Hard Water And My New Jeep!

[Osso]

Hi everyone... I live in Doylestown, PA where washing your car is nearly impossible due to hard water. If you wash your car, the hard water will immediately leave mineral residue on the paint which is nearly impossibleto remove. I would like to find a solution that does not include spending $5k in paint protection film. With that said, can you'all please tell me how you go about mitigating this issue?

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[Original_Junior]

Hello Doylestown. I've seen filter systems you can hook onto the outdoor spigot and use for washing your car. A lot cheaper than $5k. Check out the many websites that specialize is auto detail products and see what they offer. Afterwards, stop by the NBI and have a Yuengling for me.

 

[Original_Junior]

Autogeek has a few different systems.
Oh yeah, Black & Tan for me!

 

[NULL POINTER]

When I lived in D'Town, a water softener was the answer and we had well water. I washed my cars at least twice a week. Actually I lived in Doylestown Township just beyond where the 202 bypass intersects old 611 in the neighborhood behind the Geil mansion.

 

[aville65]

Chamois, shammy, have to do it after every wash, no spots or residue.

 

[2nd 392]

Cheap fix if it works, worth a try. An RV water filter that screws on the hose.

 

[Osso]

When I lived in D'Town, a water softener was the answer and we had well water. I washed my cars at least twice a week. Actually I lived in Doylestown Township just beyond where the 202 bypass intersects old 611 in the neighborhood behind the Geil mansion.

Howdy neighbor... Was the water softener part of your water system or did you do something to different to soften the water?

 

[NULL POINTER]

Howdy neighbor... Was the water softener part of your water system or did you do something to different to soften the water?

Howdy back at you. Ex neighbor, now in Florida. Yes it was part of the home water system. I also used a leaf blower to dry the vehicles quickly. Washing and drying in sections may be helpful for those pesky water spots.

 

[ChuckQue]

I have a different method than others have mentioned, in this order (usually):

- Each wheel/wheel well, one at a time, blast off wheel and well with pressure washer. Spritz down with wheel and tire cleaner, use a brush to scrub wheel. I have a couple different sizes brushes (wife’s explorer has fancy wheels). I have a separate brush I use for the wheel well so I’m not transferring mud or whatever onto the wheel and scratching it. Clean bucket of rinse water for dunking brushes as I go. Hose off wheel, spritz with detail spray which helps keep the water from spotting

- Pressure wash off vehicle, blowing the dirt off from the top down. I have a foam cannon attachment I set up prior and I blast the whole car down with the foam, which is a Ph neutral soap. Same soap goes in a wash bucket with grit guard in the bottom. Wash the car down, rinsing the wash pad every so often off in a second bucket of clean water (also a grit guard)

- once vehicle has been soaped up and scrubbed, I use the hose on just a regular shower setting and rinse off the vehicle. I IMMEDIATELY and quickly mist it down with either detail spray or spray wax. This helps keep the water from spotting. I dry with a huge microfiber towel using the drape and drag method. Option step is to use an air compressor hose to blast out the edges of panels, mirrors, wheels, etc. That helps keep water that collected in there from dripping down later and leaving hard water spots.

- A good clay bar and buff or full correction followed by a good quality wax helps immensely during the next wash. Once the paint is super slick, the rinse stage of your wash goes much easier because the water either sheets or beads off, leaving far less water to dry off.

It seems like a lot of work but it isn’t. Once you have a system down it goes quick and easy!

Adam’s polishes has some great tutorial videos I highly recommend. I’m sure there’s some guys here that are great at detailing and will say there’s better stuff out there but for me this is what works and my vehicles stay looking nice.

 

[Osso]

I have a different method than others have mentioned, in this order (usually):

- Each wheel/wheel well, one at a time, blast off wheel and well with pressure washer. Spritz down with wheel and tire cleaner, use a brush to scrub wheel. I have a couple different sizes brushes (wife’s explorer has fancy wheels). I have a separate brush I use for the wheel well so I’m not transferring mud or whatever onto the wheel and scratching it. Clean bucket of rinse water for dunking brushes as I go. Hose off wheel, spritz with detail spray which helps keep the water from spotting

- Pressure wash off vehicle, blowing the dirt off from the top down. I have a foam cannon attachment I set up prior and I blast the whole car down with the foam, which is a Ph neutral soap. Same soap goes in a wash bucket with grit guard in the bottom. Wash the car down, rinsing the wash pad every so often off in a second bucket of clean water (also a grit guard)

- once vehicle has been soaped up and scrubbed, I use the hose on just a regular shower setting and rinse off the vehicle. I IMMEDIATELY and quickly mist it down with either detail spray or spray wax. This helps keep the water from spotting. I dry with a huge microfiber towel using the drape and drag method. Option step is to use an air compressor hose to blast out the edges of panels, mirrors, wheels, etc. That helps keep water that collected in there from dripping down later and leaving hard water spots.

- A good clay bar and buff or full correction followed by a good quality wax helps immensely during the next wash. Once the paint is super slick, the rinse stage of your wash goes much easier because the water either sheets or beads off, leaving far less water to dry off.

It seems like a lot of work but it isn’t. Once you have a system down it goes quick and easy!

Adam’s polishes has some great tutorial videos I highly recommend. I’m sure there’s some guys here that are great at detailing and will say there’s better stuff out there but for me this is what works and my vehicles stay looking nice.

You sound like a pro... Thanks for the thorough explanation.

 

[ChuckQue]

You sound like a pro... Thanks for the thorough explanation.

Far from it, I just attend YouTube university on the regular.

 

[Osso]

Far from it, I just attend YouTube university on the regular.

Makes two of us!!! Fired the pool guy last week after 2 no shows... Took a pool cleaning class on YouTube and now I am pocketing $600 a moth

 

[[DELETED USER 82058]]

Wash in the shade or out of direct light and possibly consider a blower to dry your car.
If you are really serious, you can have a filtration system installed that will help tremendously. Our old home had hard water but I washed in the shade, did a proper pool rinse after a complicated washing process and then dried immediately usually while applying an express sealant. Another important part is protecting your paint after the wash.

Blowers:
https://metrovac.com/collections/auto

Drying towel (do not use with product, just for drying):
https://detail-division.com/collections/klin-microfiber/products/klin-drying-duo-evo

 

[Will]

If you don’t want water spots you need to dry your vehicle after a wash.

I use this product after a hand wash:

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Turtle-W...dV3MlBUhg1AcQcPHUlBoCbfEQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds


And this is what I use most of the time to wash the Jeep between hand washes. I typically use this once a week and maybe wash the Jeep once a month, depending on how dirty she is.

There are many good waterless wash products out there but my personal “bang for your buck” favorite is Meguiar’s. For me it does not replace hand washing but it’s a great way to maintain a good looking vehicle and extend time between washes. You also don’t have to worry about water spots with this one. I do have the luxury of a garage for this vehicle so the the sun is never a worry when it comes time to wash/dry.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Meguiar-...GL-mXOqTkcyoWfrE7zBoClpQQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

[Tiger1]

FYI - I also read somewhere that using a couple gallons of distilled water for your final rinse helps & is a cheap, low-tech solution.

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