11 Things you need to wash your car + 1 cheap insider tip

It’s only been a few weeks since Sandra rolled off the dealer’s lot in her fancy new runabout Now it’s time for the first car wash. Now she wonders how and with which things she should best wash the car. Now, what do I need to wash my car? We have researched for you:

So, what do I need to wash my car? For car washing you need:

Gloves

2 – 3 water buckets

Microfiber cloth / washing gloves

Vacuum cleaner / dusters

Car shampoo

Rim Cleaner

Garbage bag and bag

Microfiber brushes for air vents

Cloth for dirty hands

The necessary change for the self-service car wash

Cool, shady weather

When it comes to washing cars, opinions differ. Some stand in the driveway and treat their vehicle to a loving wash with expensive car shampoo, an extra care lotion, gentle microfiber wash glove and of course protective paint care afterwards.

Others use the nearby self-service car wash to clean the car. For little money, the cleaning facilities of the car wash park can be used here.

The offer ranges from lathering with the XXL brush and rim cleaning to bathing in hot wax and the final top care solution.
The advantage of the self-service car wash is that you don’t have to pay attention to the dirty water here, because they have groundwater-saving, environmentally friendly cleaning systems.

Why do you need these things to wash your car?

Everyone probably has their own way of giving their car the best possible care. In most cases but you still need the following 11 things for washing your car.

Gloves

The list starts with gloves. You need this, because cleaning agents are often very aggressive and corrosive.
They dry out the skin and can also cause rashes. With really aggressive agents also the protective goggles belong on the List of things you need to wash your car.

2-3 buckets of water

When washing the car by hand, it is always advisable to have 2 or even 3 buckets of water at hand. The sense? The first bucket of water is used to wet the cloths or washing gloves in the first place.

The second water bucket comes into play when the rags are dirty. You can rinse the dirt out in them before wetting them again in the first bucket afterwards.

And the third? This bucket is the "luxury bucket. Either take it at the very end for extraordinary cleaning or for washing hands. Because your hands also need cleaning after car washing.

microfiber cloth or washing glove

Microfiber cloths and washing gloves are soft and not scratchy. They clean your vehicle effectively, hold the dirt and protect the paintwork.

You can also use them to reach difficult places such as the radiator grille or the hinges. Microfiber cloths rinse out perfectly and, in combination with two to three buckets of water, are a really effective option for hand washing.

Contrary to what many think, a sponge is not a good option for cleaning the car. Unlike microfiber cloths or washing gloves, they tend to smear the dirt rather than absorb it. In the case of coarse dirt, it can even happen that the paint is damaged.

To clean the car interior you can use vacuum cleaners or dusters.

Car shampoo

Instead of conventional rinsing agents, many car enthusiasts use special car shampoos, which are not exactly inexpensive. They are commercially available and do not attack the wax layer of the car.

Conventional dishwashing detergents, on the other hand, have a grease-dissolving formula and can damage the paint in the long run.

Rim cleaner

In order for your rims to keep their shine for many years, they need to be maintained regularly. Just spray your rim with a mild rim cleaner and let it soak in.

After about 5 to 10 minutes, this can be rinsed off again and dried with a microfiber cloth. Dirt residues can be brushed off with a soft brush beforehand.

Garbage bag and bag

To make room for cleaning the interior, it is advisable to take a garbage bag and a bag with you to the car wash.

So you can easily and quickly put aside garbage and other small parts from the interior and have space for an intensive cleaning of the interior.

Microfiber brush for vents

No matter how you get angry, your fingers are just too thick to get into the narrow vents with a cloth. Here it is recommended to get narrow microfiber brushes, with which you can easily wipe the dust from the sleds.

Cloth for dirty hands

Even though we have already saved the third bucket of water for washing our hands, we are still missing a towel for drying our hands. So this also belongs on the List of 11 things you need to wash your car .

The necessary small change

Unless you wash your car with your own water in front of your own driveway, you should always have the necessary change with you.

While it is often only 2 to 3 euros at the self-service gas station, the car wash usually costs many times that amount.

