Drying your car..

[exploreco]

Re: Drying your car..

I was using a leaf blower until my most recent purchase. Now I am using the DP Turbo dryer. Workers pretty good, has a long cord. So far so good. And if your car is waxed really well, it gets almost all of the water off. Just some touch up is needed, just like with a blower.

[Top Gear]

Re: Drying your car..

You guys don't find leaf blowers to be bulky and difficult to maneuver around a vehicle?

Oh, no. Mine is light enough to hold with one hand. I'm tall, though, and my car is low enough that the roof is no problem to reach. For that, I hold it toward the middle to balance the blower above my shoulder and get it up even higher to blow downward. With my reach, I can dry most of the tops of the car from one side. It's really not that much more work, and it's actually kinda fun.

...unless you are, in fact, doing something truly "wrong", like leaving your wash mitt on the driveway between panels as you're washing and rinsing the car. Yep, a former neighbor of mine used to do that while washing his black BMW M3. Horrifying!!!

Were we ever that young?? Just kidding. While I think over-avoidance of grit can get a little too OCD, some things like that really make you scratch your head. Let's face it, though, this whole conversation we're having might be kinda "out there" for most people. I'll never forget one neighbor who once asked me, "Did you know washing your car too often will strip the paint off?" I didn't know where to start with that one.

BTW, Michael S., you've probably read I like UWW as much as GC Shampoo. Seems to clean just about as well as GC but obviously leaves a bit of protection behind. I'm also still blown away by UWWA/D115, which has literally changed my life, making daily upkeep SO much easier. All those issues I've talked about with humidity-driven QD/QW wipe smears and other problems are just over.

[The Guz]

Re: Drying your car..

I was using a leaf blower until my most recent purchase. Now I am using the DP Turbo dryer. Workers pretty good, has a long cord. So far so good. And if your car is waxed really well, it gets almost all of the water off. Just some touch up is needed, just like with a blower.

Nice. I have been looking at that myself. Looks like it does a pretty good job from the reviews I have seen.

[davey g-force]

Re: Drying your car..

...can get a little too OCD...

I didn't think there was any such thing around here? lol

[exploreco]

Re: Drying your car..

Nice. I have been looking at that myself. Looks like it does a pretty good job from the reviews I have seen.

Yeah, so far so good. I got it because of the AG reviews and got tired of using my heavy gas powered leaf blower, lol. Only issue is that my wife found out I bought it I was out washing the car and my son saw me using it and wanted to try it. He did a pretty good job with it. I was holding the the motor while he went around with the blower tube. She came out and was talking to me and was like, oh, that is so cute, he is drying off the car. Then she was like, wait a minute, what the hell, did you buy something else. I was busted
Oh well, she should be getting used to it by now.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Drying your car..

I'm also still blown away by UWWA/D115, which has literally changed my life, making daily upkeep SO much easier. All those issues I've talked about with humidity-driven QD/QW wipe smears and other problems are just over.

I've got a write up coming soon on rinseless/waterless washing that should put doubters minds to rest. It involves my wife's Victory Red (a very deep, rich red with no metallic - just about as hard to keep looking good as black) and the only way it's been washed in the last year is with either D114 as a rinseless, or D115 as a waterless wash. In full sun the paint still looks fantastic. I hope to have the article up in a week or two - I'm actually letting it get dirty again before washing it for the article (much to my wife's chagrin!).

[DimensionAutoDetailing]

Re: Drying your car..

I've got a write up coming soon on rinseless/waterless washing that should put doubters minds to rest. It involves my wife's Victory Red (a very deep, rich red with no metallic - just about as hard to keep looking good as black) and the only way it's been washed in the last year is with either D114 as a rinseless, or D115 as a waterless wash. In full sun the paint still looks fantastic. I hope to have the article up in a week or two - I'm actually letting it get dirty again before washing it for the article (much to my wife's chagrin!).

Im hoping your article is to prove that a waterless wash(ie wash and wax anywhere) cleans WITHOUT scratching or marring, when done properly!!!
IM EXCITED!

[DasBurninator]

Re: Drying your car..

