Protecting and Shining Your Paint

Having a nice finish on your paint is what catches someone's eye. Knowing this you definitely want to spend some time and effort in making it look good. When most people think of shining their car they think of wax, which of course is the classic way to do it. Wax does give you a nice shine when you're finished but unfortunately, the shine doesn't last very long so that you have to repeat the waxing often to maintain a good shine. This is why I recommend using a different product called Liquid Glass which only needs to be applied about 2 - 3 times a year. Liquid Glass is a great product because it actually protects your paint, makes washing your car a lot easier and of course gives you an excellent deep shine. When you feel the surface of the paint after it has been protected with Liquid Glass it actually feels smooth and very slippery, compared to wax which can feel slightly tacky. Before using Liquid Glass, you need to make sure that your car is wax free and that the paint has been thouroughly washed and dried. The outside weather conditions are also important, not too hot, too cold, or too bright. If it is too sunny and hot, it may cause streaks and if it is too cold the Liquid Glass may not bond to the surface very well and could also cause streaking. The ideal conditions to apply Liquid Glass to a vehicle are on a cloudy day with the temperature between 10 and 25 degrees C or in a garage at the right temperature. Once you're ready to go you'll need Liquid Glass of course which you can usually find in car care or auto parts stores. You'll also need a cloth or two with which to polish and apply it. A cloth can be an old shirt as long as it is fairly soft material but if you want to spend some money you can find detail cloths at almost any place that sells car care products. When you apply Liquid Glass you need just a small amount of it on your cloth and gently rub it onto the area making sure that the entire surface is hazy. Do not spread the Liquid Glass too much becuase you will not get a solid finish. You also you do not want to spread it on too thickly because this will make it more difficult to buff out and will use up a lot of your Liquid Glass. Using the right amount takes a bit of feel and getting used to which will come after doing it once or twice. Once you have applied the Liquid Glas you can always go back and fix any imperfections using more Liquid Glass.

To the Readers of My Blog

There is one thing that I should clarify about my blog before I continue posting many more entries. I should have mentioned this right in my first one. Most of you already know that there are a variety of other car care products on the market and different ways to do things than I have already described. The products and methods that I mention are the ones that I have used personally and have had good results with, but by no means are they the only ones.

I thought I might as well post something about cars in this entry as well, although it doesn't have a lot to do with detailing cars. To anyone without power door locks, remember to spray inside your locks with WD 40 or a similar type of lubricant before the winter. This will prevent your locks from freezing up during the cold months ahead. Besides winter, doing this anytime of year is a good idea becuase it prevents rust and moisture from seizing the locks.

Cleaning the Interior Plastic/Leather/Vinyl of Your Car

Areas that people don't often take very good care of in their cars are the plastics, the vinyls, and the leather. Cleaning these areas doesn't take much effort and once they're done it really makes your car feel clean inside. For plastic, vinyl and rubber you'll want to use Armor All which comes in both a spary or as wipes and can be found at places like Canadian Tire. Another thing to know about Armor All is that there are 2 formulas. There is the cleaning Armor All and the Armor All protectant. The basic cleaning Armor All just cleans as the name implies whereas the protectant leaves a shiny surface and may reduce the appearance of certain scratches. The only problem with Armor All protectant is that it may cause glare on areas such as the dashboard, but that will vary with the shape and size of your dash. To clean leather there are quite a few products but the quickest and easiest method is to use Maguiar's Rich Leather Wipes. Before you start wiping things down make sure bigger pieces of dirt and derbris are removed otherwise you could cause scratches. Once you are ready to wipe there isn't much to it. Obviously you may need to scrub harder to remove deeper dirt from surfaces but the main thing to pay attention to is getting an evenly wiped surface, avoiding dry spots and blotches.

