*** Car Wash / Valet / Detailing Thread ***

jpaul said:
cut the 50m hoze into a 30+20 ...
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I'm fairly sure he was on about the electrical extension cable, not a hose :)



I tried BH Touchless at the weekend, after a work colleague lent me some. Can't say I was impressed - was no better than AG Polar Blast, although how much of that is my Snow Foam lance being on the way out (and not picking up enough product, as my PIR dilution rate would have been something stupid) or what I don't know.

Also found out it's not PH Neutral, which seems to not particularly be mentioned, which means it probably strips Wax etc more aggressively, which isn't a great idea over Winter :(
 
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yes you have a point ... - lol - mains extension lead should make no diufference of course unless it is miniscule and warming up

e: but if he's using a long extension lead may have a too long hose
e2: as I'd had
 
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jpaul said:
you move the fittings from the end of old hoze ! you need a flow of waterdelivered to the pressiure washer so it can sustain its high pressure output
10l/min on my k7, and if you have a hoze that is too long the effort of pushing the water through the hose is too great and you can't deliver it
this is physics ..
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Yeah my point being you need the fittings and crimp tool!!!!!

honestly. Over thinking under deliverer should be your name .
 
Firegod said:
Anyone ever had trouble running a pressure washer from an extension reel? I've tried two different ones (both quite new) and it is hit and miss whether the karcher sparks into life. My workaround is to plug direct into socket outside. I was wondering if some sort of safety feature on the reels is getting in the way. Or, is the pressure washer on its way out? It is a refurbished K4 Power Control - only cost £115. Had it since June 2022. Extended the warranty but that expired June 2023. So it is coming up to 3 years old shortly. Thanks.
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My Karcher K5 does the exact same, i think it's some sort of safety cut out, but as you say not sure if it's the reel or the pressure washer. But like you it works fine direct from the outlet. I only needed a few m more distance personally, so i ended up buying a longer hose.
 
Firegod said:
Anyone ever had trouble running a pressure washer from an extension reel? I've tried two different ones (both quite new) and it is hit and miss whether the karcher sparks into life. My workaround is to plug direct into socket outside. I was wondering if some sort of safety feature on the reels is getting in the way. Or, is the pressure washer on its way out? It is a refurbished K4 Power Control - only cost £115. Had it since June 2022. Extended the warranty but that expired June 2023. So it is coming up to 3 years old shortly. Thanks.
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I have never used a pressure washer without an extension cable, never had an issue at all in 24 years of using them that way.
Never bought a Karcher branded washer though, that sucks if you cant use extention cables.
 
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I pulled my ancient Karcher out the tool store at the weekend and that ran fine for several hours on an extension real whilst I jet washed some of the patio.

Anyway, I'm going to be lazy rather than look through the past 100 pages and ask for a recommendation of a snow foam setup for my Karcher. It's very old, probably 20+ years, so from quickly looking around this morning, I may need an adapter to fit the old-style Karcher coupling.
 
MrRockliffe said:
It’s absolutely fine but I would say the dilution amount is a bit optimistic for hard water. If used at 7-10ml in a 10L bucket it’s a lot better IMO



I’m keen to try out the Car Chem Super Suds shampoo, as it’s also 1900:1 dilution but more sudsy.



The BH one is my preferred shampoo. I find it tackles stuff like bird poo very quickly without much mechanical action needed, and doesn’t have any additives in it, making it perfect as a wash before adding a ceramic of some kind.
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Was on my last few drop of Auto Wash that I used up. It not very sudsy but always does the job. Suds came back with a few blasts of water but always delivers when applied to the body work after a round of Surfex and Auto Foam. Needs topping for next wash and always tempted to try new things but may stick to the BH stable of products as always work.
 
Managed a wash on the BMW today.


Before touchless:





After touchless through an IK Sprayer + 3 trips around the car (needed or it dries too quickly) and a pressure wash off:





It isn’t magic, though. It gets off the top layer extremely well, and can definitely be used as a “get the worst off” during winter for a quick 15 min clean:






Here’s how sudsy BH Auto Wash (shampoo) is at 10ml in a 12L bucket. I personally don’t need it any more sudsy than this.







I’ve also got Labocosmetica Semper, which is supposed to be very good. I personally don’t find it as effective as BH AW, and it’s more expensive. Doesn’t seem to get many suds even at a very high concentration (15-20ml in a 12L bucket)



A bit of R222 polishing soap for the exhaust. It is borderline magic at removing carbon without damaging the chrome.

Before:





After:





Finished product after a quick coat of Touch On for gloss and hydrophobic:





Quick clean of the steering wheel with Geist, and it’s has come up very matte:

 
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Firegod said:
Anyone ever had trouble running a pressure washer from an extension reel? I've tried two different ones (both quite new) and it is hit and miss whether the karcher sparks into life. My workaround is to plug direct into socket outside. I was wondering if some sort of safety feature on the reels is getting in the way. Or, is the pressure washer on its way out? It is a refurbished K4 Power Control - only cost £115. Had it since June 2022. Extended the warranty but that expired June 2023. So it is coming up to 3 years old shortly. Thanks.
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What's the peak power draw? I know my machine draws 2200 watts and the directions that came with the machine said I should only use extension reels with a 2.5mm² core.

I don't think the K4 is that powerful though considering they go up to the K7? I know with the more powerful Ava machines, people have had issues with tripping due to the peak power draw. Some have found that depressing the trigger before turning the machine on is a workaround.
 
Mekrel said:
What's the peak power draw? I know my machine draws 2200 watts and the directions that came with the machine said I should only use extension reels with a 2.5mm² core.

I don't think the K4 is that powerful though considering they go up to the K7? I know with the more powerful Ava machines, people have had issues with tripping due to the peak power draw. Some have found that depressing the trigger before turning the machine on is a workaround.
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Thanks! Erm it is 1800w I believe. I just had a look at the instructions online and it specifically mentions:

The device does not start up, the motor buzzes
Voltage drop due to a weak mains grid or when using an extension cable
1. When switching on, first press the lever on the high-pressure gun and then switch on the device "I/ON".

I'll try that next time and see if it helps.

Ta. :)
 
Numpty question here. Should I be rinsing the car down with my pressure washer (Karcher K2) before snow foaming? The reason I ask is that after snow foaming and leaving it for 10-15 minutes (AG Polar Blast with a AutoBrite foam lance) then washing it off doesn't seem to remove any dirt at all. I have tried various strengths from 100ml to 500ml which gives a nice thick clingy layer but it doesn't make any difference. What am I doing wrong?
 
I have always had rubbish results with AG Polar Blast, I doubt you are doing anything wrong... get Bilt Hamber autofoam or touch-less, or Garage Therapy snow foam, had much better results with all of those..
 
leoncuprar said:
I have always had rubbish results with AG Polar Blast, I doubt you are doing anything wrong... get Bilt Hamber autofoam or touch-less, or Garage Therapy snow foam, had much better results with all of those..
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I tried bilt hamber touch less and thought it was overrated rubbish tbh whereas polar blast works well for me - maybe water hardness, lance or something else makes a difference idk :D
 
My car is the dirtiest it's ever been....I had to clean the number plates to make them readable again .. but on next wash I will test a door, half with touchless and half just pressure washer to see the difference, just out of interest..
 
pastymuncher said:
Numpty question here. Should I be rinsing the car down with my pressure washer (Karcher K2) before snow foaming? The reason I ask is that after snow foaming and leaving it for 10-15 minutes (AG Polar Blast with a AutoBrite foam lance) then washing it off doesn't seem to remove any dirt at all. I have tried various strengths from 100ml to 500ml which gives a nice thick clingy layer but it doesn't make any difference. What am I doing wrong?
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No as:

1. You’re diluting the product further

2. Reducing the contact ability with the dirt



I do find polar blast to be very all show and no go. Spray off the copious amounts of foam and… it’s the same :P
 
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