*Official* Ask A Detailer Thread

Hey guys, quick question

Do i need to use clay lube or can i just use soapy water when clay barring my truck?

Thanks!

 

I use clean soap water in a spray bottle

 

Clay Lube is safer if you've never used clay before. If you use soap, you have to use a fairly high concentration of a high quality Car Wash Soap.

 

Best way to get rail dust off? I have no idea where it came from but Ive never seen so much on one of my vehicles before. Usually I use clay, but just wondering if there are alternative methods that may work faster. Also, how long can it sit before it really damages the paint?

 

Clay works quite well, but if you don't use enough lubricant, it can cause marring. A better choice is a product like Iron-X which dissolves the imbedded iron particles. Just make sure you read and follow the instructions.

 

Its going down tomorrow

 

May have already been covered, didn't read all 215 pages. Any best practices/tips for cold weather locations (Minnesota)? Not practical to wash it yourself for a few months of the year, and sometimes the gas station wash is the only thing available. Otherwise keep the road salt off and out of the truck as much as possible.

 

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/washing-in-winter.700121/

 

Thanks, actually found this one right after I posted this.....

 

How did it go?

 

Was wondering and about to ask the same

@boston23

 

Yeah, I've done clay bar with soap and water and it was okay. Maybe I didn't use enough soap. Just wondering if I should just get some actual clay lube. It's cheap, just rather use stuff I already have in the garage.

 

I planned on using clay bar and lube on my 2015 at the end of summer but life happened so waiting for spring and try to do it properly. I'll probably be doing it at girlfriends house and her water pressure sucks bad. Maybe I'll look for a better garden hose area in a different driveway. Definitely sucks washing truck with the low pressure

 

Almost as bad as taking a shower with low water pressure

 

Well i decided to go camping that weekend (AZ desert) so i figured there was no point in doing a wash/clay/wax

Then i got the last of the tools i needed to install my new dakar leaf springs so i ended up focusing on that.

The truck’s currently a bit caked in crusty dry clay mud so the next warm day i have i’m gonna do the full wash/clay/wax and i’ll update this thread and let yall know how things turned out

 

Hey guys,

I wanted to see what your thoughts are on how to keep my old 2004 looking decent and the paint not oxidizing. I live near the beach so it's a problem. I had the car detailed and polished about 6 months ago. I use TW Ice N Seal every three months to protect. Should I just keep up on my washes and putting this o every few months or is there a better product to use? I'm not looking to have a show car. Mostly looking to keep the paint looking decent and not damaged by the elements.

 

There's always a "better" product if you ask enough detailers. I'd say you're already working with something above average for a product that's readily available locally. Three months is a decent regimen, asking any more for a vehicle that doesn't live inside is too much for most spray on wipe off products outside of some boutique products.

As for a product good enough to protect against the elements I don't think anybody has good data on that and it's going to vary wildly from car to car or location to location. Though the thought is a longer term product (not a spray on) like ceramic coatings only because they don't need to be reapplied as often and they do leave a substantially thicker layer than a spray. Ultimate protection from elements is going to be a wrap.

 

That's great information, thank you.

At this time in order to take care of the car paint well do I just need to do wash and reapply my spray wax every few months or would it be better to use another product? I see a lot of people like to use TW Ice with a "base wax" as well. I'm not sure if this is really needed though.

I currently also use car pro pearl for my plastics and wheels.

 

Maybe they mean base sealant? Using wax as a base isn't really a good idea considering the lack of long term protection from most waxes.

 

It's a personal preference thing and to some degree it's up to you to see if it's worth it. For those that want to constantly be wiping down their car rather than something you "should" do as part of a regimen. I've got a white truck like yours and you don't have a product such as a spray wax pop like a darker color will. So that may be more worthy on another color to add some topper spray over your existing base. Usually the spray waxes are more aesthetic than your base protection type product and short lived. I use CarPro Cquartz Lite as my main protection but I don't really top it with something intentionally. I do use their ech2o product which is their waterless/rinseless wash which does leave a little something behind in the short term. But that was done with the intention of washing it rather than topping it. They've got a little bit better grade product made to be a topper spray or something used as a drying aid after a wash called Elixir.

TurtleWax likely has a spray wax in the same lineup as the SnS, give that a try before using some other branded spray that may interfere. Don't apply these on top of each other within a short period of time though with the intention of layering.