To anyone that cleans and details their own vehicle, what tips, secrets, or voodoo do you employ to get it done right?

I have a couple of them that are centered around the carpet. I have both kids and pets, and pet hair, crumbs, and general filth are a pain to remove.

Pet hair is the worst. As are the tight spaces that a vacuum wand, no matter how narrow, can never fully reach. I figured out a good trick to handle both. You can spend a huge amount of time vaccing the same spot and watch hair barely budge.

Cut the bristles on your old toothbrush down to about 1/4” to 3/8”. Scrubbing your carpet with a vacuum tip near will pull more hair out of the fiber than you would believe. The bristles collect it like a, well, dog brush, and what it does not gets sucked up. The ones with mixed bristle types, or silicone, really pull it out.

A regular toothbrush reaches crevices that suction alone can’t clean. Especially between bucket seats and consoles...again with the vacuum close by.

Anyone else have some good ideas?

bigdeal is our resident car detailing guru...
In his own words:

quote:

I'm not a pro detailer, but as a compulsive amateur for the past 20 years, who's managed to detail some pretty nice Ferrari's, Porsche's, and other high end autos, I've tried products from just about every line out there. The simple reality is that you need not spend ridiculous amounts of money on product to get excellent results.

https://sigforum.com/eve/forums...250011024#8250011024

Two words: Zaino Bros.

http://www.zainostore.com/

Park it in a hermetically sealed garage.

Why bother?

Filth adds character.

Don't dismiss the folks talking about de-ionized water as whackos. It is a game changer if you can swing the costs of unit/filters. Also don't have to use for any other than final rinse to get the effect. Microspots are gone, which gives much better shine on freshly waxed or old worn surfaces needing a fresh coat.

Dual buckets. Every time. Also if car is fairly dirty I'll take a first swipe of panel with mitt and so little pressure it's barely touching to remove grime, flip to other side and use enough pressure to clean. Rinse, repeat. Cuts down a lot on the swirls.

Wipe down door/hood/trunk channels and sills every time. Won't make a huge difference each time but the cumulative effect is when you or others are getting in/out (or selling!) it's another area that always looks just like new.

I wish someone would wax my Subaru.

In my case, it's about finding the best detailer for the price. I found that guy and have him work on my car once a year for $160. Good for him, great for me.

Jim

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Originally posted by Jimbo54:
In my case, it's about finding the best detailer for the price. I found that guy and have him work on my car once a year for $160. Good for him, great for me.

Jim

I just had pros detail my new ride, a 2005 Tacoma, that had 13 years of dirt and crud built up, even though it was very well maintained.

For 190$ the interior looks like it was 6 months old now, just such an incredible difference, and the exterior they got all the scuffs and such off with a beautiful job.

Yeah, I can keep it pretty clean myself, but I can see maybe every 18 months to two years, taking it back to bring it up to tip top shape.

quote:

In my case, it's about finding the best detailer for the price. I found that guy and have him work on my car once a year for $160. Good for him, great for me.

According to Orguss, standard is 300 bucks. Your price sounds closer to what I would pay.

Pledge Furnature Polish. It makes the interior shine and repels dust on the dashboard for a month or so. It even does a good job on leather seats.

I’ve found that you have to buy Pledge, as some of the knock offs leave a greasy film.

Being OCD and loving clean things I caught the detailing bug about 10 years ago.

I will also endorse the 2 bucket system...between that and my foam cannon I feel like I introduce no new dirt during the process.

As far as products, I seem to gravitate towards Poorboys and Chemical Guys for all things exterior.

For interior I actually use, and love, LA's Totally Awesome....Yup, the stuff at the dollar store! I use it to pre treat carpet and on all interior messes!

How do you manage liquid wax residue on exterior plastic trim.

I seldom wax anymore but decided to wax my 9 month old white truck with lots of black plastic trim and vinyl tonneau cover. Using motorized oscillating buffer with applicator bonnet got many white specs spread around. Once the specs dried they were a pain to remove.

Fill like masking and using drop cloth to cover the remainder would have help. Found a trim rejuivinator help remove but what a mess.

How do you handle it.

Masking tape does wonders to remove dog fur.

A soft tooth brush for removing wax residue from between logos and letters added to the body.

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Originally posted by Hangtime:
How do you manage liquid wax residue on exterior plastic trim.

I seldom wax anymore but decided to wax my 9 month old white truck with lots of black plastic trim and vinyl tonneau cover. Using motorized oscillating buffer with applicator bonnet got many white specs spread around. Once the specs dried they were a pain to remove.

Fill like masking and using drop cloth to cover the remainder would have help. Found a trim rejuivinator help remove but what a mess.

How do you handle it.

I mask off (with blue painter's tape) the trim and other areas where wax should not be.

quote:

Originally posted by fpuhan:
Two words: Zaino Bros.

http://www.zainostore.com/

I agree. Use Zaino. They are not demanding products to use, and are excellent.

quote:

Originally posted by ZSMICHAEL:

quote:

In my case, it's about finding the best detailer for the price. I found that guy and have him work on my car once a year for $160. Good for him, great for me.

According to Orguss, standard is 300 bucks. Your price sounds closer to what I would pay.

No wax or engine cleanup. It probably would be $300 if I had him do that.

Jim

quote:

Originally posted by Hangtime:
How do you manage liquid wax residue on exterior plastic trim.

A friend of mine who owns a body shop recommended using paint thinner to remove wax residue.

I have watched Larry's videos and it has helped me.

https://www.ammonyc.com/

quote:

Originally posted by Sigforall:
I have watched Larry's videos and it has helped me.

https://www.ammonyc.com/

Larry is indeed the man. I too have learned a lot from watching his videos. Have even swapped a couple emails with him over time.

Zaino is a very good product line. It is not however a magic bullet or the only excellent product line on the market.

As to secrets or tips, where to start. Probably the best basic tips are....

- Only wash in the shade.
- Work clean - change your buckets frequently, and if you drop anything, replace it.
- Complete all drying, waxing, and finish detailing in an enclosed garage.
- Visit detailing forums, read, and ask questions.

That's where I'd start a newbie off. But understand, even after 20+ years of detailing cars, trying a myriad of different products, and constantly asking questions and learning, I'm still learning. If you're passionate about it, detailing is a never ending learning curve.