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Review of New Car Wash Wedge and H2O Guard & Gloss.


mtnbiker326

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Good Afternoon Adam's Family & Enthusiasts...

 

I completed a quick (1.5hr) 2 bucket wash, clay and seal using the new Car Wash Wedge and H2O Guard & Gloss.

 

Below is a quick review of both products, as they fit into this particular car washing routine.

 

First off, I want to document the state of my vehicle prior to washing and sealing and my initial thoughts on the 2 products.

 

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There is a decent amount of build up of dirt, bird droppings (x4+), brake dust, etc.

 

When I received the box with all my products, I was stoked (as usual).  I opened the box and found my car wash wedges and H2O Guard & Gloss.  At first glance, I was kinda turned off by the foam fingers themselves (within the wash wedge pad) and thought that they would be terrible (compared to the car wash mitts/pads).  It took a few calls to Ben (Adam's AWESOME CS and Sales Agent) and having my fears and questions answered (while the soap was building in the bucket, literally) for me to press forward with the wash wedge.  The H2O Guard & Gloss was a little bit trickier to understand.  By this I mean, I was wondering (and asked Ben) how do you pay attention to one panel at a time (using this product) while the rest of the car is in the sun and water is drying (hard water) on the rest of the panels, you just washed and clayed?  After a few minutes of discussion with it, I found most of the answers I needed to move forward.  Always keep the car wet (without getting the parts you just dried wet) and move somewhat quickly (as you are not putting all that much product on the car to begin with).

 

The products I used for this project are below.  (including a small kwazar full of Detail Spray)

 

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Starting off I worked on the wheels.  I knocked down the brake dust and grime with DWC and the newer red bristle wheel brush.  BTW, the Red wheel brush is AMAZING.  It has ACTUALLY saved me money in the amount of DWC I have to use on each wheel, just to get the brake dust off.  I went from using almost an entire 16oz bottle of DWC PER WASH to now using 4-6 oz.  THAT IS AWESOME.

 

Ok, getting back to the real review.  After cleaning the wheels themselves and hitting the tires with some APC (and blue tire brush) and Tire Shine (after the wash was complete), I moved on to the actual washing of the vehicle.

 

Since I had been using Rinseless Wash regularly with this vehicle, I figured that I needed to strip off whatever wax was on the paint to begin with, that way the rest of the review could take place correctly.  To do this, I used my foam gun and the 2 Bucket Wash method.  I added about 3-4 oz of full strength APC to the foam gun (just to be sure) and another 5-7 oz into the wash bucket (being thorough).

 

I then began my routine 2 bucket wash (with the wedge standing in for my wash pads).  I used Adam's "Old" Car Shampoo, in the small travel bottle.  I have to say, after knocking out a few panels, I LOVE this wedge.  I can do multiple panels (lightly dirty) with one trip to the buckets.  Once I got to the belt-line, I did have to go back much more frequently.  However, going back to the buckets was much easier and I didn't have to waste as much time rubbing a (two-sided) mitt or pad against each grit-guard, just the wedge itself.  The bug guts and dirt came off effortlessly and the wedge was ready to go again, without any issues.  After completing my wash, I did notice one small point that stood out for the wedge.  That is, the small foam "fingers" were small enough for the wedge to fit in between and clean each of the fins within my BMW kidney grills, up front.  That made me so happy.  I could clean 4 or 5 ribs in a single swipe (a little pressure to fit the fingers in between).  It was awesome.

 

As a point to note, I did see that after completing the wash, the car wash wedge fingers were a little tangled up and it was a little tricky to get them separated again.  (If anyone has a suggestion on this point, I would love to hear it)

 

So, on to claying.  I was initially going to also include the new blue clay bar as a part of this review, but I still have a few standard clay bar boxes laying around so I decided to use up my old stock first and review it later.  

 

I decided, for the purpose of this review, to keep the claying technique constant and focused towards the Adam's Purists.  I used nothing but Detail Spray as a lubricant, that way there would be no issues with the claying process or this part of the review (even though I prefer waterless/rinseless wash for my claying lubricant).

 

I clayed the entire car, from top to bottom (except wheels... wish I had time to take them off and seal them... need to get on that... after a year of promises to myself :(  ).

