How to wash your vehicle yourself – basic rules and tips

It is precisely then that the exterior of a vehicle can be presented in the right light when the paint shines and the rims are a highlight. The interior of a vehicle can also catch the eye if you take care of the upholstery, dust is removed from the dashboard and the windows are free of grease.

Some vehicle owners prefer to have their vehicle cleaned at a car wash. The cleaning time is usually only a few minutes, but you will gladly pay ten euros or more for cleaning with a professional car wash. In addition, some vehicle owners complain that the brushes in the car wash are too coarse and can damage the vehicle's paintwork in the long term. If this is the case, it becomes difficult to prove to the owner of the car wash that the car wash caused this damage to the paintwork. So who is going to pay for the costs that you now face if the paintwork has actually been severely damaged? But the opposite also often happens: you pay for a car wash, the vehicle comes out of the car wash and large areas of dirt have not been removed at all. Especially when it comes to rims, vehicle owners often experience that the brushes in the car wash are not able to clean the rims of dust and road dirt optimally.

So to be on the safe side, that your vehicle too cleaning the vehicle yourself is a good idea.

Many vehicle owners prefer this type of car wash because they like to spend time with their vehicle and polishing the body to a high gloss. Although this task is time-consuming, you save money and know that you will be satisfied with the result of the work.

So you want to get to work, but you don't know what you're doing when you wash of your vehicle have to pay attention to everything? Are you missing useful tips?

In the following we would like to go into the points that you should pay attention to when washing the car.

Do you need care products to wash the car?

Actually, you can also use cleaning products that are used for the household to clean the vehicle. Of course, you should avoid using a sponge that is too coarse-grained to avoid small scratches to clean the paintwork on the body. Of course, caustic cleaning agents are also not intended for working on the upholstery. It is best to opt for cleaning products that you would also use to clean the couch in your living room. But if you want to be on the safe side, you should always opt for specially designed care products for the paintwork, rims and upholstery of the car.

These products are specially made to treat the paintwork of the vehicle gently, to avoid damage and to enable optimal cleaning of the rims and ensure cleaning of the upholstery without stains or unpleasant odors later on. In order to buy the right care products for cleaning the vehicle, you can turn to online shops or petrol stations or various workshops. Here you will find everything you will need for a high-quality cleaning of the exterior and interior.

What should I consider when washing my vehicle?

It is important to mention here that cleaning the vehicle at home is only possible to a limited extent. Although there is no general ban on washing the vehicle at home, i.e. in the garden or in the garage, care should be taken to ensure that contamination of the groundwater can be ruled out. If it turns out that you wash your car with environmentally harmful cleaning products and this water then gets into the groundwater, you have to reckon with the consequences. To avoid this, we recommend only buying high-quality care products that are also approved for cleaning the vehicle and that the vehicle is not washed in the garden or in the garage, but in a special self-service box, a self-wash box, to perform. These self-service boxes are usually available where there is also a car wash. There's also easy access to running water here, so you don't have to worry about a water hose. Using a self-service box usually only costs a few euros.

When you wash your car, make sure that you always use lukewarm water and not cold. This means that the dirt can be removed from the body much better. We also recommend that you always wash from top to bottom.

If you have not bought car wash care products, you can also use household products to clean the body. However, we strongly advise against using Pril, as washing-up liquid contains the substance benzisothiazolinone, which attacks the vehicle's paintwork. This also destroys the vehicle's layer of grease, which is supposed to protect the paintwork.

Using vinegar is usually recommended for cleaning fabric seats. You can leave it on for a few minutes and then wash it out. However, make sure that you dab and do not rub!

However, you should use leather cleaner to clean leather seats. Alternatively, baby wipes or curd soap can help as an emergency solution. Make sure that you then dab the leather with a drying cloth.

As for the windows of the vehicle, you should have a bucket of lukewarm water ready and add a dash of mineral spirits. Now use a microfiber cloth that you only slightly moisten in the water with petroleum ether. Make sure you work without streaks and leave no fingerprints.

Finally, there are still the rims that need to be cleaned. Large and bright rims in particular look particularly good when they are clean and shiny. When cleaning the rims, you should make sure not to use alkaline or acidic rim cleaners. The surface of the rim could be attacked here. If you don't have a rim cleaner, you can alternatively use normal all-purpose cleaners, which should have a high grease-dissolving power.

The conclusion and a tip from CarTipsandmore: Finally, it can be said that washing a vehicle at home for many car owners is the best choice. It saves money, makes particularly thorough cleaning possible and protects the paintwork. CarTipsandmore recommends using toothpaste to clean aluminum rims, as this is particularly good at removing brake dust.