Coin-op Pre-soak?

[tguil]

This has been quite a winter. But most of you "northerners" already know that, right?

On a couple of occasions this winter, I found myself using the pre-soak cycle at the coin-op on the lower really grungy body panels of my trucks. On another thread I read that this pre-soak is a mild acid. I checked it out and sure enough it is.

What I would like to know is if a vehicle is well maintained and has a good coat of wax, how damaging is this mild acid if used only occasionally? After I wash my trucks at the coin-op, I always bring them home and wash them again with QEW and then apply a coat of Meguiar's Ultimate Spray Wax.

Tom

[akimel]

Re: Coin-op Pre-soak?

Last week I took our CR-V to the local coin-op, and I too used the pre-soak option, because of the winter grunge. I followed up with the high pressure wash and rinse, brought the car home and washed the car again with ONR, and finished off with a coat of UPGP.

I can't imagine that the pre-soak is going to be harmful to the clear coat, as long as it rinsed off thoroughly and if it is only occasionally used and if it is always followed-up with a fresh coat of protectant. At least, that's my story and I'm sticking with it.

[cd36]

Re: Coin-op Pre-soak?

I would imagine it would be more damaging to the wax than the clear coat.

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: Coin-op Pre-soak?

If rinsed properly I would say it will not due any damage to the clearcoat. However, I would also think that the wax would be toast. That would need to be re waxed as soon as possible.

[Andrew Wilson]

Re: Coin-op Pre-soak?

Tom,

Touches less washes have a lot of chemical's that are strong acids and degreasers. Theses chemicals are typically stronger than something that you might find in a tunnel car wash because they are designed to cut the grime and dirt without having anything touch the paint. Where as depending on the tunnel wash, they use foam brushes to wipe the dirt off.

It is difficult to say that product XYZ is harmful or not, however I would assume the coin wash place could have some strong acids at it. If you do not let the product sit to long on your paint, you should be alright. Furthermore, I think you got a perfect system down with spaying your car down with Quik Wax afterwords. I do the same thing.

[RaskyR1]

Re: Coin-op Pre-soak?

I think if your maintain the vehicle regularly then you really shouldn't have anything to worry about. It's of my opinion that the damage from those chemicals will first been seen on areas like side mirrors and the trim on the pillars as they seem to be less resistant to their harshness. If your car has this type of trim then I'd suggest using a cleaner wax a little more often if you use touch-less washes a lot.







While these areas seem to fade/stain a lot sooner than the painted areas of the car, they also tend to be very easy to correct with the use of a mild cleaner like M205/SwirlX or even a cleaner wax like ColorX.










Again, these are only my observations which are based off of what I have observed while maintaining customers cars which regularly visited touch-less car washes.

FWIW, I too have used the pre-rinse setting when pressed for time in the winter.


Rasky

[Murr1525]

Re: Coin-op Pre-soak?

If you are big on the Pre-soak kind of thing, maybe some kind of a foam gun is for you that you could use at home with a regular soap, and let it sit on there for a bit.

[Jokeman]

Re: Coin-op Pre-soak?

I use the touchless during the winter. My truck gets covered in salt from driving north to snowmobile every weekend. Id rather have the chemicals hit my truck then the salt on it rotting it out.

[cnfowler]

Re: Coin-op Pre-soak?

Occasional use will not harm the paint. I have seen signs posted at some touchless washes that warned repeated use of the car wash would dull the paint. Since you are on this forum, it is safe to assume you take care of your vehicle. Therefore, occasional use will not harm your finish.

Colin

[tguil]

Re: Coin-op Pre-soak?

Thanks for the responses. They are pretty much what I thought they would be. Whatever...the pre-soak sure cuts the crud.

Tom

[CharlesW]

Re: Coin-op Pre-soak?

Just to confuse the issue.

The pre-soak may be acidic, but if you do a Google search for car wash pre-soak, you will find the manufacturers are mostly pushing high pH products.
High pH is alkaline, not acidic.
It might be worth checking the products used by your specific car wash to see if they use an acidic or an alkaline product.

FWIW, Extremely high pH has its drawbacks too.
A very low pH, (highly acidic), such as 1 would be similar to battery acid, but
A very high pH (highly alkaline) such as 10 would be similar to lye.
A pH of 7 is considered neutral. As a point of reference, pure water has a pH of 7.

[THE BIG BUFFER]

Re: Coin-op Pre-soak?

Just to confuse the issue.

The pre-soak may be acidic, but if you do a Google search for car wash pre-soak, you will find the manufacturers are mostly pushing high pH products.
High pH is alkaline, not acidic.
It might be worth checking the products used by your specific car wash to see if they use an acidic or an alkaline product.

FWIW, Extremely high pH has its drawbacks too.
A very low pH, (highly acidic), such as 1 would be similar to battery acid, but
A very high pH (highly alkaline) such as 10 would be similar to lye.
A pH of 7 is considered neutral. As a point of reference, pure water has a pH of 7.

Good point. When I was reading this thread I was thinking to myself "why would car washes use an acidic pre-soak that could hurt their customers vehicles?'' I have a hard time beliving they would do this. Would'nt hurt your bussiness in the long run? I am going to check our local car wash and see if they will allow me to see what they use. I have used the pre-wash many times( mon my work truck) with out any ill effects.

[CharlesW]

Re: Coin-op Pre-soak?

Good point. When I was reading this thread I was thinking to myself "why would car washes use an acidic pre-soak that could hurt their customers vehicles?'' I have a hard time beliving they would do this. Would'nt hurt your bussiness in the long run? I am going to check our local car wash and see if they will allow me to see what they use. I have used the pre-wash many times( mon my work truck) with out any ill effects.

While you are there, see if they will tell you if they use recycled/filtered water anytime during the wash cycle.
Some do because of cost, some do because of local regulations.
The one I occasionally go to uses all fresh water.
I will be trying to find out about the pre-soak in the near future.

[CharlesW]

Re: Coin-op Pre-soak?

The manager of the car wash I go to told me they used a "high pH" presoak, but had no idea if that was acidic.
I mentioned that a pH of 7 was neutral and he immediately said it was higher than 7.
It is specified by the car wash supplier that they have to use certain things a certain way to be able to use that brand name in their advertising.
Since below 7 is acidic and above 7 is alkaline, their presoak is evidently not acidic.
He would not be more specific about the presoak content.

[CharlesW]

Re: Coin-op Pre-soak?

Just to confuse the issue.

The pre-soak may be acidic, but if you do a Google search for car wash pre-soak, you will find the manufacturers are mostly pushing high pH products.
High pH is alkaline, not acidic.
It might be worth checking the products used by your specific car wash to see if they use an acidic or an alkaline product.

FWIW, Extremely high pH has its drawbacks too.
A very low pH, (highly acidic), such as 1 would be similar to battery acid, but
A very high pH (highly alkaline) such as 10 would be similar to lye. This is incorrect. A pH of 14 would be similar to lye, not a pH of 10.
A pH of 7 is considered neutral. As a point of reference, pure water has a pH of 7.

My statement of a pH of 10 being similar to lye was incorrect. A pH of 14 would be similar to lye.