5 Things Not To Do When Washing A Car

by Vivaan Khatri | 30/06/2018
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These are common mistakes that people are doing that could take a heavy toll on the cars.

Car washing is a familiar routine for every car owner. To save cost on car washing, some people would do it at home. However, a simple task like car washing is actually very demanding in real life and many DIY car washers don’t know how to wash a car properly. Here are some common mistakes that people are making when washing their car at home.

1. Wash car under the burning sun

wash car under the sun car washing tips

Happy as it seems, you should not wash your car under the sun

Not many people pay enough attention to where and when to wash the car. It is likely that people would go to any places with convenient water supply and enough space. However, these criteria are not all that it takes. The task-taker should pick a shady space and avoid washing under the sun especially rinsing a car in the middle of the day.
The reason is that, under the intense sunlight, the outer paint of a car could be impaired. Normally, people love car washing under sunlight as they think that the sun would make the car dry quicker. But in fact, the fast drying of car wash mixture could leave stains on your car – a total undesirable counter-effect.

2. Wash car right after a long drive

wash car outside car washing tips

Washing car right after a long drive is not healthy for the car paint.

A long drive will cover the car with a thick layer of dust. For some obsessive cleaners, they could hardly resist bringing all the car wash kit and washing the car right when they get home. However, this seemingly good habit is not healthy at all. The flood of water would immediately converse the temperature of the outer car paint, and this instant change is not healthy for the car paint either.

3. Pick the right cleaning chemicals

For most people, car wash chemicals are all the same thing with different packaging. We usually buy the one with more attractive packaging rather than studying the information on the label to pick a suitable one for our own cars. Little do we know that each car might require different cleaning chemical. For example, you cannot use cleaner for chrome material for aluminum wheels.
With the reference for quick cleaning, some even take advantages of the cleaning household cleaner for other purposes like dish cleaner rather than picking car-cleaning detergents. The household cleaner could contain a large content of acid, which could tremendously cripple the car paints whereas the car cleaning detergents are made specifically for car washing without paint-harming elements.

4. Use random clothes for car wash

wash car with soft cloth washing car tips

Remember to use soft cloths when washing a car.

Here is another mistake most people make when car washing. Before washing a car, you will run around the house and pick up whatever old clothes come your way. But, to maintain the car paint properly, you should use the good microfiber cleaning cloth. The average clothes that we wear on daily basis might be not soft enough and could subtly scratch the car paint. Moreover, you should take several pieces to clean different exterior part of the car.

5. Swirl the cleaning cloth on the car paint

Swirling the cleaning cloth could scratch the car paint. Instead of moving the cloth in round circles, you should run it in the horizontal or vertical direction. Plus, you should not wear hand accessories such as ring or bracelet as you could unintentionally scrape the paint with these accessories.

How to wash your car properly

Not many people are aware of how much their washing habits could impact the car exterior. Doing car wash properly could extend the fresh new look of the car for years. And without appropriate car wash, your car will definitely age faster. Further car care steps like car waxing and car polishing could also help to expand the lifespan of the car exterior.

Read more car washing tips from IndianAuto:

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