Cleaning Your Wheels and Tires

When people are washing their cars they might spray the tires down and maybe soap them a bit but usually they dont get the attention that they deserve. Having nice shiny tires and wheels really gives your car that detailed look. To really clean the rubber you'll want to use an actual tire brush which you can buy at places like Canadian Tire. Rinse the tire first then use car wash soap to srcub it down really good. The first step to cleaning your rims is to get the main heavy dirt and brake dust off, you'll want to rinse them, then using rim cleaner and any type of small brush that'll fit between the spokes scrub them clean (if you have chrome or poilshed rims using a soft brush or cloth is better to avoid scratches). To get your tires shiny you'll need rubber gloves, paper towels, and tire shine (which can be bought at places like Canadian Tire). Once your tires have dried spray the tire shine on them evenly then put on your gloves and try to wipe the tire shine so that you have an evenly covered surface. You may need to repeat this process more than once to get a really good shine. Some tire shine may have oversprayed onto your rims, so to clean this all you need is some windex and paper towels.

Things to Know About Cleaning Your Windows

Your windows are definately one of the most important parts of your car to keep clean. If you have poor visibility this will obviously affect your driving. As mentioned in the second post you'll want to use a squeege for getting the outside of your windows streak free after you've washed them. Also for the outside of your windows it is a good idea to put on a coat of Rain X. This will greatly help repel rain, sleet, snow or almost anything from your windows, even without using your wipers. Rain X can be picked up from your local Canadian Tire, autoparts stores, or any place that sells car care products. Instructions for using Rain X are on the container and are very straight forward. For the insides of your windows you want to be careful about which cleaner you use. If you have tinted windows its not a good idea to use Windex or other ammonia based cleaners because there is a possibility that they may cause your tint film to bubble. You'll want to look for a non-ammonia cleaner which you can find at most Canadian Tires, autoparts places, or glass care shops. However if your windows are not tinted, Windex works great.

Cleaning the Floor of Your Car

In general the floor is one of the most neglected areas when it comes to cleaning cars, but having a clean floor is definately important. First of all the floor tends to collect a lot of dirt and moisture. This may lead to mould and breathing in dust all the time which isn't healthy. A floor can collect a lot of road salt (which combined with moisture) may rot out your floor and or your seat brackets. The first thing you will want to do is remove all your floor mats, garbage and random loose articles so that you're down to the carpetting. For vacuuming your floor and floor mats you should use a wet/dry vac (ex. shop vac) or a vacuum found at a gas station or car wash. A wet/dry vac allows you to suck up both the dirt and moisture. If your carpet and floor mats still have stains after vacuuming you'll want to shampoo them. For shampooing you have options. You can either go down to the car wash to use the shampooing machine, or you can use a scrub brush and "spray on" carpet cleaner which you can find almost anywhere. Once you have shampooed your carpet and floor mats you'll want to let them shit for atleast a few hours so that they have a chance to dry. While you're letting these dry, you can clean your rubber mats (if you have them). Rubber mats can easily be cleaned by hosing them down or taking some paper towels and windex to them, now you're set!

Things to Know About Washing Your Car (On the Outside)

Most people know how to wash their car but there are certain deatails which a lot of people don't know about. First of all try to park your car in the shade, this will help prevent water spots. Before you wash your car you should always clean off road tar, bugs and tough dirt using paper towels and Bug&Tar cleaner. These are difficult to clean off using a wash mit or sponge. Next, when you spray down your car remember to spray inside the wheel wells and underneath as much as you can. It helps if the water you use is softened and hot. When handwashing, start from the top of your vehicle and work downwards. This will help prevent scrathes from the road dirt which builds up on the lower half of the vehicle. As you wash your car make sure to rinse the mit often this also may help prevet scratches. Its also a good idea to have a tire brush to clean your tires as you go around. Before you rinse everything off spary down your wheels with wheel cleaner and let them sit for atleast a minute. Now when rinsing off your car start at the top and try to work youre way down. Once the car has been thoroughly rinsed, wet your chamois and ring it out. Take your chamois and wipe down the car trying to get rid of all the water droplets, you may have to go around a few times to really get rid of all the water spots. To dry the windows use a squeege to help prevent streaks. Once your car has been cleaned and dried open the door and wipe the inside of it, dirt will collect in there. Now you're ready to start with the interior wich will be posted next entry.