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How Do You Wash Your Av?

How do you wash your avalanche?

  • hand wash at home/apt

    Votes: 86 98.9%
  • automated car wash

    Votes: 1 1.1%
  • pay kids to do it

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • non automated car wash place

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • do it yourself at coin operated place

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • don't wash-scientific dirt test

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • other (elaborate)

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    87

spectron65

SM 2003
Full Member
Joined
Nov 9, 2002
Messages
570
I reviewed the previous threads and went through the search engines. Haven't found a specific thread on how most members wash their AV. There was one about how long it takes to wash an AV (it was scary).

Here's my dilemma. That sucker is huge. Some of us just don't have enough time or space (especially if you live in a condo, apt, or any shared complex) to wash our AVs in the driveway on Saturday mornings. I am fortunate enough to have a long huge private driveway but just don't have time or energy to do it constantly. I have not taken the AV through an automated car wash place, yet.
Those brushes have done a number on my black Camaro--I don't see any scratches on my silver Venture but I know they're there. I have a blue AV and I know it will show everything!

There is a guy that comes to the employee parking lot at work and I see him wash the high end cars with equipment in his truck--I think he uses a VERY high pressure water hose or compressed air. He usually washes pricey imports--I am afraid to ask him how much he charges for a truck the size of an AV.

Let me explain the choices above:

1. wash at home--self explanatory. Nothing touches my baby but my hands.

2.Automated--some are advertised as "touchless". They are all touch-a-lot as far as I am concerned. Just look at the size of those revolving blue spinning brushes on all 3 sides of your car.

3. Go to high school charity events--a little more expensive but hey, you kill 2 birds with one stone.

4.Non -automated car wash place: very popular in So Cal where you all sit in a tent watching guys wash your car for you then your name gets yelled....

5.Coin operated--put 4 quarters in for the H2O, then 4 quarters in for soap, then 4 quarters for wax... you get the pic.

6. I go off roading so much that I think that dirt look is starting to grow on me.

7. I have tried them all.


Thanks--sorry for long post but I am famous for that.
 
I don't do it on the driveway simply because I'd get water spots. I don't go through the automatic kind simply because they don't get everything off and I worry about the acid content in the water removing my Zaino. Therefore, I always go to the coin-op wash where I suds it down and wash it by hand. I then power rinse it and use my handy-dandy microfiber towels to dry her clean. I have 3 large microfiber towels now to get the job done. The first I use to remove the large quantity of water. Kind of go over the whole truck with the one towel. Then use the second until it starts to leave water. And finally use the third to finish the job/touch up any other damp spots.

Jamie
 
I have to reply to the "other" option. I take my car to a carwash (automated, touchless - it really is touchless, no brushes, no chamios things, nothing but lots of washer nozzles) to get most of the worst dirt then home to wash it a second time by hand. It normally takes me 2 days for a good detail :6: but the results are worth it ;D
 
I either do the whole number at home or will take my bucket, soap, and wash towels to a do it yourself wash when there are NO others waiting in line. Put in the minimum $$$, wet it down, wash it by hand using the bucket and towels, put in the minimum $$$, rinse it off, towel it dry. Works well - no mess at home.
 
VERY CAREFULLY ;D
Naw i go to the coin operated first, pre-soak and wash it down to get all loose dirt off, then drive the 1/2 mile to the house and wash it in the drive way.
I have been called the neighborhood watch because i wash our vehicles after 9-10 oclock at night. I hate water spots and both vehicles are black so i wash them at night which gives me time to do the whole thing and then dry it off with out the worry of steam coming off my black av like during the day.
Hey Jamie, the micro fibre towels where did you get yours. i bought mine at walmart and they are called micro fibre, but it says made in Korea?????????
I have been using them to take the zaino off, but have not tried them for drying. Do they work better than a chamois, (shamey) however you spell it. Might be something for me to try.........I think i have about 12 now, every time i go to walmart i pick up a 2 pack when i think about it.............
zeeya
 
:B: :B: :B:
Strictly driveway..........for this season, a nice heavy pair of rubber gloves keeps the skin intact, my brandy-new leaf blower (thanks, babe!) does the quickest dry under the sails and compartments, and a microfiber towel finishes it off. Zaino - beads on, beads off. Great stuff.....plus if I do it myself I stay on top of tar spots and small nicks. ;)

Jake
 
endeavorc said:
I have to reply to the "other" option. I take my car to a carwash (automated, touchless - it really is touchless, no brushes, no chamios things, nothing but lots of washer nozzles) to get most of the worst dirt then home to wash it a second time by hand.

