Cleaning door hinges/corners

[xantonin]

Does anyone have any tips of tools they use to clean the hinge area of doors?

My car's doors are long, so the hinge area is hard to reach. Is there a special brush anyone uses, or application and product?

I'd like to also detail the rubber hose in there (the one that the electrical wires run through). Not sure I can get my hand in there to apply some dressing though.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Cleaning door hinges/corners

Head down to your nearest hardware store and pick up some inexpensive paint brushes in different widths. It's probably a good idea to wrap some painters tape or electrical tape around the metal crimping where the bristles meet the handle, but these will give you good reach for getting into those areas.

You can even trim the bristles down on a brush or two to give a stiffer brush overall for those areas requiring a bit more scrubbing. For the rubber accordion tube you mentioned you can either spray some M40 or other dressing onto the brush and work it in, or just spray directly onto the rubber piece and allow the product to dwell a bit before going back over it with the brush.

[TOGWT]

Re: Cleaning door hinges/corners

Door Jambs

1. Use P21S Total Auto Wash, dilute the cleaner as necessary, using a damp micro fibre towel to go over the door jamb.
2. Take a Swissvax Detail Brush and ensure that you have got into the corners, just lightly brush over it a couple of times.
3. For difficult to reach areas use the Mini E-Z Detail brush with a flexible shaft
4. Rinse it off using a wet microfiber towel, and dry thoroughly
5. Use a Carnauba wax or a spray (WOWA) polymer sealant Zanio Z-8 for protection
6. Repeat this process on the other side and carry on detailing the rest of your car
7. Check the hinge / latch lubrication, renew with silicone grease as necessary
8. Remove dust / dirt from the rubber sleeves and apply Iz einszett Vinyl-Rubber Care'
9. While you are doing this part of the job, also clean the area around the boot lid, hood and inside the fuel filler flap and access area.
10. Clean the water channels in the trunk as well as under the hood.
11. Don’t forget the door sills / kick plates; once clean and dry, they should be protected by applying a surface dressing to vinyl surfaces and either wax or sealant protection to painted surfaces.

[xantonin]

Re: Cleaning door hinges/corners

Head down to your nearest hardware store and pick up some inexpensive paint brushes in different widths. It's probably a good idea to wrap some painters tape or electrical tape around the metal crimping where the bristles meet the handle, but these will give you good reach for getting into those areas.

You can even trim the bristles down on a brush or two to give a stiffer brush overall for those areas requiring a bit more scrubbing. For the rubber accordion tube you mentioned you can either spray some M40 or other dressing onto the brush and work it in, or just spray directly onto the rubber piece and allow the product to dwell a bit before going back over it with the brush.

Which product would work best? Just a normal car wash, Last Touch, or something like APC, or maybe D151 to have to condition and wax?

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Cleaning door hinges/corners

Which product would work best? Just a normal car wash, Last Touch, or something like APC, or maybe D151 to have to condition and wax?

For general duty cleaning you can use APC or any car wash solution. For protection on rubber go with M40 but for painted areas the easiest product to use is probably Ultimate Quik Wax. UQW won't stain any rubber bits you might get it on and it actually offers really durable protection due to the types of polymers used in it.

[StadiumDetail]

Re: Cleaning door hinges/corners

Personally I spray a little APC or degreaser in the door jambs when washing the car, let it dwell, then pressure wash it out. Takes about 10sec to get it very clean and only a tiny bit of water ends up splashing onto the interior, follow up with a rag while drying the rest of the car and you are good to go.

After that it is just regular maintinence with a little QD and a rag.

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: Cleaning door hinges/corners

After I clean the door jams. I like giving them a coat of A-12 cleaner wax.

[TXShine]

Re: Cleaning door hinges/corners

Here's a thread for some more door jamb cleaning and maintenance tips...... http://meguiarsonline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=11298

[ClearlyCoated]

Re: Cleaning door hinges/corners

You can even trim the bristles down on a brush or two to give a stiffer brush overall for those areas requiring a bit more scrubbing.

Hmmm...

If only some innovative company could produce a soft detailing brush with a sliding plastic sleeve.

For lack of a better name, a slide-lock, if you will...