Cool, shady weather

To clean the car as gently as possible and without ugly streaks, it is recommended to choose a cool day for the Car wash to choose.

Paint and rims should not be too hot, so that the cleaning agents do not dry immediately. This would leave the ugly streaks. If only one hot day is available, then proceed in sections and from top to bottom.

Our secret tip:

Have you ever tried desperately to get all the streaks and streaks from the windows? Let me guess: it didn’t work out.

A real insider tip for this is and remains the daily newspaper – but of course the old-fashioned daily newspaper made of environmental paper. Not the new, coated fashion magazines and certainly not the digital variant.

Spray a little glass cleaner on the window pane and then polish it with the daily newspaper. You will see: best visibility without streaks and smears – it shines like a one!

When is the best time to wash the car?

Somehow, especially in the summer, we are reminded that the car needs a wash Car wash needs. During this time, when the car paint is literally glowing and the pollen residues, insects and dust keep eating their way into it.

Regular cleaning is necessary especially in this period. If pollen, dust or insects eat deep into the paint, it can cause damage and corrosion (rust). It is recommended to clean the car every two to three weeks in summer.

But even in winter you should Things for the car wash always keep handy. Road salts, grit and de-icing agents can damage the paintwork in the long term.

Pay attention however to the temperatures. In case of high minus temperatures and not completely dried car parts, it may happen that you can’t open the door the next day anymore.

The correct procedure – first inside, then outside

What is the best way to start? This is the question to ask yourself before washing the car for the first time. We’ll tell you: first the interior, then the exterior!

Cleaning the interior

So start by cleaning out the interior of the car. For this you can use the trash bag and bag from the List of 11 things you need to wash your car make good use of!

After removing the floor mats, it is best to start with vacuuming, followed by dusting. You remove it with a duster or damp cloth. For cleaning the air vents, the narrow microfiber feather dusters are particularly suitable.

Now that dust and dirt have been removed from the interior, you can also clean the interior windows. This can be done most effectively with the help of a cleaning cloth and window cleaner or with the insider tip from the daily newspaper.

The cleaning of the body

Once the cleaning of the interior is complete, you can proceed with the pre-wash of the bodywork. Before you start with the thorough cleaning, coarse dirt, which can lead to scratches, must be removed.

After you have cleaned the car with water, you can now use the car shampoo and microfiber washing glove. Soap up nicely and don’t forget a spot. Afterwards the shampoo must be rinsed off again with clear water.

But be careful: make sure you are standing on a paved surface. If you can’t find an impermeable surface, then it is recommended to clean the car in a car wash.

The different ways to wash the car

Car wash

Car washes are a little more expensive, but probably the most comfortable way to wash your car. By using large brushes, rags and dry blowers, they clean the car in just a few seconds.

The basic programs are still under 10 € to have. But as soon as certain care products and hot wax are added, the final price can also be over 10 €.

The disadvantage of the comfortable car washes is that they consume about 600 liters of water during one trip. This is about 20 times the amount of a normal hand wash! In addition, here only the exterior is cleaned, but not the interior.

Self-service car wash

The cheaper option, where everything is at least semi-automated, which is the self-service wash park. Depending upon size of the wash park 3, 4 or also 10 wash boxes are offered, in which vehicle owners can wash their favorites extensively.

There are several wash and care programs to choose from, available with a spray gun or huge sponge attachment when a coin is inserted.

The advantage of these car wash boxes is that you can wash the car yourself with suitable utensils – and in a designated environment. The dirty water that runs off here is cleaned in specially designed filter systems and disposed of properly.

Hand wash

The advantages of hand washing are the gentle, precise cleaning, which can also use selected care products.

Washing the car on the public road or in front of one’s own front door is not forbidden in principle. On paved areas without water seepage you may, without deviating regulations of your municipality, clean your car as you like.

But as soon as on unpaved surfaces there is a chance that water contaminated with cleaner, soot or oil residues can get into the groundwater, a permit must be obtained. In case of non-observance it can become very expensive.