Oh, no. Mine is light enough to hold with one hand. I'm tall, though, and my car is low enough that the roof is no problem to reach. For that, I hold it toward the middle to balance the blower above my shoulder and get it up even higher to blow downward. With my reach, I can dry most of the tops of the car from one side. It's really not that much more work, and it's actually kinda fun.

Guess I feel it would be bulk compared to the metrovac sidekick that I use is where I was going with that. Is it easier to get a broader area than a sidekick?

[Top Gear]

Re: Drying your car..

Yes, mine is larger and much longer than that, but lightweight. Go to Lowes or Home Depot and you can check out the electric leaf blowers. It has two settings, and "hi" is very much like a gas-powered blower. I use it to clear thick leaves, blow out a storage unit, and other situations.

[Eldorado2k]

Re: Drying your car..

@Mike Stoops. Looking forward to your article regarding rinseless/waterless wash. Judging by your past articles, I'm sure it'll be another classic Senor Stoops in depth tutorial including different dilution ratios and all the good stuff.

@Exploreco. That DP Turbo Dryer requires both hands to use it right? Do you have to come back around after you're done with a drying towel? Or can it safely be done at the same time?

[exploreco]

Re: Drying your car..

@Exploreco. That DP Turbo Dryer requires both hands to use it right? Do you have to come back around after you're done with a drying towel? Or can it safely be done at the same time?

yes, one hand to hold the blower motor and another to hold the hose to blow off the water. There are suggestions on AG of having a strap as an addition, but one could easily be added I would think and just hold the blower motor on your shoulder.

I keep my waffle weave tucked in my pocket to grab to dry what it misses or isn't to my liking, or if I know I am going to come back around after with QD or QW I don't worry about it.

[Syd_Barrett]

Re: Drying your car..

http://www.amazon.com/Metro-Vacuum-SK-1-Sidekick-Motorcycle/dp/B000LQB24G/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1434580800&sr=8-1&keywords=motorcycle+dryer

Works very well for its size.

[Eldorado2k]

Re: Drying your car..

If I could have 1 tool from day 1 of ever washing my car [18yrs ago] It would be that.^ That little sidekick is an absolute gem

[Syd_Barrett]

Re: Drying your car..

If I could have 1 tool from day 1 of ever washing my car [18yrs ago] It would be that.^ That little sidekick is an absolute gem

I hear you.

And were it not for the annoyingly narrow width of our home's driveway, I would have purchased one of the more powerful, and physically bigger, variants of those. As it is though, this does an excellent job.

[bkm]

Re: Drying your car..

The best tool is actually an air compressor, but one powerful enough to do a good job is expensive. The reason I prefer an air compressor is simply because the hose and nozzle are much smaller and more flexible than a leaf blower, a compact blower like the sidekick, and even a vacuum-type hose on blower. I have found a 9 SCFM air compressor is more than enough for the interior, but to do the exterior well, I think it would take more than 20 SCFM. If I had my choice, I would have a rotary-screw compressor in the back of the shop and a polyurethane hose and a Coilhouse Pneumatics Typhoon blow gun. This is not only the best way to blow-dry the car, but it is also the best way to dust a car off.

Because I don't have a powerful enough compressor, I use my Toro leaf blower for the exterior. Blowing was essential when I was doing motorcycles. There's just no way to get a towel everywhere on there. My wife's car is smooth and dries easily. My offroad vehicle has a lot of corners, angles, pockets, and crevices.

One problem with the blower is you have to be careful where you aim it. You don't want to aim it at the ground and blow dust, gravel, and sand up onto your clean car. Again, this is why the blow gun is better as it is easier to aim. For example, I can get under the rocker panels and blow up instead of blowing down onto the ground and getting back blast. For the interior, a blow gun is essential as nothing else can be aimed carefully enough. But I have to admit I used the leaf blower on the interior of my offroad car yesterday. The whole interior was really dirty and dusty. I should have used a vacuum, but I was lazy so I just opened the door and blew it out. I would not do that on a cleaner car as it would blow dirt from the floor onto cleaner surfaces and into cracks. Still, even on the cleanest interiors, a vacuum can't get everywhere or everything. I use a blow gun and a vacuum at the same time to catch what I'm blowing out.