There is no denying that car wash shampoo is one of the more powerful types of soap. This explains why it can scrub and remove even seemingly tough stains. Even while car wash soap is one of the best products to help keep your car clean, there are times when you may find yourself searching for a car wash soap alternative.
This is why you must know the best car wash soap substitute as well as how you can quickly and easily get your hands on one.
The great thing is that you can easily find a car wash soap alternative without having to leave your house. You can find everything that you need from the comfort of your house.
- Washing A Car
- Car Wash Soap
- Acid Or Alkaline
- Foaming Car Wash Soap
- Car Wash Products
- Frequently Asked Questions
Washing A Car
Washing a car is not the most difficult job in the world. However if you want to leave your car looking sparkling clean, there are a few things that you need to keep in mind.
Let’s discover how you can get your car spotless with only a couple of simple steps.
Things that you will need:
- A sponge
- A cloth
- A pressure washer or a hose
- Cloths
- Car polish
Step 1
Whatever car you have, start by spraying the car with water. This is where the hose or the pressure washer comes in. It will help remove the majority of the dirt and grime on the outside of the vehicle.
Step 2
Take the sponge with soap and start washing from the top of the car as you work your way to the bottom parts. This will ensure that the dirt doesn’t reach areas that have already been cleaned.
Step 3
Start by cleaning the top sections of the car as you work your way down as we saw in step 2. However, you also want to make sure that you are rinsing away the soap. This will prevent it from drying and causing stains.
Step 4
Take the cloth after you are done washing and wipe down the moisture off of your car. Leaving the car to dry naturally in the sun or shade will result in crease marks that are quite unpleasant to look at.
Wiping takes away the crease leaving the car looking fresh and clean.
Step 5
At this point, you likely haven’t cleaned between the doors of your car. Wait until the car is dry and you’ve wiped the moisture as we have seen in step 4. Now take a damp cloth and clean the dirt from between the car doors.
Step 6
Let’s not forget the wheels. Take a new damp cloth with soap and water and then use this to clean the wheels. You may need to use a brush to remove all the dirt.
Step 7
Now that you are done cleaning the entire car, take some wax or polish and apply it to the exterior of the vehicle. This will not only leave the car looking fresh and shiny but will also make it less likely to pick up dirt and dust.
Car Wash Soap Alternative, Tips #1 – Can I Wash My Car With Just Water
You may be thinking that it is fine to wash your vehicle using just water as a car wash soap alternative. Especially if you have a regular hose. However, note that this may not be enough to remove the dirt and bacteria from your car’s surface.
Furthermore, there could be stubborn stains and blemishes that still will not come out with the hose alone.
That said, while it is always recommended to use soap, another alternative that you may want to consider is a waterless car wash.
Car Wash Soap Alternative, Tips #2 – Should You Hand Wash Your Car
Many people often wonder whether handwashing is better than using a machine. The answer is yes.
As long as you can follow the steps that we outlined above, handwashing will provide much better results. This is because it allows you to see and get to those stubborn stains.
Furthermore, by handwashing your car you will also be able to remove the water markings through wiping. This is often not something that you can do with a machine.
You can also reach into the cracks and crevices if you were to use handwashing. Machines will often miss the cracks and crevices.
Car Wash Soap Alternative, Tips #3 – Can I Wash My Car With A Pressure Washer
Can you wash your car with a pressure washer as a car wash soap alternative? The answer to this question is…it depends. A pressure washer is great if the car can take it and won’t result in damage.
For instance, if the pressure coming from the nozzle is simply too great, then this could scrape off existing body paint. This is especially if the paint job was low quality or the paint is too old.
Too much pressure can also damage the plastic parts especially if these parts are flimsy. Furthermore, high pressure could also send the water through seals and into electronic components.
Again, the pressure washer is effective but only if the car can take it.
Car Wash Soap Alternative, Tips #4 – How Often Should You Wash Your Car
The exterior of your car is often exposed to dirt and debris as well as road salt. This can damage the paint job over time.
Because of this, it is advisable to wash your vehicle every couple of weeks. Sure this may seem like a bit too much but the thing is that it helps to keep your car protected. Even better is if you can apply wax after every wash.
Car Wash Soap Alternative, Tips #5 – Best Time Of Day To Wash The Car
Many people often believe that the best time of the day to wash the car is a hot and sunny afternoon. This couldn’t be further from the truth.
