Carwash soap PH

Don't know if it was ask before.

Is there a difference in PH balance and PH neutral shampoo?

 

Question is, does it matter? Particularly when the mix is for a bucket wash type dilution, what about when you mix it hot for the foam cannon. Don't wash your car all the time with a undiluted degreaser and you'll be fine. Use a car wash soap like Megs Hyper Wash or CarPro Reset or one of the many others that are tried and tested. Besides if it's super low or high there are probably other chems in there that are going to ruin your trim before it ever messes with the clear.

It's like worrying about what kind of abrasive technology is in a compound or polish. There are guys that have successfully polished hundreds of cars with any given product without knowing the answer to that.

 

No, usually those are exactly the same. High alkaline lifts non organic material, and high acidic lifts organic material
Foam cannons are awesome, for diy just use dawn in the foamer 50/50 ratio with warm water, and go for it.
I'm big into foam cannons, mostly cause I'm lazy and does the hard work for me safely for the paint.
I work in the tunnel carwash industry and we clean all of out stuff with dawn, works better than any other safe to handle soap.

 

The question was mostly for personal knowledge more than anything.

I know there's a lot variant, PH of tap water, and other stuff that can raise PH levels.

I wash a car 24 hrs after applying 3D/HD Speed. I use Meguiars Gold Class. Then I notice Speed wasn't beading that great. I say a decrease about 50%. I never saw that much decrease after a wash. I don't think Gold Class Shampoo left anything behind to altered the beading.

 

Is Speed all that hydrophobic anyway? If your dilution on the soap isn't right, it's easy to leave something behind. If that was the case you could use some ipa to wipe it away to see if beading was restored.

No LSP is worth having that a simple wash would get rid of.

 

The beading was decent at first but short lived.

The Gold Class was 1 oz soap to gallon water. I used 3 oz to 3 1/2 to 4 gallons of water.

Do you considered Speed a decent LSP for what it is?

 

Always got the impression that HD Speed was a good product for a pro detailer to be able to sell a package that the customer who wouldn't pay for paint correction and LSP as a value. Or an amateur detailer to use for friends and family that aren't all that concerned about how their car looks in the long run (most everyone) or are about to sell it.

It didn't make sense as something for a DIYer to use on their own vehicle. I seem to recall it had very poor longevity so why use it. I did try M37 360 which was supposed to be comparable but possibly longer lasting as an LSP. I was already applying Beadmaker to it shortly after a couple weeks later which seems like another over hyped product. Weekly applications of Beadmaker certainly was more impressive.

 

The first time I used Speed I felt that it filled more than remove any minor imperfection. I know it wasn't design for any correction.

It did look good afterward but it was short lived.

Eventually I'll find a decent all-in-one with decent correction ability that doesn't fill much.

 

They do cover different PH levels of soap in this video. Its based on automated car washes but I believe it would still apply no matter how you wash.

https://youtu.be/I9XTAoIFnPU

 

According to the MSDS, Gold Class should have an undiluted pH of between 8.5-9.0 (on par with CarPro Reset, which is pH neutral at full dilution). Going on the pH alone, I wouldn't think it abrasive enough to hurt the protection left behind by 3D Speed. My guess is that there are active ingredients in the Gold Class Soap that don't play well with the polymers in 3D Speed. If it were me, I'd probably try another soap and see how that works out. Adam's Car Shampoo is a good one to baseline against - it's a little closer to pH neutral and has no fillers or gloss-enhancing additives.

 

I don't think the protection in Speed is all that durable. Reading on Autogeek Online, a lot of members replying that Speed isn't that durable.

I was talking to Jerry @ Duragloss about the 901 car shampoo. It has a ph of 8 and this will interfere with the durability of any natural wax or cheaply made wax. I been thinking of Optimum car wash soap with a ph of 7.

 

Sounds like a good one to test. Keep in mind, you’ll be diluting it down; even if it is slightly alkaline, it should balance out a bit when you add the water. Good luck getting to the bottom of it either way. Would be curious to hear the results.

 

Meguiars Gold Class can degrade natural waxes or cheaply made wax, but Gold Class also adds a little of protection to.

I gave away the 3D Speed because I have no need for it. Anymore testing will have to be done by that person.

I'm going to give Adams a try to, out of curiosity.

 

The takeaway, don't use wax.

 

What about Collinite waxes, 845, 915, 476?

 

Aren't those more than just waxes though, more like paint sealants with wax in them.

Personally I'd go Carpro Cquartz Lite, it's easier to use (wipe on, wipe off, no wait on flash) and likely lasts many times over what those do.

 

I don't know what the Collinite Waxes classified as. Since it has carnauba and called wax I always thought of them as wax. With great durability.

I would like to install a coating but I don't see it as beneficial.

The SUV been to the garage twice. When they got grease on the body panel they used shop rags to wipe the grease off. All 40 plus hours of polishing was a waist, marring everywhere. If it was coated I be pissed. I would have to re-polish everything. When Fall comes I going have to redue everything.