What detailing have you done today?

[Booth11]

4 hours ago, AHG said:

Speaking of crust, since the end of March my Bluey has been gathering dust and baking it into a thick and substantial coating, or crust if you will.

 

 

 

 

But despite the fact I was tired from riding today, I decided “no more” and went ahead with the deep cleaning it needed.

 

 

I did a thorough job, including wheel spray, GYEON Foam, rinsing, shampoo with agitation (Gyeon PPF Wash), rinsing again, then water soaked cloth to remove all remaining suds, and finally drying and Gyeon PPF Maintain for finish and protection of the PPF.

 

I applied the shampoo with the iK eFoam as well, using the medium nozzle, then agitated it (for the foam I used the green one, for maximum fluffiness). 

 

 

It was so hot outside I had to shower before going inside to return the wiper into their normal position (out of service position) but I was very happy with the result.

 

Which is also needed since it’s going for its 4th service, and I always bring a clean car to the shop (they take better care of it, when they see it is pampered).

 

 

 

 

 

Good work @AHG, decrusting Bluey and restoring his lovely Lapiz paintwork!  Loooks excellent. 😎

[AHG]

“Decrusting” sounds naughty … 🙂 

but I assure you I was very attentive and gentle

 

Thank you for your kind words

 

[Booth11]

On 15/08/2026 at 22:46, AHG said:

“Decrusting” sounds naughty … 🙂 

but I assure you I was very attentive and gentle

 

Thank you for your kind words

 

😄

[AHG]

Undoubtedly Bluey does look better clean than dirty

(pics courtesy of my kid)

 

 

[Dr Mike Oxgreen]

Quiet in here, isn't it?

 

I feel like a leper because I'm still cleaning my own car during a hosepipe ban, whereas most of my neighbours either take theirs to a drive-through car wash, or some Albanians with gritty sponges,  or don't bother to clean their cars at all.

 

I can't bring myself to do either of the above, so today I armed myself with my two wash buckets, two pump-action sprayers, a watering can and my Worx Hydroshot battery-powered pressure washer.

 

I used Bilt-Hamber Phat-Neut again as a pre-wash, applied with one of the pump-up sprayers and then applied some Bilt-Hamber Touch-Less snow foam over the top using the other sprayer.  It's surprising how often you need to pump the sprayers up to give a half-decent coating, but needs must.  I then rinsed the car with the Hydroshot, and did a two-bucket wash using Phat-Neut as a shampoo, before rinsing the car with the watering can.  I dried the bodywork with one of my Gyeon Silk drying towels, of which I appear to have three.  Don't remember buying three of. them - one looks like it was intentional, the second appears to be accidental, and the third can only be the result of carelessness.

 

The result was satisfactory, Phat-Neut makes the wash mitt glide across the bodywork, so it feels as though any dirt or contamination is being captured and removed.

 

The last job was the wheels, and I sprayed them first with a diluted solution of Garage Therapy Wheel Shampoo, and then used a soft brush, rinsing with the watering can and drying with my Ryobi battery-powered leaf blower.

 

Overall, I was able to achieve a reasonable result, certainly better than having the car flagellated with revolving brushes with all sorts of contamination ingrained in them, or an Albanian with a gritty sponge, so in the circumstances, until the hosepipe ban is lifted, it was probably the least-worst option available to me at a reasonable cost - a couple of mobile valeters/detailers operate in this area, charging about £45 just to wash and dry the exterior.

 

More rain is required.  We have to accept that it will be the consequence or payment for our glorious summer.

[NJS]

1 hour ago, Dr Mike Oxgreen said:

Quiet in here, isn't it?

 

I feel like a leper because I'm still cleaning my own car during a hosepipe ban, whereas most of my neighbours either take theirs to a drive-through car wash, or some Albanians with gritty sponges,  or don't bother to clean their cars at all.

 

I can't bring myself to do either of the above, so today I armed myself with my two wash buckets, two pump-action sprayers, a watering can and my Worx Hydroshot battery-powered pressure washer.

 

I used Bilt-Hamber Phat-Neut again as a pre-wash, applied with one of the pump-up sprayers and then applied some Bilt-Hamber Touch-Less snow foam over the top using the other sprayer.  It's surprising how often you need to pump the sprayers up to give a half-decent coating, but needs must.  I then rinsed the car with the Hydroshot, and did a two-bucket wash using Phat-Neut as a shampoo, before rinsing the car with the watering can.  I dried the bodywork with one of my Gyeon Silk drying towels, of which I appear to have three.  Don't remember buying three of. them - one looks like it was intentional, the second appears to be accidental, and the third can only be the result of carelessness.