When the sun is hot and shining down on your vehicle as you wash it, the soap and water could dry up quickly before you even get to rinse. This can result in streaks.
When the weather is hot and there is a lot of sun, it is best to wash your car during the early mornings or later on in the afternoons.
But what about washing your vehicle during those times when there is rain? Well, this is also not the best time either. The reason is that the remaining could leave behind streaks when the water dries up.
Car Wash Soap
We saw that car wash soap is one of the best products out there when looking to leave your car looking spotless and clean. However, how do you choose the best car wash soap for your vehicle?
One thing we should point out is that there isn’t much difference in the function of the different car wash soaps. That said, their various concentrations will result in differences in thickness, and scent and ultimately the results.
The results you get from using the car wash soap will also be dependent on the climate, the type of exterior paint on your vehicle as well as many other factors. These are factors that you may want to consider whenever you are buying a car wash soap.
There are different types of car wash soap.
Acid Or Alkaline
To understand the alkalinity and acidity of the car wash soap, we will need to understand the pH scale. It starts from 0 which is the most acidic to 14 which is the most alkaline.
7 which is in the middle of the PH represents a neutral score. Car wash soap that is excessively alkaline or excessively acidic could corrode the wax and the paint of your vehicles. This is especially the case when the weather is hot.
This, therefore, means that you should go for a car wash soap that has a PH score of 7.
The great thing is that when the car wash soap has a pH of 7, you will not worry about using it on different types of surfaces on your car such as metal, rubber, or even plastic.
Foaming Car Wash Soap
The soap should also be foamy. The foam will help lift the dirt and grime that is on the surface of the car. This makes it easy to clean off.
You should also go for a rinse-free soap. This will help create lighter cleaning as well as offer convenience.
When there is the occasional buildup of dust, they work well to remove this dirt. However, they are not the best when the vehicle is soaked with grime and road salt.
1. The Concentration
A heavy formula concentration means that it will last longer. Therefore it is a good idea to go for a car wash soap that has a low soap-to-water ratio. The best is one ounce of soap to between one and two gallons of water.
Keep in mind that the size of the containers will vary.
2. The Scent
The car wash soap will also come with different scents. These can be anywhere from lemon, citrus, cherry, vanilla, and even Pina colada.
The type of scent that is ideal for you will come down to personal preference. This will not affect the effectiveness of the soap.
3. The Pricing
You can get some brands of car wash soap for less than $10. One thing about these cheap products is that they also come in small packaging. This also means that they run out fast.
That said, getting the right brand of car wash soap should help you finish the job.
The costlier brands may also mix the soap with wax which offers an even better bang for your buck. Such brands may cost double and as much as $29 for the same quantity of soap.
Furthermore, the more expensive brands may also be more concentrated which allows them to be used several times before they run out.
4. Other Tips And Tricks
If you do something for long enough, you get to pick up a few tips and tricks. The same can be said if you have used car wash soap for a long time.
Here are a few more of these tips and tricks to get you started.
Always go for car wash soap that has neutral to medium ph. This will allow you to use the soap on all types of car surfaces including metal, rubber, and plastic.
You may want to go for a car wash soap that features a special formulation if you are dealing with certain issues. A bug wash for instance will be high in ammonia which will help clean out and wash out bugs.
If possible, it is best to avoid household soaps and dishwasher soaps. These have a different formulation and are not made with cleaning cars in mind. As a result, their compounds could end up destroying your car’s paint job.
When using the car wash soap, ensure to work up the lather and foam. This allows it to pull up the dirt and grime resulting in a better cleaning job.
Car Wash Products
Many people will often pass out on cleaning their car. This is because the activity often feels like they are doing a chore and they would rather hang out with their buddies and enjoy a great time.
Sure it could be sometimes painstaking to take the time to scrub the dirt, debris, and gunk out of your car. Cleaning both the exterior and the interior may take time. However, once you see the result and the car is now clean, then it all feels worth it.
Furthermore, it can give you the feeling of your car being brand new again. Let’s take a look at some top car washing products that are just for anyone who wants to get their car looking like it just rolled out of a dealership.
1. Bucket And Sponge
Let’s start with the simplest and the most basic car cleaning products. You will need a bucket as well as a sponge to ensure that you give your car a thorough application of soap and water.
Two buckets are ideal. You can use one for clean water which you will use to rinse out the car while the other for soapy water which you will use with the sponge to clean the dirt and grime.