 

After the clay, I rinsed the entire car off and prepped for the H2O Guard & Gloss sealant treatment.  I started on the hot side of the car (as I wanted to get that water off QUICKLY).  I used my go-to towels for this job, my boarder-less blues and a Great White.  I started out spraying 4 or 5 sprays on each panel and found that most of it was soaking into the (prepped) damp boarder-less blue and wasn't being as effective as less.  (a tip shared by Ben prior to starting)  So less is more and even less than I thought was "less".  After the first few panels, I started using 2 or 3 sprays on each panel (depending on size).  It worked like a charm.  I love this new product.  It saves me from drying the car and then putting quick sealant or pain sealant (with my Flex) on top, as an additional, time consuming step.  I have yet to see how long the sealant will last, but I will be using my Rinseless Wash here soon, in order to build up a layer of wax on top, to further strengthen and postpone degradation of the sealant from the Guard & Gloss.

 

Overall, I couldn't be happier with this product.  I will state, though, that if you are doing this outside, do it in the morning or early evening as you will avoid water spots (with harder water regions).  I regret that in my haste, I didn't remove all of the water quick enough on the roof and have a few spots sealed underneath the Guard & Gloss and will need to be removed with another clay session and paint correction (already planned and needed, regardless).

 

So, on to the results... Here is my car with the 2 bucket wash, clay, and sealant applied.  I do say it does shine up nicely.  This doesn't have any additional detail spray, wax or glaze on it.  I wish I had time to perform a Full Face-Melter.  Next time, I guess.

 

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In conclusion, these two products, the New Car Wash Wedge and H2O Guard & Gloss are worth their weight in the toolbox of the Adam's Car Cleaning Garage (or other space ;) ).  I highly recommend each of them and praise their engineering and creative teams for the R&D put into them.

 

If you have any questions regarding either of these, Adam's Reps will be more than happy to help (as will I, via these threads).

 

Thanks for reading and enjoy the polishing!

Edited by mtnbiker326
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Great review.

 

One tip to save yourself from stressing about the wet application and water spots or having to work early or late.

 

Dry the car off like you normally would then just do the dry application process outlined in the video. Sure, its an additional step, but it also keeps you from having to rush around or worry about getting water on already dry surfaces once you've dried so in the overall scheme it would probably be more efficient to go that way.

 

On the tangled wedge 'fingers' I've found that giving the pad a vigorous shake while its still wet will free up most of them. Almost do a throwing motion with the wedge in your hand.

 

In any event glad to hear you enjoyed the products.

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With the vehicle already dried, is there any benefit to misting a single dry panel with water and then spraying the HGG, rather than using the "dry application method" shown in the video?

 

Not really.

 

I get it... spraying the wet panels is fun to watch, I love it. However, drying a vehicle, then spraying water, then spraying product pretty much defeats the purpose this product was designed with: EFFICIENCY.

 

I've done both dry and wet application of the product on the same vehicle and seen identical performance. I say always apply it in the method that provides the best result with the least amount of effort. If not contending with heat/sun then go wet application - if you are then dry the vehicle and apply the product dry.

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Nice review Chris. Thanks for taking the time. Just a side note though, you seem to talk about the Rinseless Wash like it offers some kind of paint protection. Do I understand you correctly? or Does it actually? I know the product description says it has polymers in it but I don't know if that is the same thing as protection.

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Nice review Chris. Thanks for taking the time. Just a side note though, you seem to talk about the Rinseless Wash like it offers some kind of paint protection. Do I understand you correctly? or Does it actually? I know the product description says it has polymers in it but I don't know if that is the same thing as protection.

It offers minor protection like DS.  Not something you'd want to use as an LSP.

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RW contains a certain amount of carnauba, mostly for lubrication, but as a byproduct some of the wax is deposited on the surface as you clean, which is why after a RW your paint tends to look a little glossier. Like Matt mentioned, I wouldn't rely on it for your only protection, but it certainly is a nice little booster between full details.

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I did the Jeep this weekend as well.   I did not use the wedge as, well, I forgot I ordered it and didn't open the box until after I was done washing.   yeah, I know.

 

Anyway, on to the H2O gloss.

 

Con:

The smell could be better.

It's kind of hard to see where I hit and where I missed on a white vehicle in the bright Florida sun.

That's it.

 

Pros:

Smell isn't bad.

Makes drying the vehicle stupidly easy.  To the point that you don't even really dry it anymore.

Leaves zero streaks and no white film on the trim.

 

one question I have, is how often can you use it?  Is there any reason to worry about build up if you used it say once per month? 

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I ended up using the wash wedge this weekend and at first I had my doubts but I have now found my favorite wash pad or wedge rather. This thing releases dirt so much better than the wool pads. I accidentally washed too far down the passengers side door where it was extremely dirty. I was a little worried the dirt wouldn't come out, went to rinse bucket and bam! Clean just like new! Definitely liking the new wash wedge.

Edited by SJC96GT
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I did the Jeep this weekend as well.   I did not use the wedge as, well, I forgot I ordered it and didn't open the box until after I was done washing.   yeah, I know.