 

The result was satisfactory, Phat-Neut makes the wash mitt glide across the bodywork, so it feels as though any dirt or contamination is being captured and removed.

 

The last job was the wheels, and I sprayed them first with a diluted solution of Garage Therapy Wheel Shampoo, and then used a soft brush, rinsing with the watering can and drying with my Ryobi battery-powered leaf blower.

 

Overall, I was able to achieve a reasonable result, certainly better than having the car flagellated with revolving brushes with all sorts of contamination ingrained in them, or an Albanian with a gritty sponge, so in the circumstances, until the hosepipe ban is lifted, it was probably the least-worst option available to me at a reasonable cost - a couple of mobile valeters/detailers operate in this area, charging about £45 just to wash and dry the exterior.

 

More rain is required.  We have to accept that it will be the consequence or payment for our glorious summer.

I still do mine using as little water as possible!! With the battery pressure washer and battery powered foamer, I calculated that I use less than 25 litres of water or 5 watering cans. Fortunately the heavy rain over the last few days has washed a lot of the dust off and I will leave it for a while. The water companies have put the prices up in my area despite us not being able to use any. They did come and fix a leak yesterday and then promptly disappeared leaving a bollard and a ROAD CLOSED sign behind my car! 

I hope when we are back to normal we can all post the results of the loving care and effort we put in to maintaining or vehicles.

[Booth11]

1 hour ago, Dr Mike Oxgreen said:

Quiet in here, isn't it?

 

I feel like a leper because I'm still cleaning my own car during a hosepipe ban, whereas most of my neighbours either take theirs to a drive-through car wash, or some Albanians with gritty sponges,  or don't bother to clean their cars at all.

 

I can't bring myself to do either of the above, so today I armed myself with my two wash buckets, two pump-action sprayers, a watering can and my Worx Hydroshot battery-powered pressure washer.

 

I used Bilt-Hamber Phat-Neut again as a pre-wash, applied with one of the pump-up sprayers and then applied some Bilt-Hamber Touch-Less snow foam over the top using the other sprayer.  It's surprising how often you need to pump the sprayers up to give a half-decent coating, but needs must.  I then rinsed the car with the Hydroshot, and did a two-bucket wash using Phat-Neut as a shampoo, before rinsing the car with the watering can.  I dried the bodywork with one of my Gyeon Silk drying towels, of which I appear to have three.  Don't remember buying three of. them - one looks like it was intentional, the second appears to be accidental, and the third can only be the result of carelessness.

 

The result was satisfactory, Phat-Neut makes the wash mitt glide across the bodywork, so it feels as though any dirt or contamination is being captured and removed.

 

The last job was the wheels, and I sprayed them first with a diluted solution of Garage Therapy Wheel Shampoo, and then used a soft brush, rinsing with the watering can and drying with my Ryobi battery-powered leaf blower.

 

Overall, I was able to achieve a reasonable result, certainly better than having the car flagellated with revolving brushes with all sorts of contamination ingrained in them, or an Albanian with a gritty sponge, so in the circumstances, until the hosepipe ban is lifted, it was probably the least-worst option available to me at a reasonable cost - a couple of mobile valeters/detailers operate in this area, charging about £45 just to wash and dry the exterior.

 

More rain is required.  We have to accept that it will be the consequence or payment for our glorious summer.

It is quiet in here these days.  Us DIY detailers or even just DIY car washers, are a dying breed!  
 

I empathise with you feeling like a leper still washing your car during the hosepipe ban.  I feel the same even though I’m using watering cans, my IK e- foamer in place of proper snow foam lance, and jet washer that draws from a bucket so not flouting the rules or excessive use of water by any means.  But feel like I’m committing some shameful act washing it, to the point now where I arrange the other family vehicles around my car to shield it from view during washing (neighbours are fine, but I live set back off a busy main road and with many passing drivers), and am washing it less frequently.

Good to hear your continuing review on the Bilt Hamber Phat Neut. Soubds like you’ve nicely integrated it into your regime. 
 

We share love of a few products.  Bilt Hamber Touchless is by far my favourite pre wash and Garage Therapy Wheel Shampoo is fantastic.  I’ve just run out so fresh supply is needed!  Gyeon Silk Dryer towels - I’ve managed to end up with 7 of them!  But that’s because I wanted to see if their later Evo version was an improvement.  Still there’s always a need for good towels.  
 

Non stop rain today all day but I doubt that will bring the hosepipe ban to an end anytime soon.  Last year it ran from June ‘25 to Feb ‘26 . 

