Quick pressure wash with tap water - any issues?

[spon88]

I wash my mountain bike with a mini pressure washer after riding most weekends. I also take the opportunity to pressure wash the nether regions of my M3P to remove salt and other road crud - but it's not a full wash and I don't dry it. This is just to get through to full washes every three weeks or so when I do a proper two bucket job.

Is tap water a problem with respect to residues and is it better to simply leave the crud in place until I can do the proper wash? The car has PPF and ceramic and a quick whizz with the pressure washer removes most of the crud from the car.

I'm aware there are some keen car washing guys on here so thought I'd get a bit of advice. To be fair, I haven't seen any residues on the car using the above but then it typically gets another rinse from the heavens pretty soon afterwards. Cheers

 

[Glan gluaisne]

I've found it will leave water spots if allowed to dry (our water is fairly hard) but that a spray bottle filled with some rinse aid/wax stuff stops them forming. I bought a 5 litre can of this cheap stuff ages ago: CAR VALETING WAX RINSE ULTRA. 1 LITRE POLYMER WAX ADDITIVE .SPRAY ON WAX | eBay and just keep some diluted in a hand held fine spray bottle. After power washing the car, I spray it lightly with some of this stuff, then give it a very quick rinse with the power washer again. Seems to reduce water spotting, and does a reasonable job (by my standards).

 

[Medved_77]

No issues if you've got PPF covering your nether regions

Normally you'd be concerned about water spots, but chances of those occurring on PPF with Ceramic are greatly reduced.

Generally not great to blast dirt immediately with a pressure washer as it could mar/scratch as it's dislodged, but the PPF will protect you from this.

As it's little extra effort, you could blast with snow foam first to loosen the dirt then rinse, would strongly suggest that if the PPF wasn't in place.

 

[spon88]

Cheers folks. I'll keep on with a quick blast to get the crud off and monitor for anything adverse. I like the idea of rinse aid and I'll give that a whirl if I get any spotting which isn't easily removable. I think the ceramic/PPF will keep me right as you say. Cheers!

 

[Medved_77]

Cheers folks. I'll keep on with a quick blast to get the crud off and monitor for anything adverse. I like the idea of rinse aid and I'll give that a whirl if I get any spotting which isn't easily removable. I think the ceramic/PPF will keep me right as you say. Cheers!

Not sure how hard your water is but there are filters that you can add inline. That would benefit the quick rinse and the proper 3 weekly wash.

 

[spon88]

Not sure how hard your water is but there are filters that you can add inline. That would benefit the quick rinse and the proper 3 weekly wash.

Interesting. I use a Worx mini washer for the bike and ad hoc car rinses (from a bucket) and then a full on hose job for the main car wash. So ideally that would need to be something I could connect to the outside tap without too much hassle. Any links to such a device please? I'm keen not to go OTT but will certainly take a look! Our water is medium/soft. The Worx mini washer is an excellent bit of kit for what it's worth

 

[Dilly]

Only an issue if the wife is taking a shower...

 

[nxsynjs]

Snow foam (I use bilt hamber) is your friend. Dirt and stuff will just wash away without a need to directly spray it off, and reduces the risk of water spots. Spraying directly onto paint with any sort of pressure washer and Tesla paint is asking for trouble imo

 

[Medved_77]

Interesting. I use a Worx mini washer for the bike and ad hoc car rinses (from a bucket) and then a full on hose job for the main car wash. So ideally that would need to be something I could connect to the outside tap without too much hassle. Any links to such a device please? I'm keen not to go OTT but will certainly take a look! Our water is medium/soft. The Worx mini washer is an excellent bit of kit for what it's worth

Something like this:

Aqua Gleam 0ppm De-ionising Water Filter (12 Inch & 30 Inch) | Ultimate Finish

I live in a soft water area so haven't owned one before, maybe someone else that has can share their experiences?

 

[spon88]

Something like this:

Aqua Gleam 0ppm De-ionising Water Filter (12 Inch & 30 Inch) | Ultimate Finish

I live in a soft water area so haven't owned one before, maybe someone else that has can share their experiences?

Lovely thanks. Looks like it could be mounted externally without too much trouble. Not sure how long it lasts but I'll do a bit of research. Cheers

 

[Durzel]

I’d rather have water spots on the car than road salt festering.

 

[Silicon Desert]

No issues if you've got PPF covering your nether regions

Normally you'd be concerned about water spots, but chances of those occurring on PPF with Ceramic are greatly reduced.

Well actually the spots are still there and depending on the color, you do see them (I have PPF and see them with tap water). I use an inline filter on my hose line to filter the water and I no longer see spots.

 

[Silicon Desert]

Something like this:

Aqua Gleam 0ppm De-ionising Water Filter (12 Inch & 30 Inch) | Ultimate Finish

I live in a soft water area so haven't owned one before, maybe someone else that has can share their experiences?

yes, I use a similar filter that has 1/2 inch hose connections on each end. Works great.

 

[Medved_77]

Well actually the spots are still there and depending on the color, you do see them (I have PPF and see them with tap water). I use an inline filter on my hose line to filter the water and I no longer see spots.

In warm climates I expect water spots to be more of an issue, even with a ceramic coating.

I guess it's pretty hot where you are?

 

[Silicon Desert]

In warm climates I expect water spots to be more of an issue, even with a ceramic coating.

I guess it's pretty hot where you are?

perhaps correct for some areas. Yes, it is hot in the summer and really cold in the winter, yet we don't see a change in the percentage of water chemicals when we test it. I see just as many spots in the dead of winter if I don't use the filter.

And by the way, Scotland.... a beautiful place to visit. Ancestors from there.

 

[Neilda]

I bought one of these

CAMCO 40043 TastePURE Water Filter With Flexible Hose Protector for sale online | eBay

Much cheaper than most filters and does the job perfectly. I have incredibly hard water from a private reservoir, so a filter is needed for car washing.