I use the same procedure. Knocks all the grit, that scratches paint, off before the hand wash.
 
We've got a place here in KC that uses a version of the blue scratch balls you see in the old gas station car washes, but it has cloth fibers. Then at the end, guys use towels to dry it off for me, all for $9.00!!! I get the "appearence package" and it comes out shining brightly! ;D (y)
 
I voted hand wash at home since that is how I do it most often.

However, in the winter it get's too cold here and it's really painful getting wet while washing, not to mention a "pregnant dog" to get it dry. Unfortunately, those are the conditions where it gets really salty and dirty and really needs to be washed. So I go to one of the big chain "touch-less" automatic washes with no spinning brushes (just slow moving cloth belts) and with a team of hand-drying attendants at the end.

I'll also go to that place when I really don't have time, but need the truck to be clean. I can do a better job by hand, but the convenience is worth something. :rolleyes:

The nice thing is that they have a full service detail shop there. For Christmas the wife bought me a full interior/exterial professional detail gift certificate. I'll get it done in the spring, probably before a GTG. There's just no point as long as the snow and salt is on the ground. :p

-- SS
 
I hand wash at home weather permitting. In the winter I go to the high pressure hoses and bring my stuff, I go either late at night or early in the morning so I am alone and I can take my time. I don't do as good a job as I do in the summer but it's still only my hands touching my Av ;D

-Mark
 
Handwash at home.

Hose, bucket, "mop" covered sponge and a two step, step stool. I wash the wheels first, dump the bucket, make fresh suds and start with the roof.

I once did the wheels, then cladding, then paint. I gave up that extra lap around the truck. I have hosed out the bed twice since July. I usually wash/dry with a "shammy" under two large shade trees.

A couple of old T-shirts dry the wheels, door/hood frames and under the box lids.

Aloha,
Murman :cool:
 
Uh, if you take your vehicles to the student car wash you should be prepared for damaged paint. ?Same thing with many "hand car washes." ?Why? ?Because they typically use the same rags/towels/sponges on your entire vehicle and others as well.

If you want to help the students out - go there and give them the 5-10 (whatever) bucks and then go home and wash your Av!

Also, I wouldn't be so quick to use those drive in do-it-yourself washes. ?Make sure they're using car wash soap and not some cheap-a$$ detergent that's stripping off your wax.

Best bet is to do it yourself. ?Since my Av is lifted and I can't even come close to seeing the roof without a tall ladder, I bought myself an extenda-pole (my name for it) car wash thingy and I put one of my chenielle wash mits (I have many) over the end. ?I can wash the roof and the top of the hood and the panels while standing on the ground and do it quickly. ?Using this "tool" makes washing my Av about as easy as it is to wash a "ground-scraper" (what most of you are driving) ?>:D

Remember, the keys to keeping your vehicle looking beautiful include (a) using a VERY clean wash mit (rinse it out frequently and thoroughly and using at least two is even better - one for the lower sections and one for the uppers), (b) washing (moving your mitt) in two directions only (forward and backward) to avoid swirl marks (especially important for you black owners).

Once one understands what's involved in proper paint care, one typically will only wash the vehicle personally, by hand, with all the proper tools and products.

