CamsGt

I have beating myself silly trying to figure out a way to make a deionizer for my water.My last Mustang was black and it was just a nightmare to keep clean.Hoping this DIB will be a little better.
I live outside town,so well water is what i have.It is very hard water.I bought a real nice softener but that doesn't really do anything for tds.I really don't want to have to spend $350 plus on a cr system.That's just not practical even if i washed my house windows.Plus replacement cartridges run like $70 and with my hard water,i'd be changing them every 3 months.I could buy 55 gallon drums of the stuff and a sprayer and come out ahead.
So far i have found nothing that i can put together at a reasonable price and am about to just give up on it.The info i have been finding online has been real sketchy.It's like a big secret no one wants to give out.
I try to sheet the water when rinsing but i still have to really get on the car fast with the blower before it starts drying.Hoping a really good wax will help with some of it.

MarcHarris

Well that sucks...

There's good news though!
First off, you obviously have been looking into things and sound very well researched. This at least means you're on the right path.
To clear something up off the bat, there's no way a CR spotless will last 3 months if using it on your car and house. The good news is you don't potentially have to run through a bunch of resin (the part of this set-up that gets real expensive) as there's ways to "recharge" your resin. Look for a recharging resin thread on autopia.org for more information. I have a client that also has well-water where he lives, and purchased a CR Spotless, and found out there's a cheap and somewhat easy way to recharge his resin using salt water if I remember his words correctly.

A small thing that might help is to use a quality shampoo like Dodo Juice Supernatural Shampoo which has limescale inhibitors and water sheeting agents in it. This allows the water to lay flat temporarily on your car much easier which results in less water spotting. Pair that up with their drying quick detailer (Dodo Juice Time To Dry), and you should at least get better results. Some people love Time to Dry when it comes to helping to avoid water spots, other people don't like it so much. It's certainly an unconventional product, but I feel it really does help.

GL in your quest, and make sure to update us all in anything that makes an improvement whether a product or technique, as it'll benefit the rest of us to learn from your experience.

Glenn

I like to use westleys bleach white and a semi stiff brush on my tires to get them clean.

Ellocomotive

Hello everyone,
New blood here. Soon to be owner of a black 2014.

I have many questions, and greatly appreciate everyone's input! Just read the whole thread and I can tell I'm in the right place.

That being said, besides hiding your car away, why should we not be using car covers? Is it because dust can get trapped underneath?

I plan on purchasing a variety of products to prep for paint care, and just want to make sure I have it all right.


I need two buckets, both with grit guards
I need a good shampoo, i.e. Dodo Juice Supernatural
I need a good wax, I was looking at Chemical Guys' Pete '53 Black Pearl
I need a good polisher,sealant, and clay (Open to product suggestions).
Microfiber Towels: There's so many and I know they're not all created equally
Leather Master Protection Cream is a solid product
What about wheels and brake dust? I'm more interested in tools that you use vs chemicals. Seems like TUF and Eagle 1 are both solid products.


Upon receipt of the car, I should wash it, clay it, seal it, wax it, correct?

Thank you everyone!

MarcHarris

Hello there and welcome to the forum! I'll try to answer some questions and hopefully some fellow owners can chime in with their experience as well.

For wheel cleaning, I recommend a good dedicated wheel cleaner like Sonax Full Effect. It's a lot cheaper in the long run to purchase the 5L jug, but not everyone wants to jump into a $100 purchase. Additionally, a good soft brush for the wheel faces plus a brush for inside the wheel like the EZ Detail brush: http://www.detailedimage.com/DI-Brus.../Full-Size-S1/

Clay is pretty universal; you can even find that in an over the counter kit that comes with a lubricating spray.

For polish, do you plan on getting a machine like a Dual Action polisher, or are you talking about sticking to doing everything by hand?

Ellocomotive

For now, I'm going to stick to doing things by hand. I figure once I get comfortable with the whole process and get a good foundation of skills going I can move up then.

MarcHarris

Because you won't have a machine, I don't recommend using any type of polish. At most, maybe an all-in-one or cleaner wax.

Hand polishing has many downsides, mainly that it's much more inconsistent which means you're highly polishing certain sections while not polishing others nearly as much. In other words, the rate of clear-coat removal is very sporadic which isn't in your favor in the long run.

Additionally, you'll get tired and fatigued much quicker, which leads to even more inconsistent results, and it takes at least 10x longer to do.

shurtual86

It sure does never again.

CCTking

:agreed: learned the hard way

Ellocomotive

Thanks everyone!

So I just purchased Chemical Guys' Micro Seal, Sonax full effect, wool wash mitts, and grit guards. Dodo Juice's Merino Mitt sounds awesome (I'm a fan of Merino), but I don't know if I can splurge on that stuff quite yet.

Seems to me there are MASSIVE varieties of products out there. I have been watching and reading detailing videos since about noon today. I have been taking care of my cars so WRONG for too long, and this is disappointing.

What dark waxes does everyone recommend? I'm willing to spend a bit more on wax, as long as the benefits are good, and the cost isn't outrageous. I'm not in the business so it's hard for me to justify spending 65 dollars on a sealant.

How do you gentlemen feel about AMMO Hydrate?

MarcHarris

I'm glad you're doing research and looking into how to do things better. Just be careful as this is the internet: anyone can share an opinion or make a video. Be careful what advice you trust and understand that there are a lot of planted reviews.

The Dodo Juice "Wookie Fist" mitt does look nice, but you're better off having multiple good wash mitts you can rotate than to have just one. Additionally, and I'm sure much to the disappointment of Dodo Juice, the industry has found their supplier and rebranded their mitt:

http://www.detailedimage.com/DI-Acce...ash-Mitt-P576/

http://www.detailersdomain.com/Uber-...-V2_p_515.html

GL and happy shopping

FromZto5

Marc, looks like you have this thread down pat. I don't even need to respond to any of the questions eh??????

Lol

CCTking

Our posts dont even matter once Marc shows up

CCTking

Hows this for 3 months since the last coat of sealant or wax???

shurtual86

max5ive0

Great, meow tell us what you are using!

CCTking

I started with mothers clay kit after a good wash with Megls gold class shampoo. After drying with a couple clean waffle mfʻs i used a RO polisher from autozone with Klasse all-in-one polish, followed by a coat of hand applied Klasse High Gloss Sealant. Then another coat of Pinnacle Liquid Souveran applied by hand as well. Bith with foam applicators

CCTking

I used to use Collinite 915 but i ran out and hvnt ordered anything new in a while

Steven

What's a good ratio of Simple Green APC to water for cleaning polishing and waxing pads?

Mustang259

I have to slightly disagree with the statements that hand polishing is not consistent, I have hand polished and hand waxed cars all my life and have learned how to be consistent and have had amazing results. Hand polishing is a learned art and not all people are detailed oriented or disciplined enough to be consistent and thorough while performing the work.
I strongly agree however, that it is very time consuming and can be tiring for those weak of arm and mind.
Just my two cents and I am not trying to start an argument, just remember everyone is different and some of us grew up without the benefit of power tools!

I would not discourage anyone from hand polishing or waxing, but they will have to learn how just like anything else.