[AHG]

That more ban than hose pipe

I think this summer was hotter than usual, so people may be reluctant to sweat it out for a wash.

Autumn is coming so should be more lively here soon. 

[Dr Mike Oxgreen]

Well it's the middle of September, and the weather isn't going to improve from now on, so my thoughts are turning to pre-winter protection, and first on the "to do" list were my wheels.

 

With a hosepipe ban in place for the foreseeable future, full-on pre-winter detailing becomes more difficult, but wheels and tyres are relatively straightforward with some basic equipment and some elbow grease.

 

This is what I did:

 

Remove the wheel bolt covers.  I used this as an opportunity to check that the wheel bolts were tight, using a torque wrench.

 

Snow foam the wheels, using Bilt Hamber Touch-Less applied with a pump-up sprayer.  Leave for about 15 minutes, then rinse using a watering can or battery-powered pressure washer - I used the latter, a Worx Hydroshot.

 

Clean the wheels (Garage Therapy Wheel Shampoo).  I used two brushes, one being a medium-sized conical wheel brush with which I could scrub the barrels of the wheels - my wheels are Estorils, with diamond-cut spokes, and are fairly "open", so it's easy to get a brush between the spokes.  The faces of the wheels were cleaned with a soft brush.

 

Rinse again, and dry - I used a battery-powered Ryobi leaf blower.  Finish with a microfibre cloth and leave for about 20 minutes to finish drying.

 

Wipe the surfaces with Panel Wipe (Isopropyl Alcohol).  This was part of GTechniq's Wheel Coating  Kit, which also contains a bottle of C5 Wheel Coating and some microfibres cloths.  Then apply the C5 to all of the cleaned surfaces, allow to dry before buffing with a microfibre.

 

Replace the wheel bolt covers, and apply Garage Therapy Tyre Serum to the tyre sidewalls:

 

I drove the car forwards and backwards a couple of times to clear the rust from the disc surfaces.

 

 

It's a long process, all four wheels took more than two hours, but it was necessary, in my view, and will make cleaning much easier over the next few months.  it's the kind of job which is best done before the cold, damp weather sets in.  The C5 will last for around 3-4 months, but as I've put the work in now to get the wheels properly clean to make sure the coating is correctly applied, I'll probably just need a further quick clean and application of C5 some time early in the New Year.

[Dr Mike Oxgreen]

You might have noticed that my valve caps are on the large side - I use a Michelin Fit2Go tyre pressure monitoring system:

 

https://www.demon-tweeks.com/michelin-fit2go-tyre-pressure-checker-micipk-01/?gclsrc=aw.ds&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=22878120919&gbraid=0AAAAAD6hmRwR0k-6HWeNhTzZyZPUdijjT&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIsJHXl8_ulgMVzpdQBh0Ffx6gEAQYAiABEgIKe_D_BwE

 

It's a brilliantly simple way to quickly check your tyre pressures, all you do is fit the caps, and then you can check your tyres by simply touching the sensor against the valve cap.  I've checked mine against a standard tyre pressure gauge, and it's as accurate as you need for a quick check.

 

An added bonus is that it doesn't require you to unscrew the caps, or press a gauge against the valve, which inevitably means losing a small amount of pressure every time you check the tyres.

[omer]

Hi @Booth11, I wanted to ask your opinion about something. Last month, after a long trip, I had quite a lot of bug splatter on the front part of the bonnet. I was on holiday, so I couldn’t wash the car for about a week, and during that time it stayed outside in the heat and sun. I also picked up more bugs on the return trip.

 

I later gave the car a thorough wash and all of the actual bug residue was removed, but two transparent/shadow-like marks remained on the bonnet, as you can see in the photos. It almost looks as if the shape of the bugs has been etched into the clear coat.

 

I tried Swissvax Cleaner Fluid Medium by hand with a foam applicator, working only on those areas. The marks improved noticeably at first, probably by around 30–40%, but the remaining part doesn’t seem to improve anymore. I stopped because I don’t want to keep removing clear coat unnecessarily.

 

Do you think this could be clear coat etching caused by the bug residue sitting in the heat for too long? Should I try a stronger hand compound, or would this need machine polishing?

 

I’ve actually never compounded or polished a car before. Since I enjoy looking after the car myself, I’m also considering buying a small cordless random orbital polisher. Do you think that would make sense for someone like me, or would it be overkill just for a few marks like these? The car is only about a year old and doesn’t have any heavy scratches, but I could also use it in the future for light scratches, local touch-up work and perhaps a light finishing polish once a year. What type of compound/polish would you recommend starting with?