I'd rather drive a dirty vehicle than have risk having someone scratch and swirl my paint. ?But hey, that's just me. ?It's your truck and you can treat your paint as you see fit. ? ;D
 
Magic Mtn Dan said:
I'd rather drive a dirty vehicle than have risk having someone scratch and swirl my paint. ?But hey, that's just me. ?It's your truck and you can treat your paint as you see fit. ? ;D


This is why I started this thread..I agree with you completely. I haven't washed it in almost 3 weeks and that AZ dust is starting to stick--driving 85 mph on the freeway only blows so much dust away! >:D

I busted out loud when you said "ground scraper"

My wife, who is barely 5'4", is always complaining that my AV is "too high"--and i haven't made up my mind on which assist steps to install yet.

"But Honey, don't you know, this is the GROUND SCRAPER model--wait till you see pics of this guy Magic Mtn Dan's AV! So what are you complaining about?"

From the majority of your replies-- I know what I'm doing tomorrow morning!
 
i wash at a coin operated place until the apartment complex opens the car wash after the cold weather subsides.
 
If the Av is really filthy, I knock off the majority of the offending grime at the coin-op do-it-yourself place. Then, I take it home and start to wash it by hand. I use separate cotton mitts for cladding and paint, rinsing both frequently. Drying is done with a combination of blower/waterblade/chamois (neighbors think I'm nuts, pretend not to see me doing this). I am off the same opinion that I would rather drive it dirty than take it to a car wash, either hand or automated. After nearly 11 months, I have yet to have swirl marks in the paint.
 
What no "leave it out in the Portland [or Seattle] rain all day" option?

Sorry, I've always wanted to be one of those rebels who demands another choice to the poll... Hehehe... I haven't washed ours since Wild West (which required 3 washings; I only completed 2 of them), so yes, I still have some Wild West dirt in the cracks. Everytime I thought I got it all, I'd find more. And my wife commented this last trip that "our running boards are crunchy". Geez. Seems we got some sand stuck up between the actual running board and the plastic cover a la BigRed's rear bumper. So short of dismantling everything to get it all clean, I just leave it in the driveway. It's got a couple inches of this season's rain on it so far. Next spring I think we'll wax it good, and then the water won't be as big a problem. But yeah, it's got the dirty water spots on blue truck that you're worried about.

I didn't vote, but count me in the "I hand wash it 4 times a year" crowd.

(BTW, as soon as I finish my other vehicular projects in the garage, the Av will get it's garage space back. I may even wash it before re-storing it!)
 
I would NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER let the kids at the 7-11 for charity wash my vehicles under ANY circumstances. They let their rags fall on the pavement, then just pick them up and start washing again!!!!

They dry their towels on the sidewalk, etc. You get the picture...
 
Normally i am a hand wash at home kind of guy. Unfortunately, Michigan winters Dont' allow for that.
Here's my winter method:
Go to the quarter car wash,
1. Spray the wheels with wheel cleaner and do the tires with bleech-white with my tire brush.
2. Soak the Av with soapy spray and fill my trusty 5 gal pail with soapy spray, then keep spraying till the quarters run out.
3. Hand wash my baby with my mitt and cotton towels.
4. Six more quarters for the rinse cycle.
5. Bust out the chamois and towels!

In Michigan its as close to a driveway wash as it gets. Just keep the Av runnin' so you can thaw your hands in the exhaust...what we do for love!! :love:
 
spectron said:
I reviewed the previous threads and went through the search engines. Haven't found a specific thread on how most members wash their AV. There was one about how long it takes to wash an AV (it was scary).

Here's my dilemma. That sucker is huge. Some of us just don't have enough time or space (especially if you live in a condo, apt, or any shared complex) to wash our AVs in the driveway on Saturday mornings. I am fortunate enough to have a long huge private driveway but just don't have time or energy to do it constantly. I have not taken the AV through an automated car wash place, yet.
Those brushes have done a number on my black Camaro--I don't see any scratches on my silver Venture but I know they're there. I have a blue AV and I know it will show everything!

There is a guy that comes to the employee parking lot at work and I see him wash the high end cars with equipment in his truck--I think he uses a VERY high pressure water hose or compressed air. He usually washes pricey imports--I am afraid to ask him how much he charges for a truck the size of an AV.

