drive it in the winter anyway, does terrible damage to the finish. Pick up a cheap beater car for the winter and save the stang....
5th Gear Member
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 3,645
From: Northern New Jersey
RE: Need Winter Hand Washing Tips
ORIGINAL: ryan1994mustang
you can put warm water in your soap bucket, wear rubber gloves(hands wont be quite as cold bc they are dry), take your water hose inside your garage whenever you arent using it to keep it from freezing. you can dry it with a leaf blower or air compressor, or something like that to keep from freezing your hands on a chamois. id wax it inside if possible, i dont think that it would hurt it to be waxed outside, but it would be alot easier on you to be inside for a couple hours, insted of in 40* weather for a few hours.
you can put warm water in your soap bucket, wear rubber gloves(hands wont be quite as cold bc they are dry), take your water hose inside your garage whenever you arent using it to keep it from freezing. you can dry it with a leaf blower or air compressor, or something like that to keep from freezing your hands on a chamois. id wax it inside if possible, i dont think that it would hurt it to be waxed outside, but it would be alot easier on you to be inside for a couple hours, insted of in 40* weather for a few hours.
Thread Starter
2nd Gear Member
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 167
From:
RE: Need Winter Hand Washing Tips
40 degree what?!! It gets down in the zeros in MI even metro detroit where I live. I would get a beater but I drive too many miles cross the state to be in a beater. My main concern is washing the vehicle and then having stuff freeze up on it. 40 degree water becomes ice in minutes when exposed to sub freezing temps.
thanks for the tips so far. I'm gonna try a combo. Like these:
1. Wash the car in the garage. It will be tight but at least the temps in the garage will be somewhat above freezing. I might just buy one of those heater/blowers for the garage. Keep me and the car toasty.
2. If I keep the hose in the garage, it will stay thaw enough to use for washing. I'll just connect/disconnect from the house when I'm done with it.
3. For my paws, I'll use neoprene gloves that I have. They keep my hands pretty dry in wet weather, so they'll work washing the car too.
thanks for the tips so far. I'm gonna try a combo. Like these:
1. Wash the car in the garage. It will be tight but at least the temps in the garage will be somewhat above freezing. I might just buy one of those heater/blowers for the garage. Keep me and the car toasty.
2. If I keep the hose in the garage, it will stay thaw enough to use for washing. I'll just connect/disconnect from the house when I'm done with it.
3. For my paws, I'll use neoprene gloves that I have. They keep my hands pretty dry in wet weather, so they'll work washing the car too.
5th Gear Member
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 3,645
From: Northern New Jersey
RE: Need Winter Hand Washing Tips
ORIGINAL: fso119
40 degree what?!! It gets down in the zeros in MI even metro detroit where I live. I would get a beater but I drive too many miles cross the state to be in a beater. My main concern is washing the vehicle and then having stuff freeze up on it. 40 degree water becomes ice in minutes when exposed to sub freezing temps.
thanks for the tips so far. I'm gonna try a combo. Like these:
1. Wash the car in the garage. It will be tight but at least the temps in the garage will be somewhat above freezing. I might just buy one of those heater/blowers for the garage. Keep me and the car toasty.
2. If I keep the hose in the garage, it will stay thaw enough to use for washing. I'll just connect/disconnect from the house when I'm done with it.
3. For my paws, I'll use neoprene gloves that I have. They keep my hands pretty dry in wet weather, so they'll work washing the car too.
40 degree what?!! It gets down in the zeros in MI even metro detroit where I live. I would get a beater but I drive too many miles cross the state to be in a beater. My main concern is washing the vehicle and then having stuff freeze up on it. 40 degree water becomes ice in minutes when exposed to sub freezing temps.
thanks for the tips so far. I'm gonna try a combo. Like these:
1. Wash the car in the garage. It will be tight but at least the temps in the garage will be somewhat above freezing. I might just buy one of those heater/blowers for the garage. Keep me and the car toasty.
2. If I keep the hose in the garage, it will stay thaw enough to use for washing. I'll just connect/disconnect from the house when I'm done with it.
3. For my paws, I'll use neoprene gloves that I have. They keep my hands pretty dry in wet weather, so they'll work washing the car too.
3rd Gear Member
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 894
From: IL
RE: Need Winter Hand Washing Tips
This will be my first winter with my car, but let me tell you what my father does. It's not the best wash in the world but it really honestly works. He gets this spray bottle and some hand towels, he then fills the bottle with with water and a car washing soap. He sprays the car with the solution and wipes where he sprays. You would be surprised how it actually looks when he does it this way. For the wheels he uses Meguiars wheel cleaner spray and wet tire look spray. After its all said and done the car looks great, and he didn't touch a drop of freezing water. You also wouldn't have to worry about liquid freezing on the car since you wash and dry at the same time.
2nd Gear Member
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 166
From:
RE: Need Winter Hand Washing Tips
This is how I've always done it with my other cars, (the mustang sleeps for the winter) I take a bucket along with my car wash, and mitt( never use those brushes) to the hand car washes, in my area of New Hampshire I'm lucky they have hot water, so with the first session I rinse the car off of salt and dirt then fill the bucket through the mitt so the soap suds won't go everwhere, then I procede to wash the car all at once,( yes sometimes so cold it will start freezing before I can finish) Than with the second session I rinse the car off and give a good spray to the underneath so for five bucks and a little discomfort I end up with a wash That I know is done right.. Hope that helps