 

 

[Booth11]

13 hours ago, omer said:

 

Hi @Booth11, I wanted to ask your opinion about something. Last month, after a long trip, I had quite a lot of bug splatter on the front part of the bonnet. I was on holiday, so I couldn’t wash the car for about a week, and during that time it stayed outside in the heat and sun. I also picked up more bugs on the return trip.

 

I later gave the car a thorough wash and all of the actual bug residue was removed, but two transparent/shadow-like marks remained on the bonnet, as you can see in the photos. It almost looks as if the shape of the bugs has been etched into the clear coat.

 

I tried Swissvax Cleaner Fluid Medium by hand with a foam applicator, working only on those areas. The marks improved noticeably at first, probably by around 30–40%, but the remaining part doesn’t seem to improve anymore. I stopped because I don’t want to keep removing clear coat unnecessarily.

 

Do you think this could be clear coat etching caused by the bug residue sitting in the heat for too long? Should I try a stronger hand compound, or would this need machine polishing?

 

I’ve actually never compounded or polished a car before. Since I enjoy looking after the car myself, I’m also considering buying a small cordless random orbital polisher. Do you think that would make sense for someone like me, or would it be overkill just for a few marks like these? The car is only about a year old and doesn’t have any heavy scratches, but I could also use it in the future for light scratches, local touch-up work and perhaps a light finishing polish once a year. What type of compound/polish would you recommend starting with?

 

 

Hi Omer 

 

Yes, it’s most likely that those remaining marks are where the bug splatter has etched the clearcoat.  It will need a proper polish to bring those out.  You could try some polish applied by hand and see if that removes it.  It’s hard to say whether you should buy a DA polisher, but imo it’s a good investment if you enjoy looking after your cars and detailing them, and it’s very useful for etching such as this, B Pillars (which mark easily as they’re plastic) and in the longer term, if you decide you want to polish the car to removed any swirls or defects picked up over time.  It’s considerably easier to get out etching marks than hand polishing.  
 

As for polishes and pads, I’ve used many types over the years but really like Scholl pads and polishes S20, S40 etc, and those are my current choice).  Meguairs do some really easy to use polishes, that I think are great for starting out. Do  some homework on DA polishing, there’s lots of good videos out there on techinique and pads and polishes. The rule of thumb is start with the least abrasive combinations and then step up the level of cut if needed.  

[omer]

On 20/09/2026 at 09:53, Booth11 said:

Hi Omer 

 

Yes, it’s most likely that those remaining marks are where the bug splatter has etched the clearcoat.  It will need a proper polish to bring those out.  You could try some polish applied by hand and see if that removes it.  It’s hard to say whether you should buy a DA polisher, but imo it’s a good investment if you enjoy looking after your cars and detailing them, and it’s very useful for etching such as this, B Pillars (which mark easily as they’re plastic) and in the longer term, if you decide you want to polish the car to removed any swirls or defects picked up over time.  It’s considerably easier to get out etching marks than hand polishing.  
 

As for polishes and pads, I’ve used many types over the years but really like Scholl pads and polishes S20, S40 etc, and those are my current choice).  Meguairs do some really easy to use polishes, that I think are great for starting out. Do  some homework on DA polishing, there’s lots of good videos out there on techinique and pads and polishes. The rule of thumb is start with the least abrasive combinations and then step up the level of cut if needed.  

Hi @Booth11,
 

Thanks a lot for your advice and for taking the time to explain everything. It really helped me decide what direction to go in.

I’ve decided to buy an Einhell CP-EP 18/125 Li BL cordless DA polisher. It has a 125 mm backing plate and an 8 mm orbit, so I thought it would be a good and relatively safe machine for me to learn with, while still being useful for larger panels.

For the polishes, I’m planning to get Koch-Chemie F6.01 Fine Cut for the bug etching and other defects, and Koch-Chemie M3.02 Micro Cut for the finishing stage.

My plan is to start with the least aggressive pad/polish combination, especially on the two bug etching marks on the bonnet, and only step up if necessary. I’d also like to use the machine later for light correction, B-pillars and general maintenance polishing.

Does that sound like a sensible setup to you?

[Dr Mike Oxgreen]

Here we are then.  Autumn.  Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness (Shakespeare? Dunno).

 

Also the season of wet leaves, permanent dampness and in this neck of the woods, suicidal pheasants - they'd rather throw themselves under your wheels than be blasted out of the sky by some Barbour clad, Hunter-wellied 'rah.

