What is Best Option when Cannot Wash With Hose?

[cycledrum]

I know these types of threads have come along before, I've seen a few. Also, I have a driveway to hand wash my car, but things can change.

Here's what I know -

1)
Just took my old truck through a 'touchless hand car wash' station. Hard working people with good intentions, but would I trust those drying cloths on the Prius? No. They have no liability for marring the finish of a new car. As long as it's not dirty, they've done their job.

2)
Next up, 'no-rinse car wash'. Where? I've been to 2 local auto parts stores. Neither have these products. We surmised that they might not work very well. Maybe they do. What do you say? They have a bunch of regular car wash products, so looks like most are washing with a hose.

3)
The coin-op power wash. Never tried one, hope I don't have to. Isn't it rather lame to 'power-wash' soap suds into your door jambs while others are staring you down, like ... 'hurry it up buddy'. Then, oops, out of time, drop some more change to keep the water flowing, I mean blasting. No thanks.

4)
Apartment complexes, townhouses w/o driveways, condos, etc, etc... that have no provision for car washing, leaving one to choose from 1,2 or 3 above.

.... Seems like hand washing a car with hose at one's pace might be a luxury not to take for granted.

[Tideland Prius]

I agree, it is a luxury. If I can't wash my car by myself, I take it to an automated touchless car wash. It gets most of the stuff off (the windows will still have the wiper marks but very faint).


Local parts stores don't have the no-rinse products. The only one I recommend (and Boo has taken my recommendation and has had good results) is the Optimum No-Rinse (I think Amazon.com has it).

All you need is two buckets of water. Hmm, ok maybe 3. The first one is to wet the car and get the loose stuff off with running water. The other two are for washing (one with plain water to rinse the cloth, the other with the solution)

[Boo]

Brett,

Like Tideland said, I use Optimum No Rinse and like it a lot.

Most times I use the one bucket method, other times the two bucket (but never the three bucket --- no way I'm lugging three buckets of water down from my apartment to my car).

If you buy it, just get the one quart size. I bought the one gallon size and it'll probably last me the rest of my life.

[JimboK]

Another vote for Optimum, and yes, Amazon does sell it.

I keep a spray bottle of a dilute Optimum solution handy as a quick detail spray. If I'm in a rush (which is usually the case) I'll take the car through an automated touch-free wash to get most of the crud off, then hit it with the quick detail spray and a microfiber towel.

[patsparks]

Car Cube 12V Portable Pressure Washer
Car Cube is a tough, durable, totally portable pressure washer. Designed to go tough on dirt and easy on water. No mains power or garden hose required - that's different.

Just fill with clean water, plug into a 12V DC outlet and wash down with car cube wherever you are. With pressure of up to 130psi you can lift dirt without damaging duco.
It's designed for Australia's harsh water conditions. With Car Cube you can wash an average car with just 2 buckets of water making it among the most efficient cleaning machines available.

Car Cube has the 'Smart Approved WaterMark' - Australia's outdoor water saving labelling program for products and services which reduce water used around the home. The logo helps consumers identify products and services that help them save to water.
Car Cube 12V Portable Pressure Washer

[Tideland Prius]

Originally Posted by Boo

Brett,

Like Tideland said, I use Optimum No Rinse and like it a lot.

Most times I use the one bucket method, other times the two bucket (but never the three bucket --- no way I'm lugging three buckets of water down from my apartment to my car).

If you buy it, just get the one quart size. I bought the one gallon size and it'll probably last me the rest of my life.

So it's ok to just start washing on a dry car?

[Boo]

Originally Posted by Tideland Prius

So it's ok to just start washing on a dry car?

ONR says it is. But usually I wait until after it rains and/or I use a spray bottle of diluted ONR (the same as JimboK's quick detail spray) to pre-soak the car. I've also heard that some people use one of those Super Soaker water guns before washing the car.

[Tideland Prius]

Originally Posted by Boo

ONR says it is. But usually I wait until after it rains and/or I use a spray bottle of diluted ONR to pre-soak the car like JimboK does. I've also heard that some people use one of those Super Soaker water guns before washing the car.

lol... good use of the Super Soaker.

alright cool. I was gonna grab a bottle but they still don't sell them in Canada. Shipping from the U.S. is surprisingly expensive (at least the last two times I ordered something from the U.S.)

[cycledrum]

Thanks for all the replies!

Realizing there are many who don't have the option of washing their car on own terms, just looking at options out there.

[Paradox]

When water is not available and the car is not covered in mud, this works great!

Spray-On Car Wash Kit - Cleaners - Car Washing - Car Care - Griot's Garage

Really, it does work great but I wouldn't use it if the car is very very dirty... If it's just minor road grime etc though, I used it on my black 2006 a few times and it never messed up the paint etc.