Let me explain the choices above:

1. wash at home--self explanatory. Nothing touches my baby but my hands.

2.Automated--some are advertised as "touchless". They are all touch-a-lot as far as I am concerned. Just look at the size of those revolving blue spinning brushes on all 3 sides of your car.

3. Go to high school charity events--a little more expensive but hey, you kill 2 birds with one stone.

4.Non -automated car wash place: very popular in So Cal where you all sit in a tent watching guys wash your car for you then your name gets yelled....

5.Coin operated--put 4 quarters in for the H2O, then 4 quarters in for soap, then 4 quarters for wax... you get the pic.

6. I go off roading so much that I think that dirt look is starting to grow on me.

7. I have tried them all.


Thanks--sorry for long post but I am famous for that.

spectron65,

Here?s what I do?

I picked "Other". Every other month, I hand wash and wax it using great detail. This process takes about 5 hours to do (includes: protecting all weather striping and seals to whipping the shocks down, 26k and still looks nice). The alternate months I just hand wash it.

There are, however, the occasions where I have to use the hand spray place, but only on trips where I don?t have the time to really clean it and the ?road grim? must be removed!

? and some times I pay the detail shop to do it (mainly when I want to have the carpet cleaned)

P.S.
Stay away from the ?charity events? :9: carwash things?Yeah, I bet the kid who dropped the sponge on the ground right before you pulled in, washed it off?.you get the picture! ;D

 
I voted non-automated, because I frequently use the $3.00 car wash places during the week. On a good weekend, I will hand wash it to get all the nooks & crannies clean.
I know,... I know,... you are choking that I take my black AV through such torture, but I have so many coats of wax on it, there really are not many scratches from the evil whipping rags of the car wash.
 
I use Armor All car wash concentrate, plus a car washing mit, chenile I think. Then dry with 100% cotton towels beecause a chamios will remove the wax.
 
Well it is kinda complicated actually - Ok here goes

1. Get my soap, water bucket, cleaners, polishes and clean cotton rags all together.

2. Hook up and drag hose out to driveway.

3. Position AV out of direct sun

4. Get a nice lawn chair and a few ice cold beers

5. Now this is where it gets tricky - with my right hand reach into my back pocket and extract my wallet

6. Oh so carefully pull out 3 ten dollar bills

7. Call my 3 oldest kids outside and tell um to wash my truck or they dont get their allowance!

8. Yell at em for not doin it right

9. Give um the money and tell um to go back in

10. DO IT MYSELF!

;)
 
I'm probably an oddball on this one, but it wouldn't be the first time.

Since I've owned it, car wash liquid/soap/whatever has never touched my AV.

Once to twice a week I take two brand new cotton terry towels, one wet, one dry. Sometimes it gets tap water, sometimes bottled water. Start at one end of the truck and work my way around, turning the towels to keep clean parts touching the truck.

Then the drying towel gets soaked and becomes the wet towel for cleaning the wheels. A new towel is used to dry.

The drying towel for the wheels is then used with some back to black on the cladding.

All of those towels are disposed of.

Another towel is used to condition the leather seats, then another towel is used to buff them dry.

The buffing towel is then used with some all purpose cleaner on the dash.

Paper towels, if available are used on the glass, if not, another cotton terry towel is used.

No mess and cleanup involves throwing the towels away. Total cleaning time takes from 10-60 minutes depending on how much I do. Granted I don't go off roading, it doesn't get driven through mud and there's no salt or snow on the ground.

Weird? Yes, but it seems to work. It's mostly out of necessity because I live in an apartment community and they frown on making a mess in their parking lot.

I'm constantly getting asked what wax I used and how recently I did it. Nobody can believe it's 1+ year old and has the factory wax.

David
 
mmdavidw said:
Sometimes it gets tap water, sometimes bottled water.

David


Bottled water?

Cotton terry towels?

Wow, that is one spoiled AV!

I should print your post and show it to Mrs Spectron.

"See, honey? Some folks treat their trucks better than you treat me. Can we pleeease call the doctor now? I'm bleeding pretty bad!"
 
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