As founder members of the national organisation www.britishvaleters.org, we are always looking to promote professional techniques; whether to the keen amateur, to other valeters and detailers, or to members of the public looking for guidance on which car cleaning service to choose, be that a rotary car wash, hand car wash, or valeter.
Below is some very basic information, which we feel will be invaluable to anyone looking for quality car cleaning advice.
Ensure that your vehicle is washed using a long piled 'wash mitt' (these can be made from good quality mircro fibre or sheepskin) and never a sponge to wash the cars; sponges hold any dust and particles on their surface, which is then wiped across the paint, whereas a mitt allows the grit and dirt to be buried into it and therefore not wiped over the paint.
Two buckets should always be used to wash the cars, preferably these buckets should be clear so that you can see that the water inside is not contaminated! (Opaque, oval buckets are available from Morrisons for around £3.00!) One bucket should contain your usual shampoo solution and one simply plain water; the wash mitt should be thoroughly rinsed in the clean water bucket before being placed into the shampoo solution. Again this reduces contaminents being wiped across the paint and therefore causing costly damage. As an alternative a bucket with a grit guard may be used.
NEVER use wahing up liquid or other detergant based product to clean your vehicle as this can remove wax and your paintwork will be left with little or no protection. Even a low costs car specific shampoo is far better as this won't harm you car's finish.
Poor wash technique causes micro marring in the forms of swirls and scratches!
Polishing:
Always use the least aggressive product possible, terrible damage can be inflicted by using the wrong polish
The correct compound and pad combination is essential when using a machine polisher, if you don't know which to use, seek advice from, or leave it to, a professional
If an agressive compound is needed to remove the faults mentioned, this should always be followed by a less agressive one, to ensure that all marks are removed and the problems not simply added to
If you aren't convinced that your chosen valeter really knows his stuff, please don't let him loose on your vehicle. Using an inexperienced valeter can be a costly mistake
Poor polishing technique causes micro marring in the forms of buffer trails and holograms