Let’s now talk about the sponge. This is a great material for washing your car as it will prevent you from adding scratches. On the other hand, some auto shops will offer wash pads that are made from lambswool that will clean the car while remaining soft on the paint job.
It is also a good idea to get yourself two sponges or wash pads. You can use one to clean the top part of your vehicle. The other can be used to clean the bottom part of the vehicle.
This will prevent you from picking up dirt from the bottom part which is close to the ground and will therefore likely have larger dirt particles and have these scratch the other parts of your car’s body.
2. The Grit Guard
This is an important component of your washing buckets. It sits at the bottom of the bucket and prevents the dirt particles and debris from swirling and mixing with the water when you are cleaning your vehicle.
This stops you from not just scratching the surface of your car but also from getting the car dirty again as you are trying to clean it.
The grit guard can also be used for running your sponge to the wash pad to help remove the dirt as you are cleaning your car.
3. Car Wash Soap
You can get a variety of car wash soaps available in the market. This could make it difficult to pick the right one for you.
First off always go for a car wash soap that has a neutral PH of about 7. This will allow you to comfortably use the car wash liquid on a variety of surfaces such as rubber, metal, and even plastic as it is neither too acidic nor alkaline.
You also want to choose a car wash liquid with a lot of lather. This will help pull up the dirt and grit to the surface making it easier to clean your car.
Finally, some brands will offer a car wash liquid missed with wax. It will help provide a smooth and shiny finding to your car washing. However, note that this will not offer the same protection as with a separate wax product.
4. Wheel Brush And Cleaner
The wheels are exposed to more dirt and grime as well as wheel dust compared to any other part of your vehicle. This is especially if you are driving off-road. It makes sense therefore get a wheel cleaner that is specially designed for wheels. This will do a much better job at cleaning the wheels than if you were using regular soap.
Furthermore, you can even ensure a better job by getting a wheel brush. Take the wheel cleaner and spray it onto your wheel. Ensure you hit every area that is affected by dirt, grime as well as brake dust. Use the wheel brush to thoroughly clean the wheel and rinse off with clean water.
This should get your wheel back to showroom condition.
That said, some wheel cleaners will have a smaller amount of acid. This could damage any special parts on your wheels. It is important therefore to test out the wheel cleaner on a small part of your car wheels to see how it works.
5. Microfiber Towels
Now that you have cleaned out the wheels and rinsed them off, you will need to also dry them. The best way is to use a microfiber towel. This is because it offers better moisture without scratching the wheels.
Many people think that rinsing is all they have to do. However, the water can cause streaks. Drying the wheels with a microfiber towel is the way to go.
When getting a microfiber towel, always ensure that you get one that has a good GSM count. This is because the cheaper towels could leave out scratches and cause marks on the car’s paintwork.
6. Detail Spray
For that quick wiping down of dirt and grime, you always want to get a detailed spray. You can use this spray to also wipe out any streaks of water before giving your car a thorough washing.
It is a great short-term solution. Furthermore, the detail spray can be used to provide that quick shine and even remove spots of dirt and grime that you missed when washing.
All you need to do when using the detail spray is to spray onto the surface and then wipe it down with a microfiber towel.
7. Car Polish And Wax
Car polish or wax is not a car wash soap alternative. The role of car wax and polish is to protect the paint job on your car, especially from the elements.
It is recommended that you apply car polish or wax once in 6 months. This will offer an extra barrier that will help your paint job last longer.
You will be able to remove the small scratches, swirls as well as other marks that are caused by the debris thanks to the wax and polish.
The polish will therefore offer an extra layer of protection for your car’s exterior surface. The paint is therefore able to maintain the glossy finish over the years.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can You Use Dish Soap To Wash Your Car
You should never wash your car using dish soap. This is because it contains compounds that are not ideal for cleaning the surface of your vehicle. They could also have acids which will damage the paint job. Moreover, there are dish soaps that will also feature abrasives and will damage the exterior of the car.
What Kind Of Soap To Wash Car
If you have to use a home product to clean your vehicle, you should go with a mild laundry detergent. This should be too harsh on your vehicle’s paint job as it will also likely have a neutral PH.
What Is Mild Detergent
This is a dish soap or a clothing detergent that will only contain surfactants that help to dissolve the dirt and the grates. Such a soap could be considered a moderately strong detergent.