 

Anyway, on to the H2O gloss.

 

Con:

The smell could be better.

It's kind of hard to see where I hit and where I missed on a white vehicle in the bright Florida sun.

That's it.

 

Pros:

Smell isn't bad.

Makes drying the vehicle stupidly easy.  To the point that you don't even really dry it anymore.

Leaves zero streaks and no white film on the trim.

 

one question I have, is how often can you use it?  Is there any reason to worry about build up if you used it say once per month? 

You can use it every wash, but I don't see why.  I would just use DS as there is no need to apply a sealant every time you wash.

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So here my idea I thought about doing with my H20 after I dry my truck have a spray bottle of water then spray one panel at a time vs wetting the whole truck or I'm going do the dry truck and just spray h20 on my towel then do panels

Edited by Nctom
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So here my idea I thought about doing with my H20 after I dry my truck have a spray bottle of water then spray one panel at a time vs wetting the whole truck or I'm going do the dry truck and just spray h20 on my towel then do panels

Just use the dry application method, using one damp double soft and one dry double soft. Like you said spray HGG onto damp towel, apply to one panel of car then remove excess with dry towel. Then move onto next panel.

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You can use it every wash, but I don't see why.  I would just use DS as there is no need to apply a sealant every time you wash.

I've found myself a vehicle that actually looks better dirty, than clean, so I really only wash it every 3 weeks or so.  And as easy as DS makes drying, this stuff is a whole other level.

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Nice review Chris. Thanks for taking the time. Just a side note though, you seem to talk about the Rinseless Wash like it offers some kind of paint protection. Do I understand you correctly? or Does it actually? I know the product description says it has polymers in it but I don't know if that is the same thing as protection.

 

Hey Fito...  Sorry for the confusion.  I was just stating that I wanted to take (whatever "protection") or shine treatment off my paint before reviewing the HGG.

 

The paint was sealed with Liquid Paint Sealant and applied with a Cyclo (before this review).  I wanted to remove whatever was left of that protection and the small amount of "gloss" elements from my countless rinseless washes.  (if that makes sense)

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I did the Jeep this weekend as well.   I did not use the wedge as, well, I forgot I ordered it and didn't open the box until after I was done washing.   yeah, I know.

 

Anyway, on to the H2O gloss.

 

Con:

The smell could be better.

It's kind of hard to see where I hit and where I missed on a white vehicle in the bright Florida sun.

That's it.

 

Pros:

Smell isn't bad.

Makes drying the vehicle stupidly easy.  To the point that you don't even really dry it anymore.

Leaves zero streaks and no white film on the trim.

 

one question I have, is how often can you use it?  Is there any reason to worry about build up if you used it say once per month? 

 

From what I have heard from Adam's CS... It should last at least a few months if not longer (per application).  I wouldn't recommend using it with every wash.  You are just adding additional layers for no reason (and wasting product).  I agree with others using DS and possibly some wax and glaze (full face-melter).

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Great review.

 

One tip to save yourself from stressing about the wet application and water spots or having to work early or late.

 

Dry the car off like you normally would then just do the dry application process outlined in the video. Sure, its an additional step, but it also keeps you from having to rush around or worry about getting water on already dry surfaces once you've dried so in the overall scheme it would probably be more efficient to go that way.

 

On the tangled wedge 'fingers' I've found that giving the pad a vigorous shake while its still wet will free up most of them. Almost do a throwing motion with the wedge in your hand.

 

In any event glad to hear you enjoyed the products.

 

That is GREAT advice.  I can report that after doing so, my wedge is back to pristine condition and looks great.  Thanks The Shine Doc!

 

Next time, I will attempt the dry method.  The wet method was the one demonstrated in the video and recommended by Ben (at Adam's) to try first.

Edited by mtnbiker326
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^only thing I disagree with Chris.

 

Personally my regimen includes adding small layers of protection almost continuously, and a product like this which doesn't build up is perfect for someone like me.

 

Either as a booster for LPS or as a continuous standalone way to build protection from contaminants on the surface it's def the most efficient Adams product to date.

 

My traditional waxes are long gone and gathering dust (in a daily driver sense). Wash, dry, and seal in the same step? Boom!

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That is GREAT advice. I can report that after doing so, my wedge is back to pristine condition and looks great. Thanks The Shine Doc!

 

Next time, I will attempt the dry method. The wet method was the one demonstrated in the video and recommended by Ben (at Adam's) to try first.

The video demonstrates both methods...
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The video demonstrates both methods...

 

Yes it does... Since it was recommended that I try the "wet" method first, I only watched the first half.  Afterwards, I reviewed it and have concluded that the "dry" method will be attempted next (tomorrow).

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