 

And so my attention has been turned to getting the R ready for a downturn in the weather - a (hose-less, thanks Southern Water) wash yesterday, using Bilt Hamber Phat Neut as a pre-wash, rinsed away using my Worx Hydroshot battery-powered pressure washer and several refills of the two-litre water bottle, which doesn't go very far at all, contact wash (2-bucket, obvs) with GTechniq Ceramic Shampoo, another rinse using a watering can, and towel dry with one of my Gyeon silk drying towels.  I still don't remember buying three of them.

 

The result was, actually, quite good, given the circumstances.  The car was quite grubby, having been to deepest Dorset and a trip to Bicester Outlet Designer Shopping Paradise in the preceding week.  I gave the paintwork a once-over with GTechniq Quick Detailer.  The wheels were treated with GTechniq C5 Wheel Protectant a couple of weeks ago, so they were easy to rinse clean.

 

That was yesterday, and today I've followed up with a clean of the inside of the windscreen, which is probably my least favourite cleaning job, mostly because I had a lumbar fusion several years ago and I'm not as flexible as I was.  I looked on the Tube of You for inspiration, I usually use Stoner's Invisible Glass, but it doesn't seem long before the inside of the screen clouds over again, and at this time of year, with a low sun and headlights coming towards you, it's a pain.  I happened across a chap using a solution of Isopropyl Alcohol and a small amount of dishwashing detergent in water, which seemed like a good idea.  So that's what I've used this time round.  I'll report back on this.

 

I've also finished QD'ing the rest of the exterior, and treated the door seals with Shin-Etsu grease, which is a Honda product for keeping rubber seals supple and water-resistant.  it's a throwback to my S2000 ownership, a tube of Shin-Etsu lasts a long time, which is just as well, because it's quite expensive.  Apparently, Garage Therapy Tyre Serum also works well on rubber seals, but I'll use up the Honda stuff first.

 

That's all I have to report from this week's detailing endeavours.  I'm still hoping for a relaxation of the hosepipe ban, but I can't see that happening any time soon.

[Booth11]

Yes autumn is here, and so far, a sunny one in the far south east corner of our fair isle.  Damp, but still gloriously sunny between the welcome rains and the garden is all the better for the recent rain after the parched arid summer. The previous brown crispy lawn (it sounded like walking on dry cornflakes) has greened up nicely with some rain, but in the drought, the weeds have massively out competed the grass! 
 

On the subject of wet leaves, I found a nice cluster of them clogging the drain hole at the end of the scuttle panel and had to enlist a special tool to tease them out - tweezers.   
 

As for the rest of the car, well it’s been a while since it saw a wash mitt (nearly 2 months) but had actually remained relatively clean for the most part but latterly slipped into grimy territory,  and so it was time to lug out buckets, watering cans (yes hosepipe ban also still in effect in Kent) and other cleansing paraphernalia, plus the Worx Hydroshot and IK e- foamer. 
 

Pre sprayed the Warmenaus with Angelwax Bilberry Wheel Cleaner, dwelled, then a coat of Bilt Hamber Touchless applied via IK e-foamer, rinsed off, then a bucket wash with ValetPro Concentrated shampoo (run out of Garage Therapy Wheel Shampoo - must get some more as I do love the stuff), wheel woolies, wheel brush and my beloved Dooka Oksa lambswool wheel mitt 🩶 and then a fresh rinse. 

 

Attention then turned to the rest of the car.  IK e-foamer refilled with Touchless (had used up was was left in it from previous wash) and back on duty after its short respite.  Since the use of Fritz, my Kranzle pressure washer, and a proper snow foam lance is off limits because of themaforementioned water restrictions, the IK is a big help and the auto pressurisation saves a lot of effort!   With the car coated with the wonderful Touchless, it was left it to dwell for a few mins whilst I refilled buckets and watering cans, and prepped my shampoo bucket.  Then rinsed the car off with the Hydroshot.  
 

Bucket wash with my big Dooka Osha wash pad which glided smoothly over the paintwork lifted off the crud.  Rinsed and then final rinse with watering cans.  Not much standing water left but blotted what little there was with Gyeon Silk Dryer Evo towels, using the smaller one for the wheels. 

With the car fully dry, the tyres the tyres a couple coats of Gyeon Tire and then cleared all the gear away, and took a few pics of course (I know I’m a sad individual). 😄

 

No protection applied this time, as the Angelwax Enigma and whatever I last topped it with (🤔) is holding up extremely well and still getting great beading, much to my delight (I said I was sad).  

 

Prior to washing, I had to relocate Boris the spider from his/her abode in the crook of the underside of the rear wing.  Boris has now made a new home on the verandah, which he did with great haste and is pretty impressive!  He may or may not decide to move back to the car - time will tell!  

The results: