What shampoo to use with a pressure washer?

saitrix

saitrix

saitrix

Soldato
Joined
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Nottingham
Hi,

My Dad has just got himself a new Karcher pressure washer and it has come with a shampoo attachment. He is after a shampoo which he can use to clean the car very quickly so not using a sponge aswell on it. Does anyone have any recommendations for a shampoo to be used with it?
 
You won't be able to clean it properly without a sponge (or mit) really, I have a Karcher like that and all it does is make a few suds. I used Meguiars NXT shampoo but you'll still end up with a film of dirt there if you just use the lance. It might be ok if the car is silver though but certainly doesn't clean it to anywhere near a decent standard on my black Z4.
 
in all seriousness snow foam is the stuff to have if you have a pressure washer :) leave it on for about 10 mins and after a rinse off youll find you wont need to do much more!
 
I use snow foam and again it doesn't really do a great deal at getting the underlying dirt off, you still end up with a film of dirt. Don't notice it on my silver car but really looks bad on dark cars.
 
k3wt said:
i presume you wax your car regularly though?
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Not all that regularly to be honest (a few times a year) but it sounds like Saitrix's father won't be doing it regularly either if he's wanting to save the time it takes to use a sponge let alone wax the car.
 
very true. id say a few times a year is plenty enough waxing tho! something ive been meaning to do for a few months myself :(
 
k3wt said:
very true. id say a few times a year is plenty enough waxing tho! something ive been meaning to do for a few months myself :(
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It gets more painful the longer you own a car as well doesn't it. :D

I normally do one at the start of spring, one or two in the summer and then try to do one before winter (although I didn't this year).
 
schizo220168 said:
lol.....when you wash it of you will find no paint left on your car.

sorry but that picture made me laugh but im sure the product is good.
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Have you ever used snow foam? I am assuming not going by your not so accurate post.

I use snowfoam after doing a pre-rinse of the car so surface dirt is removed, leave the foam for 10mins then pressure wash off then wash with mitt/shampoo as normal. Gets great results. You could get away with just a snow foam and rinse each week in Summer weather but you have to shampoo wash as normal in this kind of weather.

I've not waxed (sealed) since the summer, don't really need to with Collinite 476s which lasts around a year on top of the super resin polish - can tell it's still there from the matte texture after every wash and the sheeting of the water.
 
yeh that collinite is good stuff. i think lasting a year is pushing it though!!! theres nothing like feeling up your paint after claying and a quick machine polish and a layer of wax though :)
 
Well it lasts more than 6 months that's for sure :P the official time is up to 12months but we've had fairly extreme and abnormal weather the past year so give or take as you please :p

I like 476s as it's easy to wax on and wax off (^_^) and it is easy to see if it's still there, just watch for sheeting or feel the paint as you wash/dry - should have a slightly rubbery/matte feel to it!
 
Yeah the idea was to use it as a quick wash when time is tight. Though by the sounds of it, after a good foam it will only need a very quick sponging over with shampoo to get decent results.

Edit - Keep meaning to get some Collinite 476, handy to only need to do it once a year!
 
Yeah for the body and sides that's the case, if you don't have mudflaps then your bumper edging and sides will need a heavier scrub though.
 
This is something I'm dresprate to do too, I'll be picking up a Karcher from Halfords and a lance from cleanmycar.co.uk. Which foam is recommended for really cutting through the grime?
 
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Detailer to the rescue here!

First off forget those shampoo attachments you can get for pressure washers.

1) Get yourself a decent shampoo (i find megs gold class to be one of the best). Cleaning the car with a wash mitt will do a FAR better job then just drenching it in shampoo and rinsing it off.

2) Always use 2 buckets, 1 for your shampoo solution and another to rinse your wash mitt in (try to avoid sponges they tend to more harm than good)

3) Keeping your car regulary waxed (even if its cheap wax) will make cleaning the car far easier and will help keep a nice shine to the paintwork.

These are just a few basic tips for your dad to use, it may not be as easy as just pressure washing the car down but the results will be far better.

Head over to www.detailingworld.com for more tips, guides and product reviews, great site and very useful.
 
Yes I already know how to wash a car thanks. More to the point I was wanting to know how good a job the foam alone can do when he doesn't have the time to do a proper wash.
 
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